This short interpretive trail starts out through an open upper sub-alpine forest to a viewpoint overlooking the spectacular Peyto Lake, named for one of Banff’s early wilderness guides Bill Peyto (the same Bill of Wild Bill’s Saloon fame). Be sure to have film in your camera because the scene is a true beauty. Along the trail, which will take you around 20 minutes to walk, signs offer easy-to-understand explanations about the complexities of the alpine and sub-alpine environments. In late July the meadows below Bow Summit are alive with colourful wildflowers capitalizing on their brief growing season. At Bow Pass, waters flow south into the Bow River and the South Saskatchewan River making their way, eventually, into the Atlantic Ocean. Rivers flowing north are the Mistaya and the North Saskatchewan, which both head towards Hudson Bay.

Bow Summit is also frequented in winter by backcountry skiers using the popular ""yo-yo"" area to do laps in untouched powder. Although it's popular for its easy access from the highway, Bow Summit is still a hot spot for avalanches with one fatality recorded in recent years. Skiers should take avalanche equipment and know how to use it, as well as check avalanche reports before heading out.