When driving from Jasper National Park to Kamloops which is the best road for scenery?

Sure, Banff to Jasper is your opportunity to see the most wildlife you will ever see on a drive because the highway is all within the National Park. However, BC is breathtaking everywhere and you are best not doubling back over your tracks but rather soaking in as much as you can. For instance, the Highway 16 route offers Mount Robson Provincial Park and the Highest point in the Canadian Rockies. It's not just high, I award it the best breathtaking scenery in the region.

However, you do have to listen to the weather for that time of year and take the day by day conditions into account for your choices.

If you are truly looking for scenery you are on the right track. Avoid the Calgary to Edmonton drive and don't double back on your route.

93 and 1 gets my vote for scenery. Lake Louise is truly stunning. More mountains on 93/1. More possibility of snow high up, too, not a really good chance by April but still possible. Make them put snow tires on your rental car especially if this is early April, don't let them get away with all-season tires which are not made for cold conditions. Yellowhead west(16) and then Yellowhead south(5) or 97 south is nice but not as dramatic for the most part as 93 and 1 in my opinion. How about going from Calgary to Edmonton and then to Jasper(400 km total, about 250 miles), and then down through Lake Louise and Banff? That way you see it all, and don't go the same way twice. Though really, if you haven't been here before, it's pretty hard to avoid great scenery in BC and Alberta.

When you get to the Calgary Airport, where I am assuming that you're arriving, look for 16th Avenue West, and this will eventually turn into the Trans Canada Highway. Look for the signs that turn off to Banff National Park. When you turn off and head towards this area, you will see more and more of the foothills coming up. You will first go through Kananasksis and then you will go through Canmore, which is a small little town nestled in the foothills.

When you get to the entrance of Banff, you're going to go through a toll section. At this point, there are fees that you will have to pay in order to do things within Banff. Just slightly after the town of Banff I believe, there is the exit for Lake Louise. Within these two boundaries, there will be the road from Banff up to the Ice Fields, which is a very pretty road with some glaciers and some other activities. This will lead you up to Jasper, and then you would be able to stay in Jasper.

The town of Banff is a beautiful little mountain village, and sees a fair bit of action both during the summer months, and the winter months when there is skiing.

There are actually a couple different ways that you can go through to Kamloops from the foothills. I will outline all of them, and that way you can make a consecutive decision of which one you would rather take.

Highway One (aka Trans Canada Hwy) -- you would have to go back down the Icefields and then back on to the Trans Canada Highway. You would go through several of small mountain villages and a couple more national parks which are quite pretty. You would go through Yoho National Park, followed by Glacier National Park. In this stretch, you will come across Rogers Pass where there was a very famous avalanche that happened a long time ago,and you will therefore find a couple of tunnels this way, and you will also go by Field, and a couple other very small communities. Then you will end up getting through to Golden and then Revelstoke. You can continue until you start getting down towards Thompson Okanagan, and look for the signs that will take you towards Kamloops. There will be signs that will lead you towards which road to take from here to Kamloops.

Highway 5 aka Yellow Head Highway -- You can go from Jasper city limits down to the border of Highway 5 and then you will go through Mount Robson, then Clearwater (Wells Gray Park), then Valemount, Blue River, Avola, Birch Island, Little Fort, Heffly Creek, and many other small cities and towns down the way.

Highway 5 would be the prettiest as there are lots of mountains, and particularly the towering Mount Robson. Also if you go down this way, you're probably going to see a lot of wildlife especially around the Jasper area. You may see mountain goat, black and grizzly bears, deer, elk, moose and many other sorts of animals. This route also goes by several of lakes and rivers as well as through the mountains.

I think that the 93/ 1 is better for scenery and wildlife. I love driving this area, it is so beautiful. Saw lots of deer and big horn sheep just off the 93 last week.

Just wanted to add that you should be sure to check road conditions before you set out, yes it will be spring, but there's always a chance for snow & for roads to be closed.

BC: www.drivebc.ca

Alberta: www.ama.ab.ca/road_report/road_reports_main.htm

If you have seen Banff, while Jasper is really nice, it is not enough special to go that way. Highway 16 is great too but the roiad through Radium Hot Springs is better.

After you see Lake Louise, take highway 1 to the Radium Hot Springs turnoff and go through there and then get on highway 3 to Hope. You may want to spend a night in Nelson or Cranbrook.

Yeah it might be right