The Iceline Trail
Completed in dry conditions, but it is possible in all weather conditions. This being said, the Yoho Valley road is closed from October 10th to June 14th, so unless you want to ski or walk 10 km from the gate, it would be best to save this trip for when the road is open. In the peak season, this trail can be incredibly busy, so an early start (7:00 am or before) could mean a world of difference. There are plenty of options with different distances to explore this trail which can even include options such as bagging peaks in the Yoho Valley area for a long day trip and more. This hike gains a fair bit of elevation, but is relatively easy and on a graded trail.
The Iceline Trail is an incredibly popular hike at the end of the Yoho Valley Road. The trail gains a fair bit of elevation and takes you up to hike along (up close) to a lengthy line of glaciers (hence the name). There are also glaciers in every other direction, but just a bit further away. Many other trips depart from the same parking lot as well, such as The Walcott Quarry guided trip, or the Takakkaw Falls Viewpoint. And yes, you can see the Takakkaw Falls from the parking lot.
The Takakkaw Falls parking lot is situated a 13 km drive up the Yoho Valley Road (about 15 minutes) and the total driving time from the Calgary city limits is about 2:15 hours. The Yoho Valley Road is closed from October 10th to June 14th, so be mindful of this when planning your trip.
There are plenty of options of potential routes, but this will be describing the most popular three: parking lot to Little Yoho Campground (backpacking), Iceline summit out and back (day trip), and the Iceline Trail to Little Yoho Valley loop (backpacking or day trip). For all three trips, the trail begins in the large Takakkaw Falls parking lot. Head to the gate (trailhead) and take a right (south). Hike along the gravel road as it turns into a trail. After around 0.8 km, it will cross the Yoho Valley Road and the real trail will begin. Continue straight up the trail that switchbacks and gains elevation, passing three possible turns with signage (you continue straight at each intersection). As you break through the tree line, views of the glacier and surroundings open up. All three possible routes continue through this magnificent terrain until past the Celeste Lake turnoff (also another viable option for a day trip). The Iceline summit appears shortly, where the Iceline summit out and back will turn around and head back the way that you came. The other two options will continue and descend to the Little Yoho Valley on more impressive terrain and easy switchbacks. At the valley bottom, head right and cross the river, where the campground and Stanley Mitchell Hut are situated to the left. The loop option is now all that remains, and takes a right at the Stanley Mitchell Hut. After heading down the Little Yoho Valley Trail for a while, you continue straight (toward Laughing Falls) at the first intersection and then right (toward Laughing Falls) at the next intersection. Descend to the main Yoho Valley and take a last right turn on to the Yoho Valley Trail. Walk along this good trail for a while back to the Takakkaw Falls parking lot.
This trip report is the first of four reports that include our Takakkaw Falls backpacking trip adventures.
Having wanted to get out for a backpacking trip for a while, we scanned the Parks Canada website for spots around that would be ideal for a peakbagging trip. We had first wanted to go to the Skoki area, but it didn’t have the ideal availability for us. My dad and I then stumbled across an area that we had never really been before. We explored the map and various trip reports, and then booked a two night stay, one at Little Yoho Valley Campground, and the next at the Twin Falls Campground. The plan was to hike in on the Iceline trail and complete a traverse of McArthur, Pollinger, and Mount Kerr in the first day, head over and bag Isolated and Whaleback while hiking to Twin Falls on the second day, and then have an easy walk out for a bad weather day on Sunday. An ambitious plan, but we ended up getting even more out of the trip than I’d originally planned for, which is quite rare. Anyways, let’s get into the morning of the first day of our adventure.
My alarm went off at 3:45 am and I shot up, ready to go as usual. We had prepared everything the night before, so all we had to do was throw our gear in the truck and get out. We probably left around 4:30 am, a bit later than anticipated, but we ended up watching the sky brighten and the sun begin to make its appearance just as we got to the Takakkaw Falls parking lot. We took a while to make sure we were set and got going on the trail at 7:00 am. We were shooting for the Little Yoho Valley Campground by around 10:00 am. Not a bad start.
The sight or sound of Takakkaw Falls can't hide from anyone in the parking lot area. This gate is the start of the trail.
We immediately saw this blue looking bird after starting. It looked cool, but sounded bad. Not sure what it is...
The outhouses here were a bit hard to find, but get an 8/10 for cleanliness and smelling decent.
As the trail turned into more of a trail, we got a couple glimpses of the glowing peaks surrounding us. The peak right of center is Wapta Mountain.
Approaching the "real" trailhead.
Here is the "real" trailhead for the Iceline Trail. This is where the grind begins. Sorta.
After hiking for a while, I realized that the trail is actually nicely graded the entire way and very easy to walk on. There were tons of switchbacks and a couple steep sections, but it really wasn't that tough.
We kept going straight at the Hidden Lakes turnoff.
We continued straight again after the lower Highline Trail turnoff.
Quickly after starting, we arrived to the avalanche gully and were treated to some early views of Takakkaw Falls and Mount Balfour.
It was at this point that I noted that we would be back for the Takakkaw Lake hike, possibly with my mom, since it doesn't look that hard. It starts off in the valley and then follows the treed ledge to the top of the waterfalls, providing an incredible view of the lake (above the falls) and Daly Glacier.
I took this nice shot of Wapta Mountain up at tree line. Soon enough we'd be out of the trees completely.
The whole view of the glaciers would open up just around this corner to the left.
See. I told you.
Couldn't take my eyes off the Moon in this part.
A nicely cleared sidewalk makes for some easy walking as we continued on the trail.
Looking back at the first glacier along the trail (I believe it is technically also called the Emerald Glacier as with all the others, but I'm not entirely sure). Also note the tarn at center, which will become a common theme of this hike.
So many views of Mount Balfour, King of the Wapta. I will be climbing it one day.
Even more spectacular scenery on the trail. It's so worth doing. Trust me.
A beautiful tarn near the highest point of the trail. You can even see to the Lake Louise group from here, which impressed me a lot.
Some of our objectives came into view. From right to left they are: Whaleback Mountain (Day 2), Isolated Peak (Day 2), Mount McArthur (Day 1), and Mount Pollinger (Day 1).
The last incredible tarn on the trail. The Presidents loom behind. This tarn is probably the most beautiful out of all of them, and is past the Iceline summit turn around point. It might be worth the extra effort to come around and see it!
A last look at Mount Balfour from the trail.
Even the descent to the Little Yoho Valley was scenic, with some views of the Glacier Des Poilus in between Isolated Peak (right) and Mount McArthur (left).
As we began the descent, we came across a group of old folks that had just spent four nights up in the area. We chatted for a bit and they were super nice. I love hearing all the stories from other people on the trail, it's such a nice way to take a little break while you're walking and you often learn something too. They were the first people that we'd seen all day.
Shortly after, we saw a group of about 30 (kids and adults) coming from the hut. Apparently they had all stayed there the night before, so the hut must be quite spacious.
Shortly after beginning our descent, we arrived at the base of the Little Yoho Valley.
The Stanley Mitchell Hut door up close. Reservations are a must here, unless there is extremely bad weather.
And that concludes our morning hike in to the Little Yoho campground. What an amazing way to spend a morning if I do say so myself. As we got into the campground and started chatting with some people, I realized how perfectly timed (and lucky) we were, since we had the entire Iceline Trail to ourselves. Apparently just the day before, there were at least 250 people on it. Craziness! Anyways, let that be your reminder to make sure you get out early when you're hiking these popular trails. And now on to our second adventure of the day.