Saturday the deadline for Lake O’hara visitors draw
The chance to secure a coveted trip to Lake O’hara in the Rockies is coming to a close.
A random draw for day visitation rights to the stunning lake in Yoho National Park closes at the end of Saturday.
The contest has seen a “good turnout” of entrants since it was launched at the beginning of February, said Jed Cochrane, visitor experience manager with Yoho National Park.
It’s a new approach to mountain park access that could be applied to other places, said Cochrane.
“We’re keen to pilot this system and, if it works well, we could apply it to other places with significant demand,” he said.
Those could include certain campgrounds in places such as Red Earth or Tunnel Mountain in Banff National Park, he said.
Since the late 1980s, access to Lake O’hara on the B.C. side of the border has been regulated by a quota system that allowed 32 day-use visitors and 90 campers a day to take the 11-kilometre bus ride to the site during the warmer months.
That limited access is meant to preserve the lake’s pristine environment.
Each summer, more than 20,000 people have sought those spots. The current random draw will be limited to just over 3,000 day-use visits.
Applications are made with a non-refundable $10 fee, with all revenue going back into Yoho National Park, said Cochrane.
“Our plans are to put it directly back into Yoho to enhance visitor experience or for things like monitoring mountain goats,” he said.
Entries can be submitted for the random draw online at www.parkscanada.gc.ca/lakeohara. The draws will be made in early March.
Meanwhile, the Peyto Lake dayuse area in Banff National Park will be closed this summer while $2.9 million in improvements to the parking lot, washroom facilities, trail and an expansion of the viewing platform are made.
The area is expected to reopen in late 2020.