Love and luxury at the lodge: Couples looking for romance might want to head for the Cathedral before going to the chapel
By Trent Edwards

Sean Grier wants to propose on the aquamarine waters of Maligne Lake, but he doesn't want to rock the boat.

Like many men about to throw away their bachelorhood, he's feeling queasy. It isn't cold feet, though. The 32-year-old youth counselor from Calgary suffers from motion sickness, and his rented canoe is rocking in the wind.

He knows his girlfriend, Laura McCartney, 27, will appreciate a proposal in the mountains they both love. But the hours are ticking by on his planned surprise weekend of romance. A cabin for two awaits at posh Cathedral Mountain Lodge near Field, B.C. Grier starts dreaming up a hasty Plan B and they drive south.

Luckily, the lodge is near Takakkaw Falls up Yoho Valley Road. Spilling 380 metres down a cliff, the series of three falls make up Canada's second-highest waterfall. Takakkaw is the Cree word for magnificent, and Grier loves water. Score.

He parks near the falls' base and leads McCartney on a short hike for some privacy. Mist swirls around the couple. Grier drops on one knee, his stomach settled.

Mission accomplished.

"I honestly felt it was spiritual," McCartney, a family counselor, says of the moment.

Romantic alpine scenery like Takakkaw surrounds the newly renovated Cathedral Mountain Lodge in storied Yoho National Park. Sure, booming trucks race the Trans-Canada Highway less than 100 metres away. And Calgary is just a 21/2-hour drive. Yet Cathedral Mountain's enclave of 29 luxurious cabins and day lodge offers respite from the hustle.

Guests can easily shut off the outside world here: cabins have no TV or telephones. This is more about romance than roughing it. Tucked between tall evergreens and the rushing green waters of the Kicking Horse River, it's hard for lodge guests to hear anything but nature. Rising on either side of the lodge, striking Rockies peaks such as Mount Stephen and Cathedral Mountain lend a unique majesty to the views.

Grier has planned just one night's stay at the lodge, so the couple doesn't have time to take a hike into the park's backcountry. Instead, they opt to lap up some luxury at the lodge.

The property has come a long way from its roots as coal miner lodging from 1930 to 1958. While the lodge has been open to tourists ever since, over the past two seasons, it's been given an extreme makeover worthy of reality TV.

Current owner Nancy Stibbard, owner of Moraine Lake Lodge near Lake Louise and Vancouver's Capilano Suspension Bridge, has renovated about half of the cabins and built a timber frame daylodge as a common area for guests.

All the log cabins are handcrafted, featuring antique mountain accents such as steamer trunks, wall-mounted snowshoes and other pioneer memorabilia. A dozen of the cabins are new, offering wood-burning fireplaces, plush furniture, Jacuzzi tubs and wide decks with comfy Adirondack chairs.

Returning to the lodge on a warm Saturday evening, Grier and McCartney celebrate their engagement with a late dinner at the day lodge's restaurant.

The Riverside Dining Room and Lounge has been named one of the country's best for five years running in the national dining guide Where to Eat in Canada. Some of the highlights on the menu include venison carpaccio and roast chicken, cold-smoked over hickory.

The post-and-beam day lodge housing the office, bar, restaurant and lounge has an elegant yet rustic feel. Tall windows lead to a vaulted ceiling, offering prime views of the surrounding mountains.

The dining room decor is tasteful, with white linen tablecloths and stylish lighting. Any stuffiness is cut by tributes to the area's past, such as coal miners' lamps and coal carts under the bar.

The lounge offers a comfy couch where couples snuggle by a wood fireplace encased in mountain stone and surrounded by windows. A doorway leads to an oversized deck with tables for two.

The next morning, Grier relaxes on the deck with a coffee after a buffet breakfast. Beside him, still beaming, McCartney describes the lodge as rustic but classy. Then she stops a moment and reconsiders: "The perfect word for it is romantic."

tedwards@theherald.canwest.com

If You Go:
Cathedral Mountain Lodge is open from late May until late September. A cabin costs between $275 and $450 a night and sleeps two to four people. Calgarians should ask for the friends and family rate, a 10 per cent discount.

The restaurant is open to the public. Reservations are recommended. Call 1-866-619-6442, or visit www.cathedralmountain.com.

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