Month: September 2016

Leaving Jasper today, our rented Toyota RAV4  headed south on the Icefields Parkway.   We stopped at two waterfalls on the way to the Columbia Icefields Discovery Center.  Both were pretty impressive just like everything else we have viewed over the last week.

 

Our next stop was the Columbia Icefield Discovery Center.   We watched a 20 minute film on glaciers which was rather artsy rather than a documentary.   I really enjoyed the pictures of how folks toured the glaciers years ago that were on the walls at the center. I took several pictures of them to contrast them to the present day tours.

And here is how it is done today.   I really enjoyed walking on the glacier and seeing it first hand.   In spite of the fact that it is so commercialized,  we decided to take the tour.   Seeing the size of the Ice Explorers was impressive. Our driver said that each one cost a million and a quarter to build.   The tires on it were gigantic.

It was very cold and windy on the glacier.   We did not last very long on these Adirondack chairs!

Today we drove for about 5 hours and are spending the night in Invermere, British Columbia.   I was getting so desparate to see a mountain goat, that I took a picture of a fake one at the Discovery Center.

Then,  just as we were almost to  Invermere, didn’t we see two goats ambling across the highway with little regard of the traffic.    I was thrilled, but I don’t think the goats were impressed to see me.     

Seeing waterfalls and mountains, walking on a glacier, and spotting two mountain goats  was a great way to spend our day.

So how do you choose what to do when there are so many possibilities here in Jasper.   Frank and I decided to go horseback riding this morning.   We headed for the Farmount Jasper Park  Lodge to their riding stables.   The pictures are self explanatory.  Riding along a glacier fed river from atop a horse certainly was a unique experience.  My horse was Billy and Frank’s was Diesel.   Thank goodness our horses were very sure footed as we rode along the edge of some steep river banks.

Ready for some hiking and armed with our trekking poles, we drove to Maigne Canyon which is 7 miles south of Jasper.   Here the Maligne River  gouges  a 165 foot gorge through limestone bedrock.  There is a trail that zigzags  over six bridges with interpretive signs along the way for a distance of 2 1/2 miles.   We made it to bridge 4 before turning back  for the return hike.

It was amazing to see the power of the rushing water.   We then drove our car to the trailhead at the sixth bridge.  Here  the river was much wider and really flowing.   I could just image  our kayaks whizzing along in those rapids!  That would be quite a ride!

As chance would have it, my college friends Linda and Tom were also in Jasper this evening.   We met for dinner.  What a fun time sharing our travel experiences and stories.

Left to right, Linda, Dori, Judy, Marty, Frank, and Tom

After dinner we went to Tom and Linda’s cabin and on the way, I finally saw my first elk along the highway.

Jasper has so many fun things to do!  We were so glad we were able to spend a day here on our trip!

Lake Louise and Lake Moraine were our destinations this morning.   We arrived at Lake Moraine by 9, hoping to avoid the crowds since this is a favorite stop for the tour buses.   Lake Moraine, 7 miles south of Lake Louise, is in the Valley of the Ten Peaks  and  the mountain peaks are reflected in the tourqouise blue water.

 

Lake Louise was our next stop.   We got there around 10 and unfortunately did not beat the tour buses.   There were a lot of people in front of the hotel by the lake that is was disappointing.   As the morning progressed it did improve.  Lake Louise is the starting point for the hike to the Lake Agnes Tea House and other popular hikes.  Our daughter Kate, a seasoned thru-hike,  would have hated this place.

Of course a big attraction for me was to see the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.   It is a beautiful hotel overlooking Lake Louise.   We walked along the shore of the lake about a mile each way.

My strategy was to built up an appetite to eat a lunch at one of the restaurants in the hotel.  We sat a window overlooking the lake.    I loved it!

After lunch we headed north on the Icefields Parkway to Jasper for about 150 miles.   Everything here is listed in kilometers and we constantly have to figure what that is in miles.   We passed so many glaciers, it became the norm.

Bow Summit and Peyto Lake-this is the highest drivable pass in the national parks of the Canadian Rockies

In the picture on the left below, Peyto Glacier is shown as it looked in 1885.  The picture on the right is one I took today.  The flat light tan area is where the glacier once was, but now has become Lake Peyto.  Some climate models predict that many of the large glaciers will be gone by 2030.

Tonight we are in the town of Jasper.  I’m ready to call it a day.  This touring can wear one out!  In fact, I now have 16,739 steps on my Fitbit to be exact!

We got up at 6:45 this morning.   Our aim was to be at the Banff Gondola by 8am to avoid the crowds.  We were the third car in the parking lot!   The ride to the top of Sulfur Mountain took 8 minutes; fortunately the windows were closed.  Although it was fogged in over the mountains, the sun did peak out the clouds and the visibility improved.

 

When we returned to our hotel, we went with Judy and Marty for a drive to Lake Minnewanka.    The lake is beautiful aqua blue caused by mineral deposits in the water.   We took a mile round trip hike to Stewart Canyon following the shore of the lake.   It was just gorgeous.   No bear or coyotes on this hike.

Our next stop was the Cave and Basin National Historic Site in Banff.   This site commemorates the birthplace of Canada’s national park system.

We went into a cave with a hot springs.  In 1885, three railroad men were touring the area and discovered the hot springs.   Hot springs were being discovered in other areas and so the Banff Hot Springs were established, then renovated  in 1913.   The site is now much more than a cave and hot springs; there are all kinds of displays highlighting the many national parks in Canada.

We got to see lots of Banff snails living in the hot spring water and they cannot be found anywhere else in the world!   Sorry no pictures-they were about the size an unpopped popcorn kernel.

Our final destination was the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.   We walked around this huge stone hotel.   It reminded me of Downton Abbey’s  Highclere Castle.  We were thinking of eating dinner here, but somehow it just didn’t seem fitting in our sneakers and jeans that we’ve been wearing for the last several days.   It is amazing to see the work that went into making this grand hotel back in 1888 and to see it so well preserved and maintained.

All in all, we had a great day full of beautiful scenery and interesting sights.   Our Toyota RAV4 is heading to Lake Louise and Jasper tomorrow.

 

On a high from our wildlife sightings last evening, we were off again this morning.   Our Rav4 was headed north to Banff National Park and the town of Banff.  From our research, we knew it would take almost four hours.

When we arrived, we were pleasantly surprised at the size of the town.  Waterton was quite small with just a few restaurants and a general store, but Banff was much larger.  We were even more thrilled that our hotel had great wifi.   Many of the stores along the main street, Banff Avenue, were  chalet styled  architecture.  Unfortunately I did not think to take many pictures of the shops.

 

The Information Center was our first stop.  Arming ourselves with more ideas than we would have time to do, we set off to explore the town.  Frank and I went off to explore shops on our own, since I knew his tolerance for shopping would be limited. He definitely was not smiling at this point.

 

Ironically we met up with Marty and Judy just in time for supper.   I noticed an Old Spaghetti Factory sign, so we headed into an indoor mall and found the restaurant.  Frank and I had eaten at one of these restaurants in Portland and enjoyed it.   Spaghetti for all in different styles!  Our meals even included spamoni ice cream and coffee!  Not bad for a tourist town.

The Bow River goes through Banff.   With a walkway along the river, Frank and I decided to check it out.   The pictures tell it all.

 

 

Since Frank and I planned to take the Banff Gondola in the morning, we headed back to the Best Western Siding 29.   The name “Siding 29” is because this was the original name for Banff.   On the railroad, it was stop on siding 29!

I am looking forward to seeing Banff from the view on top of Sulfur Mountain!  No rain please!

 

On Sunday morning we checked out of the St. Mary’s Lodge and headed for the Visitors’ Center about a half mile into the park.   We watched a video on Glacier that we hadn’t seen, then we were off for Waterton Lakes.   This is the part of Glacier comprising the northern part of the park which is in Canada.   The two countries work together and the combined area is known as The Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.

We had to cross the Canadian border.  From our tour book we had been warned not to take meat and fruits.  The border patrol man was very nice and didn’t even ask us anything about our food.  We must have looked harmless.

Our first stop was the Visitor’s Center at Waterton.    After picking up maps and getting some suggestions, we decided to try to hike up the Bear’s Hump. The trail started right by the center’s parking lot.  It is a steep 1.7 mile trail  which leads to an overlook with a great view of the Upper Waterton Lake and the townsite. The tour book listed it as an “easy”  hike.

We all started hiking.  However, it was a very steep incline.   Our comrades stopped early on, while Frank and I forged ahead.   We turned around about 2/3 of the way to the top.   It was pretty cloudy, so we weren’t sure the view on the top would be worth the time and effort.   Oh, for a clear day!

Next we drove to the Prince of Wales Hotel.  This is one of the grand hotels that was built by the railroads to attract tourists to Glacier.  It was built between 1926 and 1927 and was named a National Historic Site in 1995.

Frank and Marty in front of the Prince of Wales Hotel.

The hotel sits on a bluff over the Upper Waterton Lakes. From the bluff the view is usually amazing, but unfortunately the tops of mountains  were covered with clouds. Tour buses had arrived so the lobby was pretty full.   Tea is a popular tourist activity and quite a line was forming.    We opted to venture into the townsite for lunch.

After lunch, Judy, Frank and I walked along the Cameron Lake Shore Tail which surrounds the townsite.  We saw a some deer and two adorable fawns but no other wildlife.  Here is a picture of Cameron Falls.

After dinner we drove to the Red Rock Canyon.  Along the way we saw cars pulled over.   Armed with our cameras, Judy and I hopped out of the car ready for action.

On the way back from the canyon, we once again saw cars pulled off the highway.   This time it was a mother black bear with cubs.   A ranger drove by and was encouraging everyone to move on.  He did not want the mother to get separated from her cubs and become violent.  Undaunted,  I still was able to get some good pictures.

Wow!  What a great evening for spotting wildlife.    Waterton turned out to be a very interesting little town indeed!

 

Ever heard of a jammer?   In Glacier park, a jammer  is an antique red bus that takes passengers on the Going-to-the-Sun-Road; the driver acts as a tour guide.   We started out our  half day tour around 9:30 from our hotel, St. Mary’s Lodge.

Our driver was Steve.   He explained that we could have the top down if we wanted, but considering the 4o degree temperature and the wind that did not happen.

Steve told us to be on the lookout for wildlife sightings.   If a lot of cars are pulled over (a “bear jam”), it is usually because an animal has been spotted.   After about ten minutes on the road, sure enough we saw cars pulled over and folks out with their cameras.    We were by the shore of St. Mary’s Lake.   Looking down we spotted a tan bear- a female grizzly .   Judy got a great picture.

In Glacier there are about 800 to 1,000 black bears and  400 to 500 grizzlies.  Right now the bears are preparing for winter hibernation and eat about 23 hours a day.   Now that is a lot of eating!

We stopped at a lookout over St. Mary’s Lake with a tiny island  called Wild Goose Island.   Here is a picture of all four of us.

In 1910 there were about 110 glaciers in the park.  Today there are 24 to 25.  Due to climate change, it is predicted that by 2030, most of the large glaciers will be gone.

Steve also shared the three criteria for a snow mass to be classified as  a glacier – the snow has to be 100 ft. deep, have an area of 25 acres, and the bottom of the snow turns to gel and moves.

After lunch, we headed to Many Glacier which is on the northeast side of the park and about a 30 minute drive from St. Mary’s.  We were signed up for a boat tour which departed from a dock in front of the Many Glacier Lodge.  This lodge along with the Lake McDonald Lodge where built by Louis Hill, son the railroad magnate who wanted to encourage tourism after the railroads were built in the late 1800’s.

 

We rejoined Judy and Marty back at Many Glacier Lodge and had a great dinner in their restaurant overlooking Swiftcurrent Lake.

We had a busy, full day.   Could fatigue be the source of Frank’s behavior?

(This post was delayed since we did not have a very strong wifi connection at the St. Mary’s Lodge during our stay in Glacier National Park. )

Leaving Kalispell after a good nights rest, we traveled about a half hour to the west entrance of Glacier National Park.  Our first stop was the visitor’s center where we picked up a map which highlighted the stops along the Going-to-the-Sun Road.   This road connects Lake McDonald on the west side of the park  with St. Mary’s Lake on the east.

The Going-to-the-Sun Road is a 50 mile highway that crosses the continental divide at Logan Pass.  It is only open mid-June to about mid-September.   We saw a sign that explained that it takes about three months of snow removal to get the road ready for summer tourists with the removal of  snow up to heights of 80 feet. The roadway is both a National Historical and  a Civil Engineering Landmark.  It was built from 1921-1932 and was dedicated in 1933.

Our first stop was the little village of Apgar, which is comprised of a few gift shops, a hotel and a few eating places.   It is located at the southern end of Lake McDonald.   Here is a picture of the shore of Lake McDonald and my three traveling companions, Marty, Frank, and Judy checking out the lake.   On a clear day we could have viewed the mountains in the background of the continental divide.  Not so this morning.

Our  next stop along the way was the Trail of the Cedars which was a half mile boardwalk loop which takes you through a rain forest area of the park.

Frank posing along the boardwalk next to some very tall cedar trees.   The second picture shows a creek with lots of moss on the rocky banks.

We finally arrived at the Visitors’ Center at Logan Pass which is at the high point of the park, the continental divide.  Water runs off here in three different directions-to the Pacific, the Atlantic which includes the Gulf of Mexico,  and the Hudson Bay.   I had hoped to do a hike here, but it was so cold and windy that we did not stay very long.  It also was sleeting.

Baring Falls was our next adventure. Frank and I hiked   a little over a mile to  a log bridge and then to the falls.

By now we were really into the hiking mode.   St. Mary’s Fall was next on the list.   We remembered our daughter, Kate,  talking about how nice this falls was when she went through Glacier on her CDT thru-hike, so we had to see it too. We made it!    Notice Frank sporting his trekking poles, a Christmas gift from Kate.

When we finally got to the end of the Going-to-the-Sun Road and the Visitors Center at St. Mary’s, the east end of  Glacier, it was almost 5:00.   It was so windy there that the lid to the styrofoam cooler blew away when Frank opened the rear of the RAV4.  Here is Frank retrieving the runaway lid.

Our hotel, the St. Mary’s Lodge, was just outside the east entrance of the park. While our rooms were not the greatest, we were happy to be so close to the park.   When we made our reservations last December, these were the  last two rooms that were available.

We had dinner in a nearby log cabin restaurant called The Johnson’s, a family run place since the 1940’s.    Their beef soup had a thick gravy like consistency and was delicious.

With 20,000 plus steps on my Fitbit and a full stomach, I was ready to call it a day.  What a great, but exhausting day on The Going-to-the-Sun Road!

Our alarm went off at 4:00 am.   Time to get up to head for the Philadelphia airport to catch our 8:30 am flight to Kalispell, Montana.   This is the closest airport to Glacier National Park, our first destination on our Canadian Rockies Adventure.    Our friends, Judy and Marty Tolen are traveling with us.

We first flew to Minneapolis and took a second flight to Kalispell.    We arrived around 1:15 pm Mountain Time (2 hours behind EST).

On the plane I sat next to a guy from the mountain north of Kalispell.    He gave lots of suggestions of things to do around the area and in Glacier.   Following his recommendation, we drove  to Whitefish, a small town north of Kalispell.   We were surprised at how many casino signs we passed along the way.  Notice the one room school Montana style.   What do you think of Frank’s new jacket?  Meet Wild Bill Franklin!

Whitefish is a cute town with lots of interesting shops.   We went into a saloon and had drinks.  It was a poker and pool hall with slot machines as well.   It’s not everyday that you can marvel at a taxidermied  bobcat, mountain lion, badger and a moose head.  ( To identify the  weasel like animal with a vertical stripe on  its face, I remembered the badger from the children’s book Best Friends for Francis.  )

Our next stop was the Homewood Suites in Kalispell were we had reservations for tonight.  Once again following the suggestion of the local, we headed for supper to Moose’s Saloon where he claimed “they make  the greatest pizzas in the area.”  Upon entering the swinging doors, we discovered a room with a really long bar, high backed booths with graffiti carved tables,  dim lighting, and sawdust covering the entire floor.   Not really sure we were making the wisest choice,  we ordered our pizzas at a take-out window and our drinks at the bar.   We took our first bites, hoping that the food would surpass our initial visual assessment. Lesson learned: Beware-someone else’s idea of  great food just may not your own!

We returned to our hotel, tired from our early start and a day of traveling.   Tomorrow we head to Glacier National Park and  touring Going-to-the-Sun Road!