Hiking the Iconic Vision Quest near Nordegg

If you’re looking for a short and very challenging hike near Nordegg with amazing views then Vision Quest is only a 30-minute drive from Nordegg.

Vision Quest is one of our favourite hikes in the area because of the incredible view of Abraham Lake that you get from the top.

Vision Quest is definitely a bucket list hike for many Albertans and if you’re coming from afar or even abroad this one’s a must.

If you’re looking for a challenge but also incredible views this is the one. It’s a fairly short hike as the full trip is just over 6km but the uphill makes it an absolute battle the whole way up!

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Everything you need to know about Vision Quest

There aren’t many flat parts on this hike near Abraham Lake which can make it quite difficult but you’ll be rewarded with the most breathtaking views at the top.

Luckily, the whole way up you are never really in any dense bush or forest so whenever you take a break, you will be able to enjoy the views of Abraham Lake the entire way to the top.

After about 30-45 minutes of hiking (depending on your level of fitness), you will be able to see what looks like the summit. This actually isn’t the summit but what is called “the false summit”.

You won’t be able to see the real summit till you’re almost at the fake summit but once you get to that part of the hike the real summit isn’t far at all.

Right near the false summit of this Abraham Lake Hike, you will see a red ribbon on a tree (easily visible).

From there you just keep continuing up along the ridgeline until you find the summit register (little metal box) which is essentially the “false summit” for Vision Quest. 

Practical information about Vision Quest

Distance: 6.3 km return / 3.9 miles return
Elevation: 851 m / 2792 ft. elevation gain
Type: In-and-out trail
Length: 4-6 hours return
Difficulty: Hard (The elevation is a lot)
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Click here to see a map of the beginning of the Vision Quest hike.

Here’s a picture of the beginning of the Vision Quest hike:

Starting in the Vision Quest parking lot

Once you finally find the parking lot (it’s not that bad to find) just use this Vision Quest trail map to make sure you’re at the right spot.

There will be a tiny little gravel/dirt parking area with some fences and a portable toilet.

You’ll see a few signs and even a little sign pointing up towards Vision Quest. We’re not kidding when we say the elevation starts right from the beginning.

Funny story, one of our friends who came with us was slightly hungover and gave up after what felt like the first 15 minutes of the hike! 😉

You should pass by the sign “This is not a Designated Trail Stay OFF”. If you don’t then double-check the trail map to make sure you’re headed in the right direction.

Once you pass the sign it’s straight up from there!

Hiking Tip: Look up the trail on AllTrails before starting your hike 🗺️. You can find important trail information such as recent wildlife sights and trail closures. Check out the free version here or get a 7-day free trial of AllTrails+ here.

Up the mountain to the first summit of Vision Quest

The picture above gives you a bit of an idea of how steep Vision Quest actually is.

I wouldn’t say it’s a scramble the whole way up but it’s damn close to one.

You really do need to take a lot of breaks on this hike because of the elevation. It’s fine though because the view looking back down is one of the best views in Alberta and that’s not a joke.

As you get closer and closer to what looks like the summit you’ll pass a little campsite where you can camp for the night if you want.

You’ll continue up the mountain and sadly what you think is the summit is actually only the false summit but at least you’ll be prepared for it.

People do choose to stop at the false summit (including Jo), but if you are an experienced hiker/scrambler you can continue up the buckle to the actual summit which will give you a fantastic panoramic view over Abraham Lake.

We do not recommend going up unless you truly are an experienced hiker and feel confident in your abilities!

The final push to the summit of Vision Quest

You can see the top left corner of the summit from the picture above. Honestly, if you’re not a daredevil it’s not worth going to the top.

You’ll get the same view from a little higher up but if you don’t like heights and scrambling it’s not worth the effort to hike up to the top.

In case you are a daredevil and want to summit Vision Quest you can follow the ridge up to the buckle where you’ll scramble up to the top. It’s a little technical but it’s definitely doable if you take your time.

Again, it’s worth it if you’re a daredevil but if you’re not big on heights it’s not worth it and you can just hang out at the first “summit”.

Back down to the bottom of Vision Quest

Even if you don’t make it to the real summit the views from the ridgeline are amazing and totally worth all the pain it takes to get there. This is the best hike to take in the magical blue colours of Abraham Lake.

It’s such a unique body of water and seeing it from above is an amazing experience! All of our pictures from this blog post are from the first summit. You really appreciate it once you’re up here.

You can hang up here for hours. The view really is out of this world. When you’re ready to go back down you can follow the same trail you took up.

I’ll be honest and say we got lost going down. There are quite a few different trails and it is easy to go down the wrong way.

The best way to go down is to make sure you can always see the lake going down and you should find your way.

At the end of the day as long as you’re going down you should make it back to your car eventually! 😉

You’ll be fine though. It’s not a long hike and it’s quite easy to orientate yourself. I think we just got caught chatting too much and ended up losing track of the trail.

What to bring for the Vision Quest hike

Vision Quest is a tough hike so try to bring enough of what you need and limit what you don’t need. Jo brought two sweaters and it was totally unnecessary since it was 25 degrees Celsius.

The trail doesn’t have much shade and you’re basically exposed to the sun for the whole hike.

Packing list for Vision Quest near Nordegg:

• Water! We always fill up our LifeStraw bottles before hikes and even during them when we can. Make sure to fill it up beforehand.
• Sunscreen is highly recommended when hiking and especially in the summer. The whole hike you’ll be exposed to the sun. In the summer months, you’ll absolutely bake during the whole hike if it’s warm out.
• A power bank is always nice to have on any hike you do! You don’t want a dead phone halfway through a hike or for the drive home.
• A camelbak is a great option too if you’re looking for something to hold a lot of water.
• Bear spray. And make sure you know how to use it!
• Bring some lunch for a nice picnic once you get to the first summit of Vision Quest. It’s a great place to relax and enjoy the view of Abraham Lake.
• Warm clothes if it’s cold! Remember that the weather can change quickly in Nordegg.
• If you have weak knees, you might want to bring hiking poles! If there’s one hike near Nordegg to bring them it’s this one. The ascents and descents from the peak will be much easier with poles. Especially for how steep this hike is throughout the whole hike.
• Also this is a great list of hiking gear that you may need on a hike!

Before you go hike Vision Quest

The first thing you should do before you go is to check if the trail is open and if there are any warnings on it.

We actually spoke with someone who saw cougar tracks on Vision Quest last year. So it’s definitely worth checking the trail updates beforehand. You definitely don’t want to run into a cougar if you can avoid it!

We would also recommend you tell someone about your plans, just in case something were to happen.

Make sure they know you’re doing Vision Quest, how long it will take, and what other plans you might have. Better safe than sorry! Especially since there may be no reception while you’re out on the hike.

You can check the recent comments about the Vision Quest trail here.

If people see wildlife on the path they will likely put an update in the comment section.

Hiking Tip: Look up the trail on AllTrails before starting your hike 🗺️. You can find important trail information such as recent wildlife sights and trail closures. Check out the free version here or get a 7-day free trial of AllTrails+ here.

Leave no trace

When you go hiking (and do other outdoor adventure activities), always remember to follow the 7 principles of leaving no trace.

This means:

1. Plan ahead and prepare.
2. Travel and camp on durable surfaces.
3. Dispose of waste properly.
4. Leave what you find.
5. Minimize campfire impacts.
6. Respect wildlife.
7. Be considerate of others.

Camping in Nordegg

There are a few options if you’re planning to hike before or after hiking up Vision Quest. You can drive back to Nordegg and hike there which isn’t very far or you can hike at Abraham Lake which is amazing.

We have two awesome options in Fish Lake and Preachers Point which are both quite close to Vision Quest so you can decide on which one would work better for you.

Fish Lake campground

Fish Lake is the perfect place to camp near Nordegg, especially if you’re doing Vision Quest since it’s so close. It’s a really clean and affordable campsite with a bunch of amenities. A non service site costs $26 CAD a night and is on a first come first serve basis.

All the information you need on Fish Lake Campground can be found here.

We also set up the directions from Fish Lake to the Vision Quest hike to make it easier for you to navigate and not miss the turnoff to the hike like we did the first time.

Preachers Point campground

Preachers Point is actually a free campsite. You will basically just be boon-docking right off the David Thompson Highway and right next to Abraham Lake.

It’s honestly the most beautiful spot to camp near Nordegg if you’re up for this kind of camping.

Here is a little bit of information about Preachers Point and the directions from Preachers Point to Vision Quest can be found here.

Again, hoping you guys don’t miss the turn to the hike. It truly isn’t hard to find, we just didn’t have the right directions when we went.

🏕️ Not into camping? Stay at David Thompson Resort Hotel in Cline River instead!

How to get to Vision Quest

From anywhere in Calgary

• It’s a 3.5 hour drive from Calgary to the Vision Quest trailhead.
• The directions can be found here.
• You can also go towards Red Deer and then west from there. But we prefer driving towards the mountains first and then up to Nordegg so that’s why we chose those directions.

Anywhere in Red Deer

• It’s just over 2 hours to get to Vision Quest from Red Deer.
• The directions can be found here.

From anywhere in Edmonton

• It’s a 3.5 hour drive from Edmonton to Vision Quest.
• The directions can be found here.

About Abraham Lake

Abraham is definitely one of the iconic landmarks in Alberta, Canada.

You can go hiking and camping near Abraham Lake in the summer and in the winter, you can go see the famous “ice bubbles” the lake produces.

We’ve only visited Abraham Lake in the summer when we went and hiked Vision Quest so we didn’t actually get to see the “ice bubbles”.

If you want some more information about the bubbles, then give this a read.

But we absolutely recommend going hiking around Nordegg especially near Abraham Lake to take in all these stunning views. It’s one of the main reasons we chose to do this hike.

The views are simply breathtaking.

You may also like…

• 3 Hikes Near Bragg Creek That Make an Epic Day Trip
• How to hike Chester Lake Trail – Kananaskis
• How to hike Grizzly Peak – Kananaskis
• How to hike Black Rock Mountain – Ghost River
• Hiking Checklist

Recap of hiking Vision Quest near Nordegg

As we mentioned before, the Vision Quest hike near Nordegg is not an easy hike. Even though it is only a 6 km return hike, it is a highly inclined climb to the summit.

Back down is likewise very steep, which can be very hard on your knees.

So be prepared to get your butt kicked and be exhausted by the time you finish one of the best hikes in Alberta. And feel the pain for a few days after while admiring all the photos you’ve taken.

Regardless of how hard we say this hike was and how much pain we were in don’t let our moaning stop you from conquering this mountain!

As long as you stay on the close side which is next to Abraham Lake you will get views like this the whole way up and down.

Unfortunately, we ended up bush-waking for parts of the trip on the way and had to cut back to get back on the right part.

So as long as you don’t do what we did you will be perfectly fine! 😉 This was our first time hiking in Nordegg and we’re definitely going to try and climb some more mountains in the area.

• You can go camping on the hike. There are two campsites which are already set up about 1/3rd of the way up the hike. If you’re really adventurous. Otherwise, we would just stay at one of the other places we recommended.
• Wildlife is often spotted in this area so be on the lookout.
• There are no restrooms or water stations at the trailhead. So make sure you stop in Nordegg beforehand.

If you have questions about hiking in Nordegg or anything specific about Vision Quest or Abraham Lake then feel free to DM us on Instagram or leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you right away.

We hope you enjoy this hike as much as we did! Enjoy and stay safe out there!

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