It is located on the Bow River, in the Canadian Rockies, at an altitude of 1920 m. The lake lies south of the Bow Summit, east of the Waputik Range (views including Wapta Icefield, Bow Glacier, Bow Peak, Mount Thompson, Crowfoot Glacier and Crowfoot Mountain) and west of the Dolomite Pass, Dolomite Peak and Cirque Peak.

[1] Historical Simpson's Num-Ti-Jah Lodge is located on the shores of Bow Lake at the foot of Mount Jimmy Simpson.

[2] Bow Lake is the closest lake to the headwaters of Bow River, and has a total area of 3.21 km2.

Water in the lake is meltwater of the Bow Glacier and its turquoise colouring is due to glacial till.

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