Yoho National Park Guide

November 29, 2023December 4, 2025 / Maria / 2 Comments

In the land of National Parks, Yoho is Banff’s equally stunning, but less popular cousin. It’s been growing a lot in popularity to be sure, and there are specific parts of the park that are very popular, but overall it is overshadowed by Banff and Jasper. I’ve only been exposed to a small part of what this park has to offer, but here’s what I learned in my limited time there.

Getting There

Yoho National Park is characterized by Highway 1 (aka the Trans Canada Highway), which runs through the entirety of the park, connecting it to both Banff and Calgary, and Golden and the rest of BC. There’s the small town of Field located in the center of the park and the rest is pretty much wilderness. If you’re coming from Calgary, the obvious option is to drive Highway 1 through Banff and on to Yoho. If you’re coming from BC, it’s a 45 minute drive from Golden to Field. No matter how you get there, there’s so much to see in the park!

Where to Stay

Where to stay depends on what kind of sleeping experience you’re looking for. If you’d like to stay in a hotel, you can choose from Field, Lake Louise, Golden, or even Banff. Field is the obvious choice since it’s already located in the park, but there are very limited options in Field, so you’d definitely want to book in advance. If you have a large budget, you could even check out the Fairmont lodge at Emerald Lake, which is incredibly beautiful (and high end). Another nearby option is Lake Louise, which is a 20 minute drive and also has limited hotel options, so I’d personally recommend Golden. It’s 45 minutes away, but there are lots of budget options available and more restaurant selection (and it’s cheaper than Banff).

If you’d like to camp, there will be a lot more options available and you may be able to stay directly in the park. But if you want to be assured a campsite, then you need to be prepared to book sites when they release around March because all of the National Parks are popular and they book up fast. See the next sections for more information on your camping options.

Frontcountry Camping

If you’re new to camping, then frontcountry camping is what you’re looking for. These are drive in sites, so you can store lots of things in your car and they’re much easier to get to than backcountry sites. There are 3 full frontcountry sites and 1 partial frontcountry site – however, only 1 of these sites can be booked through the Parks Canada reservation site, the rest are first-come, first-serve, which can be risky. Check early in the year for the date that sites will be released.

Kicking Horse Campground – This is the largest campground in the park, but it still only has 88 sites, which is small compared to Banff, Jasper, and Kootenay. It’s located near Field and is usually open from late May to early October. This is the only campground with reservable sites.

Monarch Campground – This campground is also located near Field and has 44 first-come, first-serve sites. It is usually open from May to September.

Hoodoo Creek Campground – This campground is located on the edge of the park near Golden, so it is a bit further from the main attractions. It has 30 first-come, first-serve sites and it is usually open from July to September.

Takkakaw Falls Campground – This campground is only partially frontcountry. This means you can’t drive right into your campsite. It’s ~1km walk to get to the sites, so you can still haul in more gear, especially if you want to take a wagon, but you need to practice bear safety because you can’t put all your food and smellies in your car. It has 35 sites and it is usually open from mid June to early October.

Lake Louise Campground – While not in Yoho Park, Lake Louise is a great alternative because it’s only 20 minutes from Field and it has 206 tenting sites and 189 RV sites! So it’s your best bet at securing a reservable site (I got one 2 weeks before my trip) and it has a full shower house.

Backcountry Camping

Backcountry camping is my preferred method of camping, but it is a whole different beast than frontcountry. It revolves around hiking and you have to carry everything you need on your back, so you should only attempt backcountry if you’re aiming to complete a hike.

There’s a few options for backcountry sites in Yoho, these are all reservable online when the sites release around march every year:

Laughing Falls – this campsite is probably the most easily accessible on the list. It’s located 5km from the Takkakaw Falls trailhead and travels along the Yoho River on mostly flat terrain. It’s located next to the Falls with 5 campsites and can be hiked on its own or as part of a circuit on the Iceline Trail or a stopping point on the way to Twin Falls.

Twin Falls – this campsite is located 9km from the Takkakaw Falls trailhead, or 4km from Laughing Falls. It has 5 campsites and from Twin Falls you can either explore the Iceline Trail or continue up to the Wapta Glacier on the Bow Yoho Traverse (advanced hikers only).

Yoho Lake – this campsite also involves ~5km of hiking, but it’s in much steeper terrain than Laughing Falls, so be prepared for more of a challenge. There are 5 sites located on Yoho Lake and it’s a great stopping point from which to explore parts of the Iceline Trail or to complete as a circuit.

Little Yoho Valley – this campsite is located at the midpoint of the Iceline Trail loop, so it’s approximately 10km coming from either side of the loop. It’s at the back of the valley below the Iceline Trail and is the most ideal campsite if you’re doing the full 20km loop.

McArthur Creek – this campsite is located 16km from the highway on the Great Divide Trail. I believe it’s most commonly used by thru hikers on the trail, but you could use it to connect to Helmet Falls and the Rockwall Trail in Kootenay National Park as well.

Lake O’Hara – by far the most popular campsite in the park. There are 30 sites located 1km from iconic Lake O’Hara and the booking includes a ride on the Parks Canada bus into and out of the park. It’s very hard to get bookings for Lake O’Hara, so be prepared as soon as the sites release. See my post on Lake O’Hara for more details on booking.

Backcountry Huts

In addition to the campgrounds, there are several backcountry huts located in the park that can be booked through the ACC. Two of these huts require glacier travel and are for advanced hikers/skiers, so I have not included them. The other two are more easily accessible!

Elizabeth Parker Hut – located near Lake O’Hara, this hut is just as popular as the campground and is one of the ACC’s most accessible huts. It’s only a 500 metre walk from the bus stop, but I’m not sure if your booking includes a seat on the bus, so you may need to book the bus separately or plan to hike 11km up along the road.

Stanley Mitchell Hut – located at the midpoint of the Iceline Trail loop, near Little Yoho Valley campsite. This is a large hut located in the meadows under the Iceline Trail. It can be accessed from 2 directions, both of which are ~10km.

Hiking

There is a lot of hiking available in Yoho National Park and my knowledge on all of these hikes remains limited. I’ve included a brief overview of some of the trails as a starting point, but recommend doing your own research.

Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit – a 12km breathtaking trail that wraps around Lake O’Hara through the alpine. If you are lucky enough to get a pass on the bus, you can start from the official trailhead, otherwise you will need to hike an additional 11km each way on the road.

Lake McArthur – another trail that starts from Lake O’Hara and requires a bus pass. From the bus stop, it’s an 8km round trip hike up to this gorgeous alpine lake. There are lots of branches on this trail, so it is possible to turn it into a loop trail. Add 11km each way for the road if you don’t have a bus pass.

Linda Lake – a 10km trail that runs from the Lake O’Hara campground. It was recommended to me as an alternative hike to the alpine circuit on a rainy day, so I’m assuming it’s mostly forested. Add 11km each way for the road if you don’t have a bus pass.

Odaray Highline – only 4 groups per day are permitted on this trail to protect the wildlife corridor, which is managed through a self-registration system at the trailhead. It’s approximately 8km from the Lake O’Hara bus stop. Add 11km each way for the road if you don’t have a bus pass.

Iceline Trail – a 20km loop trail that leaves from Takkakaw Falls and climbs up to the alpine. Hike alongside glaciers for 6km at the top of the trail before descending down to the meadows in Yoho Valley and then continuing through the forest along the river back to the parking lot.

Twin Falls Trail – the trail varies between 16km and 20km depending on your route. Leave from the Takkakaw Falls parking lot and go directly to the falls or do a loop through the campground. Be prepared for a steep climb up to the Falls.

Emerald Basin – a customizable hike up to 9km in length and mostly flat. It leaves from the Emerald Lake parking lot. Just hike around the lake for a shorter hike or add the basin at the back of the lake to do the full loop.

Hamilton Lake – an 11km round trip hike that also leaves from Emerald Lake and hikes up a steep forested trail past Hamilton Falls and up to the lake.

Mount Stephen (Burgess Shale) – this 8km hike can only be completed on a guided tour as it travels to the protected Burgess Shale fossil quarry. It’s extremely steep, but highly recommended!

Walcott Quarry (Burgess Shale) – this 20km hike can only be completed on a guided tour as it travels to the protected Burgess Shale fossil quarry. It’s a longer hike than Mount Stephen, but a much more gentle incline.

Sherbrooke Lake – a 6km round trip hike up to Sherbrooke Lake that leaves from the parking lot at Wapta Lake. The hike starts with an uphill climb and flattens out along the lake.

Paget Lookout – a 7km round trip hike that branches off the Sherbrooke Lake trail to hike up to a viewpoint. While not a long hike, it is very steep.

Hoodoo Creek – a 5km round trip hike located near the Hoodoo campground. A short but steep hike to view the hoodoos.

Mount Hunter – this trail can be customized to either 7km or 12km round trip. It’s located just before Hoodoo Creek and is completing uphill. Stop at the first lookout for a shorter hike, or continue all the way to the top.

National Park Pass

Before visiting, make sure to get your park pass online or by stopping into the visitor centre in Field. Your other options are to pick it up at the kiosk when you enter Banff, or stop in Rogers Pass when you drive through Glacier National Park. You will need it to park everywhere inside the park. It’s $10 per person, per day, or you can get the family pass for the whole year for $145, which is applicable to all National Parks in Canada.

Lake O’Hara Backpacking Trip Part II

November 15, 2023July 11, 2024 / Maria / 1 Comment

Click here to start with Part 1.

The rain held off all night and it wasn’t looking too bad when we got up on Day 2, so we decided to make a go at visiting Lake McArthur, which is the the second big hike in the area after the Alpine Circuit. We had breakfast and packed up our bags. But just as we were getting ready to start hiking, it started raining. It was pretty light at first, so we started walking up towards the junction to the Lake McArthur trail, but the rain got heavier as we went, so we decided to stop in Le Relais, which is a Parks Canada owned hut just before the lake (right at the junction to the Lake McArthur trail).

Le Relais is pretty cool. It’s a log cabin and they have some information on the history of the park and run a small cafe out of it during the day. It’s well known for its carrot cake, which is legendary inside and outside of the park. They notoriously sell out of the carrot cake every day, so we decided to see if we could score a piece and wait out the rain. We managed to get the very last slice! So we split it between the two of us and bought some hot chocolates.

Le Relais was pretty busy because of the rain, but it has a woodstove inside, so it’s toasty warm and has a really nice atmosphere. We decided to wait for the rain to let up, but we ended up killing 2-3 hours there with no reprieve! We made friends with some of the other people trying to wait out the rain and ate our lunch while trying to decide what to do.

The weather forecast was supposed to be better the next day, so we decided to hold off on Lake McArthur. I didn’t have any rain pants with me and I wanted to avoid getting totally soaked when the temperature was very low (around 3 degrees) and we still had another night at the campground. But we also didn’t want to just sit around all day, so we decided to do the hour long walk around Lake O’Hara instead to see Seven Veils Falls.

The rain never really stopped, but it didn’t lighten up a lot, so we had a fairly nice walk around the lake. Even in the rain, the area is still incredibly beautiful and we could see a fresh layer of snow sitting on the peaks of the Alpine Circuit. The water still looks like kool-aid, even on a rainy day, and we made the best of the rain. We stopped at Seven Veils Fall, which had a pretty steady flow coming down, before continuing around the lake. We returned to Le Relais just before it really started pouring again and killed another few hours warming up and drinking a second round of hot chocolate.

When we got a break in the rain again, we ran back to the campground to hang out for the rest of the evening. I love meeting people at the campground and I’m a busybody. I noticed one guy was wearing a knitted hat with the Labrador flag on it (and I happened to be wearing my NL home hat), so I quickly befriended him. He and his wife are from Ontario and met in Labrador when they were both working at Voisey’s Bay, so I had a great chat with them. They later broke out a crib game (which I also love), and I was joined by another camper named Lynn to play doubles against them. Not to brag, but we totally fleeced them! We won the first game and then Lynn pegged an incredible 3 triples in a row in the second game and we skunked them. So that was great fun!

We got a few more reprieves from the rain throughout the evening, and even saw a sliver of sun poking through the clouds. So we congregated outside at the campfire for awhile, but eventually the rain returned and sent us to bed early. We decided that we were going to make a try at Lake McArthur the next day (rain or shine) because even if we got soaked, at least we were going home after that.

Unfortunately things still didn’t work out as planned. It wasn’t raining too hard when we packed up our tent and gear in the morning. There’s a storage room at the campground, so we left everything we didn’t need in there and starting hiking back towards Le Relais. It was raining pretty hard and my pants were already soaked by the time we got to the turn-off. We continued on a little further to see the Elizabeth Parker hut, and then hiked as far as Shaffer Lake, which is the halfway point to Lake McArthur. When we hit Shaffer Lake, it started wet snowing on us and we had to re-assess. I was definitely not having a good time without rain pants and I was already soaked all the way to my underwear. I had a dry pair of pants in my bag, but they’re not really much use to you if they’re just going to get wet again. I think Brandon would have been okay to keep going since he had rain pants, but I had to do a bit of risk management.

It was below zero and we still had several more kilometres of uphill to get to the lake, so it just didn’t seem like a good idea to keep hiking. I was already cold and if I had to stop for any reason, I would freeze in wet pants and sub-zero temperatures. Plus I wasn’t having any fun, so we made the smart decision and turned around to go back.

There was still carrot cake at Le Relais and we stopped in for a slice each and some hot chocolate while I stood by the wood stove to dry off. We checked the bus schedule and decided to catch the next bus out. The weather might improve later in the day, but we still didn’t have anywhere to stay that night, so we decided to come back another year for McArthur.

We walked back to the campsite and changed into dry clothes to wait for the bus. It was definitely not the ideal trip to Lake O’Hara, between the smoke and the rain, but we still got to cram in most of the alpine circuit. Now we just have an excuse to come back again another time. It’s so exclusive, I’ll probably just try for permits every year until I get lucky again.

Our plan for the night had originally been to get one of the first-come, first-serve campsites at Takakkaw Falls in Yoho Park, but we really needed a hotel to warm up. We called around to every accommodation in Field town that could offer us two beds, but they were all booked, so instead we drove a half hour back to Golden where there were lots of budget options. We showered and then hit the hot tub, sauna, and pool at the hotel to relax before getting a celebratory dinner of more elk burgers (3rd of the trip) at the local pub.

Lake O’Hara Backpacking Trip Part I

November 8, 2023July 11, 2024 / Maria / 7 Comments

If Panorama Ridge is THE hike of coastal southwestern BC, then I feel like Lake O’Hara is THE hike of the Canadian Rockies. You might argue that Lake Louise and Moraine Lake are more popular, but Lake O’Hara is by far the most exclusive hike in the Rockies.

Lake O’Hara is situated in Yoho National Park and has become one of the most elite hikes in the area because of the incredibly scenic and compact natural wonders that exist around the lake. What makes Lake O’Hara so sought after is accessibility. The lake itself is located at an elevation of 2000m, at the start of the alpine. From the lake, there’s a plethora of hiking trails to explore and they’re all extremely varied and beautiful.

The key feature is that there is a 11km long dirt road that runs all the way up the valley to the base of the lake, at which you can stay either in the Parks Canada campground, the ACC’s Elizabeth Parker Hut, or the exclusive high end Lake O’Hara Lodge. The road is closed to personal vehicles, but a bus runs from the parking lot to the lake several times a day, so you don’t have to expend any effort to access this mecca of hiking trails! So it is a bit misleading to refer to this as a backpacking trip, because I didn’t actually have to do any backpacking to arrive at the campsite.

So what is the catch? As you can probably guess, like most other popular hikes, it’s hard to get a reservation to visit. All of the campsites for the entire season release every year in March and you have to be very lucky to score permits! Parks Canada puts you in a random queue at the release time, and if you aren’t lucky enough to be high up the queue, you probably aren’t getting permits.

I tried to get permits to visit in 2022, but I wasn’t successful, so I tried again in 2023. I couldn’t find any permits for 2-3 consecutive nights, so I ended up booking a single night, and then was able to find another adjacent single night. So I ended up with 2 back-to-back 1-night permits. This isn’t ideal because you have to pay for the bus twice, but Parks Canada was really good about it and reimbursed me for the second bus fare when I called them (if you end up with multiple permits like this, you must call because if they don’t know, they will cancel your reservation when you don’t show up for the bus on day 2 and give it to someone else).

If you’re lucky enough to get camping permits, it automatically includes a ride on the bus there and back. If you’re not lucky enough to get a permit for the campsite, you could try either the ACC hut or the lodge, but the lodge is extremely expensive and I think it helps to be an ACC member to get into the hut (both of which are still very popular). Be aware that the hut does require a few kilometres of backpacking to get there.

If those options aren’t feasible and you don’t want to camp, you can still try for a day pass on the bus! The most iconic hike (the alpine circuit) can be done in a single day, so if you don’t want to camp, you can try booking a bus pass for a day when they release in March. Getting a day pass is just as competitive as a camping permit though, so plan accordingly.

Your last option is to hike the 11km road there and back. This is an option that a lot of people avail of, but make sure you are in proper physical condition to do it. I don’t think the road is particularly challenging (though it is all uphill), but it is long to hike 22km round trip on top of whatever hike you hope to do once you arrive at the lake. Sometimes if you show up at the parking lot, you might be lucky enough to snag on empty seat on the bus if someone didn’t show up. Likewise, you might hike up and manage to snag a ride down on the bus if there is room for you, but you can’t bank on either of these options because the park is very popular and attracts a lot of day hikers in peak season. So if you decide to hike up, be prepared to also hike down!

Now that we’ve got all that important information out of the way, let’s talk about my trip!

Like I said, I scored a 2-night camping permit for me and Brandon. Carolyn wasn’t able to stay for a second week in the Rockies, so after we said goodbye to her, we packed up all our gear to get ready for the second part of our trip. We were booked on the 10am bus up to the campground and planned to stay for 3 days. I wanted to do the main things the park has to offer, including the Alpine Circuit and Lake McArthur.

Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t looking very good. We’d had great weather for Kootenay, but once September arrives, the rain usually comes with it. We weren’t really sure what to expect, but the nicest day in the forecast was our first day, so we decided to try and cram as much into Day 1 as possible! We took the bus up to the campground and quickly set up our tent and packed our day bags to start hiking. We left around noon and decided to tackle the iconic Alpine Circuit.

The Alpine Circuit is named because it’s basically a big circle through the alpine that encircles the entire lake. The campground is located ~1km from Lake O’Hara, so we hiked up to the lake and then started hiking clockwise around the lake to hit the branch for the Wiwaxy Gap trail up to Huber’s Ledges. After Lake O’Hara, Lake Oesa is probably the second most well known lake in the area and you have a few options to get there. You can either hike around part of the lake and then ascend up the back of O’Hara to Oesa. Or you can immediately jump on the Wiwaxy gap and climb 550m in elevation over 2km up to the pass between Mount Huber and Wiwaxy Peak, before descending back down to Oesa. As you can imagine, it’s incredibly steep, but it was probably one of my favourite parts of the entire park. It has amazing views of the lake on the way up and then you get a view from the Pass looking out the other side of the park.

It was overcast and the rain was holding off for us, but unfortunately it was weirdly smoky when we visited the park. It had rained the day before, but the smoke still hung around and left a haze over us the entire day. It still made for stunning, moody views, but it’s definitely a different experience than what you hope for when you get to visit. In any case, we were lucky it wasn’t raining as it would be very dangerous and slippery on a rainy day, and we weren’t in the clouds, so we still got amazing views, albeit a little hazy.

We stopped at the top for our lunch before continuing on towards Lake Oesa. The Wiwaxy gap is the highest elevation along the alpine circuit, so we bundled up in a few layers at the top and prepared to go down. From the gap, you continue along the Huber Ledges to Lake Oesa. This is the sketchiest part of the circuit and I was a bit nervous for it. The trail is a gradual decline along bare and exposed rock ledges until you hit the lake. It looks really intimidating from afar, but it ended up not being scary at all. If you have a fear of heights I wouldn’t recommend it, but the ledge is wide enough and there’s enough variation in the rock that I never felt unsafe. I loved every second we spent on the ledges descending to Lake Oesa.

Lake Oesa is a highlight in itself. It’s a hanging lake that’s nestled under giant peaks and glaciers. We took another short break at the lake, but pushed forward because we also wanted to do the Yukness Ledges. The alpine circuit is characterized into 3 sections: Wiwaxy Gap/Hubers Ledges, the Yukness Ledges, and the All-Souls Route. Wiwaxy runs from the base to Lake Oesa via the gap, then you pass from Lake Oesa to Opabin Plateau (and the Prospect), and then you continue along the edge of Mount Shaffer before heading back down to the Lake.

We had to do a bit of climbing to get back up to the Yukness Ledges from Oesa, but then it’s relatively flat and slightly downhill around Yukness Mountain to Opabin Plateau. This section of the trail is also very beautiful, but I’d still give the edge to Hubers Ledge. Once we got down to the plateau, I was keen to keep going to Opabin Prospect (which is the most popular viewpoint in the park), but Brandon convinced me to do a short detour to the back of the Plateau to see Opabin Lake. I’m glad he did because it’s not too far out of the way and I ended up loving the lake! It was the end of the long weekend and the weather wasn’t great, so there were very few people on the circuit and both Oesa and Opabin Lakes were completely empty of people when we visited.

We saw a mountain goat on the way to the lake that I decided to name Emily (lol). We took another short break at Opabin Lake and admired the gorgeous glaciers at the back of the plateau. It was getting late in the afternoon at this point, so we were also alone hiking back through the plateau and started towards Opabin Prospect to see the Park’s most iconic viewpoint.

I assume Opabin Prospect is generally crawling with people, but it was around 5pm when we arrived and completely empty! The prospect is a little scary with its abrupt drops, but it does have a beautiful view of Lake O’Hara and Mary Lake. It’s the most popular viewpoint, but again, I’d still give the edge to other parts of the Alpine Circuit. In total, the circuit is only ~12km, so it’s very achievable in one day. We had a little photoshoot at the Prospect before continuing on.

From here we had two choices. We could try and also cram in the final section of the circuit (all-souls route), or we could head back down to the campsite. We knew it was possible that if we skipped it, we wouldn’t get another chance to hike it given the incoming weather, but it was also getting later in the day and we were tired and hungry. I’ve read that while All-Souls is still beautiful, it doesn’t offer a lot more in terms of views than what you’ve already seen on the rest of the trail. We never did end up doing it, so I can’t confirm if this is the case or not.

Instead, we decided to come back for it on the way to Lake McArthur the following day and headed back down to the lake. We stopped again at Lake O’Hara for another snack and we did a little loop around the lodge to check out the expensive cabins. They’re definitely really cool and are right on the lake, but we couldn’t really swallow the expensive price tag to stay there.

We ended up back at the campsite just before 7pm and clocked a total of 13.5km for the day. The campground itself is not very scenic and all of the campsites are spread out in the trees. But what I really liked about it is the common areas. For bear-safe reasons, everyone’s required to do their cooking in the common area and there’s a number of picnic tables, 2 cooking shelters, and a fire pit. The fire ban was done for the season in the Rockies and Parks Canada provides firewood, so there’s always a bonfire on the go, which was lovely!

It was pretty chilly while we were in the park, so we bundled up and made our supper around the campfire. I love meeting people in the common area, so I ended up hanging around for a few hours chatting with a lot of the other campers. Most of them were from BC or Alberta, but there were a few visitors from the States and Ontario as well.

I’m so glad we crammed the alpine circuit into our first day in the park because the weather turned pretty terrible after that. We were never able to return for the All-Souls route, so I guess I’ll have to come back another time, but more on the rest of the trip in Part 2!

The Road Goes Ever On

Canadian Outdoor Adventure and Travel Blog

Lake O’Hara

Yoho National Park Guide

Lake O’Hara Backpacking Trip Part II

Lake O’Hara Backpacking Trip Part I