A Proper Winter Weekend Vacation in the Rockies

This is a little story to give you some ideas on how to plan a proper Rockies weekend getaway at a budget price. Here’s what you need.

• A car with winter tires, white knuckles, and nerves of steel (just kidding)
• Lots of warm clothes
• Some microspikes and boots

And most importantly…

• A reservation to one of the nine wilderness hostels in the Canadian Rockies and a pretty stretch of road

Adventure begins

Here is how my weekend went. My friend Erika messaged me on Thursday at 11 pm, “Aleks and I have two extra spots available to stay in Rampart Creek Wilderness Hostel from Sunday Monday. I need to know if you are in right now before we have to cancel the spots” Apparently, there are nine wilderness hostels in the Rockies that has no reception, no running water and gas-powered heat and lighting, set in these beautiful places in the Rockies. So, despite of the cold weekend, we excitedly packed a bag and snacks to drive out to the Icefield Parkway.

Adventures at Bow Lake

After a nice long lunch at Banff, we decided to stop at Bow Lake to hike across the now frozen lake. The weather cleared out and even though it was near -20, we were determined to go out for a walk as it had been rare to see a clear day lately

 

What’s really interesting about walking on a snow-covered lake in winter is that it’s not as dry as you would think. In certain areas, the snow pushes the water on to the surface of the ice and then insulating it from the cold. Making some steps super slushies. With the temperature so low, every time you step in, you pull your foot out with a ice boot forming around it. There’s absolutely no danger of falling in the lake but the wetness still makes it an interesting, intense hike as you have to shake out your foot every few steps as it gets heavier and heavier.

 

The incredible thing about the Icefield Parkway is there are so many cool spots you can check out along the way. In winter especially, different opportunities open up to you and you can spend so much time just exploring in the snow.

The Rampart Creek Hostel

We arrived after dark after our wet and cold hike and was so excited to get into the warmth. The hostel manager Ken greeted us excitedly and showed us around and telling us a bit about his life. He has been living here for about 6 and half years, managing the hostel and skiing and backpacking when he has a chance, what a life!

Walking into the common room, we were so impressed by how well stocked this place is for being in the wilderness. Beautiful and warm kitchen fully stocked with utensils. A lively space filled with adventurer after a day of ice climbing or skiing. So we grabbed dinner and a seat and had a great time meeting new people and exchanging stories.

There was a few funny stories. Every morning, the satellite internet goes for an hour or so as Ken the manager checks for snow conditions at Lake Louise, if they got decent snow then he is gone without a word. So many times, people wanted to check out and was like “Where’s Ken?” Once it avalanched on the road 5 meters right in front of his car as he was driving to Louise and his biggest disappointment is that he will miss the snow at Louise by the time the avalanche is cleared out.

Oh did I mention this hostel has a sauna? It was a rustic wooden cabin with a furnace and some rocks on top of it. Perfect for midnight on a -30 C day instead of going to bed. It was so relaxing! Somehow feels way better than a commercially maintained sauna. Also, so warm that you can walk outside for like 5 minutes in a t-shirt afterward before starting to feel cold again.

The next morning, we slowly made our way out into the cold morning of -35 C… haha thank god we weren’t camping that weekend.

Panther Falls

Finally, we left the hostel and started on our road trip. We stopped at the Weeping wall to watch a climber climb for a bit before heading out to our real destination.

Following some advice online and from Ken, we headed out to Panthers falls, a waterfall was a huge cavern underneath. We are in for a treat! It is beyond anything I imagined. Blue ice columns everywhere with water still flowing inside. It was such a magical place and it was only 15 minutes from the car!

 

 

 

It’s so easy to be afraid of the winter but over that weekend I learned how much fun you can have in winter. By staying at a hostel in the wilderness and explore as you drive, you can connect with the beauty of nature at one of the most beautiful places in the world. Don’t take the Rockies for granted even if you live nearby. There are many incredible things around the corner for you to discover, unique perspectives only the winter will bring. Time to get out and stretch your winter legs!