Emerald Basin

October marks the beginning of the winter in the mountains. With the Covid restrictions preventing us from leaving the country, a roadtrip close to home was our only option. One of the only wood cabin still available to rent for a few days was along the Blaeberry River near Golden, BC. That would give us the opportunity to visit Yoho National Park for the first time.

The drive on the Trans-Canada Highway was beautiful. I always enjoy the low-hanging clouds moving fast between the mountains.

The first stop on our way was at Emerald Lake, a very popular destination during the summer in Yoho National Park. I would absolutely avoid it during the peak season but now was a perfect opportunity to have the place to ourselves or at least, almost. The Emerald Lake road was carefully guarded by this elk. It stayed there for while without moving a bit.

Is it just me or its GPS collar looks a little tight?

The overcast sky made the Emerald Lake water darker than its usual bright emerald color. Nonetheless, it was pretty and we spent quite a moment around it before deciding on hiking the trail that leads into the alpine above, Emerald Basin.

Emerald Lake Lodge

The conditions were perfect, at least to my taste. I have mentioned it before, partly snow-covered mountains are a sight I will never get tired of. Light snow accentuates the texture and contrast of the mountains. There is such a short window of time between fall and full winter, I was happy to experience it.

The first two kilometers of the trail were flat until we reached a steep incline with close to 800 feet of elevation gain in less than a kilometer.

The weather was a mixed bag of conditions. From a light breeze to strong winds, an overcast sky to patches of blue. But it wasn’t that bad, especially with the constant elevation gain that kept us warm.

The basin was majestic. All the rocks covered with snow looked like mini mushrooms. Lucky for us, the sun decided to come out for a bit while we enjoyed the views.

An open stream provided much needed hydration.

Hunger was setting in and with all our food back in the vehicle, it was time to head back despite the serenity offered my this alpine environment.

The snow and winter conditions of Yoho National Park were left behind as we continued past Golden on our way to the cabin. After an hour on different Forest Service Roads, the cabin was reached.

The view from our front porch, the Blaeberry River flowing just behind the trees at the back of the property.

Home for a few days.

Well…! We enjoyed the last few hours of fall because a snow storm covered the landscape just after diner.

What we thought would be a typical early fall snowfall ended up being quite a big dump with a few inches on the ground after a storm that held on through the night. It was fun to have breakfast inside the cabin while watching the numerous deer doing the same thing on the property.

With reduced visibility, our plans of hiking in the alpine had to change and Wapta Falls was now on the to-do list for the day. The 45-minute drive to Yoho National Park was interesting with the volatile weather. This section between Golden and the National Park is known to be the sketchiest part of the 7,476 kilometers highway. Massive and thick fog banks were covering the road, mainly caused by the mist generated by the Kicking Horse River flowing between its canyon walls below the highway.

The trail to Wapta Falls was snowy, muddy and wet but lovely. There was only one other vehicle at the trailhead. Not bad for a usually busy place. I am not going to lie, solitude in the woods is something I am always looking forward to.

The panorama above the falls provided a spectacular aerial view. The silty water was as turquoise as it could have been. A delight for the eyes!

We found a trail that led to the base of the falls and wandered around for a while.

Colorful rocks everywhere we walked.

Between the mist and the light rain, we were soaking wet. But we were happy! :-)

Once again, hunger made us turn around!

I had spotted a nice rest area along the Kicking Horse River on our way to the falls in the morning. With that in mind, I was able to convince Andrea to patiently wait until we were there to have lunch. As a bonus, a CP train passed by during our time there. It was impressive to see the train navigate the cliffs and canyons just a few feet from the river.

The drive back to the cabin along the Columbia was scenic and some blue sky patches gave us hope for a nice sunset after spending the last 24 hours in the fog and snow.

Elk grazing near our cabin.

After dinner, the sky cleared up even more. It was enough to convince us to go for a walk along the Blaeberry, just a few steps from the cabin.

Needless to say, this sunset was a sight to behold. What an incredible moment spent on this gorgeous fall evening.

The Kokanee Salmon is a landlocked freshwater fish and they were abundant along the Blaeberry.

It was one of those moments when you just wish that seconds were minutes and minutes were hours…

Back to reality, it was time to head inside and enjoy the rest of the evening around the fireplace. This place was magical!

For the drive back home, we decided to skip the usual Trans-Canada Highway through Banff National Park and opted for a long detour that would see us drive south along the Columbia Valley all the way to Radium and then head back up north through Kootenay National Park to reach Banff. It ended up being a very good plan. The landscape surrounding the Columbia River was even prettier than what I had imagined.

The Columbia River.

Having read pretty much every book on David Thompson, the famous surveyor and fur trader of the Hudson’s Bay Company and the North West Company, there was no way I could have skipped the Kootenae House National Historic Site in Invermere. Perhaps my expectations were very high because of how often I had came across the mention of this fur trading post in multiple books. There was nothing more than a stone and a few signs. For such an important landmark in our country’s history, I expected Parks Canada to do more to highlight this place. Maybe a full-size reproduction of the original buildings? Nonetheless, I was still happy to have stood there.

After a quick lunch break and a visit to a very cool used book store in Invermere (The Book Cellar), off we were to Kootenay National Park.

Local traffic jam of Radium.

Snow was covering most the mountains but the road was clear and the drive enjoyable.

The Kootenay River.

For once, the sign that says “wildlife ahead” was accurate!

Andrea was napping on the passenger seat so I decided to stop by a place that is very dear to me, the Simpson River.

The rest of the way home was majestic, just as one would expect after the first snowfall of the season.

The timing for this roadtrip was perfect. We had a little bit of everything with the weather. And despite the ongoing Covid restrictions, we were still able to enjoy the Canadian Rockies while staying close to home. This was our last trip of the year 2020. And what a “trip” this year has been so far…!