Guide to Lake O’Hara

December 20, 2025December 17, 2025 / Maria / Leave a comment

Lake O’Hara is one of the most popular lakes in the Canadian Rockies, but it’s one of the hardest lakes to visit (except maybe for Berg Lake). Other popular lakes like Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, and Emerald Lake, can all be visited by car, whereas Lake O’Hara is located at the end of an 11km road that is only accessible on foot or by Parks Canada shuttle bus. For that reason, it sees fewer visitors than other lakes in the Rockies, but has one of the most exclusive permitting systems. Whether you want to backpack or day hike at Lake O’Hara, if you want to avoid the 22km round trip journey on the access road, you need to secure a bus pass. If you’re lucky enough to get one, you’ll be rewarded with some of the most incredible views in Yoho and all of the Rockies.

Getting There

Lake O’Hara is located in the heart of Yoho National Park, along Highway 1 (Trans Canada Highway), shortly outside of the small town of Field. It’s easily accessible from both Alberta and BC. It’s located an hour from Banff on the east side and an hour from Golden on the west side. Unfortunately, there isn’t any public transport running to the Lake O’Hara parking lot, so you will need your own vehicle or to connect with other hikers. You can park in the base lot for free, but you cannot drive the access road, you must reserve a spot of the Lake O’Hara shuttle bus.

The Attraction

Why is access to Lake O’Hara so sought after? It’s because of the incredible views once you arrive at the lake and the concentrated access to scenic alpine terrain. 22km is a big hike for most people, but the access road is fairly straight forward and not too challenging. If you just want to see the lake, you could hike in and out on the access road.

However, the reason most people prefer to skip the 22km access hike is to spend more time exploring the alpine. Lake O’Hara is home to the famous alpine circuit, a ~12km loop hike through the alpine that encircles Lake O’Hara. While the alpine circuit can be broken into 3 sections that can be hiked individually, if you’d like to hike the entire circuit, you’ll want to take the shuttle bus in. I hiked the trail and stayed at the campsite for 2 nights in 2023, you can read my full trip report here.

The alpine circuit starts at the base of the lake, hiking straight up to the Wiwaxy Gap and Huber’s Ledges, which will take you to Lake Oesa. From there, you continue on the Yukness Ledges to Opabin Lake and the viewpoint at Opabin Prospect. This is the most popular view in the park, and many visitors will focus on hiking to this viewpoint rather than doing the whole circuit. If you want to finish the circuit, you then continue hiking the All Souls route, which will take you along the edge of Mount Shaffer and back to where you started. Other hiking routes in the park include Lake McArthur, Odaray Grandview, and Linda Lake, though these are not as popular as the sections of the Alpine Circuit.

Other attractions include visiting Le Relais, a small cafe run by Parks Canada, for hot chocolate and carrot cake; visiting the lodge for high tea; or renting a canoe to explore the lake (although this might only be available to those staying at the lodge, I’m not sure).

With so many options for hiking, staying overnight in the park is an attractive option for many visitors. The overnight options include a pricey stay at the O’Hara Lodge, a lottery ticket entry to stay at the ACC’s Elizabeth Parker Hut, or a permit for the backcountry campsite managed by Parks Canada. More on each of these options below.

Time of Year

There are a few options for when to visit Lake O’Hara, but the most popular option is to visit in the summer. The backcountry campground is usually open from late June to late September and it will be sold out for the entire season. July is a great time to visit if you want warm weather and to avoid the wildfire smoke that will inevitably roll in at some point in the summer, but there may still be snow on some of the high routes in July. September is also a popular time to visit because there are many larch trees around the lake that turn bright yellow in the Fall.

Winter is a less popular time to visit as there is no shuttle service in the winter, but it is still possible. You can ski or snowshoe up the access road and the ACC’s Elizabeth Parker Hut is much easier to book in the winter. However, I don’t have experience with the winter route and I believe it does pass through an avalanche run-out zone, so please do independent research if you visit in the winter and ensure that you have the proper avalanche safety training.

Permits

Getting permits is really the crux of this blog post. Without a doubt, scoring a day pass on the shuttle or an overnight camping permit (which includes a bus pass) will be the hardest part of your trip. The day pass secures you a ride up and back on the shuttle bus and allows you a full day of hiking in the park. The day pass is managed using a lottery system, so it’s easy to enter the lottery, but no guarantee that you will be lucky enough to get a pass. The shuttle bus lottery for 2026 will run from March 2 to March 23. There is a $10 non-refundable fee to enter the lottery, plus if you are successful, a $15 fee for the bus.

In contrast, the camping permits are issued all at once for the season. Camping permits for 2026 will be released on January 22 at 7am PST (8am MT). Permits are ~$30 per night and they will disappear fast, so you need to be ready to book right when they release. I will try and update the release dates for permits every year, but they are usually announced by Parks Canada in late November or early December for the following year – so keep an eye on their page of release dates in future years. To make your bookings, visit https://reservation.pc.gc.ca/.

Here’s a few tips for getting your camping permit:

Get on the booking website 15 minutes early using as many devices as possible (computers, phones, ipads, etc). At release time, everyone on the website is entered into a random generator that assigns you a position in the queue. All of your devices will be assigned a place in line, then proceed to book your permits on whatever device has the shortest queue. You may have to wait up to an hour to get in, so try not to be discouraged.
Once you get access, be flexible. Search for your desired dates and then click on the Lake O’Hara backcountry campsite, followed by the “calendar” option on the left sidebar to see all available dates.
If you don’t see any availability, keep refreshing for at least 15 minutes. With so many people trying to book campsites, dates are always disappearing and then becoming available again, so if you don’t see anything, keep refreshing.
If you’re trying to get multiple dates, it can be hard to get two consecutive nights on the same booking. If both nights aren’t available at once, book one night first, and then try and get the second night after. You will have to pay the reservation fee twice, but it will increase your odds of getting a booking (or at least securing one night). Just make sure to call Parks Canada later and get them to combine your permits (because they both include in a bus pass and if you don’t show up for the bus on the second day, they will give your camping permit away for the second night).
Be prepared that you might not get anything. The first year I tried for permits, I wasn’t successful. The second year, I managed to get two separate 1 night bookings that I combined. If you don’t get anything, sign up for cancellation notifications on Schnerp.
Parks Canada will give away “no shows” on the day of the reservations. So you can try to get a permit by showing up at the parking lot. But be advised that a lot of people do this, so no guarantees. You can also hike up and try and grab a spare seat on the bus on the way down, but again, there is usually a long line of people trying to do this.

If you would like to try for alternative overnight options, the Alpine Club of Canada (ACC) also runs a lottery for their Elizabeth Parker Hut. This lottery is available for entry between December 15, 2025 and January 30, 2026, and there is a $16 fee to enter. You can also book into the swanky Lake O’Hara lodge, but be prepared to book early and pay ~$1000 per night.

National Park Pass

In addition to backpacking permits, which are specific to your campsite, you must also have a National Park Pass. These are much easier to obtain – there is no booking period and the number of passes are not restricted. The most common option is to purchase the discovery pass, which is available for $150 for a family, or $75 per person. It’s essentially an annual pass that covers everyone in your car. You leave it hanging in the car while you’re on the trail and it acts as a parking pass. Alternatively, you can buy single adult day passes for everyone, which are $11 per person, per day. However, in 2025 and 2026, Canadians can obtain the Canada Strong Pass for free, which includes a free discovery pass and 25% off bookings! You can purchase passes online, in advance, or in person at the Banff park entrance.

Overnight Options

As discussed in the permit section, there are 3 options for accommodation:

Lake O’Hara Campground (Parks Canada) – This is a backcountry campground with 30 tent pads. There is a cooking shelter, picnic tables, potable water, bear lockers, bag storage, and a communal firepit with wood provided (when there is no fire ban). You must have a permit to stay here and check-in with the park rangers both when you board the bus and at the campsite. You must cook in the communal cooking area. Book on January 22, 2026 at 7am PST at https://reservation.pc.gc.ca/

Elizabeth Parker Hut (ACC) – This is a backcountry hut that sleeps 24 people and has a water source nearby. You must have a permit to stay here and can enter the lottery for $16 between December 15, 2025 and January 30, 2025 at https://alpineclubofcanada.ca/hut/elizabeth-parker-hut/. You can obtain a bus pass through the ACC if you are successful in the lottery.

Lake O’Hara Lodge (private) – This is a fully catered hotel experience, including a private bus up to the lodge, hotel style accommodations, and prepared meals. Be prepared to pay a high price for this experience, but I’m sure it’s very luxurious. Book at https://www.lakeohara.com/

Itineraries

I’ll keep this simple. If you’re planning a hike to Lake O’Hara, take what you can get. I think my dream itinerary would be to stay for 3 nights at the campground, doing two day hikes on the Alpine Circuit and to Lake McArthur. But you can get creative with other options. There is enough time to bus up in the morning and do a full day hike. I took the bus and did the alpine circuit on the same day. There is bag storage at the campsite, so you can also do a day hike on the day you leave. We tried to do Lake McArthur on our last day, but it was very rainy, so we bailed halfway.

Day Hikes

There are lots of options for hiking from Lake O’Hara. I have done the Wiwaxy and Yukness sections of the Alpine Circuit and hiked around the lake, but I have not done the other hikes. I’ve included them here as a base for you to research further.

Lake O’Hara – An easy 3km walk around the Lake. A great option if you’re not up for the challenge of the alpine circuit or you’re tired from hiking up the access road.

Opabin Prospect – A 4km out and back trail to one of the most scenic viewpoints in the park. If you’re doing the full Alpine Circuit, you can visit this viewpoint enroute, but if you don’t have the time or energy for the full circuit, you can hike 2km each way from the bus drop-off.

Lake O’Hara Alpine Circuit – a breathtaking 12km trail that wraps around Lake O’Hara through the alpine. This is a very challenging trail as it covers a lot of elevation gain (up and down 3 times). However, there are lots of exit points if you don’t want to hike the full trail. I don’t recommend attempting this one if you also have to walk up and back the access road. If you would like a shorter version, I recommend doing the Wiwaxy Gap/Hubers Ledges to Lake Oesa, followed by the Yukness Ledges to Opabin Lake and Opabin Prospect, but cut out the All Souls section of the trail. Exercise extreme caution on this trail if it is rainy, or pick an alternative trail.

Lake Oesa – A beautiful lake that is an easier alternative to the Alpine Circuit. The easiest route is to hike 3km each way along the northern shore of Lake O’Hara, or add in a full circuit of Lake O’Hara on your way back. If you’re looking for more of a challenge and would like to sample the alpine circuit, you can hike up to the Wiwaxy Gap and take Hubers Ledges down to Lake Oesa, returning via Lake O’Hara (7km total). Another option could be to combine the Opabin Prospect viewpoint with the Yukness Ledges section of the Alpine Circuit to visit the lake, returning via Lake O’Hara (9km total).

Lake McArthur – An 8km round trip hike to another gorgeous alpine lake. There are lots of branches on this trail, so it is possible to turn it into a loop trail. The trail will take you over McArthur Pass and past the Elizabeth Parker Hut. You could combine this hike with the All Souls route of the Alpine Circuit to visit Opabin Prospect (10km total).

Linda Lake – a 10km trail that starts 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.

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 9km round trip from the Lake O’Hara bus stop.

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.

Hiking the Iceline Trail

November 24, 2023July 11, 2024 / Maria / 1 Comment

We’d already hiked both the Rockwall Trail and Lake O’Hara, but we still had time for one more adventure before leaving the Rockies. The first half of the trip was centered around Kootenay National Park and the second half was centered around Yoho National Park, so I wanted to do another iconic hike in Yoho. The other hike everyone seems to mention is the Iceline Trail. It’s fairly popular, but I’d never heard about it until this year, so I was happy to check it out.

It’s a 20km trail, so it’s a full day commitment. There are several camping options along the trail, so you can turn it into a multi day trip, but we hadn’t booked any sites in advance and by this point, we’d had enough camping. So we decided to tackle the entire trail as a day hike.

We got up early in Golden to a very foggy morning. The rain was finally gone from the forecast and we were hoping for sun later in the day, but early on we couldn’t really see anything through the fog. We decided to go anyways and drove back through the park to get to the trailhead. It was pretty empty when we arrived and Takakkaw Falls (which is where the trail starts) was pretty must lost in the fog. But it was definitely thinning and we could see the sun starting to shine through.

We started hiking around 9am. The nice thing about the Iceline Trail is that, even though it’s long, it’s a loop trail, so you don’t have to repeat any terrain. We decided to start with the big climb up to the alpine. As we climbed up through the trees, the fog continued to thin until eventually we got above the clouds and could see the surrounding mountains, glaciers, and Takakkaw Falls. It’s pretty easy to guess where the Iceline Trail takes it’s name from because you’re basically hiking along all the facets of the Emerald Glacier for several hours.

You start with about 550m of elevation gain over 4km, but it doesn’t take long to get above the treeline and once you hit the alpine, there’s ~8km of exposed trail with gorgeous views. I think this would be a tough hike on a really hot day because there’s absolutely no shade anywhere, but it was September and still really cool, so we didn’t have any problems with the heat and wore long sleeves and pants all day.

After we got up to the alpine, we took a short break and Brandon eyed up the glaciers while I had a snack. You can’t actually touch any of the glaciers on the hike and he was really keen to hike closer to them. We debated the merits of this and what approach to take for a while. I’m pretty risk adverse and my gut reaction is always to decline any risky kind of exploration. But I couldn’t deny that I wanted to get closer to them as well. The problem is that there’s no trail up to the glaciers and the terrain is a bit challenging.

From afar, the terrain looks like a series of giant steps. You can tell that up close it’s likely a lot more varied than it looks from a far, so we debated how to tackle the problem. I agreed to make an attempt at it and we gave ourselves an hour to mess around before continuing the hike (it’s a 20km trail, so we didn’t want to run out of daylight later). We decided to approach the glaciers from the left side because the terrain looked less steep that way. Brandon wanted to hike up closer, than hike along the edge of the glaciers and then exit back to the trail on the other side. I know there’s no frame of reference for those who haven’t been there, so I’ve included my GPS track from this section.

Once we hit the large rock steps, we did find a series of cairns, so we decided to follow them up the rock. There are a few sections where you need to use your hands to climb, but there was only one spot where I was like “this isn’t going to be fun on the way down” (pictured above). Eventually, we made it to the top of the stone steps. We still weren’t close enough to touch the glaciers, but this isn’t advised anyways because they are on steep terrain and the ice can calve at any point. So we had a bit of a photoshoot before deciding what to do next.

Like I said, Brandon wanted to continue along the top of the stone steps and approach the glacier further down, but I was really unsure what the terrain would look like from there (there might be more steep areas where we couldn’t get down). So I decided I’d pushed my comfort level enough for one day and insisted we go back the way we’d come. We followed the cairns back through the worst section, and then cut across the alpine to get back to the trail.

We didn’t see very many people on the way up, but it was around noon at this point and the trail was definitely getting busier. More day hikers were coming up and we also passed a bunch of backpackers on their way out. The alpine is absolutely beautiful and we took our time hiking along the rocks and exploring the different viewpoints and lakes.

After awhile I got a bit nervous because some mean looking clouds were starting to move in. I learned a valuable lesson about rain pants at Lake O’Hara and it was quite cold, so I was keen to avoid getting wet in the exposed alpine. There are some shale fields up there and Brandon wanted to look around for fossils, but I hurried him through the rest of the alpine. We took another break at the last alpine lake before you start to head down. It never did rain, but better safe than sorry I guess.

We hit the edge of the alpine around the 11km mark. Since we’d done a bit of a detour to the glacier, we figured we were still only at the half point of the hike. But the second half of the hike is all downhill or flat, so it’s much easier than the alpine section. We hiked down to little Yoho Valley until we reached the meadows. There’s another ACC hut on this trail called the Stanley Mitchell Hut. You have to have a booking to go in, so we just stopped at some of the picnic tables to have a snack and rest our feet. My plantar fasciitis injury was doing surprisingly well, but Brandon was having a bit of trouble with his ankle.

From the ACC hut, you can hike 1km further through the valley to a Parks Canada site called Little Yoho Valley, but we opted to skip it and continued the hike down the valley. It’s all in the trees from this point along the Little Yoho River. It looks like there were a few avalanches in the winter, so we had to detour through some blowdown.

At 18km, we came to the Laughing Falls Campground. From there, it’s only 5km back to the parking lot, so I think it would make for a great beginner backpacking trip. The falls are nice and there’s some lovely campsites along the river. The reservations were all sold out when we visited, but the campground was still mostly empty.

From there, it’s 5km of mostly flat walking back to the trailhead. 1km before the parking lot, you reach the Takakkaw Falls Campground. It’s a really interesting site because it’s not really frontcountry or backcountry. It’s a large campground and you can’t drive into it. But it’s only a 1km walk along a dirt road, so people still bring a fair amount of gear it. It’s where we had wanted to stay after O’Hara, but it was so cold and there’s no showers, so I don’t regret our decision to stay in a hotel. But it’s a really nice site and I think it would be lovely in warmer weather.

By the end of the hike, it was 5:30pm and we’d clocked 23km, so it was a pretty big day. Even so, I would highly recommend this trail! I know Lake O’Hara would have been a completely different experience for me on a nicer day and that I might have liked it better in different weather, but of the two experiences, I actually enjoyed the Iceline Trail a lot more than O’Hara. It’s a gorgeous trail and if you extend it over 1-2 nights, you could really take your time through the alpine. I would love to go back and do it as a backpacking trip. The campsites are still popular, but I’m guessing they’re easier to get then permits to O’Hara. Plus, it’s a much more doable day hike even if you don’t get permits. So if you’re looking for something a little bit different to do in Yoho, check out this trail instead!

We finished the trip with one more night out in Golden before heading back to Vancouver the next day. We briefly stopped in Glacier National Park to explore the visitor center at Roger’s Pass. Then we stopped again for ice cream at Dutchman Dairy outside Sicamous. It was a little surreal driving through Shuswap because some sections along the highway had completely burned down through the summer. We had lunch in Kelowna and then went straight home. We returned on a Friday, so I had a nice weekend to recover with Seth before heading back to work after a very epic trip!