Finding the pictographs in Grotto Canyon, Kananaskis
Partway into Grotto Canyon, faded red figures are painted on the rock wall. They are easy to walk past, especially when snow glare fills the canyon. This guide covers what to look for and what is known, and not known, about who painted them.
Red figures on grey rock
The Grotto Canyon pictographs are small images painted on the limestone wall in red ochre, a pigment made from iron-rich earth. The paint has faded over a long time, so the figures look pale rust against the grey stone.
They are modest in size and faded with age. Do not expect a large painted panel, since the figures are easy to miss until someone points them out, even for people who know roughly where to look.
Paintings like these are a form of rock art. The word pictograph means the image was painted onto the rock, as opposed to a petroglyph that is carved or pecked into the stone.
Where they sit in the canyon
The figures are on the wall partway into the canyon, on the way to the frozen falls. You pass them on the walk in, so look up at the walls rather than at your feet once the rock closes in around you.
Snow and sun change how easy they are to spot. On a bright day the glare off the ice washes out pale reds, and frost on the rock can make the paint harder to see. Sunglasses help, and the clothing guide explains why they belong in your bag.
A guide who walks the canyon often knows the exact spot. Discover Banff Tours says on its listing that the guide shows the pictographs, and the 1000HOST listing names ancient Indigenous pictographs among the sights of its walk.
Who painted them
Nobody can say for certain who made the paintings or when. According to the Discover Banff Tours listing, the most likely painters were Hopi people visiting from Arizona, a long way south of the Rockies.
Treat that as the listing's claim rather than a settled fact. The origin of the figures is debated, and other accounts tie the canyon to the First Nations of the Bow Valley instead.
A guide may tell the story in different ways depending on what they have read. Ask where the information comes from, since a good guide will separate what is known from what is guesswork.
The Bow Valley's First Nations
The Bow Valley has long been home to the Stoney Nakoda, whose lands lie east of Canmore. The valley was a travel and hunting route through the mountains long before the towns and the highway arrived.
Rock paintings in this region can carry meaning for Indigenous communities that a visitor's eye will not read. Approach them with curiosity and a quiet voice, giving them the respect you would give a place of worship.
Ask your guide what they know about the people of the valley. Treat any confident single story with some care, because much of the history is not written down in the places tourists usually look.
Look, do not touch
The pictographs have lasted on an open canyon wall through many winters, and careless visitors are now a bigger threat than the weather. Oils and salt on your skin break down old paint, even from a single touch.
Keep your hands and gloves off the rock near the figures. Never use chalk or a rubbing to make them clearer, because a photo with the contrast raised later does the same job safely.
Watch your poles and cleats as well. A pole swung near the wall or a slip against the rock can scrape off paint, so stand back a step and let others pass on the ice. The ice cleat rules cover safe footing on the creek.
Photos that show the paint
Red ochre on grey rock is low in contrast, so phone photos often come out flat. Stand at a slight angle to the wall and shade the lens from glare with your hand.
Turn off the flash, because its light bounces off frost and washes the color out. Take a few shots at slightly different exposures, then brighten the reds at home rather than on the ice with cold fingers.
Cold drains phone batteries quickly. Keep the phone inside your jacket between shots so it still works when you reach the frozen falls further up the canyon.
Seeing them on a guided walk
Every tour on this site walks past the pictographs, since they lie on the route to the falls. The difference is how long the group stops and how much the guide explains.
Discover Banff Tours from ~$78 names the pictographs on its listing and keeps groups to 12. The Canmore Raft Tours walk from ~$93 spends about 2.5 hours in the canyon, which leaves time to stop and look.
A van day with canyon art on the list
1000HOST runs a 3–4 hour trip with meeting points in Banff and Canmore, plus one in Calgary, from ~$106. The listing covers the park fee and lunch as well as bottled water and ice cleats. Viator shows 5.0 from five reviews, and confirmation can take up to 48 hours.
Reviewers of 1000HOST's ice walk describe scenic stops before the canyon, so the time on the ice may be shorter than the trip length suggests. The price comparison sets all four tours side by side.
Walking on your own, you need to find the figures without help. Read the self-guided page first, and the Johnston Canyon comparison if you are weighing Grotto against the busier canyon in Banff National Park.