Calgary-based photographer Stevin Tuchiwsky's winter photographs of Alberta and British Columbia make a strong case for visiting western Canada when it is buried in snow: frozen waterfalls, still lakes, glaciers, ski slopes and a moose in a snowy clearing. Here is the story behind each place in his series, and how to see them yourself.
Yoho National Park: Emerald Lake and Wapta Falls
Emerald Lake lies at about 1,200 m in Yoho National Park, a short drive from the railway village of Field and about 50 km east of Golden. It is frozen from November until late April or early May, with heavy snow and sub-freezing temperatures from December to March, which makes the lodge on its shore one of the classic winter retreats in the Rockies.
Also in Yoho, Wapta Falls spans the Kicking Horse River: about 18 m high and more than 100 m wide.
Kootenay National Park and Revelstoke
Kootenay National Park, founded in 1920, covers 1,406 km² on the British Columbia side of the Rockies. Highway 93 runs about 94 km through it from Vermilion Pass to Radium Hot Springs, whose pools range from about 35 to 47 °C, a perfect end to a cold day. Along the way are Marble Canyon, Numa Falls and the Paint Pots, cold mineral springs coloured red by iron-rich ochre that the Ktunaxa people once gathered for pigment.
Further west, Revelstoke is a serious skier's town. Revelstoke Mountain Resort, opened in December 2007, has the biggest vertical drop in North America at 1,710 m, about 10.5 m of snow a year and the 15.2 km Last Spike run.
Banff: Lake Minnewanka, Lake Louise and Johnson Lake
Lake Minnewanka, about 5 km from the Banff townsite, is up to 142 m deep and one of the longest lakes in the mountain parks of the Canadian Rockies. It is partly man-made: a 1941 dam raised it by 30 m and drowned the resort village of Minnewanka Landing, which dates from 1888.
Lake Louise sits at 1,750 m, fed mainly by the Lefroy Glacier, with the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise on its eastern shore. The Stoney Nakoda called it Ho-run-num-nay, "Lake of the Little Fishes"; it was renamed after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, a daughter of Queen Victoria. In winter the frozen lake is used for skating and ice fishing. Nearby Moraine Lake is a summer-only trip: Parks Canada’s current Lake Louise and Moraine Lake information explains that Moraine Lake Road is closed to personal vehicles year-round, with shuttles in the summer season. See our Moraine Lake guide.
Columbia Icefield and the Athabasca Glacier
On the Icefields Parkway, straddling the Continental Divide between Banff and Jasper national parks, the Columbia Icefield covers about 325 km² with ice 100 to 365 m thick. It sits on a triple divide: its meltwater flows to the Arctic Ocean, Hudson Bay and the Pacific. The Athabasca Glacier, one of six major glaciers that drain it, is visible from the road and has been retreating since about 1840.
Whistler, Kananaskis and Lundbreck Falls
Whistler Blackcomb, 137 km from Vancouver International Airport, is the largest ski area in North America at 3,307 hectares, with about 11.7 m of snow a year. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola links its two mountains on a 3.02 km unsupported span, and Whistler hosted the alpine skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Kananaskis Country, west of Calgary, covers about 4,000 km² of foothills and front ranges with several provincial parks. Moose, elk, bighorn sheep and bears live here, and in winter the Nakiska ski area and the Canmore Nordic Centre, both 1988 Olympic venues, are close by. Give moose plenty of room: watch from a distance or from your car.
In southwest Alberta, Lundbreck Falls drops about 12 m in three steps on the Crowsnest River, beside Highway 3A between Pincher Creek and Crowsnest Pass. A viewing platform and a path to the foot of the falls make it an easy winter stop.
For more Rockies ice, see Paul Zizka’s Haffner Creek photographs.
Related reading
- Moraine Lake: The Valley of the Ten Peaks and Its Famous View
- Peyto Lake in Banff: Turquoise Water, Mountain Views and Seasonal Change
- Banff Avenue: Mountain Views at Street Level
- Waterton Lakes: Where Prairie Meets the Rocky Mountains
- Azure Lake in Wells Gray Park, British Columbia
- Frozen Hairstyles at Takhini Hot Springs in Canada
- Canadian Winter Humour: Snowbanks, Cold-Weather Scenes and Everyday Life
Sources
- Wikipedia: Emerald Lake, Wapta Falls, Kootenay National Park, Revelstoke Mountain Resort, Lake Minnewanka, Lake Louise, Columbia Icefield, Whistler Blackcomb, Kananaskis Country, Lundbreck Falls
- Parks Canada: Lake Louise and Moraine Lake access
- Earthables
- All photographs: Stevin Tuchiwsky.
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