Tunnel Mountain

. The Blackfoot name for the mountain is Iinii Istako and the Stoney Nakoda language name is Eyarhey Tatanga Woweyahgey Wakân. The Stoney people called it "Sleeping Buffalo" for a long time, as it resembles a sleeping buffalo when viewed from the north and east. In the 1880s Canadian Pacific Railway surveyors first considered blasting a tunnel through the mountain for the tracks through the Bow Valley. Even though they discovered another route for the train and the tunnel idea was abandoned, the name Tunnel Mountain stuck. The fire lookout on top of the mountain began to be known as "King's Lookout," following a Royal Tour in 1939 when King George VI and Queen Elizabeth climbed to the lookout. ==History==

, with Bow River in foreground and the CP railway and Trans-Canada Highway in the background In 1882, a team of surveyors led by Major A.B. Rogers, of Rogers Pass fame, was surveying for the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Rogers, likely in a hurry, assumed the easiest path for the railway to take would be to simply follow the Bow River. On account of the difficulties that would be faced with river crossings and the steepness of the cliffs between the northwestern edge of Mount Rundle and Tunnel Mountain, Rogers' team suggested the construction of a tunnel through the tiny mountain. Surveyor Charles Shaw described the suggestion of a tunnel as "the most extraordinary blunder I have ever known in the way of engineering." The idea of a tunnel was scrapped altogether, but the mountain is still called Tunnel Mountain to this day. ==Hiking==

Tunnel Mountain, likely due to its easy grade and location in the heart of Banff, is a very popular hike. The trail has a gentle grade for most of the way, with a few mildly steep sections, and is only round-trip. Ness was even known to climb the mountain twice a day; once during lulls in her job, and a second in the evening. Famed wildlife artist Carl Rungius had his ashes scattered on the mountain, as he loved the view of Banff and the Bow Valley. ==Geology==

Tunnel Mountain gives its name to the Tunnel Mountain Formation, a geological formation. ==See also==