Canada 2018 - Day 11 - Jasper to Banff
Tuesday
Today we left our 1950's style lodge which was a cross between Center Parcs and a Dirty Dancing style holiday park.
We took the iconic Icefield Parkway (Highway 93) a 300 km drive through the Jasper and Banff National Parks. This was no hardship as it is the most spectacular road straight through the Athabasca Valley with impressive peaks on either side of the road.
Our first stop was at the Athabasca Falls, an impressive waterfall with warning signs "that death is swift so choose your photo stop with care!"
Further up the valley we stopped at The Sunwapta falls and took a delightful walk to the lower falls which were much quieter. It was easy to see great chunks of rock that had fallen off the cliffs into the valley below to be pummelled by the force of the water.
We stopped for our picnic in the Columbia Icefield at the Abathasca Glacier. The surprising thing about the toe of a glacier is how dirty it is! It has ground it's way down the valley pushing ahead of it a mound of rock and shingle which is called a moraine, from the position of this rock geologists can tell how far the glacier has retreated due to global warming. There was a noticeable cold wind blowing off the glacier- brrrrr.
We had been recommended to walk to Parker Ridge, a 5k walk with dramatic views of the Saskatchewan Glacier but we gave it a miss due to the snowy conditions and icy winds blowing across the ridge.
The next stop was the tourist magnet spot of Lake Louise, a turquoise lake of great beauty, however the world and his dog was there, we were rather underwhelmed and glad to leave.
Our hotel is 50 km further down the transcanada highway (The longest continuous highway in the world (4725 miles long) to the lovely town of Banff.
Our hotel is built like a chateau and our mountain view is rather special, looking forward to exploring the area tomorrow.
Today we left our 1950's style lodge which was a cross between Center Parcs and a Dirty Dancing style holiday park.
We took the iconic Icefield Parkway (Highway 93) a 300 km drive through the Jasper and Banff National Parks. This was no hardship as it is the most spectacular road straight through the Athabasca Valley with impressive peaks on either side of the road.
Our first stop was at the Athabasca Falls, an impressive waterfall with warning signs "that death is swift so choose your photo stop with care!"
Further up the valley we stopped at The Sunwapta falls and took a delightful walk to the lower falls which were much quieter. It was easy to see great chunks of rock that had fallen off the cliffs into the valley below to be pummelled by the force of the water.
We stopped for our picnic in the Columbia Icefield at the Abathasca Glacier. The surprising thing about the toe of a glacier is how dirty it is! It has ground it's way down the valley pushing ahead of it a mound of rock and shingle which is called a moraine, from the position of this rock geologists can tell how far the glacier has retreated due to global warming. There was a noticeable cold wind blowing off the glacier- brrrrr.
We had been recommended to walk to Parker Ridge, a 5k walk with dramatic views of the Saskatchewan Glacier but we gave it a miss due to the snowy conditions and icy winds blowing across the ridge.
The next stop was the tourist magnet spot of Lake Louise, a turquoise lake of great beauty, however the world and his dog was there, we were rather underwhelmed and glad to leave.
Our hotel is 50 km further down the transcanada highway (The longest continuous highway in the world (4725 miles long) to the lovely town of Banff.
Our hotel is built like a chateau and our mountain view is rather special, looking forward to exploring the area tomorrow.
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