Emerald Lake (British Columbia)

Emerald Lake
Emerald Lake
	Emerald Lake Lodge
	Emerald Lake
Location	Yoho National Park, British Columbia
Coordinates	51°26′38″N116°31′52″W / 51.444°N 116.531°W
Primary outflows	Emerald River
Basin countries	Canada

Last updated September 10, 2023

Emerald Lake is a freshwater lake located in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada.^[1] Yoho National Park is one of the 4 contiguous National Parks in the heart of Canada's Rocky Mountains, along the boundary of British Columbia and Alberta Provinces, the other Parks are Kootenay, Jasper, and Banff.

Nearby features

Emerald Lake Lodge, a high-end lodge or hotel, is on a peninsula jutting into the lake. It was founded in the 1920s and completely rebuilt in the 1980s. A quiet 2 lane paved road about 15 km / 9 miles long connects the busy Trans-Canada Highway with Emerald Lake, the exit is well marked. A 5.2 km (3.2 mi) hiking trail circuits the lake, the first half of which is accessible to wheelchairs and strollers, many other more advanced hiking trails go in different directions up into the mountains.

The railway and timber town of Golden BC is the nearest town to Emerald Lake that is outside the Park boundaries, it is about 50 km / 30 miles distant to the west in the low valley of the Columbia River headwaters, and has many lodging options, the small historic railway village of Field is in Yoho Park near the highway exit to Emerald Lake, and has a large Park-operated Information and Visitor's Center, Field Village also has gas, food and a few B & B's. The Park Service Center of Lake Louise, which has limited lodging, is about 30 km / 20 miles to the east of Emerald Lake in neighboring Banff National Park, while the famous resort town of Banff, located on the southeast edge of that Park, is about 60 km / 40 miles further east of Lake Louise, it has a large number of hotels as does the town of Canmore, located just outside the Banff Park boundary. Vehicle / RV campgrounds are common throughout the region for summer use, reservations made well in advance are highly advised for hotels and campgrounds during summer, which is early June to late September on an average weather year.

Wildlife

Many wild animals live in the area and are protected by Park Law, Brown (Grizzly) Bears and Black Bears are fairly common, they co-exist quite well with humans as the Park has strict laws on garbage control and good advice to Park Visitors on practicing bear safety and being "Bear Aware". Mountain Goats and Bighorn Sheep are seen at higher altitudes, and many smaller mammals are common everywhere. Hunting is strictly prohibited in the Park, fishing is permitted with a Park license.

Emerald Lake and Van Horne Range, c. 1902 EmeraldLakeandVanHorneRange.jpg — Emerald Lake and Van Horne Range, c. 1902

Surrounding geographical features

Emerald Lake is enclosed by mountains of the President Range, named after the President and Vice-President of the coast to coast Canadian Pacific Railway, built in 1885 and which runs through Yoho National Park. Other peaks are Mount Burgess and Wapta Mountain. The Emerald Basin opens to the west and traps rain and snow storms, causing frequent rain in summer and heavy snowfalls in winter. This influx of moisture works with the lake's elevation of 1200 meters / 4400 feet above sea level to produce a unique selection of flora. Trees found here are more typical of B.C.'s wet interior forests of the Columbia Mountains immediately to the west, such as western red cedar, western yew, western hemlock and western white pine. The alluvial fan on the northeast shore produces wildflowers in abundance during late June and early July.^[2]

Climate

Brief snowstorms, which usually melt in a few days, occasionally occur at valley level in June or September due to the latitude of 53 degrees and the generally high elevation. Daytime temperatures in June or September average 20 C / 70 F, in July and August it can reach as high as 33 C / 90 F. Winter temperatures December to March are always below freezing, averaging -15 C / 0 F and sometimes down to -30 C / -30 F. Snowfall is usually substantial, about 1 meter / 3 feet or more of snow stays at lake level in winter, increasing with altitude to 10 meters / 30 feet or more on the mountain tops.

Due to its 53 degree latitude and moderately high altitude, the lake is frozen from November until late April or early May. The vivid green color of the water is caused by powdered rock from the glaciers, which reflects the blue-green spectrum of sunlight. The rock type and the amount of it in the water causes the color to vary from lake to lake and month to month, even week to week.

Human interaction

Naming

The first non-indigenous person to set sight on Emerald Lake was Canadian guide Tom Wilson, who stumbled upon it by accident in 1882. A string of his horses had gotten away, and it was while tracking them that he first entered the valley. The lake had an impression on him: "For a few moments I sat [on] my horse and enjoyed the rare, peaceful beauty of the scene." It was Wilson who gave the lake its name because of its remarkable color, which due to a different rock type producing the sediment that is suspended in the glacial water, reflects the green spectrum of sunlight rather than the blue spectrum seen in Moraine, Hector, Bow and Peyto Lakes in neighboring Banff National Park. However, this was not the first time Wilson had named a lake 'Emerald'. Earlier that same year he had discovered another lake which he had given the same name, and that name even appeared briefly on the official map. This first lake however, was shortly renamed Lake Louise.^[3]

Restrictions

During the summer months, canoe rentals are available from Emerald Lake Lodge. In winter, the lake is a popular cross country skiing destination. As a general rule, Canada's national parks do not permit private or business land ownership within their boundaries, and all development is strictly controlled by Parks Canada for environmental preservation. Development permits are rare, and then only given after extensive government review and consultation. The land the business occupies is leased from Parks Canada. Most businesses in the national parks were established decades ago, and current approval is exceedingly rare. There is a strict "need-to-reside" law for Canadian Rockies national parks; to live in a park, residents must either be employed within the park, or own a business that is based in the park.

Gallery

Emerald Lake panorama with Michael Peak, Wapta Mountain, and Mount Burgess

Related Research Articles

Yoho National Park is a national park of Canada. It is located within the Rocky Mountains along the western slope of the Continental Divide of the Americas in southeastern British Columbia, bordered by Kootenay National Park to the south and Banff National Park to the east in Alberta. The word Yoho is a Cree expression of amazement or awe, and it is an apt description for the park's spectacular landscape of massive ice fields and mountain peaks, which rank among the highest in the Canadian Rockies.

Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rocky Mountains, 110–180 kilometres (68–112 mi) west of Calgary, Banff encompasses 6,641 square kilometres (2,564 sq mi) of mountainous terrain, with many glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine landscapes. The Icefields Parkway extends from Lake Louise, connecting to Jasper National Park in the north. Provincial forests and Yoho National Park are neighbours to the west, while Kootenay National Park is located to the south and Kananaskis Country to the southeast. The main commercial centre of the park is the town of Banff, in the Bow River valley.

Kootenay National Park is a national park of Canada in southeastern British Columbia. The park consists of 1,406 km² (543 sq mi) of the Canadian Rockies, including parts of the Kootenay and Park mountain ranges, the Kootenay River and the entirety of the Vermilion River. While the Vermilion River is completely contained within the park, the Kootenay River has its headwaters just outside the park boundary, flowing through the park into the Rocky Mountain Trench and eventually joining the Columbia River. The park ranges in elevation from 918 m (3,012 ft) at the southwestern park entrance to 3,424 m (11,234 ft) at Deltaform Mountain.

Highway 93 is a north–south highway in Alberta, Canada. It is also known as the Banff-Windermere Parkway south of the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1) and the Icefields Parkway north of the Trans-Canada Highway. It travels through Banff National Park and Jasper National Park and is maintained by Parks Canada for its entire length. It runs from the British Columbia border at Vermilion Pass in the south, where it becomes British Columbia Highway 93, to its terminus at the junction with the Yellowhead Highway (Highway 16) at Jasper. The route takes its number from U.S. Route 93, which runs uninterrupted south to central Arizona, and was initially designated as '93' in 1959.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamber Provincial Park</span> Provincial park in British Columbia, Canada

Hamber Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located 130 kilometres (80.7 mi) north of Golden. Straddling the Great Divide on the provincial boundary with Alberta, the park is surrounded on three sides by Jasper National Park and protects the headwaters of the Wood River at Fortress Lake.

Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located around Mount Assiniboine.

The Waputik Icefield is located on the Continental divide in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. It is developed on the heights of the Waputik Range in the Central Main Ranges.

The Wapta Icefield is a series of glaciers located on the Continental Divide in the Waputik Mountains of the Canadian Rockies, in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta, in Yoho National Park in the Canadian Rockies. The icefield is shared by Banff and Yoho National Parks and numerous outlet glaciers extend from the icefield, including the Vulture, Bow and Peyto Glaciers. Runoff from the icefields and outlet glaciers supply water to both the Kicking Horse and Bow Rivers, as well as numerous streams and lakes.

The Stanley Mitchell hut is an alpine hut located at an altitude of 2,060 metres (6,759 ft) in the Little Yoho Valley in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada. It sits in a small meadow not far from the base of a mountain called The President. It serves as a base for hiking, scrambling, ski-touring and climbing the nearby mountains. The hut is maintained by the Alpine Club of Canada.

The Abbot Pass hut was an alpine hut located at an altitude of 2,925 metres (9,596 ft) in Abbot Pass in the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, Canada. It was nestled between Mount Victoria and Mount Lefroy, straddling the Great Divide, which, in this region, defines the boundary between Banff National Park in Alberta and Yoho National Park in British Columbia. While close to the border, the hut lay entirely in Banff National Park, and was the second-highest permanently habitable structure in Canada. The hut was maintained by the Alpine Club of Canada.

Lake O'Hara is a lake at an elevation of 2,020 metres (6,630 ft) in the alpine area of Yoho National Park, in the province of British Columbia, on the western side of the Great Divide with the province of Alberta and Banff National Park to the east. The lake and the valley are accessible through a bus service that is run by Parks Canada or by an 11 km hike along a road with an elevation gain of approximately 500m.

Popes Peak is a mountain on the border of Alberta and British Columbia in Western Canada, on the Continental Divide of the Americas, part of the Bow Range of the Canadian Rockies between Lake Louise Valley and Cataract Brook, bordering Banff and Yoho national parks.

Mount Victoria, 3,464 metres (11,365 ft), is a mountain on the border between British Columbia and Alberta in the Canadian Rockies. It is located just northeast of Lake O'Hara in Yoho National Park and is also part of Banff National Park and is on the Continental Divide. The mountain has two peaks, the south being the highest while the north peak is slightly lower at 3,388 metres (11,115 ft).

Mount Allen is a mountain in the Canadian Rockies, on the Continental Divide, which forms the provincial boundary between British Columbia and Alberta in this region. J. Monroe Thorington named this mountain for Samuel Evans Stokes Allen in 1924. Allen was an American cartographer who mapped this area of the Rockies in 1894-95. Allen had named this mountain "Shappee", the Stoney language word for "six", as part of his naming of the ten mountains in the Valley of the Ten Peaks. The peak forms part of the backdrop to Moraine Lake in Banff National Park.

Wapta Mountain is a mountain located in the Canadian Rockies between Emerald Lake and Yoho Valley in Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada. It stands just north of the ridge containing the Burgess Shale fossil beds. Along with The Vice President and Mount Burgess, Wapta Mountain forms the backdrop to Emerald Lake, and marks the southern end of the President Range.

Thomas Edmonds Wilson was a Canadian outfitter and guide.

Park Mountain is a 2,951-metre (9,682-foot) mountain summit located above the southwest shore of Lake McArthur in Yoho National Park, in the Bow Range of the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia, Canada. Its nearest higher peak is Mount Biddle, 3.0 km (1.9 mi) to the east. Park Mountain is situated four kilometres west of the Continental Divide, and 12 km (7.5 mi) southeast of Field, British Columbia.

Yukness Mountain is a 2,851-metre (9,354-foot) summit located southeast of Lake O'Hara in the Park Ranges of Yoho National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia, Canada. Its nearest higher peak is Ringrose Peak, 1.0 km (0.62 mi) to the east.

Mount Vaux is a 3,310-metre (10,860-foot) mountain summit located in the Kicking Horse River valley of Yoho National Park, in the Ottertail Range of the Canadian Rockies in British Columbia, Canada. Its nearest higher peak is Mount Goodsir, 11.0 km (6.8 mi) to the southeast. Mount Vaux can be seen from Highway 1, the Trans-Canada Highway, which traverses the western foot of the mountain, as well as from Emerald Lake. Vaux is pronounced Vox, rhymes with box.

Narao Peak is a 2,974-metre (9,757-foot) summit located in British Columbia, Canada.

References

↑ "Emerald Lake". BC Geographical Names .
↑ Pole, Graeme (1999). Canadian Rockies: An Altitude SuperGuide, Altitude ISBN 1-55153-618-8
↑ Beers, Don (1989) after Princess Louise, the 4th daughter of Britain's Queen Victoria. The Wonder of Yoho, Rocky Mountain Books ISBN 0-921102-28-3

External links

Media related to Emerald Lake (British Columbia) at Wikimedia Commons

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[1] "Emerald Lake". BC Geographical Names .

[2] Pole, Graeme (1999). Canadian Rockies: An Altitude SuperGuide, Altitude ISBN 1-55153-618-8

[3] Beers, Don (1989) after Princess Louise, the 4th daughter of Britain's Queen Victoria. The Wonder of Yoho, Rocky Mountain Books ISBN 0-921102-28-3

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