When to go · British Columbia
Emerald Lake, and the case for Yoho
The next valley over from Lake Louise, with a lodge on the shore and a fraction of the coaches.
British Columbia
Emerald Lake sits in Yoho National Park in British Columbia, one valley over from the part of the Rockies everybody has already been to. The water is the colour the name promises, and there is a lodge on the shore.
The lake is the centre of it. You can swim, canoe and kayak on it, and walking the perimeter is the easiest possible way to spend a morning that still feels like something. Around it the trails run from flat and scenic up to multi-day backcountry, so the same base works whether you want a stroll or a proper day out.
Emerald Lake Lodge is on the shore, and the location does most of the work. Mountains, old pines, and the lake directly outside. Inside it is fireplaces and comfortable furniture rather than anything designed, which is correct for where it is.
Dining is the Kicking Horse Dining Room, locally sourced, with a menu that changes with the seasons: meat, fish, and vegetables from close by. The Timberwolf Pizza and Pasta Co. is the casual option, wood-fired pizza and pasta, with an outdoor patio looking at the lake and the mountains. On a warm evening the patio is the better restaurant.
“One valley over from the part of the Rockies everybody has already been to.”
From the journalWinter is a different park
The lodge does not close when the snow comes and the trails carry on working. Snowshoeing and skiing, with routes through the same forest that is full of walkers in summer, and considerably fewer people on them.
If you are choosing between the two, summer is easier and winter is quieter. Both are worth it. Winter is the one people do not think of.
Fitting it into a Rockies trip
Yoho sits alongside Banff, and the classic route takes in Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Emerald Lake, the Natural Bridge and Takakkaw Falls. Doing that as a private day rather than a coach is a substantially different experience.
Our suggestion is to base at Emerald rather than at Lake Louise and drive the other way each morning. Same sights, considerably better evenings.
Late September, midweek, two nights, and base here rather than at Lake Louise. That is the whole recommendation.
From the journal · The Travelling T · Written June 2020
