Monthly Archives: September 2018

Jasper

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3 August:   Friday morning, we headed north amidst a landscape of towering peaks, waterfalls and glaciers, hoping we would see some elk, bears or mountain goats. In fact, John stopped the coach when he saw several cars up ahead parked on the side of the road and we were just in time to catch a glimpse of a bear!  It was too bad that everyone had gotten out of their cars with their cameras and scared it away.  Unfortunately, that was to be our only sighting!

 

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Arrived at the Columbian Icefield and boarded an Ice Explorer to drive out to the massive Athabasca Glacier.  This is the largest ice field in the Rocky Mountains, located along the border of Alberta and British Columbia.

It was pretty crowded out there, with Ice Explorers coming and going, but all very controlled and we could only stay out there for 20 minutes. There were lots of people standing around and the ice was slippery, so I didn’t venture very far. Nevertheless, an amazing experience to actually stand on a glacier.

Just before we reached our accommodation, we rounded a corner and were surprised to find several elk lying in the grass.  John stopped the coach and we took some photos through the windows so we wouldn’t disturb them.

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We stayed in the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, in the middle of Alberta’s stunning Jasper National Park.  Covering 700 acres, this luxury resort has a main lodge surrounded by chalets and cabins all connected by paths and gardens facing Lac Beauvert and Canada’s No 1 Golf Course Resort.  Our meals in the restaurant were of the highest standard and we even had an “egg chef” to cook our eggs at breakfast!

 

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Our accommodation was in one of the cabins, roomy and luxurious, with a patio out front looking onto the lake and a back door as well!  The lodge wasn’t far away, but if you didn’t want to walk, you only had to make a quick phone call and a golf cart would be sent to pick you up.

That night after dinner we had a local wildlife expert give us a talk about all the wild animals that inhabit the area.  So pleased we have two nights here.  The scenery is stunning and we love the resort.

 

Banff – Day Two

Thursday, 2 August – Off to an early start after breakfast to drive to Moraine Lake situated in the beautiful Valley of the Ten Peaks. Stunning scenery.

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Then continued on to Lake Louise which I was really looking forward to. The unbelievably turquoise lake and its surrounding backdrop of mountains is, without doubt, the main attraction for many people and it was quite crowded there

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We had plenty of time to walk part of the way around the lake and admire the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise – a beautiful building with an interesting history and lovely gardens. Very impressive.

Lake Louise is of course, the iconic place to visit but I don’t think Moraine Lake should be overlooked. In terms of beautiful lakes, it was up there and less touristy.

We also learnt about rock flour (we misunderstood and immediately thought of rock flowers!)  Rock flour refers to the silt created when rocks are grinding from the movement of a glacier.  The rock flour is very light and stays suspended in the water for a long time.  The sunlight that reflects off this rock flour gives the lakes their stunning turquoise colour.

For the rest of the day we were free to explore Banff on our own, and then we all met up to hop on our coach to be taken to the Banff Trail Riders ranch, for a ride in a covered wagon drawn by two horses to enjoy a cookout.

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It was about a 40-minute ride along a narrow dirt road through a pretty forest alongside the river.  The horses were very keen to up the pace and had to be slowed down a few times.  When we arrived at our destination we were greeted with drinks and lasso and horse shoe throwing lessons while we waited for our meal.  Also, some very large mosquitoes – which made us feel right at home!

On the way, the driver checked out how we would like our steaks cooked and phoned through our orders – such attention to detail!   The home cooked beans were fantastic – will be searching out some recipes when I go home. Salad was followed by baked potatoes to accompany our perfectly cooked steaks and beans, then individual cheesecakes for dessert – who doesn’t love a barbecue?

Even though it was late when we made our return trip back to the coach, the weather was warm and still daylight! I’m loving these long days.