Glamping in a Yurt

It’s been a few years since we’ve been camping, and we wanted to do something a little different. Glamping – a hybrid camping situation with a little luxury. It was exactly what we needed after being homebound for the last two years. We found Radius Retreat and booked it for the August long weekend. We were getting back to nature in a yurt!

Getting There

Radius Retreat is three hours from Calgary. You drive to Radium, British Columbia and Radius is a couple of kilometres north of there on highway #95. Smoke from the over 300 forest fires currently burning in B.C. hung heavy in the air. The Rocky Mountains were reduced to shadows.

We went into our weekend knowing there was a fire ban in effect. We were a bit disappointed that we wouldn’t have a campfire each night; however, we focused on the positive–we were staying in a yurt for the first time!

It’s worth noting here that you do not require a National Park Pass to stay at Radius Retreat. If you plan to stop anywhere in Banff National Park or Kootenay National Park, say at Radium Hot Springs, you will need to purchase a park pass.

Radius Retreat

We chose Radius Retreat because of its return to nature vibe. It is eco-friendly and strives to keep the land in its natural state. To this end, they use the following to reduce their carbon footprint:

• Vermiculture humanure (toilets)
• Solar (lighting)
• Microhydro (water pump)
• Yurts (housing)

Radius Retreat emailed a code to enter their gated property a day prior to our arrival. We entered our code and drove up a winding road to a small parking lot where our real adventure began.

At the trailhead, a stone’s throw from the parking lot, is the first of only two water pumps on the property (the second is located on the Osprey Trail 1.3 kms away). Next to the water pump is a message board with a map of where all eight yurts are located. This was a great help to get oriented.  Our yurt was called The Roost and was an 8 minute walk (400 metres) up the mulched road (40 meter elevation gain).

Before our visit, we read the material that Radius Retreat provides on their website to prepare for our weekend including a what-to-bring list (flashback to camping with school.)  We did know that it was a pack-in/pack-out situation (you are taking your garbage home with you), so we tried to be mindful of this when meal planning, etc.

We grabbed our sleeping bags, pillows, and whatever else we could carry (round one) leashed our dog (yes they are welcome!) and started the hike up to The Roost.

What the heck is a yurt?

A yurt is a portable round tent traditionally covered in felt or skins and used by nomadic cultures of central Asia. It has accordion lattice walls and radial rafters that lead to a compressed ring at the roof to keep it all together. Modernized yurts are covered with an acrylic coated polyester material, have windows, and are often built on a wood platform.

What is inside a yurt?

We arrived at our yurt, breathing hard in the +30C heat of the day. Inside the 16-foot yurt we had:

• Bunk bed with a queen-size mattress on the bottom and a single on the top.
• Table and three chairs
• Wood stove with wood
• Solar lights
• Broom
• Radius manual and map

 

 

We recommend you look through the manual. There is specific do’s and don’ts that you should be aware of. ie. no dogs on the beds.

What is a Bear Hang/Bear Box?

In a serious effort to keep bears away from the yurts, there is a strict no-food or toiletries rule in the yurt. Radius provides the rigging for a bear hang and a bear box. We are not sure if all yurts have both, so check before you come. Prior to departure, we purchased a bear hang bag to store food in to keep away from bears (not to hang the bear!). The bear hang is a good distance away from the yurt and the cooking area, so we found you had to be very thoughtful when collecting items. The bear box is made of steel and would fit a cooler or bags of groceries and your toiletries.

 

At The Roost, picture a large triangle. At one point the yurt, the bear hang at the second, and the cooking area/fire pit at the third. They are a distance from each other. The Roost has a fantastic meadow of privacy in the middle of this triangle.

 

 

Where’s Dinner?

The cooking area has two Adirondack chairs around a fire pit, a picnic table, and a repurposed barbecue with a two-burner stove inside. Beside this, a large stacked and covered wood pile. The fire pit was locked down because of the fire ban, so there was no cooking your dinner on it.

Nature’s Calling

 

 

True to their mission, Radius provides a glamping outhouse next to the yurt. This vermiculture humanure is a composting toilet. It is clean, well maintained and does not smell bad. Win!

 

 

 

 

Okay now what?

There are 12 kilometres of signed trails over the approximate 1,000 acres of private wilderness at Radius Retreat that you can explore. Besides hiking, biking, kicking back to read or play boardgames, there are a couple of other things to do:

•  Forest Therapy (pre book/fee)

Pat Bavin is a certified Shinrin yoku (forest bathing) guide who leads a walking meditation for three hours through the forest. The intention is for you to slow down, clear your mind, see the minutiae of the forest, and reconnect with nature. We participated and thoroughly enjoyed this wind down therapy to start our weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• Watering Hole

Approximately 800 metres up the trail from The Roost is a man-made watering hole. Let me tell you, after two days of sweat, bug spray and hand sanitizer, getting to this place was necessary! Radius has constructed a waterfall and watering hole. As well, they have two separate showers structures and an outhouse.

The shower was nothing short of gorgeous! They provide the soap, all we had to do was strip down and get in. Heaven on earth. We were refreshed from the heat of the weekend and clean for the first time since we arrived. Definitely worth the uphill trek.

• Scootin’ Kootenay Tours (pre book/fee)

For those inclined, Scootin’ Kootenay offers a SegwayPT Tour as an off-road nature experience. We didn’t personally participate, but we did see them in the forest.

That’s a Wrap!

The wins:

• We stayed in a yurt, and it was a great experience.
• We were able to relax and decompress from city life.
• Radius has invested in the best mattresses imaginable. The wood structure of the bed was a bit squeaky, but the bed was amazing. After nine hours of sleep my back was not bothered.
• Forest Therapy was a lovely way to reconnect with nature.
• The Watering Hole is a MUST! Radius has done a first-rate job with this little gem.

What we learned:

• Although we did consider our meal planning before we left, we could have done better to reduce the things we brought. Hiking up those 400 meters again and again in the heat was more work than we expected. Next time, in addition to reducing our load, we would definitely bring a wagon to move things around.
• Weather Network app came in handy. The day before we left Radius, we discovered that the heat warning had finished but we were then under a thunderstorm warning. True to their timing, we had a bit of rain Sunday night and it started again as we got to the parking lot when we were leaving on Monday. With the warning, we were able to pack down some things we no longer needed and take them down to the vehicle. We’ve camped often enough to know that packing down wet is no fun.
• The temperature (+30C) and the smoke from BC fires were a bit of a bummer, but not something anyone could do anything about. This affected our views of the mountains and valley and how much water we needed to consume to stay hydrated. Additionally, we could not have a campfire. This has only prompted us to come again in a shoulder season when there is less likelihood of a fire ban and cooler temperatures.

Homeward Bound

In Kootenay National Park along #93 highway, evidence of a previous forest fire has left burnt sticks poking in the air. We stopped to take pictures of nature and its power to regenerate. The forest floor was blanketed in Chamerion angustifolium commonly known as Fireweed, Narrow-leaf Fireweed or Willow Herb. A stunning conclusion to our weekend.