Just before turning up Ottoson Road, on my way to , I recall a childhood memory. Decades ago, while driving near this part of Golden, B.C.
, my dad suddenly pointed out six whimsical houses poking out of the woods on the side of a hill: “Those are the Swiss guide houses,” he declared. The moment stayed with me. Perhaps it was the admiration in his voice or the Dr.
Seuss-like character of the houses that caught my attention. They looked like they belonged somewhere else entirely. This summer, on a trip back to Golden, my child-like wonder returns as I see the colourful chalets — newly restored and reopened as holiday rentals, with a heritage site twist — perched on a steep slope above the road.
My eyes dance from one house to the next, taking in the gingerbread trim draped over wooden arches, the large picture windows, the circular balusters on wraparound balconies. It’s a puzzling mix of styles, Swiss-inspired but not quite an authentic rendition. As soon as I walk into my chalet, I clock the Swissness of the setting: an ice axe hangs on a wall, while a dented water canister and a worn-out pipe rest on the ledge of a renovated old fireplace.
Despite the recently added modern decor, the cherished artifacts make it clear that Edelweiss Village remains a tribute to its heroic original lodgers. Completed in 1912, Edelweiss Village holds historic significance as the birthplace of mountain culture in Canada. After the Canadian Pacific Railway was completed, the Rockies became accessible to tourists; that’s when highly skilled, lederhosen-wearing Swiss mountain guides were brought to the Rockies, to help ensure wealthy visitors didn’t go missing while climbing.
For more than 50 years, these trusted chaperones led hundreds of first ascents in the Banff, Lake Louise and Glacier National Park regions — without one fatality. The Swiss guides opened the Rockies for exploration and inspired a lasting appreciation of Western Canada’s wilderness. The Edelweiss chalets were built so the Swiss guides and their families could permanently settle here.
But the homes proved unsuitable: too cold and drafty, and too far removed from town for the hausfraus carting children on foot while their husbands conquered the Rockies. Within a couple of years, the families pulled up stakes and moved closer to Golden’s centre. Despite its place in Canadian history, Edelweiss Village sat empty for decades, and as recently as 2022, the chalets faced an uncertain fate.
That same year, the site was named by the National Trust for Canada as one of their top 10 endangered places. Fearing the land was at risk of going to developers who could demolish its rich history, the not-for-profit Swiss Edelweiss Village Foundation began searching for ways to preserve the chalets as a heritage site. After a GoFundMe campaign failed to raise enough money, the cause caught the attention of the Canmore-based real estate firm Montayne, which became the new owners, taking possession of the chalets and 50 acres of land just over a year ago.
Working closely with the foundation, Montayne went to great lengths to protect the site’s integrity, carefully removing features from each chalet, then sanding and refinishing them, before returning them to their original positions. A stay in these chalets feels like you’re living in history, comfortably. During my visit, I hear a story about edelweiss, the namesake white flower.
Lore has it that if a man climbs high into the mountains to pick thisbloom for his sweetheart, it must be true love — the hard work proving his commitment. Over breakfast, I think about how the CPR couldn’t have known how apt the name Edelweiss would turn out to be. It may have taken more than a century, but the beautiful property is finally fitting into place.
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