Canadian Rockies

On Friday, we had an early start as Matt dropped me off at the airport so I could catch the shuttle bus up to Banff, in the Rocky Mountains which is about 90 minutes away. I had booked on an afternoon tour out of Banff to Lake Louise and Johnson Canyon. The Canadian Rockies comprise the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains range. Five national parks are located within the Canadian Rockies, four of which interlock and make up the Canadia Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage site - including Banff.

Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 in the Canadian Rockies. The park is 180km west of Calgary in the province of Alberta and encompasses 6640 square kilometres of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers, ice fields, dense coniferous forest and alpine landscapes. The main commercial centre of the park is the town of Banff in the Bow River Valley. After arriving in Banff I took a walk around the town centre, and part of the national park. There is much wildlife in the park, and I stumbled across some Elk just hanging out by the Bow River. The landscape is just incredible, and the pictures certainly don't do it justice.

First stop on my Rocky Mountain tour was Lake Louise. Lake Louise is a small village located 54 kilometres west of the Banff townsite, is home to the landmark Chateau Lake Louise at the edge of Lake Louise. The original Chateau was gradually built up at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century by the Canadian Pacific Railway as a vacation destination to lure moneyed travellers into taking trains and heading west. It has since had many renovations and additions, and is now a fully operational Hotel open all year round. The picturesque location on the edge of the Lake provides and idyllic backdrop for visitors and hotel guests.

Second stop on the tour, was Johnston Canyon. The Canyon is a popular hiking trail which follows the gorges and the Ink Pots (a series of ink-coloured spring ponds). Johnston Creek forms part of the Canyon and originates in the glacial valleys of the Banff National Park at the feet of Cascade Mountain, and flows through a series of gorges to the confluence with Bow River. The Canyon was looking especially beautiful at this time of year, as the Ink Pots start the melt, and the creek flows underneath the melting ice. The colour of the water really is indescribable, and given the recent snow, we had to wear spikes to hike the track to the Cascade Waterfalls.

After my tour, I met up with Matt and Sherry who had driven up from Calgary after they had finished work, and we met a drink at the Fairmont Hotel in Banff. We then had an excellent dinner at the Maple Leaf before driving back down to Calgary.

My final morning in Canada, and what better way to spend it than having a true Canadian style diner breakfast. We stood out in the cold 6 degree morning (yet warmest it’s been all week) to wait for a table at Diner Deluxe. And it was well worth the wait after I saw the menu – it was so hard to chose! After much deliberation about the bacon stuffed French toast, I decided on the potato pancake with double smoked pork chop. And before I knew it, it was time to say goodbye to Matt and Sherry. A great but snowy and cold trip to Calgary.