It's definitely possible that I've been living under a stupid rock and everyone else has heard of Field, British Columbia, but I sure hadn't! On our way back from an epic snowboarding trip in Revelstoke/Halcyon Hot Springs, we made a pit stop for a couple hours in Field. If you're like me and know nothing about this 169 person community, it's perfectly between Golden and Lake Louise, right on the B.C. side of the border. We ended up there around noon on a Tuesday and being at it was the only place open, we grabbed lunch at Truffle Pigs Bistro and Lodge.
I have to say, we were lucky that this was our only option because it was AMAZING! It was moderately priced, and though the menu was fairly small, I'm confident that anything on that menu would've been fantastic. The two ladies in our group had the Cheesy A.F. Sausage Mac (it was totally cheesy af), and our dudes each ate the (Barely) Legal Stoner Sandwich. The names of the food definitely gives you an idea of the atmosphere of the place, which was witty and fun. Despite their casual manner, they delivered a gourmet quality menu and we all remarked how much we loved the place. AndyeyAndyeys, they do have vegetarian options! You can see their full menu on their website.
I was so intruiged by the place so after stuffing ourselves, a couple of us went for a wander down the streets. Almost every business was closed for the day, strangely, but from what we could see, there were, as expected, a number of cute shops and local stores interspersed throughout homes lining the streets. We noticed that quite a few of the homes were being rented out as vacation rentals, so after a quick snoop on AirBnb, I confirmed that there were a number of quite large places to rent for good prices!
If you're planning on skiing Lake Louise any time soon, I would definitely recommend parking it in Field over (in my experience) most people's first choice, Banff. It is closer to the hill, at only a 20 minute drive, and the rentals appear to be much larger, and a better price than Banff area, at an average of $100/night (for 4 adults). If you're not much of a tourist, it may also be your preference to avoid the bustle of the mountain town and instead spend your time in a much quieter community. It is also a short 40 minute drive from Golden. I hope I get to head back to Field sometime soon and learn more about it, as there seems to be many great winter and summer activities from hiking to dogsledding! I'll post an update as soon as I see for myself because despite my wanting to, you are apparently not allowed to ask locals what they do in Field, and they will bang a GONG if you do! Cute.
Have you heard of Field? What's your favourite small town?
Tara IG: @itstaradelaney