The Cline River Valley and trail provides access to Bighorn Backcountry and Whitegoat Wilderness with their many valleys and streams, alpine meadows and picturesque lakes in the upper reaches. The region is capped by Mt Cline and the Wilson Icefield / Mt Wilson on the Banff Park boundary.

The Pinto Lake trail, a two to three day trip which leads from the estuary of the Cline River to Pinto Lake and over Sunset Pass to the Icefield Parkway used to be one of the most popular long distance trails in the region with a number of rewarding side trips to Landslide Lake, Lake of the Falls, etc. All of these are multi-day treks for the adventurous which until recently kept the valley pristine and rich in wildlife.

Unfortunately, with the introduction of helicopter flightseeing, helifishing, helihiking and other disturbing activities, noise pollution has caught up with the peacefulness of thisvalley and the serenity of camping out alone atone of the magnificent alpine lakes. What used to be a long, peaceful hike will now often be interrupted by overflights or landings beside the shores of a sensitive alpine lake – some people call this progress…

In winter, the Cline River valley still offers many activities including some wonderful ice-climbing and snowshoeing opportunities.