In Golden, Swiss Connections Remain Top of Mind

Our winter tires crunch through melting spring snow as we wind our way up a narrow road. Pulling into a hillside parking spot on a sunny afternoon, my husband and I take in the adjacent white, yellow-ochre, and crimson-red wood-trimmed structure that will be our home for the next few days.

Perched above the mountain town of Golden in the peak-lined Columbia River Valley of British Columbia, the chalet is among a cluster of six brightly painted historic dwellings recently restored and opened collectively as the Edelweiss Village + Resort. Originally constructed in 1911 to house Swiss guides brought over by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), the revamped accommodations promise to merge the area’s alpinist past with modern-day comforts. I’m here to soak up a bit of both.

But I’m also here to revisit the town of my birth and that of my siblings. Golden too is where my father, Norm Hansen, was born and raised. Ninety years old now, he remembers those guides from back in the day and learning to ski with one of their sons. All of which makes coming here a triple-layered dive into the past for me.

Stepping into our chalet’s foyer, I’m captivated by a large black-and-white wall print of three Swiss guides approaching a snowy summit with apparent ease. Their arrival in Western Canada, I soon learn, was a product of both necessity and marketing strategy. With tourists rolling in on the country’s newly completed (1885) transcontinental railway, lured by peaks less trodden and rising resort towns like Banff and Lake Louise, the CPR began hiring credited Swiss guides to ensure the safety of their clientele of climbers. The guides in turn, with their ubiquitous alpine hats, curved pipes and ice axes, not to mention Alps-honed mountaineering skills, tied in nicely with the company’s colourful “Switzerland of America” advertising.

Glimpses of that guiding life are sprinkled throughout our three-storey, three-bedroom chalet. A wall-mounted ice pick here, a pair of old wood skis there. Keeping watch from the far wall in the full kitchen, five guides in full regalia stand proud against a lake-and-mountain backdrop in a framed archival photo. These gentlemen — Rudolph Aemmer, Christian Haesler Jr., and brothers Ernest, Edward Jr. and Walter Feuz — would be among the original inhabitants of the Edelweiss Village.

As seasonal work was taking its toll, with travel arduous and time away from loved ones hard, the CPR saw fit to build the permanent home for the guides and their families. Today, each chalet is named after a pioneering guide, ours being Aemmer (though it’s not known exactly which home he lived in).

Still, as I settle into the cozy living room replete with wood accents and retro touches, I imagine Aemmer returning home from one of his 35 first ascents in the Rocky and Selkirk Mountains. Indeed, from 1899 to 1954, some three dozen Swiss guides led thousands of ascents. Many of these were firsts, including that of Mount Assiniboine, dubbed the “Matterhorn of the Rockies.” They also introduced safe climbing techniques and gear to early explorers in the region, with not a single fatality occurring under their watch. Ultimately, the guides nurtured a respect for the alpine and an enthusiasm for climbing, thus molding our mountain culture into what it is decades later.

Taking the short drive into town, I pass by the Golden Bakery & Deli — I remember getting cookies there as a four-year-old — and the Golden Civic Centre where my parents first met at a dance many moons ago. Dropping by the Golden B.C. Museum, I make tracks to the Golden Swiss Guides exhibit neatly tucked into a side room. There, I spy climbing artifacts like pitons (pounded into a rock face for anchoring and safety) and a crampon with weathered strap. Familiar faces now, the guides from the Edelweiss Village share space on these walls, their profiles and photos highlighting storied careers.

Yet most of the guides didn’t stay long in the village. Designed by architects who’d never seen a Swiss chalet in person, the houses sport rather eclectic decorative flourishes. (The Aemmer chalet, for one, gives off pagoda vibes with its tiered-like façade.) What’s more, they were poorly insulated and located a long walk from town. As Andrew J. Kauffman and William L. Putnam write in “The Guiding Spirit”, a book given to me by my father: “Each had its carved gingerbread fancywork. Each had its cuckoo clock beside the door. … They were cold and drafty in the winter, hot and dry in the summer, and there were no nearby amenities so essential for growing families.”

Edward Feuz Jr. was the first to relocate in 1915, while Walter Feuz was the only guide to remain, eventually buying the site from the CPR in 1959. Later overseen by his descendants, the property was put on the market for $2.3 million in 2021 amid fears of demolition. But thanks to the tireless efforts of the award-winning Swiss Edelweiss Village Foundation, the vintage homes are being preserved under the new ownership of Canmore-based real estate firm, Montayne.

MORE: Keep It Real in the Kootenays

Unlike the guides, I won’t be leaving anytime soon. The new wood-burning fireplace insert keeps me toasty while the Stonewaters-sourced furniture exudes both modern and traditional Swiss design. The replaced wood floors are on point with their Swiss-style bow-tie-connected boards, and the original wood staircase — polished to a shine — makes me wonder who’s all walked these steps before.

Then there’s the view. Cutting a jagged line against the now-twilight sky, the appropriately named Dogtooth Range stands tall from across the river valley. Anchoring the northern reach of the Purcell Mountains, the range is home to the year-round Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. I can trace some of its 120-plus runs from my perch on the second-floor balcony. As night falls, only the bobbing lights of snow groomers and soft glow of the village base are to be seen.

After coffee and Breaky Rolls at the laidback Ethos Café the next morning, we motor up to the ski resort just 20 minutes away. More than 10 centimetres of snow has cloaked the slopes overnight, adding to the previous day’s generous dump of 16 cms. We’ve hit at the right time. Everything beckons, including the double-black Feuz Bowl — named after my father’s late skiing friend and former Edelweiss Village resident, Syd Feuz.

Ducking into the mountaintop Eagle’s Eye Restaurant for lunch, we snag a corner table overlooking the dramatic Dogtooths and beyond. In fact, diners can spot five national parks from this 7,700-foot-high roost. Savouring a burger and the Aussie steak sandwich special, we toast the resort’s 25th anniversary season with refreshing pints of Banded Peak Brewing’s Mount Crushmore Pilsner. Then we set out to find more pockets of powder before last chair.

Back at our chalet in the late afternoon, I give my father a call. He remembers Edward Feuz Jr. coming over to play cards with his parents, and Syd (son of Walter) teaching him and a friend how to ski in the days of stem turns and “six-foot-long planks, stiff as old railroad tracks.” He also recalls Syd in 1950 taking them on climbing skins over what is now resort terrain. “We were the first skiers to go down the Kicking Horse hill,” says my father, adding that Syd, who would become the first Canadian-Swiss guide, was “an incredible guy with such a wonderful nature … and patience with us dumb kids.”

At night, we sample another slice of Golden history at the Eleven22 Restaurant. Built in 1904 as a family home, the cozy upscale dining venue sets the tone with three separate spaces lined with bright works of local art. The rich Stilton Fondue makes for the perfect après-ski appie. While I should probably order the Feuz Bowl salad next, I instead go for the Dragon Boat, a luscious signature dish of scallops, prawns, and mussels drizzled in a smoky paprika cream sauce.

Leaving the next day, I take a last glance around the Edelweiss Village + Resort. There’s much more to come for the 56-acre property. Saunas are on order as I write, and a trail network connecting to the Golden Skybridge is near completion. In the works is a Swiss Guides Great Hall, which will function as a community meeting place, event venue and showcase for preserved chalet artifacts. Maximizing the mountain views, a Nordic spa with Swiss details will cater to guests and potentially day users. Modern cabins and seasonal pods, thematically tied to the village’s past, could be on the horizon. I think Walter and company would approve.

MORE ABOUT VISITING GOLDEN

Getting There: Located in the Kootenay Rockies, Golden is 712 kilometres (442 miles) east of Vancouver via Hwy. 5 (Coquihalla) and Hwy. 1 (Trans-Canada).

Must Do: Stroll the River Walk and Kicking Horse Pedestrian Bridge — at 46 metres (151 feet), it’s the longest freestanding timber frame bridge in Canada.

Spring Skiing: Kicking Horse Mountain Resort’s Golden Eagle Express Gondola is closed due to an ongoing investigation into a gondola incident on March 10, 2025. The resort remains open with four lifts and base services in operation. Check its website for updates. At the end of the day, sit down to après-ski at the resort’s Peaks Grill or downtown’s Whitetooth Brewing — where you can savour small-batch beers and bites via delivery order from Red Tomato Pies or Reposados.

Tourism Info: Tourism Golden.