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Our trip from Wash to Jasper Oct 22 to Nov 1, 2003

Our trip from Wash to Jasper Oct 22 to Nov 1, 2003

Old Nov 9th, 2003, 11:01 AM
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Our trip from Wash to Jasper Oct 22 to Nov 1, 2003

Thanks for all the help in planning our trip. For our first night we drove from San Jose (Fremont, CA) 5 am to Vancouver, WA and spent the night in the Comfort Inn. It wasn't that long of a ride for the 1st day but we wanted to get through the Portland traffic and not have to face it the next morning.

We crossed over into Canada at Sumas via the Mt. Baker exit and took the toll road to Kamloops. What a fantastic drive. All the fall colors were still out and many waterfalls. What a beautiful way to start our trip. We spent the night in Kamloops. What a pretty town. Safeway grocery store even has gas station and you can use your Safeway card for a discount.

Left Kamloops about 8 am and hit light snow after Golden. The road was not bad to travel at this time of the year. Traffic was light and weather was good. We spent the night in Lake Louise at the Lake Louise Inn. In Bldg #2 all the rooms have a balcony and on the 1st floor more like a patio. The outdoor temp was about 28 F and the room stayed cool. They had to bring a small heater to us. It is a pretty property and staff friendly. Room $125.

The drive up to Jasper was very nice but because of lack of water, no waterfalls and we missed the sign for the Weeping Wall but when I turned my head to look back there was some water. I guess the drive at this time of the year is not a nice as others. The glaciers on the mountains were more impressive than the main glacier.

Do take a few minutes to drive up Rt. 11 to the toll booth and turn around to go back. The view is really outstanding. Took 1/2 drive on the road to Edith Cavell, no bear but lots of small lakes.

We spent the night in Jasper at the Jasper Inn. This is a great place. We stayed on the 1st floor in a medium suite that had 2 twin beds in one room, kitchen with dishes, pots & pans etc. In the living room was a wood burning fireplace (they had wood in the room), awful sofa bed and patio for $75 USD. Indoor pool and spa were good size. Every night a group of elk come by right outside our patio. I thought the town was cute regardless what someone else has said here. It would be a nice place to spend a few days. The Mountaineer Train has a station there. The drive up to Lake Maligne,(we don?t go all the way to the lodge)was very pretty. Great views of the valley and we did see a few elk at about 4 pm.

I guess because of the time of year we didn?t have to pay any park fees. There were three adults and a dog on the trip and I felt the room costs were reasonable for that many adults. Marge


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Old Nov 9th, 2003, 02:22 PM
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Happy to hear that your trip went well Marge!

But-but-but. . . you didn't have to pay any park fees?????????
How did you manage that??
We've always had to pay, and because they are so expensive and we travel to the parks several times every year, we usually purchase the annual pass (last one cost us over $70 - that's Canadian dollars).
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Old Nov 11th, 2003, 06:33 PM
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No one was at the booths and they had a sign that said "proceed". What can I say. But Thank You Canada.

The only booth person we saw was on Rt. 11 but we turn around at this point. Marge
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Old Nov 12th, 2003, 12:08 PM
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What was your favorite part of your trip? Your message makes it sound like some of the views were a little disappointing. I kept hearing the views between Lake Lousie and Jasper were outstanding. We are planning a trip next June. This has been one of the hardest trips to plan because it will be so expensive, I want everything to be nice since it is an anniversary trip. I keep hoping I can get a great room at a bargain price. I have found a flight I can book that is very reasonable, but the Post and Fairmont rooms are all $300American or a lot more.My husband is a sales person and drives a lot so he does not want a vacation where he drives all the time.I guess what I'm asking is did you think it was as beautiful as you thought it would be in the Lake Louise/Banff/Jasper area? What is the best vacation you've ever had? This one?Everyone is so helpful, thanks.
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Old Nov 12th, 2003, 10:54 PM
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Haney20 - we live quite close to the mountains and travel there very often, and the scenery still manages to take my breath away.
But it all depends on your frame of reference - what do you consider beautiful?
A good friend of mine was born and raised on the prairies and does not understand what all the fuss is about when it comes to mountains, she says they make her feel claustrophobic.
A different opinion was offered to me this past June by some visitors from Asia (in the mountains at an international conference, not tourists but there on business). They asked me if I realized how incredibly lucky I was to live in such gorgeous country.
So it all depends on you, and your perspective!!
It definitely is a very worthwhile travel destination, plus June is a pretty time to go: lots of fresh "new" green on trees and shrubs, very long days, sunrise before 6 a.m. and sunset after 10 p.m., and usually very pleasant temperatures.

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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 01:36 AM
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We live in Western Kentucky and have beautiful lakes nearby, but no mountains in our immediate area. I'm sure your area is gorgeous.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 03:00 AM
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I think everyone's idea of what makes a great vacation varies. You have to decide what you want to do--and maybe won't know for sure until you get there. I had heard of some of these places by reading on the internet, in travel books, etc., but didn't realize until we saw them exactly what people were talking about. People had talked about Edith Cavell Mountain--it is a winding road up a mountain-to a very large parking lot. The highlight was the walk to the Angel Glacier after you get to the top of the road. There are signposts that explain how the glacier was formed, etc. along the way that are very interesting. Also, the boat ride on Lake Maligne to Spirit Island is probably the highlight of that road. I'm just saying this because I think Marge missed the best parts of both those roads (this is just my opinion and probably wasn't what she wanted to do). This is especially true of the Icefields Parkway--there are many places to stop along that highway and take short walks to falls, etc. We went to Athabasca Falls while staying in Jasper since it is close--it is a short walk on a paved path to the falls. Also, Sumatra(spelling) Falls is a short walk off the highway. Peyto Lake is a short uphill walk. And there are many other places to stop, depending on time and what you want to do and see. We really liked the Snocoach Tour on the glacier (mainly because the tour guide was excellent and it was interesting to us). There are 2 web sites I found helpful--both with accomodations and seeing what was available to do while there. www.canadianrockies.net and www.travelalberta.com (click on scenic road trips and the Icefields Parkway). On any of the trails I mentioned--you will see people of all ages and abilities. If you haven't been to these high elevations yet--you probably will feel a little short of breath at times until you get used to it when walking in the mountains. We only hike like this on trips and have no problem--we just stop and rest for a few minutes when we get tired (as many others). Also, you don't need special shoes--gym shoes are fine on most of these trails.

I know how you feel--it was very confusing for me too before we went. There is so much to do and so many places to stay--and you don't know the locations in relation to one another. Maybe you could stay in one of the expensive places in one place and a little cheaper one in another. There was alot of information on this last summer. You may find some helpful information on lodging and summer activities if you go back and read those posts.

We've taken vacations to the American Rockies in Montana and Wyoming as well as Arizona and Utah. We've enjoyed all of them including our trip to Canada.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 04:05 AM
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Marge-did you have a favorite vacation, you mentioned Rockies in America? Staying somewhere nice in the Canadian Rockies is SO expensive. Just called the Fairmont number and moderate rooms are 499-619CA/night at LL and Jasper, Pkgs. with meals were 900/night.
It sounds beautiful, we will need to make sure we stop and hike a little so we can see all the sites. We are not above staying somewhere other than the Fairmonts, but since it is our 20th anniversary we wanted it to be special.Thanks for your input.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 04:48 AM
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I meant to respond to maj.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 07:40 AM
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Haney20: You might look into Cathedral Mountain Lodge in Yoho National Park, just outside Field BC. It's convenient to Lake Louise, Banff and the Icefields highway.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 08:06 AM
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It seems to me - judging by the number of references to the Fairmont Hotels in the Canadian Rockies - that they must advertise very heavily in the US.
Haney20 - there are many different types of accommodation options available to you in the mountains, everything from campgrounds, B&B's, chain motels, inns and hotels, little resorts and even self-contained cabins. Keep in mind that Fairmonts are the most expensive accommodations in the Rockies. The other types of accommodation are not worse, in fact some of them are nicer, they just won't have as many units available. And you may not get the room service or other extra amenities that a huge hotel offers, but if you stay in a cabin you will have your own kitchen in addition to bedroom, living room, bathroom, and most cabins come with wood-burning fireplaces (although some have started to convert to gas). The B&B's are usually charming and very comfortable, plus you get a lot of personalized service (and of course breakfast is included in the rate).
It shouldn't be too difficult to find a large selection of very nice (and even special) accommodation in the range of $130 to $170 US dollars per night (2 people).

Here are some websites to browse for more information:

www.explorealberta.com

www.discoverjasper.com

www.discoverbanff.com

www.banffalberta.ca

www.discoveralberta.com

If you are planning to travel next June, you don?t have to hurry and can browse at your leisure before having to make a decision.
Good luck in your planning!!
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 02:48 PM
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Thank you so much. Just talked to a friend who visited the area. He said he has traveled to many places but none as beautiful as the Canadian Rockies. He plans to go back some day when he has more time.I'm getting really excited.He said a guide told him there was August and then the rest of the year, which makes me wonder about going closer to August rather than June. Worry about the heat in July and Aug. and rain in June. Which is best? Thanks
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 03:39 PM
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You asked which vacation we liked the best. We've been trying to decide--they were all different. I would go back to all of them--and yet there are so many more places to see. We almost went back to Yellowstone and the Tetons since it has been a while since we've been there and were trying to decide between there and the Canadian Rockies. I had 2 friends who had been to both tell us to go to Canada. We're so glad we went. We hope to go back again at some time--there is more there I want to see. Personally--since that is your first choice--I would go with it.

I was told once that the best time usually to visit places is either a week or 2 before the prime season starts--or right at the end of -- or a couple weeks after it. Especially if you don't have to worry about taking a vacation in the summer. So far this has always worked for us. The prices are a little lower and the crowds are much less. I don't think you can count on the weather whenever you go.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 07:01 PM
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Haney20 - I think the time of the year is important and many of the places you will be able to go for us were closed.

You've gotten very good response to your questions. I also went to every web site mentioned. We were very pleased with our whole trip. We really liked the Jasper area.

It's very beautiful up there anywhere you will go. But there is driving. Good Luck! Marge

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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 07:09 PM
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As maj said - you can't count on the weather whenever you go.

June is usually cooler than July and August, but it can be hot in June too (especially at the end of the month), and there can be cool days in July or August.

If you are from Kentucky then I don't think that you will find the "hot" days truly hot or unbearable. You might even find it cool!! (It doesn't usually get much hotter than 30C = 86F, and generally it's a bit cooler than that).
Because the air is dry and because of the altitude, the temperatures drop quickly in the evening. You will find a difference in temperature just travelling from place to place on the same day (Lake Louise is always cooler than Banff because it is at a higher altitude; and Jasper always seems hotter to me.)

The end of June and July are pretty because that is when most of the mountain wildflowers are in bloom, and the mountain streams and waterfalls are full of water cascading over the rocks from the snowmelt at high elevations.
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Old Nov 13th, 2003, 07:27 PM
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Marge - where both Athabasca Falls and Sunwapta Falls closed on your drive up the Icefields Parkway??

If so, I'm a bit surprised to hear it. We have wandered around the little trails next to both falls in the middle of winter!!
Anyway, we are planning to be in Jasper next weekend and if I have time (and the weather permits ), we will check it out.
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Old Nov 14th, 2003, 02:07 AM
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Thanks to everyone. I know this trip will be wonderful. I believe we will go with the late June or early July time frame. I will post a report when I return.
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