Castle Mountain is situated half-way between
Lake Louise and Banff Park of the
Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies. If you are standing and looking from the viewpoint of the Trans-Canada Highway, then the mountain may seem impenetrable. But in fact, anyone can ascend on the backside of the Northeastern slopes or on the eastern side where hikers can take the Rockbound Lake to reach the top.
In 1858, it was James Hector who named the beautiful mountain, as "Castle Mountain" because of the castle like shape of the mountain. Then after the war in order to honor U.S President Dwight D. Eisenhower, they changed the name of the mountain to Mount Eisenhower, and this was by instigated by Canada's Prime Minister W.L Mackenzie-King. Then only due to public persistence, it was changed again to its original name and only the isolated pinnacle is called Eisenhower Tower now.
Castle Mountain represents the official start of the Rockies in
Alberta,
Canada. It has steep slopes and the layers are almost horizontal. Ever since the formation of Castle Mountain, nature has sculpted it continuously. Weathering has actually accentuated its castellated appearance by dividing the summit into quite a few peaks. The glaciers helped in smoothing some of rough edges. At the back of the mountain there is a large glacial bowl where you can find the blue waters of Rockbound Lake, which reflect the surrounding peaks.
