Iceline

Round trip: 6.4 km (4 mi)

Elevation gain: 690 m (2200 ft.)
Hiking time: 2-3 hours
Difficulty: easy to moderate

Description:

Takakkaw Falls 

This is my all-time favorite hike. Once again you’re not summiting a mountain, but on this one you are able to touch a glacier if you want… no big deal.

During the ascent of this hike, your will be accompanied by the spectacular Takakkaw Falls. The distant rumble of the falls will be a constant reminder of just how badly you wished you visited those port-a-potties before you started.  The trail starts as an arduous climb through a series of switchbacks, but eventually you break out above the tree line for spectacular views.

And if you’re a wildflower lover, there’s plenty on this hike. So many, that the trail may be blocked at a few points by hikers going just a bit over board on a floral photo shoot.

Some of the flora for your photo shoot 

But the best part of the hike is the glacier, Emerald Glacier. And depending on the time of year in which you choose to hike this trail, it will always be changing. You will never hike this trail and see the same thing twice. The glacier is constantly changing the environment. On your first trip up to Iceline, there may be a trickling waterfall and an endless number of streams rushing down the hill side, but on your next trip this may all disappear and give way to giant boulders and rocks that have been tossed around and bullied by the glacier, helplessly carved in the strangest of ways from the moving and shifting ice.

Emerald Glacier 

I have been on many hikes in the Rockies, but there have been none quite like this. Sure you don’t feel that “macho man” accomplishment of summiting a mountain, but the sites and views you get to see are top notch.

Directions:

Found in Yoho national park; travel along Trans-Canada Hwy and exit onto Yoho Valley Road. Follow the winding Yoho Valley Road until you reach the Whiskey Jack Hostel, where the trailhead for Iceline is located. Enjoy!