Researched route, Yoho
Yoho
A gentle trail through the trees on Kicking Horse Pass's BC side, and the common way in to the skiing on Paget Peak and Mount Ogden.
Sherbrooke Lake sits between Mount Ogden and Paget Peak in Yoho National Park, on the BC side of Kicking Horse Pass, between Lake Louise and Field. It's 3.0 km and about 230 m of climbing on a gentle forest trail from the Great Divide Lodge to the lake's south shore, and back the same way. The trail stays in the trees, and it's the common way in to a lot of skiing. There's Paget Glades above the trail, and around the lake, Paget Peak's west slopes and Mount Ogden's trees, couloirs and bench. The route gets you to the shore. Where you go from there and what you ski is yours to choose, and around the lake you're in big avalanche terrain.
We built this route from our own extensive research. All resources are cited on the dashboard. We haven't skied it ourselves, the routes illustrated may not be the best line choice, use your own judgement when planning. Remember you are still responsible for your own tour.
Last checked October 18, 2026.
| Distance | about 6.0 km round trip, 3.0 km to the lake |
| Elevation gain | about 230 m on the way in, plus about 20 m of short rises on the way out |
| Slope angles | the ground under the trail is mostly under 20 degrees; short banks beside it read in the mid 20s, though a guidebook describes some as steep; terrain data reads low |
| Trailhead | 1,590 m on terrain data |
| High point | about 1,805 m on the trail, 2.3 km in; the lake shore reads 1,799 m on terrain data |
| Nearest town | Lake Louise or Field |
| Pass required | Parks Canada |
| Skied by us | Not as its own route: the trail is the start of our Mount Ogden trip report (February 2026) |
Drive west from Lake Louise on the Trans-Canada Highway, over Kicking Horse Pass and into BC. The Great Divide Lodge sits just north of the highway above Wapta Lake, about 14 km from Lake Louise, right after the truck brake check and before the long hill down to Field. Heading west from Lake Louise, the turn is on your right.
Winter parking is at the lodge, not at the summer Sherbrooke Lake trailhead about 400 m west, which isn't plowed. Parks Canada's trail conditions report said so in the winters of 2024-25 and 2025-26, though its winter trails page names the summer lot. Its report in October 2026 didn't mention parking yet. The lodge lot is small and fills early. Parks Canada asks you to have another plan if it's full, and not to park at the brake check or on the highway.
Since February 2026 a Parks Canada order has closed the lodge buildings and their access roads to the public, with the public parking left out of it. Before you go, check Parks Canada's Yoho trail conditions report for where winter parking is this season.
The trail leaves from the back of the lot through a gate in the highway's wildlife fence. You need a Parks Canada pass. When we checked Parks Canada's Yoho bulletins in October 2026 we found no closure on the trail itself. In past winters Parks Canada has closed much of Mount Bosworth, east of the lodge, for highway avalanche control. This trail heads west, away from it. Cell service is patchy and not something to count on, so we'd leave a plan with someone who isn't coming. DriveBC has the road reports for the BC side of the pass.
Trip reports put skins on at the car. The trail climbs west through mature forest, about 170 m over the first 1.5 km. It's a hiking trail, narrow in places, and walkers and snowshoers use it too. The packed track can be icy. An April 2025 trip report describes a steep roll low down where skins wouldn't grip, and found ski crampons worth having.
Between about 1.0 and 1.5 km you pass short banks above and below the trail. Our terrain data has them only in the mid 20s, but it smooths out slopes this short, and a guidebook describes some of them as steep. Expect steeper pitches on the ground. A guidebook describes short tree runs on them, with a skin back up to the trail.
At about 1.5 km the trail forks. The Paget Lookout trail climbs to the right, and the Sherbrooke Lake trail goes left. After a flat stretch it climbs about 50 m over rolling ground to its high point, about 1,805 m and roughly 2.3 km from the car.
From there it's level or gently downhill to the south end of the lake, below the tree skiing of Paget Glades. A guidebook skins up into the glades from this stretch. At about 2.8 km the Mount Ogden route turns off to the left. Carry on another 200 m to the shore, at 3.0 km, where the trail ends and the skiing around the lake begins.
The trail is the way in, and the skiing is yours to choose. A guidebook and trip reports describe Paget Glades, the trees above the trail before the lake. Around the lake they describe the long avalanche paths and glades on Paget Peak's west side, the trees off Mount Ogden's south ridge, the couloirs of Ogden's east wall, and Ogden Bench past the lake's far end. Every run around the lake is avalanche terrain.
From the slopes around the lake, come back to the south shore and take the trail from there. From Paget Glades, ski down to the trail below them. Then follow the trail you came in on back to the car. After a few short rises near the lake it runs downhill.
The lake is where the avalanche terrain starts. Parks Canada puts up signs at the lake and says going past them takes avalanche training and gear. Mount Ogden's cliffs and couloirs rise along the west side, and avalanche paths come down off Paget Peak on the east. The skiing around the lake, and the ways on to Ogden Bench, Mount Ogden or the Wapta Icefield, are all in that terrain, and its paths run down to the lake.
What the avalanche reports show. Reports to Avalanche Canada's Mountain Information Network put the slides on the slopes around the lake, not on the trail to it. Most were on Mount Ogden's east-facing walls and benches across the water. Others were on Paget Peak's west and south slopes. They describe wind slabs, slabs on buried crusts and surface hoar, and loose snow pouring off Ogden's walls. Most released naturally. On Paget's side skiers have set off slabs too. In February 2024 a slab released from a distance on a west-facing slope, carried one skier about 75 m and partly buried two people. In March 2026 reports describe whumpfs while crossing the lake and, after a big storm cycle, slides off Ogden reaching the lake and covering the way to the benches. Reports follow where people go, so a quiet record on the trail doesn't prove a quiet trail.
The banks along the trail. They're short, and the steeper ones may be steep enough to slide. A small slide there could push you into the trees below. They're the one place on the trail itself where the slope matters.
The lake surface. Water often sits under the snow on the lake. Reports describe wet skins and a wet crossing, and a mountain guide in April 2019 found up to 15 cm of water under a crust. Early in the season it may not be frozen at all. A report from early November 2025 found it still open.
The ski out. The trail is narrow, with blind corners and people walking up. On our own Ogden day the tight track made it hard to scrub speed. Reports also mention fallen trees across the trail and awkward creek crossings. We'd call out at corners and keep the speed down.
On the way in: a full or unplowed lot (Parks Canada asks that you not park on the highway), a track too icy for your skins, or fallen trees and open creeks you can't get past.
At the lake and on the slopes, fresh debris, whumpfs or cracking, heavy new snow, strong wind or a quick warm-up are all signs to act on. Reports describe slides off Ogden's walls reaching the lake, and big cornices above its east faces.
Nothing on the trail commits you, so turning around anywhere on it only costs you the rest of the trail. Whether to go is your call on the day. Read the forecast and decide from what you find.
A short trail to the skiing, and the control to ski it back. About 6 km and 230 m of climbing to the shore and back, plus whatever skiing you choose. On the trail, the skill is holding your speed in a narrow track through the trees, with people coming up. Ski crampons help on an icy track. The skiing around the lake is avalanche terrain, and slides have run down to the lake. We'd carry a transceiver, probe and shovel and know how to use them, and we wouldn't go past the signs without avalanche training.
What we can't tell you yet. How the parking is handled in the 2026-27 winter, how busy the lot gets, and how the trail skis on the day. On our Ogden day it took about an hour to an hour and a half to reach the lake and about 45 minutes to ski back out. The dashboard's estimate uses your own pace.
Our trip report from here: Mount Ogden: a beginner friendly ski tour in Yoho