Getting here:
While most people would prefer taking a cab or drive up to the gondola station, I tried something else. I hiked from Banff Avenue, passing by YMCA and Park Administrative Building. It was quite a long walk and the weather in May can already be scorching hot. The hike took about 1 hour through meandering trails of secondary pine forests. Alternatively, for the uninitiated, you can take a shuttle service that picks up passengers from Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Caribou Lodge or Mount Royal Hotel for C$5.

Description:
The round trip journey cost me about C$20. The journey took me about 10 minutes in a glass-enclosed gondola which can fit in anywhere between 4-6 people.

The summit is about 7,000 ft above sea-level and there is the expected observation deck on top. The view is plainly spectacular with deep forested valley where the Trans-Canada Highway cuts through and the lofty peaks of Canadian Rockies. There is a cafeteria (Summit Restaurant) and a gift shop close to the observation deck.

From the main deck, I continued my walk on the wooden plank to the summit of Sanson's Peak, famous of its sighting of bighorn sheep. Well, I did see one grazing food on the rocky ledge, relatively unperturbed by the crowds on the viewing deck. While it is claimed that the animal is wild and dangerous, I couldn't help but noticed that bighorn sheep was pretty much used to human being, judging from the fact that some 600,000 visitors visited the peak every year.