Fall in Golden BC is for people who want to feel cozy and at home visiting a small mountain town. It’s the season where you probably get to feel most like a local. As the summer tourist season comes trickling to an end and the winter folks have yet to arrive, there’s just that perfect little window of time where the town slows down and gets kind of quiet – I think of it as Golden’s meditative season.

It’s a perfect time to enjoy the town and feel like a local – take in a concert or a movie, stroll the downtown core and do some fall shopping, go out for brunch, grab a latte and lunch after yoga, a fitness class, or meander through town on the Rotary Trails and take in some of our river and the mountain views. Everywhere you go you will run into local Goldenites doing much of the same, chatting it up on street cones and in stores. Remember to feel free to do the same – we are a friendly and welcoming bunch. We love to learn where our visitors come from and how they found Golden.

My husband comments that fall in Golden to him feels like a season of renewal. I get that. Indeed, the landscape changes on an almost daily basis. The leaves turn and fall, the mountain alpine starts to whiten, and the river valley becomes this most amazing landscape of colour and change. Which brings me to hiking, which in my opinion is the best outdoor activity for fall in Golden. Every week the trails looks and feels different – the colours and smells change, as do the sounds (the squirrels get louder and you can actually hear leaves falling in the forests). The views open up more and more, and the alpine starts looking whiter and whiter. Nature’s got so much happening, yet being out and a part of it feels totally serene. Busy yet peaceful. Sensory stimulating yet quiet. Kinda cathartic really.

Yes, fall in Golden is for me very much about the calm and quiet aspect of nature loving. The mountain bike is put away for the season (although keener folks are definitely still out riding), and my trail runners are staying in the closet. I’m all about the ‘taking it all in’ experience of fall hiking and walking. Because it really is such a short window – before you know it the sliding season will be upon us. You can already feel the local energy starting to build. People are already gearing up for this year’s ski show and swap (which is on November 5 in case you’re interested). Fitness classes are busy and people are making a point to get to the gym. Lots of people are diligently doing their squats, getting excited and preparing for what is anticipated to be an epic snow year.

I thoroughly enjoy this season of serenity, this window of mediation and renewal. We will all be screaming down the mountains again soon enough.