Backpacking into Stanley Mitchell Hut in Yoho National Park
Where to even start? This backcountry hike to Stanley Mitchell took me completely by surprise!
Back in the early spring, we had rallied a few families together to book this hut in the ever-so-beautiful Yoho National Park. I’m so grateful for the Alpine Club of Canada’s (ACC) decision to keep exclusive bookings available throughout the season. It gave us a chance to reserve the entire hut, and saved us the stress of waking up fellow hut guests with our babies’ bedtime cries.
Before we knew it, it was time to pack our backpacks and hit the trail!
At a Glance:
Trailhead: Takkakaw Falls trailhead
Distance: 11 kilometres one-way
Accessibility: Hiking
Amenities: lighting, mattress pads, propane stove/oven (propane is supplied), pots/pans, dishware, cutlery, wood stove (firewood is provided) and outhouse.
Reservations at: The Alpine Club of Canada
The parents with young babies chose to wear a soft-structured carrier in front and a backpack (which ranged in size!) on their back, while their partners wore a backpacking pack loaded with most of the gear. The parents with toddlers chose to carry their kids in a hard-structured carrier on their back and a small backpack in front, while their partners wore a heavier backpacking pack.
Since we had leant our Thule Sapling to a friend and her toddler who were visiting from afar and hiking in with us, we decided to use our Ergobaby Omni 360 for our two-year-old. It was a lot of weight for my husband, but not terrible. Plus, Sara was able to take a few inward-facing naps on the hike in and out!
I’ll admit that I did minimal research on this hike. All I knew was that it was a 10-kilometre distance from the trailhead to the hut with some elevation gain. I thought: That’s easy enough! Well… I was wrong. With our heavy packs (more on that later!) and a steep section of switchbacks, we earned our hefty dinner and boxed wine that night!
Our last hut trip to Elk Lakes Cabin was a “mama and baby” one, which was a lot of work as a solo parent. After that trip, we agreed that having the “dadas” there would be a much more enjoyable experience - So we made sure to invite our partners this time!
This meant that during the hike into the Stanley Mitchell Hut, everyone had a hiking buddy by default. You could stop to take breaks without holding up the entire group, or keep trekking as you pleased (especially if your child was napping). So, this was a plus! Otherwise, a buddy system would have worked well too.
Once we arrived, we were happy to take off our heavy packs and settle in. In fact, one of the reasons our packs weighed so much (aside from all the boxed wine!) was because we had decided to meal-share with the other families. This meant that we had partnered up beforehand, to plan, divide and conquer the meals that we would have at the hut. We got pretty gourmet, to say the least! That first night, Bec and I were assigned to dinner, and we whipped out some pulled pork quesadillas that hit the spot just right!
Aside from that, we had oatmeal with fancy toppings for both breakfasts, a charcuterie board with fruit and veggies for lunch, and a pesto cherry tomato pasta for dinner the second night. We were each in charge of packing our own lunches for the hike in and out. Although our packs were heavy, these hearty meals made it worthwhile!
I’m a firm believer that a backcountry trip with kids is not really worthwhile unless it’s a minimum two-night stay. Hiking in one day and out the next is too much damn work. The in-between day allows you to fully soak in the relaxing backcountry ambiance. We spent it sitting by the creeks, throwing rocks, lounging in the grassy field in front of the hut, hiking to three glacier falls nearby, sipping wine, eating, and napping. I will forever cherish the chill day of the backcountry! Additionally, the kiddos slept much better the second night - A trend I notice often with consecutive nights spent in a tent or hut.
Unfortunately, we had two families cancel last minute. This brought our 14 parents: 9 children ratio down to to 10 parents: 6 children. As much as these families were deeply missed, it would have been extremely tight. It’s definitely something worth noting for future hut trips: The less people, the better sleep for everyone!
On our last day, we all hustled to pack and clean up and hit the trail early. We had agreed to hike out via the Iceline Trail, which was a first for me! We assumed it would be approximately the same distance, but with more downhill. The effort was indeed not the same, but the views were jaw-dropping!
The Stanley Mitchell Hut is located just below the alpine. Once you leave it, you quickly gain elevation and traverse above the alpine, paralleling glaciers, waterfalls, and towering mountains. This hike is one of the most stunning hikes I’ve ever done! I think we were all taken aback. It was a big day! We lost about 800 metres of elevation with some very steep sections, making it a bit of a grind near the very end with our packs weighing us down. I am happy we started early, because it took us anywhere from 5 to 7.5 hours to complete.
Would I do it again? In a heartbeat!
So many times along the course of our three-day stay, I wanted to proclaim how well the trip was going…. But I didn’t want to jinx us! Now that we’re all home, I can safely say it: It went so smooth, and left as all day-dreaming about our next hut trip.
