Above the Emperor Falls trail junction, a final brutally steep section of trail brings you to the Emperor Falls campground and the upper valley which contains Berg Lake. From here on, with the climbing accomplished, the trail is outstandingly scenic all the way to the lake. Ahead lies the Emperor Face of Mount Robson and teasing glimpses of the Mist and Berg glaciers. Looking back is an equally impressive vista of sharp snowy peaks rising beyond the colorful valley and braided river channels. At least, that's how I remember it looking in good weather! After about a mile the trail rounds a corner to reach a flat, rather barren looking plain, which you cross to reach Marmot campground near the outlet of Berg Lake. The already impressive view of the Berg glacier, which tumbles all the way from the summit snowfield to the water's edge, steadily improves as you hike along the shore toward Berg campground. From the lake, the mountain rises almost 8000 vertical feet to the summit of Robson. It's an amazing sight!
2-3 night backpack: The advantage of backpacking - aside from any spiritual joys of camping out in the wilderness - is that from a camp at Berg Lake you can hike on to further spectacular scenery beyond. Aside from the Snowbird Pass route we tackled, there are shorter day hikes to Hargreaves Lake and glacier, to Toboggan Falls, and into the Mumm Basin. There are almost 100 tent sites in the various campgrounds along the trail, which can be reserved through the Discover Camping site. The campgrounds tend to fill up on busy weekends, but at other times you can likely hike the trail on short notice. Be sure to take good raingear, and a stove if you plan on cooking as camp fires are not allowed. Dogs are OK on day hikes, but not on overnight trips.
Moose River Route: Mount Robson park has other backpacking routes, including, for serious hikers only, the 65+ miles of the Moose River Route, which passes Berg Lake and includes sections in Jasper National Park in Alberta. I've not done this, but the Patton / Robinson guide has more details if you're interested.
Bears: Robson and the Berg Lake trail are grizzly country, and a sign in 2011 noted that grizzly bears had been sighted traversing the trail corridor. My unscientific guess is that bears are thicker on the ground elsewhere (in parts of Jasper, for example, or in Kluane), but some care is warranted: all the campsites have bear-proof food lockers (no canisters or tree-hanging gymnastics needed), and we made plenty of noise and carried bear spray while on trail.
Mount Robson
Provincial Park - the official website
Canadian Rockies Trail Guide by
Brian Patton and Bart Robinson. This is a very comprehensive guide to trails in the
Canadian Rockies. Essential reading, especially if you're considering some of the longer backpacking options in Mount Robson
provincial park.
Don't Waste Your Time in the Canadian Rockies by Kathy and Craig Copeland. People seem to have a love / hate relationship with this guide. Our experience was that the hikes they rated as "Premier" or "Outstanding" were, indeed, just that.