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Published: June 12th 2017
Geo: 51.4262, -116.178
This was our "Lake Louise" day, and as I had an image in my mind of the iconic lake and its hotel, I was anxious to finally see the place. The drive north, along the more scenic byway, took about an hour, and then we climbed and climbed the mountain, to descend finally toward Lake Louise. The buses of tourists had started to arrive before us and while at times it felt like we were in Tokyo rather than Alberta. Pictures, unfortunately, simply can't adequately convey the beauty of the lake and its location. We all commented on the hotel which, though attractive, was not the "castle-like one" we'd all pictured. We later learned that that particular hotel is back in Banff, and we caught a glimpse of it the following morning.
Our plan had been to do an easy hike along the shoreline to reach the far side of the lake. All it took was one wrong turn and a stubborn refusal to turn around once we realized we weren't on the lakeshore trail, and before we knew it, we'd committed to a very steep hike. While the promised payoff was not evident during the hike, and it was
increasingly hard to placate Ms. Anna's sore feet and legs, we did finally reach the top and hit a small clearing with a stunning view from above, back over the lake and hotel.
We drove back up and over the mountain to reach Lake Moraine, where our picnic lunch helped recharge some tired legs and get us ready for another hike. The lake is named for the moraines (essentially huge mounds of stone left behind as glaciers recede) which line the shores, and it was a fantastic (and thankfully flat) hike. The water color juxtaposed with the blue glaciers hanging precariously above was quite the sight.
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