#112. Yoho National Park & the Columbia Icefield Parkway

Day 4 (Yoho National Park):  Waterfalls & Emerald Lake

Our next day was spent in Yoho National Park where we ended up seeing a cool waterfall and lake.

On our way to the first waterfall, we stopped and took a look at our first Yoho landmark...this Natural Bridge formed by the rocks and the gushing water.

It was cool to think about how this one site is in the middle of so much more!!

After visiting the Natural Bridge, we made our way to the Wapta Falls trailhead and prepared for the moderately difficult hike.  

This crew was up for the challenge!  We could hear the water for most of the hike, but we finally reached this point where we could see the cascades of the falls...  

...which weren't as tall as Niagara...

...but were surrounded by much more beautiful landscape as we found out while hiking to the base of the falls. 

While the parents stood by enjoying the mist from the falls, the kids ('Luke' for the red shirt!)...

...took to exploring the rocks and falls runoff.  

We totally enjoyed some peace (we were the only people at the base for awhile) and serenity with this view in the distance.  

Our next stop for the day was the town of Golden to visit the Golden Skybridge. The Skybridge is only a handful of years old and is pretty much a cool bridge connected to a tourist trap (anywhere you see a big chair like this, right?!?) on site!   

The grounds were nice and provided this nice photo background!

After a short hike, we arrived at the main attraction, the Skybridge.

We ended up in a queue that gave us enough time to watch others walk the bridge.

Soon it was our turn and we...

...carefully began our journey across.  

The scenery in the distance (look at all those ski hills...Golden is a ski mecca in the winter!)...

...and down below, was pretty cool, though not cool enough to call this a trip highlight!  (We actually purchased a 'Pursuit Pass' and this was one of the attractions we could visit with our pass.)

After a bite to eat at 'The Island',...

...we hit the road and headed back towards Field and made our way to...

    

...the day's main event...Emerald Lake...the crown jewel of Yoho National Park.

It was pretty obvious why this lake got the name 'Emerald'!! 
After a quick look at the lake we decided to...

...head to the Boathouse Trading Company to rent some canoes...

...and join the many others enjoying being out on the water.

We took some quick photos...

...and then headed out on our way for an hour of canoeing on Emerald Lake.

Being out on the emerald colored water was amazing...

...and so were all the views.  

After docking the canoes, we took a short hike around the lake...

...and enjoyed all of the scenes...

...from the shore.  

Emerald Lake was a big hit for the these two!!

After another successful day, we headed back to our lodge, the Truffle Pigs Hotel for a nice dinner...  

...and followed all of the rules!

As we were dining, a bolt of lightning struck the mountain a short distance from the lodge.  The restaurant and lodge employees were definitely concerned and even told us we may need to evacuate.  We could tell that the fires at Jasper National Park in 2024 definitely had folks anxiety heightened when it came to forest fires. 

We ended up watching the fire build and, thankfully, eventually wane with the help of a helicopter dropping water on the fire.  And, as the sun started to set over the tiny town of Field... 

...a rainbow appeared behind the Truffle Pigs Lodge!

Day 5: (Banff & Jasper National Parks) Driving the Icefields Parkway

On Day 5, we woke up to see the fire on the hill mostly diffused.  You can see the helicopter bringing water if you look close.  

After checking out of the lodge, we embarked on a 300km (190 mile) drive from Field to Jasper on Highway 93, the Icefields Parkway.  This drive is considered one of the most scenic in the world with the Canadian Rockies, lakes, glaciers, and waterfalls all along the highway.  It took us nearly 6 hours and we made several stops along the way.  

It wasn't long before we saw a tall waterfall in the distance...

...and made our first stop at Takakkaw Falls.  

Takakkaw (from the Cree meaning 'magnificent') is the highest waterfall in the Canadian Rockies at 830 ft.

I could feel the mist while taking this photo!

After hiking up and back from the waterfall, we hit the road and started to see beautiful lakes not far from the highway, the first being Hector Lake. This lake was a bit away from the highway, but... 

...the next lake, Bow Lake, was much closer so we decided to park and explore. 

Much like the lakes earlier in the trip, Bow Lake was another gorgeous blue lake...

 ...with stunning alpine scenery.  

The twins decided to test out the (VERY) cold water...

...while Papa...

...and Dad stayed ashore.  

After some rock skipping...

...we took a family photo...

...and enjoyed lunch with a view.  Wow, what a lake!!

But that's not all!  Next up was Peyto Lake...the most unreal of them all!!

Peyto Lake is named after Bill Peyto, a legendary Rocky Mountains guide and one of the first park wardens at Banff.

We also learned more about what creates the magnificent colors in the lakes.  It's actually a combination of ground up glacier rock suspended in the water, sunlight, and the colors reflecting back to our eyes.

A very short hike led us to this unbelievable scene.

I mean...W-O-W!!!

My lake buddy...

...and I got a little closer for these photos.  Stunning.  

After the dreamlike views, we got back on the Parkway and continued our drive.  

Around every corner was another amazing backdrop.  

We slowed down to take a look at the 'Weeping Wall'...a cliff where dozens of thin waterfalls stream down the face of the rock giving the appearance that the cliff is “weeping.”

We continued onwards and made a stop at...

...Tangle Falls...

...so called for the multi-tiered falls that tangle their way down the side of the cliff.  Pictures don't do the falls justice... 

Can you find the twins??

Back to the highway...

...until crossing from Banff National Park into Jasper National Park and our next stop at Sunwapta Falls.  

This waterfall is formed by a river that makes an abrupt turn and drops into a canyon.  

And since 4 waterfalls weren't enough for the day...

...we journeyed onwards to our 5th...

...at Athabasca Falls.

Athabasca Falls are from the Athabasca River.  The falls aren't very tall, but the volume and roar of the water falling was impressive.  

We took some time to check out various viewpoints at the top of the falls...

...and we hiked down...

...to see the gorge formed at the base.  

These two were lovin' the nature!

But, one thing we noticed was that for every lush and green view in the distance...

...there were piles and piles of dead (burned) forest from the wildfires of 2024.  

This was just our first glimpse of the sad destruction that happened in Jasper the previous year.