Yoho National Park is in the Canadian Rockies, and it’s an easy add-on when you drive the Icefields Parkway, visiting Banff and Jasper National Parks. The Trans-Canada Highway passes through Yoho National Park and most of the famous attractions are not far from the highway.
The park is right at the British Columbia – Alberta border, and while neighboring Banff National Park belongs to Alberta, Yoho is in southeastern British Columbia. It’s only about 20 minutes drive from Lake Louise and one hour from the town of Banff, making it a wonderful alternative when you’re on the search for day trips from Banff.
But is Yoho National Park worth visiting? Read this post and decide for yourself. But do you know what the Cree word “Yoho” means? Awe. And it’ll surely leave you in awe.
How many days do you need to visit Yoho National Park?
If you ask this question, you probably don’t have too much time, and you surely have an already packed Canadian Rockies itinerary. Well, even if you only have an extra day for this park, it’s worth visiting. The top Yoho National Park attractions are close to the Trans-Canada Highway, and they require a short walk or hike.
Driving through the park and stopping several times enables you to see the best of Yoho in one day. In one long summer day, I might add. And if you want to add longer hikes, you need to add more days.
Yoho National Park one day itinerary
But here’s our sample itinerary for those in a hurry, assuming you arrive from the direction of Lake Louise:
- 9:00-10:30: drive the Yoho Valley Road to the Takakkaw Falls parking area, then walk to the bottom of the falls
- 10:30-11:00: drive to the Natural Bridge
- 11:00-11:30: walk to the viewpoints of the Natural Bridge
- 11:30-14:00: drive to Emerald Lake, then either hike the lakeshore loop (~1.5 hours) or rent a canoe and enjoy views from the water
- 14:00-15:00: walk around in Field, optionally have lunch
- 15:00-15:30: drive to the Wapta Falls trailhead
- 15:30-17:30: hike to Wapta Falls
- 17:30-18:00: drive back towards Lake Louise, stop at Sherbrooke Lake trailhead (optional)
- 18:00-20:00: Sherbrooke Lake hike (optional)
Whether you add Sherbrooke Lake or not depends on your hiking pace and also the length of daylight hours when you visit. The sun sets quite late (around 10 pm) in July, and around 8 pm in September.
We did this one day itinerary, but it was followed by another hiking day in the park.
The very best things to do in Yoho National Park
So which are the most amazing things to see in Yoho National Park? Here’s our list:
1. Visit Emerald Lake
Emerald Lake is the most famous and busiest sight in Yoho National Park. Rightly so, it’s among the most beautiful lakes in the Canadian Rockies, and it’s also the largest lake in Yoho. It was discovered during the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1882, and was named after its beautiful emerald waters. It’s not only the color of the lake that impresses, but the surroundings, as well: Mount Burgess and Wapta Mountain as a backdrop.
No hiking is required to reach Emerald Lake, you can drive directly to the lakeshore. However, there’s an easy, flat loop trail (~5 km) around the lake which is one of the best hikes in Yoho National Park. It runs through the forest with many openings, so you’ll enjoy pretty views. If you have about 1.5 hours, you can do it. Also, if you’re tired of the crowds near the parking lot, just start the lakeshore trail, and crowds will quickly thin out.
Renting a kayak or canoe (or bringing your own inflatable paddleboard) is another fabulous way to enjoy the views here.
Emerald Lake is about a 20 minute drive from Field on Emerald Lake Road. Parking at Emerald Lake is less of a nightmare than at the popular Banff lakes, but it can get busy, especially in July and August. Once the parking lot fills up, you can still park on the road shoulders (unlike at Lake Louise, it’s not forbidden here – not yet). On a busy day you might need to walk a kilometer along the road to actually get to the lake.
2. Stop at the Natural Bridge
The Natural Bridge is among the most easily accessible places to visit in Yoho National Park. It’s right by the road as you drive to Emerald Lake, so you can stop on your way there or back. From the parking lot it’s only a few steps to reach the viewpoints.
Natural Bridge, as you might have guessed, is a naturally formed stone bridge cut by the Kicking Horse River. Not only the rock formations are impressive here, but the roaring mountain river and the snow-capped peaks in the background, as well. As the water rushes through the holes in the rock, it looks almost like a waterfall.
There are two viewpoints, connected by a man-made bridge, and the best view of the rock formation is actually from the bridge. There’s no hiking trail here, but you can walk close to the river on the flat rocks behind the natural bridge. There’s also a short path that takes you down to the river on the other side of the bridge. Here you find a small rocky beach with some flat rocks – a perfect picnic spot, and it never gets crowded.
3. Do the short hike to Takakkaw Falls
With its 373 meters height, Takakkaw Falls is among the tallest single-drop waterfalls in Canada. Driving there on Yoho Valley Road is already spectacular, with views of the beautiful forest and the surrounding mountains. But it does have quite a few narrow switchbacks, so the last stretch of the route is not suitable for motorhomes.
Also, Yoho Valley Road is a summer route, it’s closed between October and June. The only way to get to Takakkaw Falls in the winter months is cross country skiing.
But summer access is easy. Parking is at the end of Yoho Valley Road, and from there you can already see the mighty waterfall. But walk along the stream and through the bridge to get to the bottom of Takakkaw Falls. It’s a 1.3 km return trail and it’s almost completely flat, with nice waterfall views and river views all the way.
Standing near the base of the falls, you’ll truly feel the size of it – and you’ll feel the mist, too (have a waterproof jacket). Takakkaw Falls is fed by the Daly Glacier, and it’s the most powerful in early summer.
For even more waterfall views from a higher perspective, hike the Iceline Trail.
4. Hike the Iceline Trail
Iceland Trail is among the best scenic high mountain trails in the Canadian Rockies. It treats you with breathtaking views of Yoho Valley and Takakkaw Falls, and all the surrounding snow-capped peaks that you can’t even count. If you love the high mountain scenery, you’ll be obsessed with the Iceline Trail (we were, anyway), but you have to work for the views. It’s not one of the easy and short trails. But it’s one of the “bucket list” trails.
To experience the most varied views, it’s recommended to do it as a loop, starting in the Yoho River Valley, then heading up in Little Yoho Valley, finally getting back on the Iceline Trail. You can complete this loop in either direction, but a counter-clockwise route allows you to face the best scenery for most of the time.
The full loop is about 20 km, and you have to conquer more than a thousand meters elevation gain. It’s no piece of cake. People often choose to do it as a multi-day hike, and there are several campgrounds on the way (like the Laughing Falls campground, Little Yoho Valley campground or the Stanley Mitchell Hut).
When is the best time to do this hike? Probably between late June and September. However, it depends on the current year’s snow conditions. In 2022, snow melted later than usual, because spring was colder than usual, so we couldn’t finish the loop even in early July due to very deep snow at the higher areas of Iceline Trail. And we did most of the hike with microspikes on.
However, the Iceline Trail became one of our favorite hikes in the Rocky Mountains, despite the fact that we couldn’t complete it – and that says it all.
| Hiking essentials: |
|---|
| Trailhead: Takakkaw Falls parking lot |
| Length: 20.6 km loop |
| Route: Yoho Valley Trail – Little Yoho Valley Trail – Iceline Trail |
| Difficulty: strenuous |
| See the trail map here! |
5. Find the perfect solitude at Sherbrooke Lake
Do you think that it’s impossible to find solitude in the Canadian Rockies during the summer? Not true. But you have to look for it. While Emerald Lake is the most popular among the Yoho National Park lakes, Sherbrooke Lake is among the least known and least crowded ones. And no, not because it lacks the beauty or the colors. But accessing it requires some hiking.
Sherbrooke Lake can be reached on a 3 km long hiking trail. The trailhead is a small parking area at the Wapta Lake Picnic Area, right by the Trans-Canada Highway, across from Wapta Lake. Most of the hike is on a steadily ascending forest trail, with occasional views of the snow-capped mountains. The trail is clearly marked, and for a while it’s the same route as the one to Paget Peak. But you reach a junction, choose Sherbrooke Lake, and after that the trail levels out as you reach the lake.
It’s a wonderful turquoise mountain lake, and views open up to Mount Ogden and Mount Niles as you get to the shore. However, the lakeshore trail is not directly along the shoreline, but follows it from a small distance away, and you can go to the lakeshore on short side trails from time to time.
| Hiking essentials: |
|---|
| Trailhead: Wapta Lake Picnic Area parking lot |
| Length: 3.6 km one-way |
| Difficulty: easy |
| See the trail map here! |
6. Marvel at Wapta Falls
Wapta Falls is the largest waterfall on the Kicking Horse River – 107 meters (~350 feet) wide and 18 meters (~60 feet) high. It’s a 25 minutes drive south of Field, located a bit further from the other attractions. But it’s a lovely, family-friendly hike to a very impressive waterfall.
To reach the trailhead you need to drive on an unnamed, unpaved road just off the Trans-Canada Highway for a few kilometers. It’s doable with any kind of car in the summer. The parking area is at the end of the road. It’s not too big, and this easy trail is popular – but also short, so there’s a good chance that most people come and go. This unpaved road is closed during the winter months, so accessing Wapta Falls while wearing snowshoes or cross-country skis is a bit longer, but it’s a magical snowy adventure.
The trail takes you through the forest, it’s almost flat and very well-marked. There are two upper waterfall viewpoints at the end, that’s where it gets a bit steeper. The viewpoints are on the left side of the falls, the first one is a side view, but the second one faces the falls directly. From the upper viewpoints, you can hike down all the way to the river to see Wapta Falls from below. Prepare to get wet though.
| Hiking essentials: |
|---|
| Trailhead: Wapta Falls parking area |
| Length: 2.7 km one-way |
| Difficulty: easy |
| See the trail map here! |
7. Visit Lake O’Hara? Maybe.
So here are two facts: Lake O’Hara is said to be the finest gem of Yoho National Park, but it’s very difficult to access. The pristine area surrounding the lake is protected, and there’s a daily quota that limits access. If you want to visit the lake, you need to plan it well ahead, you can’t just go there on a whim once in the area.
Lake O’Hara is accessible on a 11 km road where cars and bikes are not allowed. There’s a shuttle bus, but advance reservation is required and done on a lottery system. There’s a campground and a mountain hut at the lake, and if you have a reservation for either of them, you can use the shuttle. However, those reservations are not easy to get either. Lake O’Hara is at an elevation of 2200 meters, so the majority of the year is winter here, the short summer is incredibly popular!
If you can’t get shuttle service, you can choose to walk. 11 km there and back on a boring gravel service road within one day, because you can’t stay overnight without a reservation. And that’s not counting the distance you’d hike around the lake. You can decide whether it’s worth it for you; it wasn’t for us. So Lake O’Hara is one of the few famous Yoho attractions we missed.
If we’d ever do a trip to Yoho again though, we’d reserve accommodation as well in advance as possible and for several days. The area surrounding Lake O’Hara offers spectacular day hikes!
8. Take a whitewater rafting tour
One of the most exciting Yoho National Park activities is whitewater rafting on the Kicking Horse River. It’s an easy rafting river, suitable for family adventures, and you’re treated with jaw-dropping scenery on the way.
Local companies offer different rafting tours and packages for various experience levels and group sizes. There are full-day and half-day options, and many of them start from Golden. This is a guided rafting tour from Golden, with 12 km rafting down through class 2-4 rapids on the Kicking Horse River.
9. Take a guided hike to Burgess Shale fossils
The Burgess Shale fossils are the oldest evidence of complex life on Earth. They are proof of a marine ecosystem that existed long before the dinosaurs. These fossil sites are located in Yoho and Kootenay National Parks and can be accessed on guided hikes only.
Three guided hikes are available, and they require advance reservation. The reservation system opens up in January each year. Here are the current choices:
- Walcott Quarry hike: it’s a difficult trail on well maintained trails from the Takakkaw Falls parking lot. A 4.1 km hike up on steep switchbacks to Yoho Lake.
- Mount Stephen hike: it’s a difficult trail with very steep elevation gain over a relatively short distance. It starts from the town of Field.
- Stanley Glacier hike (Kootenay National Park): it’s a moderate trail that starts from the Stanley Glacier parking.
Since the guided hikes are allowed only for age 8+ participants, we didn’t do any of them with 3-year-old Tomi, but it could be such a unique addition to your Canadian Rockies trip.
10. Keep your eyes open for wildlife
Any part of the Canadian Rockies will impress visitors when it comes to wildlife. These mountains are home to bears, moose, elks, marmots and mountain goats – just to mention the most famous inhabitants -, and you can often see them from the road.
Spring and summer is the best time to see wildlife, that’s when animals find food, and they’re busy searching for it and eating it. Your best chance to see them is dusk or dawn, although we saw bears, elks, moose and marmots at totally random times during the day. So keep your eyes open both while driving and hiking – and don’t forget to keep your distance from wild animals.
