Lake Louise the magnificent

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As we drove towards and into Banff township, the rain that followed us from Drumheller struggled to wane. We spent a short while in the town, glad that we chose to stay in Lake Louise instead as Banff is so busy and commercial. We didn't see the surroundings for clouds so did not know what else we may have been missing. Darren enjoyed a short walk around a fen before we headed to Lake Louise, where we found our comfortable accommodation in a super huge hotel (but not the very expensive one right by the lake.). Next morning the thick cloud burned off by 11am, so we had a fabulous drive up the Icefields Parkway to the Columbia Icefields, where Darren took a bus to the Athabasca Glacier while Anna checked out the shop and cafe. We both enjoyed short walks at Mistaya Canyon and Peyto Lake along the way. Stunning is an apt descriptor. Alas there was no wildlife to be seen. Next day Darren enjoyed a 15km walk to Mirror Lake, Lake Agnes, Plain of the Six Glaciers and the Big Beehive, including visits to two teahouses. The first two thirds of the walk would rate as the best I've ever done. The third bit is still very picturesque but more crowded and spoilt by lots of horse shit along the way, and trail riders nearly pushing me over a cliff. Why they would allow horse riders on that trail is beyond me. In the evening we treated ourselves to a meal at the huge Fairmont Hotel by the lake, where we were greeted by two Aussie front of house staff: a girl from the Gold Coast and one from Ballarat! Next morning Darren drove to Moraine Lake to take some lovely early morning photos. Anna meanwhile had a relaxing time, enjoying the surrounds very much. We could have spent a few days more in this beautiful locale.

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