I woke early on Sunday in order to make the long drive from Banff to Seattle. On the way, I got to traverse Banff, Yoho, Glacier, and Mt. Revelstone National Parks; although, I could only pass through since I had to be in Seattle by night.
Smoke-filled Glacier National Park ... not sure if it was a wildfire or a prescribed burn.
I pricelined a 3* hotel for $55 near downtown Seattle and was left with this westward view of the Olympic Mountains at sunset.
Another view of from my hotel room, this time looking southwest toward the Space Needle and downtown Seattle.
I flew home on Monday and was able to snap a couple of interesting pics ... one of a fire in Idaho and another of dusk.
If you look closely, you can see the orange flames to the immediate left of the smoke. Hot, "torching" fire!
Another, wider shot.
A beautiful dusk at 39,000 ft with the Missouri River "squirming" off into the distance.
After a sleepless night (thanks to the transcanadian railroad, which passed behind my site) at Tunnel Mountain Campground outside of Banff, I hit the road early. I quickly found out that Banff was much more crowded with tourists than Jasper ... this soured my experience a bit. Overall, the park was amazing, but did not measure up to what I had witnessed in Jasper. The townsite of Banff is full of rich, pretentitous people and/or tourists, which is the last thing you want to see in a national park. The other townsite in Banff is Lake Louise ... I visited this site, but was so turned off by the hundreds of tourists that I didn't even snap a pic. Why? There were hundreds of other beautiful lakes in these parks without tourists swarming around. If you visit these parks, stear clear of these two townsites unless you really like people watching.
After taking in some of the Banff sites, I headed over to Yoho National Park and the Field townsite. At Yoho I viewed glacier-fed Takakkaw Falls -- one of the highest waterfalls in Canada.
I then took another spur over to Emerald Lake, which lived up to its name.
I'm certain she wore this outfit to scare away the wildlife.
I ended the night overlooking Mount Rundle, Banff townsite, and the Hoodoos (seen in the bottom right-center of the pic) as the moon rose over the Canmore area.
On Friday, I broke camp at Jasper and hit the road to Banff. This trip would take me along the famous Icefields Parkway, which links Jasper and Banff National Parks.
Mountains overlooking the Athabasca River valley.
Athabasca filled with glacial till.
The famous Athabasca Glacier, an "arm" extension of the Columbia Icefield. The coolest thing to see was the dated signs as you were coming up the valley that indicated just how far the glacier has retreated over time. Actually, it was cool and scary.
The toe of the retreating glacier. And, if you click on the image to see the higher resolution, you may just be able to see the people standing at the top.
Icefields Parkway is filled with amazing mountain views ... everywhere you turn, you see something like this.
Beautiful Peyto Lake -- perhaps my favorite vista of the trip.
What an amazing view!
Amazing turqouis waters of Bow Lake.
Another view of Bow Lake from the shores near the Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.
Vermilion Lakes and wetlands just outside of Banff townsite. If you look off to the right, in the trees, you'll note a couple birds ... those are bald eagles. I really need to purchase a zoom lens.
Zoomed in image of the birds.
Another view from 2nd Vermilion Lake.
I drove up the Mt. Norquay Road to get away from all the tourists and was treated to this amazing view of the Banff townsite and valley floor of the Bow River. I sat here for a long, long time enjoying many beers with the view. Why would anyone want to hang out in the tourist trap below when you can have this sort of view to yourself?
Same view, now with a full moon bathing the mountains.
Thursday was perhaps the most enjoyable day of my trip ... the weather was perfect and the setting couldn't get any better. I left the campsite about 9 am with no definitive plans except to take in the sights. I looked at the map and decided to travel up to Maligne Lake. The drive up was beautiful and featured a family of mountain sheep.
Hey! What you lookin' at, punk?
A crappy Chevy! You should've bought a Dodge truck!
Mountains along the Maligne River.
When I got up to Maligne Lake, I grabbed a ticket for the first boat ride of the morning. What a experience and well worth the relatively high price. Below are the pics from the hour or so boat ride.
Perhaps the most famous view of Jasper ... Spirit Island.
After the boat, I took my time and traveled back down the Maligne Lake road. I stopped along the shores of Medicine Lake, which provided an very peaceful setting to relax for about an hour.
Maligne River running through the Medicine Lake basin, which only fills during spring melt.
I can confirm that mosquitoes love this particular spot.
After lunch, I decided to check out the cable car that goes up "The Whistlers" and provides a view of the Jasper townsite and surrounding valley. I grabbed a reservation and was up the mountain in about an hour. The view was stunning!
Cable Car, Jasper townsite, and the Athabasca Valley.
Hwy 16 and the Miette River Valley, with B.C. to the left and Alberta to the right.
Another view of the cable car and Jasper townsite and valley.
Looking up the Athabasca River valley toward its headwaters at the Columbia Icefield.
The lakes really are eye popping!
It was hard to follow up the cable car ride with anything more impressive ... but Jasper didn't disappoint. I had noticed a side road going up to a Mount Edith Cavell and decided to check it out. Wow, I was really in for a treat that included a hanging glacier (I believe it is called Angel Glacier ... for good reason as you will see) and a beautiful ice cave.
Mount Edith Cavell.
"Angel" Glacier.
Glacial lake and icebergs.
Sun sets on Angel Glacier.
Ice cave I found at the terminus of the hike. This thing was blowing out cold, cold, cold air. It was really amazing since it was actually in the 80s this day ... I'd walk forward a couple feet and the temperature would drop about 40-50ºF. I sampled this "cold front" many times!
Peeking inside for a Sasquatch.
Another view.
I was really mad that I forgot to bring my wide angle lens on this hike! Argh!
Now looking out of the ice cave. This was such a neat experience that words and even these photos can't do it justice. It was a real treat ... and a cold one at that!
I ended the day back at the campsite with -- what else -- but a bunch of cold beers. After I got my fire started, my Canadian campsite neighbors (a couple of brothers) invited me over to their campsite to share some company. They even fed me moose steaks, which one of the brothers had killed and processed the year before. First time I'd ever had moose and it was delicious. Thanks to those guys for their Canadian hospitality and a great evening!
I pricelined a 3* hotel for $55 near downtown Seattle and was left with this westward view of the Olympic Mountains at sunset.
Another view of from my hotel room, this time looking southwest toward the Space Needle and downtown Seattle.
If you look closely, you can see the orange flames to the immediate left of the smoke. Hot, "torching" fire!
Another, wider shot.
Banff Springs Hotel: architecture imitating nature.
Hwy 1A, or "Bow Valley Parkway".
A black bear berry hunting along the Bow Parkway.
I'm certain she wore this outfit to scare away the wildlife.
I ended the night overlooking Mount Rundle, Banff townsite, and the Hoodoos (seen in the bottom right-center of the pic) as the moon rose over the Canmore area.
Mountains overlooking the Athabasca River valley.
Athabasca filled with glacial till.
The famous Athabasca Glacier, an "arm" extension of the Columbia Icefield. The coolest thing to see was the dated signs as you were coming up the valley that indicated just how far the glacier has retreated over time. Actually, it was cool and scary.
The toe of the retreating glacier. And, if you click on the image to see the higher resolution, you may just be able to see the people standing at the top.
Icefields Parkway is filled with amazing mountain views ... everywhere you turn, you see something like this.
Beautiful Peyto Lake -- perhaps my favorite vista of the trip.
What an amazing view!
Amazing turqouis waters of Bow Lake.
Another view of Bow Lake from the shores near the Num-Ti-Jah Lodge.
Vermilion Lakes and wetlands just outside of Banff townsite. If you look off to the right, in the trees, you'll note a couple birds ... those are bald eagles. I really need to purchase a zoom lens.
Zoomed in image of the birds.
Another view from 2nd Vermilion Lake.
I drove up the Mt. Norquay Road to get away from all the tourists and was treated to this amazing view of the Banff townsite and valley floor of the Bow River. I sat here for a long, long time enjoying many beers with the view. Why would anyone want to hang out in the tourist trap below when you can have this sort of view to yourself?
Same view, now with a full moon bathing the mountains.
Hey! What you lookin' at, punk?
A crappy Chevy! You should've bought a Dodge truck!
Mountains along the Maligne River.
When I got up to Maligne Lake, I grabbed a ticket for the first boat ride of the morning. What a experience and well worth the relatively high price. Below are the pics from the hour or so boat ride.
Maligne River running through the Medicine Lake basin, which only fills during spring melt.
I can confirm that mosquitoes love this particular spot.
Cable Car, Jasper townsite, and the Athabasca Valley.
Hwy 16 and the Miette River Valley, with B.C. to the left and Alberta to the right.
Another view of the cable car and Jasper townsite and valley.
Looking up the Athabasca River valley toward its headwaters at the Columbia Icefield.
The lakes really are eye popping!
Mount Edith Cavell.
"Angel" Glacier.
Glacial lake and icebergs.
Sun sets on Angel Glacier.
Ice cave I found at the terminus of the hike. This thing was blowing out cold, cold, cold air. It was really amazing since it was actually in the 80s this day ... I'd walk forward a couple feet and the temperature would drop about 40-50ºF. I sampled this "cold front" many times!
Peeking inside for a Sasquatch.
Another view.
I was really mad that I forgot to bring my wide angle lens on this hike! Argh!
Now looking out of the ice cave. This was such a neat experience that words and even these photos can't do it justice. It was a real treat ... and a cold one at that!
