Mount Bowlen is located on the border of Alberta and British Columbia and forms part of the Valley of the Ten Peaks. It was named in 1953 after John J. Bowlen, a native of Prince Edward Island, successful Alberta rancher, honorary chief of the Blackfoot, and a Lieutenant Governor of Alberta. Its former name was "Yamnee", which translates to the number 3 in the local Nakoda (Stoney) language.

The mountains in Banff Park are composed of sedimentary rock laid down during the Precambrian to Jurassic periods. Formed in shallow seas, this sedimentary rock was pushed east and over the top of younger rock during the Laramide orogeny.

Based on the Köppen climate classification, the mountain has a subarctic climate with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Temperatures can drop below −20 °C (−4 °F) with wind chill factors below −30 °C (−22 °F) in the winter.

• List of peaks on the Alberta–British Columbia border

• Dave Birrell, 50 Roadside Panoramas in the Canadian Rockies, P 87

• Western Canada, P 280

• Paul Zizka, Summits and Starlight: The Canadian Rockies

• Parks Canada web site: Banff National Park
• Mount Bowlen weather: Mountain Forecast