LAKE O'HARA 6,939'
EVENT TYPE: Bus into the campground and do world class day hikes from there
DISTANCE: 1.75 miles
ELEVATION: Minor ups and downs
DIFFICULTY: Easy
MAPS: Lake O'Hara Trail Map - Yoho National Parks, Canada
GPS: 51°21'23.7"N 116°20'03.0"W
DISTANCE: 1.75 miles
ELEVATION: Minor ups and downs
DIFFICULTY: Easy
MAPS: Lake O'Hara Trail Map - Yoho National Parks, Canada
GPS: 51°21'23.7"N 116°20'03.0"W
DESCRIPTION:
The Lake O'Hara basin is remarkable in many ways. It is surrounded by glacier carved peaks and several hanging valleys each with yet another remarkable alpine lake. It is so popular that in an effort to conserve the area and keep the user experience peaceful they have a permit system to limit 42 people in the basin per night and they do not allow you to drive into the basin. You must take a bus into and out of the campground.
The campground is the best you could ask for in a tent camp. The sleeping area is away from the eating area. Each site has a generous tent pad for one tent. There is a bear proof food locker for each site some of which are larger than others. There are several picnic tables and a fire ring along with two warming huts with pot belly stoves if it is cold or raining outside. There are wash basins outside of the pit toilets which are some of the cleanest and least smelly of all outhouses. Somehow they keep the water running even in below freezing temperatures. They provide a wood pile along with a gear storage room.
The bus ride and the campground fee is $11.50 per night. This is a pretty good deal considering the lake is a five minute walk up the road and the historic Lake O'Hara lodge is at it’s outlet. The rooms there run $400 dollars a night. I'll take my tent. I will say if you can afford it I would not hesitate to take the opportunity to stay there though. It is pretty darn nice. The cabins are on a peninsula and most have an incredible view of the lake and surrounding peaks. They offer afternoon tea at the lodge and non-lodge guests are welcome. It is a really nice spread especially after a big hike. They offer beer, wine and tea also.
Leaving the campground you can walk up the trail on either side of the outlet stream to the lake or you can take the road to the Lodge. There is a well maintained trail circumnavigating the lake that takes about an hour to walk and it is dead flat. There are several spur trails that lead up off of that path up to the alpine circuit which is a route along a series of ledges that loops around two hanging valleys on the back side of Lake O'Hara about a 1,000 feet up. The hiking at Lake O'Hara is world class. It is nice to wake up in a comfortable camp at the base of several different alpine routes that can be done in a day and you can be back at camp around the five in time for dinner. I do trail work and I admire the trail work in this basin. I have not seen a single piece of debris in the trails nor have I had to climb over a fallen tree. The trails are wide and well signed at each intersection. The trails are sometimes a bit exposed but because of that you get incredible views all day long with little effort.
The campground is the best you could ask for in a tent camp. The sleeping area is away from the eating area. Each site has a generous tent pad for one tent. There is a bear proof food locker for each site some of which are larger than others. There are several picnic tables and a fire ring along with two warming huts with pot belly stoves if it is cold or raining outside. There are wash basins outside of the pit toilets which are some of the cleanest and least smelly of all outhouses. Somehow they keep the water running even in below freezing temperatures. They provide a wood pile along with a gear storage room.
The bus ride and the campground fee is $11.50 per night. This is a pretty good deal considering the lake is a five minute walk up the road and the historic Lake O'Hara lodge is at it’s outlet. The rooms there run $400 dollars a night. I'll take my tent. I will say if you can afford it I would not hesitate to take the opportunity to stay there though. It is pretty darn nice. The cabins are on a peninsula and most have an incredible view of the lake and surrounding peaks. They offer afternoon tea at the lodge and non-lodge guests are welcome. It is a really nice spread especially after a big hike. They offer beer, wine and tea also.
Leaving the campground you can walk up the trail on either side of the outlet stream to the lake or you can take the road to the Lodge. There is a well maintained trail circumnavigating the lake that takes about an hour to walk and it is dead flat. There are several spur trails that lead up off of that path up to the alpine circuit which is a route along a series of ledges that loops around two hanging valleys on the back side of Lake O'Hara about a 1,000 feet up. The hiking at Lake O'Hara is world class. It is nice to wake up in a comfortable camp at the base of several different alpine routes that can be done in a day and you can be back at camp around the five in time for dinner. I do trail work and I admire the trail work in this basin. I have not seen a single piece of debris in the trails nor have I had to climb over a fallen tree. The trails are wide and well signed at each intersection. The trails are sometimes a bit exposed but because of that you get incredible views all day long with little effort.
DIRECTIONS:
Take Highway 95 north across the border to Radium Hot Springs, named because they actually are radio active, and turn east onto Highway 93. Soon you enter the National Park system. The views start here and do not end. I've been as far north as Jasper and everything between here and there is amazing. First you enter Yoho National Park which has always been my favorite. It is a classic "U" shaped glacier carved valley on a huge scale. At Castel Junction take Highway 1 west and go past Jasper a few kilometers. Veer left and stay on Highway 1 toward Kicking Horse pass and the town of Field. Do not go north to Jasper. Not far west of the pass and before you get to Kicking Horse campground on the south side of the highway is the road to Lake O'Hara. The parking lot is just off the highway. There are toilets. The bus stop is up the road just past the entrance to the parking area.
Trail Map (Click below to download a pdf of the trail system):
| Lake O'Hara Trail Map |
OPTION #1:
Wiwaxy Gap Alpine Route
OPTION #2:
Yukness Ledges Alpine Route
OPTION #3:
All Souls' Alpine Route
COOL THINGS CLOSE BY:
Abbot Pass and Hut (ACC), Elizabeth Parker Hut (ACC), Sentinel Pass
HAZARDS:
A child could do the Alpine Circuit but there are sections that you do not want to fall off of the trail.
R & P:
Afternoon Tea at the Lake O'Hara Lodge. Deer Lodge for smoked ham and eggs.
PLAN YOUR TRIP:
Click for Current NOAA Weather Conditions
PHOTO GALLERY
THE BUS STOP AND WOOD SHED AT THE CAMPGROUND
DINNER TIME AT THE CAMP
TENT PAD
LAKE O’HARA
LAKE O’HARA LOG CABIN RENTALS
STANDING ON ALL SOULS' PROSPECT LOOKING ACROSS AT WIWAXY GAP
CLIMBING DOWN FROM ALL SOULS' PROSPECT
ALL SOULS’ PROSPECT ROUTE
LOOKING UP THE LAKE OESA BASIN JUST RIGHT OF CENTER
FROM YUKNESS LEDGES OVER LOOKING LAKE O'HARA
THE WIWAXY GAP ALPINE ROUTE
NARROW LEDGE ALONG WIWAXY GAP ROUTE
MOUNT SCHAFFER COMING BACK FROM LAKE MCARTHUR
