The Rocky Mountains

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We are finally heading into the mountains and cannot wait. We’ve spent 2 days in Calgary and the city is rather sprawled out and although it is the 3rd biggest city in Canada there doesn’t seem to be a lot of people around. The hostel is on the outskirts of the CBD and just around the corner from the car rental place, an added bonus. The people of Calgary seem to be an eclectic lot with varying appearances. We met a really helpful guy in a camping store that got us sort of ready for our Incan Trail and advising us of some waterproof, wet weather gear to buy.

The 3 hour drive to Banff our first stop on our 9 days in the Rockies was breathtaking to say the very least. As we approached the Rockies they just grew in size from little hills on the horizon to enormous mountains. It was exciting to be leaving cities and driving into Banff and settle in.

Once we were settled was time to head into this quaint little town and to look around and to get a little bit of orientation and get some food. The tourist bureau gave us some information and we decided to get a pass that enabled us to go up the Sulphur Mountain gondola, the thermal pools, The Colombian Icefields and the Whyte Museum. We got a little lost trying to follow some vague directions to the supermarket and after 30 minutes in the wrong direction and turning around to retrace our steps we finally found it got our food and headed back for an early night.

Our first full day we headed up the Sulphur Mountain Gondola to take in the 360° panoramic view over Banff and the Rockies. The gondola trip up was interesting, we were sharing the gondola with an older couple and Jay proceeded in overcoming his fear by freaking out the poor lady and her husband didn’t help much either but contemplating aloud how far the drop was down and just how far the cabin would roll before it came to a stop. Fortunately we arrived at the top before the gondola mutiny started.

Where the Gondola comes in there is the standard restaurant and gift shops and once you make it outside to the boardwalks surrounding the building your breath is taken away as you glance at the views around you (and also as it’s a wee bit cold up here in the shade). A short walk away is an observatory (Sanson’s Peak Meteorological Station & Cosmic Ray Station) that was built sometime in the early 1900’s by Norman Sanson to monitor the skies and weather. From here the vantage point is even higher and we spent a good 3 hours up here just absorbing the views and looking down at the Bow River meandering its way through the mountains, watch the squirrels running around trying to find food and birds flying above. It was so peaceful.

The gondola trip down was less exciting than the one up. The trip is about 7 minutes before we get back down and I noticed Jay was a bit quieter this time around. Once on the ground it was back to our trusty little car and head into town for more of a look around and for me to find a doctor. I’ve got some sort of bites or rash that is as itchy as hell on my arms and legs and has been driving me nuts (and I am getting a little bit irritable) since we left Niagara Falls and it’s time to get it checked out. Well CAD120 lighter in the hip pocket I meet with a doctor to be told it is probably a viral thing and that they don’t look like bites, it should settle down in about 2 weeks....goodbye. Wow, I was in with the doctor for less than 5 minutes and came out not knowing anything more than when I walked in, and I still itch.

Our next day, we hiked to Bow River just down from the hostel. We walked for about 3 hours along the river and it is so peaceful. The mountains are reflecting on the river as are the trees that border the banks. The water is crystal clear and like glass, everywhere you look it’s like a picture but it’s real. We ended up near formations they call the Hoodoos. We didn’t quite make it to them as we cut our cross country trek short but climbing straight up the side of a steep hill. Again the views are breathtaking and it could be that we have gotten very much out of shape the past few months and we need to get our breath back after our hill climb.

The afternoon was a trip to Lake Louise about 50km North from Banff. It is like everything you see in the pictures. The turquoise lake the snow capped mountains in the background and the ugly Fairmont Hotel at the entrance. I say ugly as it doesn’t blend into the scenery, it stands out and clashes with all the nature around it. The Fairmont in Banff is made of dark stones and is stunning, something like that should have been built in this beautiful piece of the world. Anyway it’s there and people can pay a fortune to stay in it for the views. We did a 4km walk around the lake and Jay made a bold statement that he would like to climb up to the glacier that feeds into the lake on our return from Jasper.

The turquoise colour of the lake comes from all the different minerals in the water and absorbing the light as it enters the water. Only the blue in the spectrum gets through and that makes the colour. Or something like that. All the lakes and even the running rivers are the same colour and it makes the water look so cold.

It’s an early morning start for our long, 288km trip to Jasper. We need to go via the Icefields Highway and this will take us straight into the town of Jasper. The mountains are getting higher and as we get further away from Banff the average height is around 2,900 - 3,100m. We are going through glacier country and there are thick wedges of ice packed onto the mountains and into valleys. The first and biggest is the Saskatchewan and about another 45 minute drive we get to the Colombian icefields.

This is where we break to stretch our legs and get out onto the icefields via special vehicles designed to drive on the icepack. Glaciers are actually compacted snow over many years and it looks dirty from all the dust and rock particles that are caught in it through past avalanches and wind. We head out onto the ice pack, all rugged up for the venture. Distance is deceiving out here on the icefields. We travel about 2kms to where it is safe to get out and walk around and from where we started from we thought it would have been only 1km. From where we stand on the viewing area on the icefield to the crest of the icepack above us looks like it is just a short distance, try 7km’s. Everything here is so big that even when it’s far away and covered in white it looks so close. This glacier feeds rivers that cross the nation and flow into the Arctic, North Atlantic (via Hudson Bay) and Pacific Ocean. That in itself is pretty cool.

After about 20 minutes on the ice we headed back and into the car and the final push to Jasper. I have made a note of a couple of waterfalls to stop and look at on the way up and we have lunch at Sunwapta Falls. After our lunch at the side the falls we walk around for a little while and it’s time for Jay to have a rest break and get a bit of sleep before the final hour or so driving. Our last stop before we make it to Jasper is Athabasca Falls. The water is raging as it is forces down 2 small crevasses and into the river below. We walked around the falls for a little while then down to the other half of the Athabasca River that is fed by the falls and it is a direct contrast to the river above. It is tranquil in the area we are at and people have balanced rocks forming various shapes. It looks pretty cool. A bit further down there is the sound of rapids that echo around the trees that meet the river.

Jasper is a small town that is just beautiful. We stopped off to get some clear directions to our Wilderness Hostel and got some great suggestions for our 2 days here from the Tourist information guy who was really helpful. Our hostel is about 5-10 minutes from town. When we arrive at the hostel and sorted our out bill we are given a Bear safety briefing. All food to be kept in the kitchen and doors shut. There is no running water so drinking water is in the blue barrel.... the toilets are to the side of the camps. Yeah cool. The last sighting of a bear in the camp was a month ago, they are aggressive and hungry as there has been a poor season for the berries that they eat and they are on the prowl for food. It’s about now I realise that it is sort of dark around where the toilets are away from the main buildings and in fact it is sort of dark all around without much light. Bet any amount of money that I don’t go to the loo in the middle of the night.

We head into town for dinner and end up beer tasting (finally found one I like) and getting back after dark. We light a camp fire in the designated area and sit around with our fellow room occupants, two guys from Germany, and have a few drinks. The whole time we were out there I was constantly looking behind me thinking a bear could just wander up behind us all and none of us would notice, outside the light of the fire it is pitch black out there. (Yeah I am a little nervous about this whole bear factor here). The stars in the sky are amazing. It is a perfect environment to look at the stars as there is so little light pollution they just glisten in the sky. On some nights you can see the Aurora lights but unfortunately we are not that lucky. With a final loo run before turning in for the night it was bed time, we only have 1 full day up here so we need to make the most of it.

How long can you lay in bed in the morning before you need to run to the toilet? I made it about 2 and half hours this morning (it was still dark outside and I wasn’t heading out there till it was light, it’s all about the bears). With a quick breakfast we headed out to Maligne canyon and hiked around it following the river for about 2 hours or so. At the bottom of the hike there is a small suspension bridge. I have never made it a big thing back home but I hate jetties and walking over bridges that are over water. Don’t ask me why given I have grown up on boats and around water all my life but to put if frankly, it scares the crap out of me. So walking across a little suspension bridge that is only about 1m off a pissy little river that wouldn’t even come up to my knees I am reduced to tears as Jay holds me in the middle of a bridge that is moving underfoot to try and help me. It is stupid and it is ridiculous that I get this way but was most relieved to have feet on terra firma.

From Maligne Canyon we headed out to take a look at the gondola that goes up one of the mountains. We parked the car and watched the first one go past us and it made a dreadful noise, we checked out the cost of heading to the top and it is quite expensive so we opt out time to head off and do something else.

Later we headed out behind the town to pyramid lake and had our lunch at Patricia Lack with Pyramid Mountain (stands around 3,100m) as a backdrop reflecting onto the glassed off lake with the pine trees right up onto the banks. Was so peaceful, again I am mindful that there are Bears around and am on edge again. After a lunch we drive around Pyramid Lake and then head out to see Jasper Lake. About a 30 minute drive. So off we go.

When someone says the word lake you have an immediate impression that a lake is shallow near the banks and gradually it gets deeper. Well as we drive up to Lake Jasper we see people walking in the middle, kids playing and dogs running around making the most of the water. Jay and I can’t resist it and we head off to do the same. Lake Jasper is only ankle deep across the whole lake. It is so not what we were expecting, we walked out a good 500m and the water didn’t go past our ankles. We did the jokey walking on water photos and headed back for a bit more of a drive before heading back to the hostel.

We head out of Jasper bright and early and encounter our only wildlife (other than chipmunks and squirrels) on the way out. There is a massive Buck standing just off the side of the road and some stupid guy just meters away from him. It’s rutting season so we are warned of getting to close to these guys so we turn the car around to try and get a photo and possible footage of a guy getting attacked but we have a passive buck in our sights and he walks away just as we get close enough for a photo...oh well. Back to the drive.

We stopped off at the Colombian icefields again and this time we walk our way to the base of the ice pack. There are markers along the way that show where the base used to be on what date. Where it ends now is would be a good 1km or a little more from where it was in 1844.

Back to the trusty rent a car and onto the icefield highway to get back to Banff. Our detour was at Marmion Lake for a look around and then into Banff. Marmion Lake is the lake on the other side of the glacier that feeds Lake Louise. Marmion Lake is still very pretty to look at but not as stunning as Lake Louise.

Okay a good night’s rest has been had and we are off to climb up to the Glacier from Lake Louise as Jay’s had a bee in his bonnet to do it since we were here the other day. So off we go. It took about 4 hours or so round trip. The scenery is predictably very good and as it is early morning although it’s warm it isn’t hot like it is on our way back down. At the very end of the walk you can view into the Glacier and there is a long waterfall to one side and when you look really carefully you can see waterfalls all along the edge of the cliff face where the ice is melting.

There is also a tea house that was used in the olden days for visitors to the glacier to sit and have tea and look at the glacier. It used to be just off the glacier which is now about 3km’s away from here. This is where we stopped for lunch and for me to get the enthusiasm to go the “extra mile” to the glacier edge and also be entertained by a really curious chipmunk.

As we were climbing we heard several loud cracks of avalanches. When we were heading back down we heard one crack and saw a little bit of snow being displaced so who knows, maybe that was the source of the noise. By the time we had made it back down to the Lake we noticed that the water level in the river feeding into it had risen a couple of inches and the edge of the lake was all muddy where fresh silt was entering into it.

Overall the walk up the mountain was really good and although it was the last thing I felt like doing at the time I woke up it was worth it. Tomorrow it’s the thermal pools. What a way to recuperate after a long hike.

The thermal baths are just that, hot water that feels like a bath. Actually it is around 38°C all the time. It was overcast and drizzling a little today so made the heat in the pools bearable. We pushed ourselves to the limit here and spent a lazy 3 hours or so doing sweet nothing. Our last day in Banff was spent lazing around and chilling out a little before the drive back to Calgary and then the long bus trip to Vancouver.

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