Lake Louise Railway Station (Laggan)

The CPR station at Lake Louise is a landmark of Canadian railway history; representing the “Golden Age” of rail tourism in the Rockies. Originally named Laggan (after a parish in Inverness, Scotland), it sits just east of the Continental Divide on the Laggan Subdivision (Calgary to Field, BC).

Chronology. The CPR track reached this location in 1884. A small log depot (c. 1890) served early tourist traffic; that original building was moved to Heritage Park Historical Village in Calgary in 1976, where it stands restored as “Laggan Station.” The current log building dates from 1910; commissioned to match the grandeur of the expanding Chateau Lake Louise. Following the decline of passenger rail, the station was saved from demolition and designated a Heritage Railway Station of Canada (1991). It was converted into The Station Restaurant, offering dining in the original waiting room; including the ticket window and ladies’ waiting room; and vintage rail cars on the siding (e.g. the “Delamere” dining car). In late 2025 the station was acquired by the Rocky Mountaineer; renovations (2026) preserve its history while continuing to welcome guests.

“Pusher” station and the Big Hill. Laggan was not merely a passenger stop; it was an operational necessity. Major A.B. Rogers’ 4.5% grade was too steep to haul dining cars; passengers were forced to disembark for meals, which led the CPR to expand meal stops into chalets; accelerating the birth of Rockies tourism. To the west lay the “Big Hill,” the infamous 4.5% grade descending into Field. Before the Spiral Tunnels opened (1909), standard locomotives could not haul heavy trains alone; Laggan served as a staging point where “pusher” (helper) locomotives were added to westbound trains for braking power down the hill, or to eastbound trains at Field to push them up. Even after the Spiral Tunnels reduced the grade to ~2.2%, helpers were often still required. Laggan was also a crew-change point where “mountain crews” (trained for the dangerous grades) took over from “prairie crews” arriving from Calgary.

Architecture. The 1910 station is a prime example of the CPR’s “Rustic” style; deliberately chosen to market the Rockies as a wilderness playground. Local log construction blends into the forest; unusually large windows (generous fenestration) frame mountain views for waiting passengers. The hipped roof with broad overhanging eaves and log brackets was designed to shed heavy snowfall while protecting the platform. It is one of the oldest surviving log railway stations in Canada.