Trip Report Canadian Rockies May 2006- long
Jun 5th, 2006, 10:13 PM
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Trip Report Canadian Rockies May 2006- long
Here’s the first installment of my trip report on our wonderful trip to the Canadian Rockies the last week of May, 2006. We had a wonderful trip thanks to all the great info on this forum. As I mentioned when I was asking questions about our trip, we pack a lot more into a day than a typical traveler. There’s so many places we want to see and we have very little vacation time so we go full throttle all the way. We typically only ate breakfast and dinner out and had granola bars, dried fruit, PBJ and trail mix for lunch.
FYI, this winter was very mild and temps were in the 70's and higher the first week of our trip. That allowed us to enjoy a lot of trails and views that are not typically available this early in the season. My friend said the wildflowers we saw were 3-4 weeks earlier than usual.
We spent 2 nights in Canmore, one night near Saskatchewan Crossing, and 2 nights each in Jasper, Field and Waterton.
May 19th
My friend surprised us at the Calgary airport. First thing she said was that we need to go to MEC and buy some bear spray! Mind you, she never said one word about bears when we were in the planning stages of our trip. So we headed to MEC and got the spray and a holster and headed to her house for a lovely dinner and a long walk along the Bow River.
May 20th
The weather was supposed to be bad. We had considered going to the Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller for the day but decided that with all the hiking we had planned, we needed to get into the mountains and get used to the altitude. Luckily the weather ended up being pretty nice. We quickly learned to look at the sky to decide your plans for the next couple of hours.
After breakfast, we headed for the info center in Banff to get trail conditions. I was disappointed with the information the woman gave us. I asked about hiking to the top of Sulphur Mountain. I meant the weather station but she thought I meant hiking up instead of taking the gondola. She warned against that because of risk of avalanche when there wasn’t even any snow on the mountain! When I asked about the C Level Cirque trail, she looked out the window and said that trail would be wet and snowy. We decided to go try it anyway and it was totally clear and dry. Fortunately information at the other parks was much more helpful.
C Level Cirque Trail took us about 3 hours (2 up, 1 down- not including the stop up top). The first ¾ was mainly forest. As you get higher you can see a large lake (Minnewanka?) off to the left and another smaller one down the hill. We teamed up with a couple from S Africa shortly after that. We made it to a boulder platform overlooking what we assumed was the C Level Cirque. It had a scree slope with a snow avalanche. A much narrower trail went past the Cirque toward another ridge but I was pooped and decided we had arrived so we sent our husbands ahead to scope it out and let us know if there was something spectacular that was worth the effort. While waiting a guide that was checking trail conditions came by and told us we were at the end of the trails but we “could always go on” to get more views. We decided we were fine. Then he pointed us toward a creek and small green lake just to the left and downhill from the trail. The other fellow got tired before they made it to the next ridge but they did say the got a better view of the cirque by going higher. I don’t know if the trail has flowers in the summer but I was a little disappointed by this first hike. Not enough reward for the effort for me. This was our first full day in the Rockies so the altitude may have made it seem harder. I also have been known to miss good views while concentrating on the trail to avoid falling on my face. There were pretty lake views but they were off in a distance. Fortunately the rain held off until our last few minutes on the trail.
When we finished we drove around Lake Minnewanka which was very pretty even in the rain. Our hiking partners said they saw tons of sheep on the loop earlier but we didn’t see any when we went through.
Since it was drizzling and overcast, we headed to the Cave and Basin, the site of the original hot springs. We walked around on our own and then attended a nice guided presentation. The video “re-enactment” was hokie but it was nice to sit down for a while and it did explain how everything got started.
Next we drove to Bow Falls behind the Banff Springs Hotel. I’m not sure how much the falls flow in the summer but they were really going when we saw them. We followed the relaxing trail upstream along the Bow River for about 30 minutes or so and then headed back to the car and got some dinner.
After dinner we drove over to the hoodoos and walked along the trail there. I enjoyed the views of the valley as much as the hoodoos! Seems like there’s a view of the Banff Springs Hotel everywhere you go. My husband hiked down the trail to see the hoodoos up close and personal while I waited up top. Then I realized that I was alone on the trail at 8:30 at night and he had the bear spray. I kept hollering his name figuring, if nothing else, the noise would help scare any bears away. I was very glad when he finally called back. As we were walking back my husband spotted a bear on the trail- a gummy bear that is ;-).
Since it was approaching dusk, we decided to drive the loop around Lake Minnewanka again in search of wildlife but we struck out. We got to our hotel (Pocaterra Inn) in time for a trip down the waterslide and short soak in the hot tub before they closed the pool at 10.
May 21
Had breakfast at the hotel. It was a gorgeous day so we headed to the Grassi Lakes trail just past the Nordic Ski Center in Canmore. My friend suggested it as a good early season hike. It was a great trail with panoramic views of the mountains around Canmore, some cascades, waterfalls and lakes. We hit the trail at 8 AM. Made it to some neat falls in 45 minutes and the Grassi Lakes at 1 hour. We decided to continue up the trail past the Grassi Lakes. It was steeper and didn’t have as much to see along the way. It ended up just above a lake (Spray Lake?) It was very pretty but after walking uphill for an hour to get there, and seeing what we thought might be bear skat along the way, it was rather disheartening to see cars parked along the lake directly across from us! ;-) We missed where the trail looped back to the Grassi Lakes and ended up retracing our original path making it back to the trailhead at 11:00. AM.
Next we decided to head to Banff and ride the gondola up Sulphur Mountain ($23.50/adult). The view was wonderful. A goat followed us along the trail as we walked on up to the weather station.
The clouds rolled in so we headed to Johnston Canyon next. We saw a large make elk on the Bow Valley Parkway. We started the trail at 2:30 and made it to the lower falls at 3:00, upper falls at 3:30 and the Ink Pots at 4:30. The falls were wonderful. The Ink Pots didn’t do much for me. They reminded me of watered down versions of the colored pools at Yellowstone and were quite a letdown after hiking an extra hour to see them . If time or fatigue is an issue, I’d drop that part of the trail in a heartbeat. OTOH, the area around them is very picturesque and if I was told the destination was a lovely valley with a river, I might not have been so disappointed.
On the way back to our hotel, we stopped for dinner at Magpie and Stump and then checked out the Banff Springs Hotel.
FYI, this winter was very mild and temps were in the 70's and higher the first week of our trip. That allowed us to enjoy a lot of trails and views that are not typically available this early in the season. My friend said the wildflowers we saw were 3-4 weeks earlier than usual.
We spent 2 nights in Canmore, one night near Saskatchewan Crossing, and 2 nights each in Jasper, Field and Waterton.
May 19th
My friend surprised us at the Calgary airport. First thing she said was that we need to go to MEC and buy some bear spray! Mind you, she never said one word about bears when we were in the planning stages of our trip. So we headed to MEC and got the spray and a holster and headed to her house for a lovely dinner and a long walk along the Bow River.
May 20th
The weather was supposed to be bad. We had considered going to the Royal Tyrell Museum in Drumheller for the day but decided that with all the hiking we had planned, we needed to get into the mountains and get used to the altitude. Luckily the weather ended up being pretty nice. We quickly learned to look at the sky to decide your plans for the next couple of hours.
After breakfast, we headed for the info center in Banff to get trail conditions. I was disappointed with the information the woman gave us. I asked about hiking to the top of Sulphur Mountain. I meant the weather station but she thought I meant hiking up instead of taking the gondola. She warned against that because of risk of avalanche when there wasn’t even any snow on the mountain! When I asked about the C Level Cirque trail, she looked out the window and said that trail would be wet and snowy. We decided to go try it anyway and it was totally clear and dry. Fortunately information at the other parks was much more helpful.
C Level Cirque Trail took us about 3 hours (2 up, 1 down- not including the stop up top). The first ¾ was mainly forest. As you get higher you can see a large lake (Minnewanka?) off to the left and another smaller one down the hill. We teamed up with a couple from S Africa shortly after that. We made it to a boulder platform overlooking what we assumed was the C Level Cirque. It had a scree slope with a snow avalanche. A much narrower trail went past the Cirque toward another ridge but I was pooped and decided we had arrived so we sent our husbands ahead to scope it out and let us know if there was something spectacular that was worth the effort. While waiting a guide that was checking trail conditions came by and told us we were at the end of the trails but we “could always go on” to get more views. We decided we were fine. Then he pointed us toward a creek and small green lake just to the left and downhill from the trail. The other fellow got tired before they made it to the next ridge but they did say the got a better view of the cirque by going higher. I don’t know if the trail has flowers in the summer but I was a little disappointed by this first hike. Not enough reward for the effort for me. This was our first full day in the Rockies so the altitude may have made it seem harder. I also have been known to miss good views while concentrating on the trail to avoid falling on my face. There were pretty lake views but they were off in a distance. Fortunately the rain held off until our last few minutes on the trail.
When we finished we drove around Lake Minnewanka which was very pretty even in the rain. Our hiking partners said they saw tons of sheep on the loop earlier but we didn’t see any when we went through.
Since it was drizzling and overcast, we headed to the Cave and Basin, the site of the original hot springs. We walked around on our own and then attended a nice guided presentation. The video “re-enactment” was hokie but it was nice to sit down for a while and it did explain how everything got started.
Next we drove to Bow Falls behind the Banff Springs Hotel. I’m not sure how much the falls flow in the summer but they were really going when we saw them. We followed the relaxing trail upstream along the Bow River for about 30 minutes or so and then headed back to the car and got some dinner.
After dinner we drove over to the hoodoos and walked along the trail there. I enjoyed the views of the valley as much as the hoodoos! Seems like there’s a view of the Banff Springs Hotel everywhere you go. My husband hiked down the trail to see the hoodoos up close and personal while I waited up top. Then I realized that I was alone on the trail at 8:30 at night and he had the bear spray. I kept hollering his name figuring, if nothing else, the noise would help scare any bears away. I was very glad when he finally called back. As we were walking back my husband spotted a bear on the trail- a gummy bear that is ;-).
Since it was approaching dusk, we decided to drive the loop around Lake Minnewanka again in search of wildlife but we struck out. We got to our hotel (Pocaterra Inn) in time for a trip down the waterslide and short soak in the hot tub before they closed the pool at 10.
May 21
Had breakfast at the hotel. It was a gorgeous day so we headed to the Grassi Lakes trail just past the Nordic Ski Center in Canmore. My friend suggested it as a good early season hike. It was a great trail with panoramic views of the mountains around Canmore, some cascades, waterfalls and lakes. We hit the trail at 8 AM. Made it to some neat falls in 45 minutes and the Grassi Lakes at 1 hour. We decided to continue up the trail past the Grassi Lakes. It was steeper and didn’t have as much to see along the way. It ended up just above a lake (Spray Lake?) It was very pretty but after walking uphill for an hour to get there, and seeing what we thought might be bear skat along the way, it was rather disheartening to see cars parked along the lake directly across from us! ;-) We missed where the trail looped back to the Grassi Lakes and ended up retracing our original path making it back to the trailhead at 11:00. AM.
Next we decided to head to Banff and ride the gondola up Sulphur Mountain ($23.50/adult). The view was wonderful. A goat followed us along the trail as we walked on up to the weather station.
The clouds rolled in so we headed to Johnston Canyon next. We saw a large make elk on the Bow Valley Parkway. We started the trail at 2:30 and made it to the lower falls at 3:00, upper falls at 3:30 and the Ink Pots at 4:30. The falls were wonderful. The Ink Pots didn’t do much for me. They reminded me of watered down versions of the colored pools at Yellowstone and were quite a letdown after hiking an extra hour to see them . If time or fatigue is an issue, I’d drop that part of the trail in a heartbeat. OTOH, the area around them is very picturesque and if I was told the destination was a lovely valley with a river, I might not have been so disappointed.
On the way back to our hotel, we stopped for dinner at Magpie and Stump and then checked out the Banff Springs Hotel.
Jun 5th, 2006, 10:15 PM
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5/22
We checked out of the Pocaterra Inn and headed for Lake Louise. The lake was mostly thawed so the color was pretty nice already. The park office said there were some avalanche flows and snow on the Six Glaciers Trail but there would be lots of views along the way so we decided to take that trail after walking to the end of the lake. We watched a group of mountain climbers going up just past the lake and watched two hoary marmots scurrying along the trail. We made it out about 90 minutes and made it past two patches of avalanche field but at the third patch my husband was sinking into the snow to his thighs in some patches and we couldn’t figure out where the trail went so we turned back. On the way back we heard a strange noise as we walked along the lake. It was kind of like Rice Krispies in milk, only louder. We looked over to see these crystals of ice breaking off as the thin sheet of ice next to shore was being grazed by a sheet floating next to it. It was kind of like the pencil shavings that pile up when you use a small pencil sharpener. Very cool!
Next stop was Moraine Lake. Unfortunately it was getting cloudy by then, the lake was still pretty frozen and the water level was low so it wasn’t nearly as spectacular as we had hoped. It was fun to climb the rock pile (we still haven’t figured out how that huge pile got there) and we got some decent pictures but we didn’t bother hiking along the lake.
On to the Icefields Parkway. We stopped at Crowfoot Glacier, Bow Lake, Bow Glacier, Peyto Lake and Waterfowl Lakes and finally Mistaya Canyon today. Peyto Lake had snow on the road and the trail leading to it. It was overcast and the lake was mostly frozen but it still looked gorgeous. We decided to stop by again on the way back from Jasper if we had a clear day.
Once we found it, Mistaya Canyon was one of our favorites places. It had all the features of the other canyons minus the crowds. It was listed only as a hike on the Icefields Parkway map but, as we drove by, we saw a viewpoint symbol so we stopped. We almost left because we couldn’t find the trail, just a bunch of narrows gravel paths leading to dead ends. The canyon is only a 5 min walk once you get on the right trail. The trailhead is in the trees 10-20 feet past the right (N) end of the parking lot. On the other side of the canyon and falls, there was a trail marker to Sarbach Lookout and Howse Pass but it gave no distances. We decided to follow the trail to Sarbach Lookout thinking that it might be close but after an hour of hiking and no sign of a lookout, we turned around. There were some good views along the way and the trail wasn’t too steep but most of the time we were just in the forest. There were a lot of trees down and it looked like there had been a fire.
We stopped at the viewpoint for the House and Mistaya River valleys 76 km from LL. It’s on the Icefield’s map and there was a pull out there but it wasn’t marked on the highway (at least not from the LL direction).
We had dinner and spent the night at Aurum Lodge (Off Hwy 11, about 46 km east of Saskatchewan Crossing
5/23/06
Alan at Aurum Lodge suggested hiking at Siffleur Falls on Hwy 11 probably 20-25 km from the Icefields Parkway. The trail is wide up to the lower falls then it narrows after that. We hiked 2 ½ hours total. I’m not sure how far we went past the lower falls but there were nice views all along the trail: a suspension bridge, several falls, canyons and rapids and no major steep sections. Just go as far as you want and turn around.
Back on the Icefields Parkway we spotted a black bear along the roadside. That always makes for some excitement.
Next stop Wilcox Pass Trail. I’m not sure where this trail is supposed to end but we loved it. We started in the forest and then got to more of a grassy area. We were excited to see several big horn sheep on a nearby ridge and 5 minutes later we came upon 9 of them right smack dab in the middle of the trail. They were rearing up and butting heads. A couple of them would lock horns and stand there in a stalemate. Then one or two more would come over and join in. It was quite entertaining. After about 15 minutes, we realized they had no intention of leaving the trail so we went around them only to come across two more lying in the sun nearby.
We could see the Columbia Icefields Center, the snocoaches, Snow Dome Glacier and the Athabasca Glacier across the highway. We continued on to a raised rock platform with several manmade rock stacks. I think we were in the pass but there was quite a bit of snow in that area and we couldn’t figure out where we were supposed to go next. We walked past it for a while but we lost the trail in the snow and didn’t see any obvious destination so we turned back. After talking to some people at the Icefields Centre, it sounds like we were supposed to go up the ridge to the west for a higher view of the Columbia Icefields. We saw a set of footprints in the snow going up the ridge but we couldn’t figure out how to get there because we thought we’d have to cross the river/creek canyon we saw along the ridge on our way up. From the map at the Icefields Parkway, it looks like the creek starts in the middle of the pass where we were so we could have gone around it if we’d gone farther. Oh well, we had good views from where we were and 3 hours of hiking was fine for me.
We made it to the Icefields Centre in time to get the next to last snocoach tour of the day. A lot of people seem to like the tour but I wasn’t impressed. The tour guide gave some interesting information about the Icefield and the glaciers but nothing that you can’t discover at the Centre itself or with a little reading. Other than the bragging rights, standing on the glacier wasn’t any different than standing on a frozen pond. You can see the Columbia Icefields pouring between the mountain peaks without going on the tour. If money is tight, I’d say there are better places to spend it, especially at peak times. The guide said they have as many as 8 snocoaches out there at a time with 56 people each during the summer peak! We only had one group out there and it seemed busy with kids throwing snowballs at each other, people filling their bottles with glacier water (the guide said it was “perfectly safe” to drink) and lining up to snap group photos in front of the glacier before our time was up. FWIW, Alan (from Aurum Lodge) said he didn’t like the snocoach tours but he did recommend the guided glacier hikes when they are available.
Our final stop for the day was Asthabsca Falls. We spent around 30 minutes viewing the falls and climbing through the abandoned canyons. We’re starting to lose track of the falls and canyons but they are all fun. It was a good finish to a good day.
We had dinner at Jasper Pizza and headed to Patricia Lake Bungalows in Jasper.
5/24/06
Breakfast and email check at Soft Rock Café in Jasper. It was a gorgeous morning so we headed straight to the Jasper Tram while it was clear. We were on the first car up at 8:30. The view was wonderful and it was a good thing we went early because the clouds started rolling in after we got to the summit. It took us 25 min to get to the top, we spent 25 minutes up there and then 25 min to get back down.
We were going to hike the Old Fort Loop but, with the weather going downhill, we decided to head for Maligne Lake while there was still some sun. My husband was on a mission to see a moose so we hiked the Moose Lake Loop Trail. It’s a nice and easy 1hour walk through the forest to small Moose Lake and then the trail loops over to a section of Maligne Lake. Unfortunately the wind and clouds made for crummy viewing at Maligne Lake so we took a few pictures and headed on to Maligne Canyon.
Maligne Canyon was very cool. We started at the lot closest to Maligne Lake but there’s an upper section above that. It took us about an hour to walk from that middle section to the 5th bridge, going to all the short spurs that go to viewing areas. The number of people dropped off rapidly after the first set of falls. There is a picnic area at the 5th bridge so we sat down and had some water and snacks for about 15 minutes and then headed back. It took us 35 min to go straight uphill to where we started, bypassing all the spurs. Then it took us 20 min to go on to the upper falls where the trail ends at the other end of the parking area from where we started. The entire trail has great views so go as far as your energy will take you.
It started to rain just as we were finishing up so we decided to call it a day. Just after we turned onto the main road into Jasper, we saw 12-15 big horn sheep lying under the trees at the base of the mountain waiting out the rain. We drove to Pyramid Lake, a few km past our cottage, but it was cloudy and the view stunk so we hoped it would be better in the morning.
When we got back to the bungalow we donned our bathing suits and enjoyed a nice hot soak in the outdoor hot tub in between washing and drying a load of clothes. Luckily the mosquitos didn’t seem to be a problem there. Dinner at Earl’s and a stop at the grocery store for a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream was a great way to top off the day!
We checked out of the Pocaterra Inn and headed for Lake Louise. The lake was mostly thawed so the color was pretty nice already. The park office said there were some avalanche flows and snow on the Six Glaciers Trail but there would be lots of views along the way so we decided to take that trail after walking to the end of the lake. We watched a group of mountain climbers going up just past the lake and watched two hoary marmots scurrying along the trail. We made it out about 90 minutes and made it past two patches of avalanche field but at the third patch my husband was sinking into the snow to his thighs in some patches and we couldn’t figure out where the trail went so we turned back. On the way back we heard a strange noise as we walked along the lake. It was kind of like Rice Krispies in milk, only louder. We looked over to see these crystals of ice breaking off as the thin sheet of ice next to shore was being grazed by a sheet floating next to it. It was kind of like the pencil shavings that pile up when you use a small pencil sharpener. Very cool!
Next stop was Moraine Lake. Unfortunately it was getting cloudy by then, the lake was still pretty frozen and the water level was low so it wasn’t nearly as spectacular as we had hoped. It was fun to climb the rock pile (we still haven’t figured out how that huge pile got there) and we got some decent pictures but we didn’t bother hiking along the lake.
On to the Icefields Parkway. We stopped at Crowfoot Glacier, Bow Lake, Bow Glacier, Peyto Lake and Waterfowl Lakes and finally Mistaya Canyon today. Peyto Lake had snow on the road and the trail leading to it. It was overcast and the lake was mostly frozen but it still looked gorgeous. We decided to stop by again on the way back from Jasper if we had a clear day.
Once we found it, Mistaya Canyon was one of our favorites places. It had all the features of the other canyons minus the crowds. It was listed only as a hike on the Icefields Parkway map but, as we drove by, we saw a viewpoint symbol so we stopped. We almost left because we couldn’t find the trail, just a bunch of narrows gravel paths leading to dead ends. The canyon is only a 5 min walk once you get on the right trail. The trailhead is in the trees 10-20 feet past the right (N) end of the parking lot. On the other side of the canyon and falls, there was a trail marker to Sarbach Lookout and Howse Pass but it gave no distances. We decided to follow the trail to Sarbach Lookout thinking that it might be close but after an hour of hiking and no sign of a lookout, we turned around. There were some good views along the way and the trail wasn’t too steep but most of the time we were just in the forest. There were a lot of trees down and it looked like there had been a fire.
We stopped at the viewpoint for the House and Mistaya River valleys 76 km from LL. It’s on the Icefield’s map and there was a pull out there but it wasn’t marked on the highway (at least not from the LL direction).
We had dinner and spent the night at Aurum Lodge (Off Hwy 11, about 46 km east of Saskatchewan Crossing
5/23/06
Alan at Aurum Lodge suggested hiking at Siffleur Falls on Hwy 11 probably 20-25 km from the Icefields Parkway. The trail is wide up to the lower falls then it narrows after that. We hiked 2 ½ hours total. I’m not sure how far we went past the lower falls but there were nice views all along the trail: a suspension bridge, several falls, canyons and rapids and no major steep sections. Just go as far as you want and turn around.
Back on the Icefields Parkway we spotted a black bear along the roadside. That always makes for some excitement.
Next stop Wilcox Pass Trail. I’m not sure where this trail is supposed to end but we loved it. We started in the forest and then got to more of a grassy area. We were excited to see several big horn sheep on a nearby ridge and 5 minutes later we came upon 9 of them right smack dab in the middle of the trail. They were rearing up and butting heads. A couple of them would lock horns and stand there in a stalemate. Then one or two more would come over and join in. It was quite entertaining. After about 15 minutes, we realized they had no intention of leaving the trail so we went around them only to come across two more lying in the sun nearby.
We could see the Columbia Icefields Center, the snocoaches, Snow Dome Glacier and the Athabasca Glacier across the highway. We continued on to a raised rock platform with several manmade rock stacks. I think we were in the pass but there was quite a bit of snow in that area and we couldn’t figure out where we were supposed to go next. We walked past it for a while but we lost the trail in the snow and didn’t see any obvious destination so we turned back. After talking to some people at the Icefields Centre, it sounds like we were supposed to go up the ridge to the west for a higher view of the Columbia Icefields. We saw a set of footprints in the snow going up the ridge but we couldn’t figure out how to get there because we thought we’d have to cross the river/creek canyon we saw along the ridge on our way up. From the map at the Icefields Parkway, it looks like the creek starts in the middle of the pass where we were so we could have gone around it if we’d gone farther. Oh well, we had good views from where we were and 3 hours of hiking was fine for me.
We made it to the Icefields Centre in time to get the next to last snocoach tour of the day. A lot of people seem to like the tour but I wasn’t impressed. The tour guide gave some interesting information about the Icefield and the glaciers but nothing that you can’t discover at the Centre itself or with a little reading. Other than the bragging rights, standing on the glacier wasn’t any different than standing on a frozen pond. You can see the Columbia Icefields pouring between the mountain peaks without going on the tour. If money is tight, I’d say there are better places to spend it, especially at peak times. The guide said they have as many as 8 snocoaches out there at a time with 56 people each during the summer peak! We only had one group out there and it seemed busy with kids throwing snowballs at each other, people filling their bottles with glacier water (the guide said it was “perfectly safe” to drink) and lining up to snap group photos in front of the glacier before our time was up. FWIW, Alan (from Aurum Lodge) said he didn’t like the snocoach tours but he did recommend the guided glacier hikes when they are available.
Our final stop for the day was Asthabsca Falls. We spent around 30 minutes viewing the falls and climbing through the abandoned canyons. We’re starting to lose track of the falls and canyons but they are all fun. It was a good finish to a good day.
We had dinner at Jasper Pizza and headed to Patricia Lake Bungalows in Jasper.
5/24/06
Breakfast and email check at Soft Rock Café in Jasper. It was a gorgeous morning so we headed straight to the Jasper Tram while it was clear. We were on the first car up at 8:30. The view was wonderful and it was a good thing we went early because the clouds started rolling in after we got to the summit. It took us 25 min to get to the top, we spent 25 minutes up there and then 25 min to get back down.
We were going to hike the Old Fort Loop but, with the weather going downhill, we decided to head for Maligne Lake while there was still some sun. My husband was on a mission to see a moose so we hiked the Moose Lake Loop Trail. It’s a nice and easy 1hour walk through the forest to small Moose Lake and then the trail loops over to a section of Maligne Lake. Unfortunately the wind and clouds made for crummy viewing at Maligne Lake so we took a few pictures and headed on to Maligne Canyon.
Maligne Canyon was very cool. We started at the lot closest to Maligne Lake but there’s an upper section above that. It took us about an hour to walk from that middle section to the 5th bridge, going to all the short spurs that go to viewing areas. The number of people dropped off rapidly after the first set of falls. There is a picnic area at the 5th bridge so we sat down and had some water and snacks for about 15 minutes and then headed back. It took us 35 min to go straight uphill to where we started, bypassing all the spurs. Then it took us 20 min to go on to the upper falls where the trail ends at the other end of the parking area from where we started. The entire trail has great views so go as far as your energy will take you.
It started to rain just as we were finishing up so we decided to call it a day. Just after we turned onto the main road into Jasper, we saw 12-15 big horn sheep lying under the trees at the base of the mountain waiting out the rain. We drove to Pyramid Lake, a few km past our cottage, but it was cloudy and the view stunk so we hoped it would be better in the morning.
When we got back to the bungalow we donned our bathing suits and enjoyed a nice hot soak in the outdoor hot tub in between washing and drying a load of clothes. Luckily the mosquitos didn’t seem to be a problem there. Dinner at Earl’s and a stop at the grocery store for a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream was a great way to top off the day!
Jun 5th, 2006, 10:16 PM
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5/25
It was clear so we drove by Pyramid Lake as we were heading out. We got some great pictures this time. I don’t like to eat at the same place twice, but breakfast at the Soft Rock Café was very good and I wanted to check email and back-up photos so we compromised and bought some Nanaimo Bars at the Bear Paw Bakery too.
At the recommendation of the tram operator, we hiked the Valley of the Five Lakes on our way out of town. There is a short loop trail that goes around 3 of the lakes and then a longer trail that goes north around a large lake. If you’re going to bother taking this trail, I’d definitely at least go until you can see the larger lake. It is a very deep green and was much more scenic than the smaller lakes. Unfortunately we got off the main trail when it went past the lake. I’m not sure if we missed the turn or didn’t go far enough but we had gone quite a bit past the lake when we saw a narrow trail go off to the left so we followed it but it petered out and then we didn’t know what to do. We tried going higher but didn’t seen to run into anything so we backtracked somewhat and ended up at the far end of the lake again and followed a narrow footpath we saw there. It seemed to come and go too but it generally hugged the lakeshore, which we knew would eventually get us back to the trail. After about 30 minutes of repeatedly losing the trail, my husband made some comment that at least we don’t have to worry about snakes like we do at home. 15 minutes later I saw a snake! Things were not going well. If I didn’t have the security of having that lake there, I would have been very upset. After 3 hours, we finally made it back to our car. Prior to that experience, I had commented to my husband that Jasper seemed to have the best trail markings.
Back on the Icefields Parkway we stopped at the Athabasca Pass viewpoint, the Athabasca River Valley viewpoint at km mark 37. It’s labeled as Goats and Glaciers (because goats rae known to like to area) on the Icefields Parkway Map but the road sign just has the viewpoint symbol with no name. Just a short walk from the lot there are some picnic table overlooking the river valley below. There were nice views but we didn’t see any goats.
Next stop Sunwapta Falls. It’s a short drive off the Icefields Parkway. It took us 70 minutes to hike down to the lowers falls and back. They were nice but if I had to choose, I’d go to Athabasca Falls and/or Mistaya Canyon.
Next stop was Beauty Creek and Stanley Falls. There were several falls along this creek so I’m not sure which one is Stanley Falls. This was one of our favorites hikes. It’s not too steep, you get almost immediate and frequent reward and unlike the popular canyons, we didn’t see another soul. The pull-out is on the east side of the road (87 km from Jasper/143 from Lake Louise). The Icefields Parkway Map shows a hike at Beauty Creek (S of the hostel) but there is no notice on the road except for a hiking symbol and there is no toilet or trailhead at the pullout. Other than the gravel lot, the only indication of a trail is a small trail sign with a hiking symbol on a gravel path just past the lot. Follow the gravel trail that heads upstream along the creek toward the mountain. It will lead you to the old highway near the base of the mountain. Take a right and follow that old road upstream. You’ll see the road end at the creek (10 min from start) where the bridge it missing. 10-20 feet before that, you’ll see a path running uphill following the creek. First you’ll come across some stepped cascades. Further up you’ll see canyons, falls at a horseshoe curve and you’ll walk through some abandoned channels. Go up even more and you’ll see even taller falls. We went out 45 min until the watered seem to level out some and then we turned around. Coming back on the old road, take a left at the stand of trees and follow the creek to the lot. After we had found our way, we noticed there were rock arrows on the ground pointing the way.
Quick photo-op at Tangle Creek and Falls- right off the highway and another quick stop at the viewpoint for Sunwapta Canyon.
The second mystery stop was Bridal Veil Falls and Panther Falls (117 km from Japser/113 from Lake Louise). There are two stops listed at this distance, both are on the eats side of the road. One is a viewpoint for the Saskatchewan River and overlooks a valley. The Bridal Veil Falls view point is just north of there and has a pullout but no road sign. There is a little wooden sign in the lot that says “Bridal Veil Falls” and points toward the falls. If you walk to the right along the road, you can see another set of falls even higher up on the mountain above the Bridal Veil Falls.
To find Panther Falls, go to the far left (N) end of the parking area and walk up the hill. You will start to hear the falls within a few seconds. First we climbed to the top, but we could only see the lip of the falls because the canyon walls are too steep there. We tried scooting out toward the ledge while sitting down and still couldn’t safely see the falls. We then followed the creek further upstream and found a smaller fall but no better view of the main falls so we turned around. Finally we found a good view of the falls by going about midway down the hill and toward the creek.
Another bear sighting along the road and then a quick trip back to Peyto Lake and roadside stop at Crowfoot Glacier for better pictures. In the 3 days since we were last there, all the snow at Peyto Lake had completely melted. Someone also told us that Lake Louise was now totally thawed and people were canoeing in it. I was hoping to get there for another picture too but the weather didn’t cooperate.
It was running late but we passed a very long freight train on the way to our destination of Field so we decided that was the train to watch at the Spiral Tunnels. This is where the tracks make a figure 8 through two tunnels to handle the steep grade change. We picked the perfect train. I got a picture with the caboose just passing in front of us while the rest of the train was going through the tunnel and the engine was coming out of the lower tunnel.
5/26/06
Naturally, we pick the coldest day of our trip to go whitewater rafting on the Kicking Horse River. It’s raining but they had called for snow so life is good. We’re gonna get wet rafting anyway so it might as well rain today. We saw a coyote near the tracks in Field on our way out. The road to Takakkaw Falls is still closed so we stopped at nearby Natural Bridge and walked the Emerald Lake Circuit (1 hr 20 min with lots of stops for photos) before we headed to Golden for the rafting trip.
The Kicking Horse River has 3 sections with the upper being relatively calm, middle being moderate and the lower the roughest. We had booked a trip on the middle and lower falls with Alpine Rafting but the lower falls were closed because the water was too high (which we were warned about). Since we wee their only reservation that day, they arranged for us to go on middle section with Wet&Wild Adventures instead. http://www.wetnwild.bc.ca/rafting Despite only running the middle section, we had a great trip. The guide was excellent. They provide wet suits with gloves and booties, a splash jacket , helmet and old wool sweaters (which Alpine said we had to supply ourselves). The only comment I would make is that if you are modest, the changing area leaves a lot to be desired. It’s just a makeshift rectangle of canvas and a bench. People outside can see right in through the entrance opening so be prepared to expose yourself or practice keeping covered while dressing.
Karla at the Guesthouse had suggested that we drive back going through Kootenay and Radium Hot Springs but it cold and cloudy so we figured the views wouldn’t be worth the time and gas we’d spend. There’s a Grizzly Refuge in Golden but it wasn’t opened yet so we came back to the house and took a nice hot bath in the claw foot tub and had an excellent dinner at the Bill Peyto Café at the hostel in Lake Louise. While we were in a gift shop, the clerk got a call from a friend saying he just saw a huge grizzly bear on the overpass at the beginning of the Icefields Parkway. We didn’t have anything better to do so we decided to go over there and see if he was still there. We drove up and down a couple of times and didn’t see anything so we headed back to Field. A few minutes later we passed two cars stopped on the other side of the road so we decided to turn around. Sure enough there was a grizzly bear walking along the tracks. Apparently they eat the grain that falls off the freight cars so it’s pretty common to see them on the tracks.
It was clear so we drove by Pyramid Lake as we were heading out. We got some great pictures this time. I don’t like to eat at the same place twice, but breakfast at the Soft Rock Café was very good and I wanted to check email and back-up photos so we compromised and bought some Nanaimo Bars at the Bear Paw Bakery too.
At the recommendation of the tram operator, we hiked the Valley of the Five Lakes on our way out of town. There is a short loop trail that goes around 3 of the lakes and then a longer trail that goes north around a large lake. If you’re going to bother taking this trail, I’d definitely at least go until you can see the larger lake. It is a very deep green and was much more scenic than the smaller lakes. Unfortunately we got off the main trail when it went past the lake. I’m not sure if we missed the turn or didn’t go far enough but we had gone quite a bit past the lake when we saw a narrow trail go off to the left so we followed it but it petered out and then we didn’t know what to do. We tried going higher but didn’t seen to run into anything so we backtracked somewhat and ended up at the far end of the lake again and followed a narrow footpath we saw there. It seemed to come and go too but it generally hugged the lakeshore, which we knew would eventually get us back to the trail. After about 30 minutes of repeatedly losing the trail, my husband made some comment that at least we don’t have to worry about snakes like we do at home. 15 minutes later I saw a snake! Things were not going well. If I didn’t have the security of having that lake there, I would have been very upset. After 3 hours, we finally made it back to our car. Prior to that experience, I had commented to my husband that Jasper seemed to have the best trail markings.
Back on the Icefields Parkway we stopped at the Athabasca Pass viewpoint, the Athabasca River Valley viewpoint at km mark 37. It’s labeled as Goats and Glaciers (because goats rae known to like to area) on the Icefields Parkway Map but the road sign just has the viewpoint symbol with no name. Just a short walk from the lot there are some picnic table overlooking the river valley below. There were nice views but we didn’t see any goats.
Next stop Sunwapta Falls. It’s a short drive off the Icefields Parkway. It took us 70 minutes to hike down to the lowers falls and back. They were nice but if I had to choose, I’d go to Athabasca Falls and/or Mistaya Canyon.
Next stop was Beauty Creek and Stanley Falls. There were several falls along this creek so I’m not sure which one is Stanley Falls. This was one of our favorites hikes. It’s not too steep, you get almost immediate and frequent reward and unlike the popular canyons, we didn’t see another soul. The pull-out is on the east side of the road (87 km from Jasper/143 from Lake Louise). The Icefields Parkway Map shows a hike at Beauty Creek (S of the hostel) but there is no notice on the road except for a hiking symbol and there is no toilet or trailhead at the pullout. Other than the gravel lot, the only indication of a trail is a small trail sign with a hiking symbol on a gravel path just past the lot. Follow the gravel trail that heads upstream along the creek toward the mountain. It will lead you to the old highway near the base of the mountain. Take a right and follow that old road upstream. You’ll see the road end at the creek (10 min from start) where the bridge it missing. 10-20 feet before that, you’ll see a path running uphill following the creek. First you’ll come across some stepped cascades. Further up you’ll see canyons, falls at a horseshoe curve and you’ll walk through some abandoned channels. Go up even more and you’ll see even taller falls. We went out 45 min until the watered seem to level out some and then we turned around. Coming back on the old road, take a left at the stand of trees and follow the creek to the lot. After we had found our way, we noticed there were rock arrows on the ground pointing the way.
Quick photo-op at Tangle Creek and Falls- right off the highway and another quick stop at the viewpoint for Sunwapta Canyon.
The second mystery stop was Bridal Veil Falls and Panther Falls (117 km from Japser/113 from Lake Louise). There are two stops listed at this distance, both are on the eats side of the road. One is a viewpoint for the Saskatchewan River and overlooks a valley. The Bridal Veil Falls view point is just north of there and has a pullout but no road sign. There is a little wooden sign in the lot that says “Bridal Veil Falls” and points toward the falls. If you walk to the right along the road, you can see another set of falls even higher up on the mountain above the Bridal Veil Falls.
To find Panther Falls, go to the far left (N) end of the parking area and walk up the hill. You will start to hear the falls within a few seconds. First we climbed to the top, but we could only see the lip of the falls because the canyon walls are too steep there. We tried scooting out toward the ledge while sitting down and still couldn’t safely see the falls. We then followed the creek further upstream and found a smaller fall but no better view of the main falls so we turned around. Finally we found a good view of the falls by going about midway down the hill and toward the creek.
Another bear sighting along the road and then a quick trip back to Peyto Lake and roadside stop at Crowfoot Glacier for better pictures. In the 3 days since we were last there, all the snow at Peyto Lake had completely melted. Someone also told us that Lake Louise was now totally thawed and people were canoeing in it. I was hoping to get there for another picture too but the weather didn’t cooperate.
It was running late but we passed a very long freight train on the way to our destination of Field so we decided that was the train to watch at the Spiral Tunnels. This is where the tracks make a figure 8 through two tunnels to handle the steep grade change. We picked the perfect train. I got a picture with the caboose just passing in front of us while the rest of the train was going through the tunnel and the engine was coming out of the lower tunnel.
5/26/06
Naturally, we pick the coldest day of our trip to go whitewater rafting on the Kicking Horse River. It’s raining but they had called for snow so life is good. We’re gonna get wet rafting anyway so it might as well rain today. We saw a coyote near the tracks in Field on our way out. The road to Takakkaw Falls is still closed so we stopped at nearby Natural Bridge and walked the Emerald Lake Circuit (1 hr 20 min with lots of stops for photos) before we headed to Golden for the rafting trip.
The Kicking Horse River has 3 sections with the upper being relatively calm, middle being moderate and the lower the roughest. We had booked a trip on the middle and lower falls with Alpine Rafting but the lower falls were closed because the water was too high (which we were warned about). Since we wee their only reservation that day, they arranged for us to go on middle section with Wet&Wild Adventures instead. http://www.wetnwild.bc.ca/rafting Despite only running the middle section, we had a great trip. The guide was excellent. They provide wet suits with gloves and booties, a splash jacket , helmet and old wool sweaters (which Alpine said we had to supply ourselves). The only comment I would make is that if you are modest, the changing area leaves a lot to be desired. It’s just a makeshift rectangle of canvas and a bench. People outside can see right in through the entrance opening so be prepared to expose yourself or practice keeping covered while dressing.
Karla at the Guesthouse had suggested that we drive back going through Kootenay and Radium Hot Springs but it cold and cloudy so we figured the views wouldn’t be worth the time and gas we’d spend. There’s a Grizzly Refuge in Golden but it wasn’t opened yet so we came back to the house and took a nice hot bath in the claw foot tub and had an excellent dinner at the Bill Peyto Café at the hostel in Lake Louise. While we were in a gift shop, the clerk got a call from a friend saying he just saw a huge grizzly bear on the overpass at the beginning of the Icefields Parkway. We didn’t have anything better to do so we decided to go over there and see if he was still there. We drove up and down a couple of times and didn’t see anything so we headed back to Field. A few minutes later we passed two cars stopped on the other side of the road so we decided to turn around. Sure enough there was a grizzly bear walking along the tracks. Apparently they eat the grain that falls off the freight cars so it’s pretty common to see them on the tracks.
Jun 5th, 2006, 10:17 PM
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5/27/06
Off to Waterton today. We wanted to try and see some wildlife so we left Field at 6:30 am but no luck. We picked up some pastry at Laggan’s bakery, checked our email upstairs in the Lake Louise Hostel and had breakfast when they opened at 7:30. The weather is supposed to be nasty the rest of our trip so our friend that was supposed to hike with us in Waterton canceled. We wanted to take the Cowboy Trail (Hwy 22) down to Waterton but shortly after we turned onto Hwy 22 , we heard a loud noise and looked over to see the driver side passenger window in pieces all over the seat. Luckily we were still reasonably close to Calgary so we turned around and went to the airport to switch cars. From the airport we decided to take Hwy 2 down to Waterton with stops at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and Frank Slide. There is an interpretive trail outside but the guidebooks mention climbing the hill behind the parking lot to get a good view of Frank Slide so we did that instead. We were kind of confused about where to we were supposed to go. Coming back we decided that the best route up was to look for the trail up the hill to the left of the dumpster behind the staff parking places. I think I was most impressed by the view of the slide from the road as we drive right through the middle of the slide. As an added bonus, there were wild flowers blooming all over the hill.
There were wind farms in the area around Pincher Creek. It was raining so we didn’t bother to get out of the car to listen to them but I would try it if you get close to one. When we went to a wind farm in Hawaii, we were surprised at the loud humming sound they make, kind of like a Star Wars light saver. Lundbreck Falls looked pretty on the brochure but it was late, it was raining, we’d already seen a bunch of gorgeous falls on this trip and we didn’t know how far we’d have to hike out to see it so we passed on it.
Checked in at Shintangle Spring B&B then had dinner at Waterton Pizza.
5/28/06
Our last full day and the weather called for 90% chance of rain. We considered driving to Drumheller but couldn’t get up for another 5 hours drive so we stayed put in Waterton.
We headed to Red Rock Canyon first since it was cloudy and raining. It was snowing when we got there but the snow made the red stand out even more. The Red Rock Canyon walk only took 10-15 min. and then we headed down the Blackiston Falls Trail that follows the creek in the opposite direction. The ranger had mentioned that we could go to the falls and a little past that but I got that trail confused with the Bertha Falls Trail where she had said we could probably make it to the lake too. We should have taken the map but my husband said we didn’t need it. You’d think we’d learn after getting lost the other day. We got to the falls and decided to keep going. The trail was nice enough: a gradual climb along a creek with nice views (although not as good as we’d like because of the clouds) and wildflowers popping up out of the snow but I kept going around a ridge expecting to see a lake and wasn’t seeing it. At least the sun had come out a little. We let our self-imposed deadline pass because we’d gone so far that we had to see the darn lake. Finally I sent my husband scouting ahead and he hit deep snow and lost the trail so we turned around. At least the snow was melted and it was easier to see the wildflowers. We finally made it back (6 hours later) and I looked at the map and realized we were on the wrong trail! There was a lake there but it was 14 km away!!!!
Now the sun was out so my husband really wanted to hike Bear’s Hump but it was already 5:00 and it was a 20 min drive. As we drove back, dark clouds started rolling in. I send my husband ahead with the camera and the rain hit 5 min after we started. I made it to the top in 30 minutes only to see the pace surrounded in clouds. Our consolation prize was a beautiful rainbow over the Prince of Wales Hotel. We decided to stay a while to see if it would clear any. We did get a little better view of some of the peaks but not much. The info center had recommended against going up Bear’s Hump in wet weather because it is steep and would be slippery. The trail has a lot of steps and most of it is a rough gravel or cinder type surface. Maybe ice would be bad but we had no problem at all going up during the rain. It took 35 minutes to get down and then we headed right across the street for a wonderful dinner at the Lamp Post Dining Room at the Kilmorey Lodge. Then we drove down the Akamina Parkway out to Cameron Lake but the clouds obscured most of the view.
5/29/06
Time to head back home. It was cloudy when we left Waterton but we decided to take the Cowboy Trail to Black Diamond and then Hwy 7 over to Okotoks and up to Hwy 2 to the airport. The weather did clear some so we got some nice views along the way. This route took us only about 15 minutes longer than going the less scenic Hwy 2. That wraps up our travels.
I’ll post general comments and details on lodging and restaurants soon.
Off to Waterton today. We wanted to try and see some wildlife so we left Field at 6:30 am but no luck. We picked up some pastry at Laggan’s bakery, checked our email upstairs in the Lake Louise Hostel and had breakfast when they opened at 7:30. The weather is supposed to be nasty the rest of our trip so our friend that was supposed to hike with us in Waterton canceled. We wanted to take the Cowboy Trail (Hwy 22) down to Waterton but shortly after we turned onto Hwy 22 , we heard a loud noise and looked over to see the driver side passenger window in pieces all over the seat. Luckily we were still reasonably close to Calgary so we turned around and went to the airport to switch cars. From the airport we decided to take Hwy 2 down to Waterton with stops at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and Frank Slide. There is an interpretive trail outside but the guidebooks mention climbing the hill behind the parking lot to get a good view of Frank Slide so we did that instead. We were kind of confused about where to we were supposed to go. Coming back we decided that the best route up was to look for the trail up the hill to the left of the dumpster behind the staff parking places. I think I was most impressed by the view of the slide from the road as we drive right through the middle of the slide. As an added bonus, there were wild flowers blooming all over the hill.
There were wind farms in the area around Pincher Creek. It was raining so we didn’t bother to get out of the car to listen to them but I would try it if you get close to one. When we went to a wind farm in Hawaii, we were surprised at the loud humming sound they make, kind of like a Star Wars light saver. Lundbreck Falls looked pretty on the brochure but it was late, it was raining, we’d already seen a bunch of gorgeous falls on this trip and we didn’t know how far we’d have to hike out to see it so we passed on it.
Checked in at Shintangle Spring B&B then had dinner at Waterton Pizza.
5/28/06
Our last full day and the weather called for 90% chance of rain. We considered driving to Drumheller but couldn’t get up for another 5 hours drive so we stayed put in Waterton.
We headed to Red Rock Canyon first since it was cloudy and raining. It was snowing when we got there but the snow made the red stand out even more. The Red Rock Canyon walk only took 10-15 min. and then we headed down the Blackiston Falls Trail that follows the creek in the opposite direction. The ranger had mentioned that we could go to the falls and a little past that but I got that trail confused with the Bertha Falls Trail where she had said we could probably make it to the lake too. We should have taken the map but my husband said we didn’t need it. You’d think we’d learn after getting lost the other day. We got to the falls and decided to keep going. The trail was nice enough: a gradual climb along a creek with nice views (although not as good as we’d like because of the clouds) and wildflowers popping up out of the snow but I kept going around a ridge expecting to see a lake and wasn’t seeing it. At least the sun had come out a little. We let our self-imposed deadline pass because we’d gone so far that we had to see the darn lake. Finally I sent my husband scouting ahead and he hit deep snow and lost the trail so we turned around. At least the snow was melted and it was easier to see the wildflowers. We finally made it back (6 hours later) and I looked at the map and realized we were on the wrong trail! There was a lake there but it was 14 km away!!!!
Now the sun was out so my husband really wanted to hike Bear’s Hump but it was already 5:00 and it was a 20 min drive. As we drove back, dark clouds started rolling in. I send my husband ahead with the camera and the rain hit 5 min after we started. I made it to the top in 30 minutes only to see the pace surrounded in clouds. Our consolation prize was a beautiful rainbow over the Prince of Wales Hotel. We decided to stay a while to see if it would clear any. We did get a little better view of some of the peaks but not much. The info center had recommended against going up Bear’s Hump in wet weather because it is steep and would be slippery. The trail has a lot of steps and most of it is a rough gravel or cinder type surface. Maybe ice would be bad but we had no problem at all going up during the rain. It took 35 minutes to get down and then we headed right across the street for a wonderful dinner at the Lamp Post Dining Room at the Kilmorey Lodge. Then we drove down the Akamina Parkway out to Cameron Lake but the clouds obscured most of the view.
5/29/06
Time to head back home. It was cloudy when we left Waterton but we decided to take the Cowboy Trail to Black Diamond and then Hwy 7 over to Okotoks and up to Hwy 2 to the airport. The weather did clear some so we got some nice views along the way. This route took us only about 15 minutes longer than going the less scenic Hwy 2. That wraps up our travels.
I’ll post general comments and details on lodging and restaurants soon.
Jun 6th, 2006, 05:48 AM
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Hi mdod, I'm enjoying your report immensely. I love the detail you've provided for all the hikes you did; I'm sure it will be very helpful to many visitors in the future. I've lived in Calgary for 27 years and you've inspired me to get back out to the mountains more often this summer/fall and do some of your hikes.
I also admire your perseverance to stick to your agenda through all kinds of weather and conditions!
Looking forward to reading your lodging and food reviews......
I also admire your perseverance to stick to your agenda through all kinds of weather and conditions!
Looking forward to reading your lodging and food reviews......
Jun 6th, 2006, 07:46 AM
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Thanks bmacdon. My husband makes fun of me but everyone has different information that they are looking for so I try to pass along things I discoverd along the way.
Here's my take on the restaurants we tried. As an intro, we are very casual people and don't require fancy foods and atmosphere. My husband is a quantity over quality type of guy. We like good food as much as anyone but we don't like to spend a fortune on meals. We drink tap water and we don't like wine so I can't give any advice on that.
BTW, if you like cranberries, you'll love Canada. It seemed like almost every meal we ate had cranberries somewhere.
Restaurants
Silver Dragon (Chinese), 211 Banff Ave, 3 rd floor, Banff.. Someone here said it was the best take-out Chinese they’d had in a long time. I wouldn’t go that far but the food was good, price was reasonable and the service was excellent.
Magpie and Stump, 206 Caribou St, Banff. Good Mexican food with large servings and reasonable prices.
Jasper Pizza Place, 402 Connaught Dr , Jasper
One side of the restaurant was self serve and the other side had wait staff. We shared a large, wonderful salad and a thick crust pizza. Apparently in Canada, “Italian sausage” is salami. It was good, just a little different than we expected. They had several varieties of poutine, which I vaguely remembered reading was popular in Canadian so we tried that. FYI, poutine is French fries with melted cheese and gravy on top- as if the fries aren’t bad enough for you! We got the standard mozzarella version. They also offered cheddar, curds and some other combos. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds. It brought back memories of Thanksgiving dinner. For the calories, I’ll take a hot fudge brownie sundae instead!
Soft Rock Café, 622 Connaught Drive, Jasper
Their hot breakfasts were fast and excellent. They also had some temping looking pastries. I believe they open at 7:30 am.
Bear Paw Bakery, 4 Cedar Ave, Jasper
Everything looked yummy but all we tried were the Nanaimo bars. I think they opened at 6:00 or 6:30 am.
Earl’s, 600 Patricia St (at Miette Ave) 2nd floor, Jasper.
The food and service was excellent. Great view of the mountains.
Truffle Pigs Café, Field
The food was excellent. My husband would have preferred more food but we had plenty. The menu is somewhat limited but interesting. If you like very simple cooking and seasonings, you may not like eating there. I noticed that they do have their menu online http://www.trufflepigs.com/ They also have a general store and gift shop there.
Bill Peyto Café at Lake Louise Hostel
Dinner was excellent and reasonable. Breakfast was ok but nothing great and was not as good as value as their dinner menu. They opened at 7:30 and had a full house by 8 with only one waitress but she did a great job under the circumstances.
Laggan's Bakery, Lake Louise Village
After reading so many raves about this place, we had to stop and get something. We didn't get any sandwiches but I was dissapointed in the desserts. The filling on my husband's Bismark was really grainy and my eclair had no flavor at all. Luckily the mint brownie was pretty good so all those calories weren't a total waste ;-).
Waterton Pizza, Waterton Village
The food was fair, service was poor. We were the only ones there and it took 20 minutes to get a salad and she never refilled our water. The potato soup was watered down. The pizza did have generous toppings but it was overpowered by oregano (?) and the italian sausage was salami again.
Lamp Post Dining Room at the Kilmorey Lodge, Waterton Village.
This was the best meal and service we had on the trip. Everything was delicious. It was more expensive than the other places but a very good value for what we got.
Here's my take on the restaurants we tried. As an intro, we are very casual people and don't require fancy foods and atmosphere. My husband is a quantity over quality type of guy. We like good food as much as anyone but we don't like to spend a fortune on meals. We drink tap water and we don't like wine so I can't give any advice on that.
BTW, if you like cranberries, you'll love Canada. It seemed like almost every meal we ate had cranberries somewhere.
Restaurants
Silver Dragon (Chinese), 211 Banff Ave, 3 rd floor, Banff.. Someone here said it was the best take-out Chinese they’d had in a long time. I wouldn’t go that far but the food was good, price was reasonable and the service was excellent.
Magpie and Stump, 206 Caribou St, Banff. Good Mexican food with large servings and reasonable prices.
Jasper Pizza Place, 402 Connaught Dr , Jasper
One side of the restaurant was self serve and the other side had wait staff. We shared a large, wonderful salad and a thick crust pizza. Apparently in Canada, “Italian sausage” is salami. It was good, just a little different than we expected. They had several varieties of poutine, which I vaguely remembered reading was popular in Canadian so we tried that. FYI, poutine is French fries with melted cheese and gravy on top- as if the fries aren’t bad enough for you! We got the standard mozzarella version. They also offered cheddar, curds and some other combos. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds. It brought back memories of Thanksgiving dinner. For the calories, I’ll take a hot fudge brownie sundae instead!
Soft Rock Café, 622 Connaught Drive, Jasper
Their hot breakfasts were fast and excellent. They also had some temping looking pastries. I believe they open at 7:30 am.
Bear Paw Bakery, 4 Cedar Ave, Jasper
Everything looked yummy but all we tried were the Nanaimo bars. I think they opened at 6:00 or 6:30 am.
Earl’s, 600 Patricia St (at Miette Ave) 2nd floor, Jasper.
The food and service was excellent. Great view of the mountains.
Truffle Pigs Café, Field
The food was excellent. My husband would have preferred more food but we had plenty. The menu is somewhat limited but interesting. If you like very simple cooking and seasonings, you may not like eating there. I noticed that they do have their menu online http://www.trufflepigs.com/ They also have a general store and gift shop there.
Bill Peyto Café at Lake Louise Hostel
Dinner was excellent and reasonable. Breakfast was ok but nothing great and was not as good as value as their dinner menu. They opened at 7:30 and had a full house by 8 with only one waitress but she did a great job under the circumstances.
Laggan's Bakery, Lake Louise Village
After reading so many raves about this place, we had to stop and get something. We didn't get any sandwiches but I was dissapointed in the desserts. The filling on my husband's Bismark was really grainy and my eclair had no flavor at all. Luckily the mint brownie was pretty good so all those calories weren't a total waste ;-).
Waterton Pizza, Waterton Village
The food was fair, service was poor. We were the only ones there and it took 20 minutes to get a salad and she never refilled our water. The potato soup was watered down. The pizza did have generous toppings but it was overpowered by oregano (?) and the italian sausage was salami again.
Lamp Post Dining Room at the Kilmorey Lodge, Waterton Village.
This was the best meal and service we had on the trip. Everything was delicious. It was more expensive than the other places but a very good value for what we got.
Jun 6th, 2006, 09:24 AM
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We are so busy when we travel that our rooms are seldom more than a place to sleep and bath. We are mainly concerned with finding a clean, comfortable and convenient place. Here's a run down on the places we stayed.
Best Western Pocaterra Inn, Canmore
This was suggested by a friend. The room was clean and comfortable and had a nice fireplace. They had a computer with internet access in the lobby that was available to guests. They also internet had access in the room. I didn’t hear any train noise. They had a pool with waterslide that seemed popular with kids. They also had a hot tub in the pool area but there’s lots of kids there so expect to share it with kids. Breakfast is provided. Nothing exciting but enough variety that you shodlbe able to find something: coffee, juice, fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, cereals, muffins, Danish, French toast, etc. They had some peanut butter so I made up some PBJ sandwiches to take on our hike.
Aurum Lodge, on Hwy 11, 46 km east of the Saskatchewan Crossing on Lake Abraham
This is an eco friendly lodge that was designed by the owners. In keeping with their philosophy, they encourage you to conserve water and electricity. The have a couple of self contained cottages but we had an upstairs room in the main lodge with a comfy king bed and a nice view of the mountains and Lake Abraham. The lake was pretty low so it wasn’t as picturesque as it probably is later in the season. They have walking trails that go down and along the lake. It’s supposed to be a great place for star-gazing but it was cloudy when we were there. The sun sets so late and rises so early this time of year that we may have had a tough time staying up until dark anyway! The room only had a shower and no TV if that’s an issue. I don’t remember if the common area had one or not. Breakfast is included and consisted of coffee, juice, fruit, porridge, whole grain bread, and yogurt. Alan also asked if we wanted eggs but we declined. Lodge guests can have dinner there (C$22/person) but they need to know 3 days in advance. We had a salad followed by salmon with capers, rice and cauliflower. They also provided wine or soda, but we’re water drinkers. Dessert was fresh mango slices topped with vanilla ice cream. Everything was very good and we had a nice conversation with the owners, Alan and Madeleine. They gave us many good suggestions for hikes that would be good this time of year. FWIW Alan said their location is very dry and they seldom get snow in the winter so it’s a good destination for winter hiking.
Patricia Lake Bungalows, Jasper
We had #15 right next to the lake. As we drove up to the cottage, the view was gorgeous but the mosquitos were so dense we never ventured out to the lake. The siding of the cottage was loaded with mosquito nests. I’d get the key ready before opening the car door, run to open the cottage door, run in and close the door. Then my husband would gather up anything that needed to come inside and I’d stand watch at the door to open and close it quickly behind him. We’d still have 20+ mosquitos to kill! The cottage was clean and comfortable and the people were very nice but the interior was old and a little dreary, more like a rustic cabin. There was a full refrigerator and a cooktop, but no oven. There was a sofa and small table next to the fireplace and a separate bedroom. The bathroom was small and only had a shower. The bedroom wasn’t much bigger than the bed. There was a gas fireplace in the living area but it was too nice out to turn it on. . It wasn’t what I expected from their website but it was fine and it was much less than Becker’s Chalets. They also had a kids playground, a nice outdoor hot tub and had some grills available if you wanted to BBQ.
Spiral Tunnels Guesthouse, Field, BC
This was the nicest place we stayed but also the most expensive. Driving up, it looked like just a regular house. Karla was out when we arrived and left a note on the door to make ourselves comfortable. We were greeted by vase of red roses, a small bottle of wine and chocolate truffles-yum. It was like a mini-apartment with a separate entrance, cozy living area with 2 sofas, a fireplace and TV. There was a half refrigerator with small freezer section, microwave, cooktop and a small oven. The bathroom was large with both a claw foot tub and a separate shower. The king size bed was comfy. The place had everything we could want. Karla came by later and offered suggestions for things to do. She was obviously interested in helping us with anything we needed.
Shingtangle Spring B&B, Waterton
We had the Dunhagen room and would have had an awesome view of Wateron if it wasn’t raining most of the time we were there ;-( The drive from the B&B to Waterton Village was about 20 minutes. Our room had plenty of space and was clean and comfortable. They didn’t have hair dryers in the room, but did have them available when asked. The B&B section had a separate entrance with a common area with sofas and satellite TV (with a channel guide for the common stations- why doesn’t everybody do that?) They also had a refrigerator that guests could use and I believe I saw a microwave. A hallway off the guest entrance led to the individual rooms. There were no TVs or phones in the rooms but they did have a cordless phone that you could bring to your room. They also had menus for local restaurants and maps for Waterton. The place was very nice and the owners pay a lot of attention to details.
Breakfast included coffee, juice, a fruit plate, scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes the first day. The same thing only fried eggs, ham and toast the second day. They also had cereals and yogurt.
Best Western Pocaterra Inn, Canmore
This was suggested by a friend. The room was clean and comfortable and had a nice fireplace. They had a computer with internet access in the lobby that was available to guests. They also internet had access in the room. I didn’t hear any train noise. They had a pool with waterslide that seemed popular with kids. They also had a hot tub in the pool area but there’s lots of kids there so expect to share it with kids. Breakfast is provided. Nothing exciting but enough variety that you shodlbe able to find something: coffee, juice, fruit, yogurt, oatmeal, cereals, muffins, Danish, French toast, etc. They had some peanut butter so I made up some PBJ sandwiches to take on our hike.
Aurum Lodge, on Hwy 11, 46 km east of the Saskatchewan Crossing on Lake Abraham
This is an eco friendly lodge that was designed by the owners. In keeping with their philosophy, they encourage you to conserve water and electricity. The have a couple of self contained cottages but we had an upstairs room in the main lodge with a comfy king bed and a nice view of the mountains and Lake Abraham. The lake was pretty low so it wasn’t as picturesque as it probably is later in the season. They have walking trails that go down and along the lake. It’s supposed to be a great place for star-gazing but it was cloudy when we were there. The sun sets so late and rises so early this time of year that we may have had a tough time staying up until dark anyway! The room only had a shower and no TV if that’s an issue. I don’t remember if the common area had one or not. Breakfast is included and consisted of coffee, juice, fruit, porridge, whole grain bread, and yogurt. Alan also asked if we wanted eggs but we declined. Lodge guests can have dinner there (C$22/person) but they need to know 3 days in advance. We had a salad followed by salmon with capers, rice and cauliflower. They also provided wine or soda, but we’re water drinkers. Dessert was fresh mango slices topped with vanilla ice cream. Everything was very good and we had a nice conversation with the owners, Alan and Madeleine. They gave us many good suggestions for hikes that would be good this time of year. FWIW Alan said their location is very dry and they seldom get snow in the winter so it’s a good destination for winter hiking.
Patricia Lake Bungalows, Jasper
We had #15 right next to the lake. As we drove up to the cottage, the view was gorgeous but the mosquitos were so dense we never ventured out to the lake. The siding of the cottage was loaded with mosquito nests. I’d get the key ready before opening the car door, run to open the cottage door, run in and close the door. Then my husband would gather up anything that needed to come inside and I’d stand watch at the door to open and close it quickly behind him. We’d still have 20+ mosquitos to kill! The cottage was clean and comfortable and the people were very nice but the interior was old and a little dreary, more like a rustic cabin. There was a full refrigerator and a cooktop, but no oven. There was a sofa and small table next to the fireplace and a separate bedroom. The bathroom was small and only had a shower. The bedroom wasn’t much bigger than the bed. There was a gas fireplace in the living area but it was too nice out to turn it on. . It wasn’t what I expected from their website but it was fine and it was much less than Becker’s Chalets. They also had a kids playground, a nice outdoor hot tub and had some grills available if you wanted to BBQ.
Spiral Tunnels Guesthouse, Field, BC
This was the nicest place we stayed but also the most expensive. Driving up, it looked like just a regular house. Karla was out when we arrived and left a note on the door to make ourselves comfortable. We were greeted by vase of red roses, a small bottle of wine and chocolate truffles-yum. It was like a mini-apartment with a separate entrance, cozy living area with 2 sofas, a fireplace and TV. There was a half refrigerator with small freezer section, microwave, cooktop and a small oven. The bathroom was large with both a claw foot tub and a separate shower. The king size bed was comfy. The place had everything we could want. Karla came by later and offered suggestions for things to do. She was obviously interested in helping us with anything we needed.
Shingtangle Spring B&B, Waterton
We had the Dunhagen room and would have had an awesome view of Wateron if it wasn’t raining most of the time we were there ;-( The drive from the B&B to Waterton Village was about 20 minutes. Our room had plenty of space and was clean and comfortable. They didn’t have hair dryers in the room, but did have them available when asked. The B&B section had a separate entrance with a common area with sofas and satellite TV (with a channel guide for the common stations- why doesn’t everybody do that?) They also had a refrigerator that guests could use and I believe I saw a microwave. A hallway off the guest entrance led to the individual rooms. There were no TVs or phones in the rooms but they did have a cordless phone that you could bring to your room. They also had menus for local restaurants and maps for Waterton. The place was very nice and the owners pay a lot of attention to details.
Breakfast included coffee, juice, a fruit plate, scrambled eggs, bacon and pancakes the first day. The same thing only fried eggs, ham and toast the second day. They also had cereals and yogurt.
Jun 6th, 2006, 01:54 PM
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General comments
As I mentioned earlier, ignore the weather forecasts. Our vacation would have been ruined if we had planned our activities based on the day’s forecast. The weather changes all the time in the mountains. Find indoor activities or go to canyons when it’s nasty out and take in your mountain views when it’s sunny.
If you want to avoid crowds, hit the trails early or late. 10-2 is when everybody is on the trails.
We don’t do a lot of hiking so I don’t have much to compare to but I was surprised that the trails weren’t marked better. We found many places where the path split and we weren’t sure which way to go. It’s especially difficult when there aren’t other people around, which was the case more often than not.
Even on popular trails, I would suggest bringing the park trail map so you can have some idea of where you are supposed to be going, how much farther you have and that you’re on the correct trail!
Be sure to pick up the map of the “Icefields Parkway” (not the Jasper or Banff Park map that also shows the parkway) at one of the park information centers. It lists viewpoints, hiking trails, campgrounds sequentially and tells you how far each point of interest is relative to the beginning of the Parkway in Lake Louise (or Jasper). So if you set your odometer at the beginning of the Parkway (and you don’t take any side trips or backtrack) you can follow it pretty well. It would be nice if they had fixed km markers along the highway. Unfortunately, the viewpoints aren’t physically marked on the map and a lot of the names listed on the map don’t match the names on the road signs (or there’s no sign at all/wrong symbol, etc) and once you pull over, most of the viewpoints don’t have any signs to tell you what you are supposed to be looking at.
Internet access
Jasper: Soft Rock Café was awesome. They had a ton of regular computers throughout the place and we even got to hook my camera and my flash drive to the USB ports to get a backup of our photos. C$2 for 15 min.
Hostel at Lake Louise. They had a hand full of coin-operated internet computers in the upstairs lobby/gameroom. I didn’t like them because they had the touchpads instead of a mouse and just can’t operate them. Also C$2 for 15 min. One advantage here is that I suspect it is open 24 hours/day.
Waterton: FWIW we were told that there was internet access at Bayshore Inn at Waterton Village but when we went there they said it was in the lounge which didn’t open until noon.
I found these books helpful:
Canadian Rockies Trail Guide by Brian Patton, Bart Robinson Lots of detailed info on the major trails. I paid $25 for a USED 30 year old edition a few months ago and then I saw a brand new one at the Calgary airport bookstore- argh!
Parkways of the Canadian Rockies by Brian Patton I picked up this one used online for only $3. It lists all the viewpoints, walks and hikes along the major roads through the Canadian Rockies. It works like the Icefields Parway map in that it lists the distance relative to the starting point of the road but it’s a little hard to follow because the distances are given in miles and our odometer was in kilometers. This is how I found Beauty Creek and Panther Falls. It’s great for describing viewpoints along the way because they seldom have markings on the road.
Moon Handbooks Alberta by Andrew Hempstead - good general travel guide.
FYI there is a brochure for Southern Alberta historical sites that offers a discount if you go to multiple sites. The participating sites are Head-Smashed-In, Frank Slide and the Remington Carriage Museum. When you go to one of these places, you pay full price and have them stamp the brochure. Then you get 40% off admission at the second place and 50% off the third. I also noticed that Frank Slide gave a 15% discount to CAA and AAA members, not sure about the others.
Some people suggested getting a park pass in Calgary to avoid lines at the gate. We did not bother because my friend said she has never seen more than 3-4 people in line. We had no problems when we got our pass early in the morning but we did notice lines with 10-12 cars each when we drove by around noon.
Bring a video camera if you like pictures of animals or falls. Still photos just don’t capture the roar and power of falls like video and you are most likely to see animals at dawn or dusk when you won’t have enough light. Our video camera gave us a lot more zoom and handled the low light situations better.
I think that wraps up my trip report. Now to figure out our next destination!
As I mentioned earlier, ignore the weather forecasts. Our vacation would have been ruined if we had planned our activities based on the day’s forecast. The weather changes all the time in the mountains. Find indoor activities or go to canyons when it’s nasty out and take in your mountain views when it’s sunny.
If you want to avoid crowds, hit the trails early or late. 10-2 is when everybody is on the trails.
We don’t do a lot of hiking so I don’t have much to compare to but I was surprised that the trails weren’t marked better. We found many places where the path split and we weren’t sure which way to go. It’s especially difficult when there aren’t other people around, which was the case more often than not.
Even on popular trails, I would suggest bringing the park trail map so you can have some idea of where you are supposed to be going, how much farther you have and that you’re on the correct trail!
Be sure to pick up the map of the “Icefields Parkway” (not the Jasper or Banff Park map that also shows the parkway) at one of the park information centers. It lists viewpoints, hiking trails, campgrounds sequentially and tells you how far each point of interest is relative to the beginning of the Parkway in Lake Louise (or Jasper). So if you set your odometer at the beginning of the Parkway (and you don’t take any side trips or backtrack) you can follow it pretty well. It would be nice if they had fixed km markers along the highway. Unfortunately, the viewpoints aren’t physically marked on the map and a lot of the names listed on the map don’t match the names on the road signs (or there’s no sign at all/wrong symbol, etc) and once you pull over, most of the viewpoints don’t have any signs to tell you what you are supposed to be looking at.
Internet access
Jasper: Soft Rock Café was awesome. They had a ton of regular computers throughout the place and we even got to hook my camera and my flash drive to the USB ports to get a backup of our photos. C$2 for 15 min.
Hostel at Lake Louise. They had a hand full of coin-operated internet computers in the upstairs lobby/gameroom. I didn’t like them because they had the touchpads instead of a mouse and just can’t operate them. Also C$2 for 15 min. One advantage here is that I suspect it is open 24 hours/day.
Waterton: FWIW we were told that there was internet access at Bayshore Inn at Waterton Village but when we went there they said it was in the lounge which didn’t open until noon.
I found these books helpful:
Canadian Rockies Trail Guide by Brian Patton, Bart Robinson Lots of detailed info on the major trails. I paid $25 for a USED 30 year old edition a few months ago and then I saw a brand new one at the Calgary airport bookstore- argh!
Parkways of the Canadian Rockies by Brian Patton I picked up this one used online for only $3. It lists all the viewpoints, walks and hikes along the major roads through the Canadian Rockies. It works like the Icefields Parway map in that it lists the distance relative to the starting point of the road but it’s a little hard to follow because the distances are given in miles and our odometer was in kilometers. This is how I found Beauty Creek and Panther Falls. It’s great for describing viewpoints along the way because they seldom have markings on the road.
Moon Handbooks Alberta by Andrew Hempstead - good general travel guide.
FYI there is a brochure for Southern Alberta historical sites that offers a discount if you go to multiple sites. The participating sites are Head-Smashed-In, Frank Slide and the Remington Carriage Museum. When you go to one of these places, you pay full price and have them stamp the brochure. Then you get 40% off admission at the second place and 50% off the third. I also noticed that Frank Slide gave a 15% discount to CAA and AAA members, not sure about the others.
Some people suggested getting a park pass in Calgary to avoid lines at the gate. We did not bother because my friend said she has never seen more than 3-4 people in line. We had no problems when we got our pass early in the morning but we did notice lines with 10-12 cars each when we drove by around noon.
Bring a video camera if you like pictures of animals or falls. Still photos just don’t capture the roar and power of falls like video and you are most likely to see animals at dawn or dusk when you won’t have enough light. Our video camera gave us a lot more zoom and handled the low light situations better.
I think that wraps up my trip report. Now to figure out our next destination!
).
Jun 6th, 2006, 08:44 PM
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Glad you enjoyed it Judy. I told you we were power travelers.
I forgot to mention that we took the rafting guide up on her offer and we went in for a swim at the end of our rafting trip (and we got 4 other people to go with us). Brrrr...it was cold but you gotta do it if you get the opportunity.
Also, for those that know their wildflowers, my friend identified scorpion weed, indian paintbrush, shooting stars and orchids among my pictures at Frank Slide and Waterton.
I forgot to mention that we took the rafting guide up on her offer and we went in for a swim at the end of our rafting trip (and we got 4 other people to go with us). Brrrr...it was cold but you gotta do it if you get the opportunity.
Also, for those that know their wildflowers, my friend identified scorpion weed, indian paintbrush, shooting stars and orchids among my pictures at Frank Slide and Waterton.
Jun 8th, 2006, 10:57 AM
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Great report! We also really enjoyed hiking the area and hopefully will get back next year. I was hoping to get there this year.
We wanted to hike Wilcox Pass but had a really cloudy day with no visibility the day we planned to hike it--next time.
I also have had Aurum Lodge in my favorite places. Looks like a great hikers destination.
Thanks for the detailed posting.
We wanted to hike Wilcox Pass but had a really cloudy day with no visibility the day we planned to hike it--next time.
I also have had Aurum Lodge in my favorite places. Looks like a great hikers destination.
Thanks for the detailed posting.
Jun 9th, 2006, 06:56 AM
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Great report - we are heading out west from Ontario in 3 weeks. We are driving from Vancouver to Calgary and plan to do a lot of sight seeing - you gave us some great spots to think about.
A few questions for you! We are staying at the Kicking Horse Chalets for 2 nights and rafting with our 4 kids (the mild adventure). Is it a hard place to find? I have tried to Mapquest it, but nothing comes up.
We will be coming from Kamloops and I am hoping that it is easy to find.
You also said that you got wet suits and such for the rafting. Is that for all of the tours they provide? And was the water really cold?
Thanks
A few questions for you! We are staying at the Kicking Horse Chalets for 2 nights and rafting with our 4 kids (the mild adventure). Is it a hard place to find? I have tried to Mapquest it, but nothing comes up.
We will be coming from Kamloops and I am hoping that it is easy to find.
You also said that you got wet suits and such for the rafting. Is that for all of the tours they provide? And was the water really cold?
Thanks
Jun 9th, 2006, 03:01 PM
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Here is the website for Kicking Horse with directions
http://www.kickinghorseriverchalets.com/location.html
http://www.kickinghorseriverchalets.com/location.html
Jun 9th, 2006, 06:16 PM
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Ontariotraveler,
I'm not sure if you're talking about finding your hotel or the rafting company but either one should be able to give you directions. Golden is easy, right off the Trans Canada Highway. For our rafting trip we met at their office in Golden, put the wetsuits on over our bathing suits and then they took the group to the launch point (between Field and Golden) in a van.
As far as I know, all the companies provide wet suits and splash (waterproof ponchos with hoods and elastic wrist bands) to keep the water out. It was cloudy and only 45 degrees F when we went and it really wasn't bad at all. Obviously there is a shock when you get splashed but it only lasts a few seconds. The first section should be pretty calm. Your feet are probably the most likely to get cold because you have to wedge them under the corners of the raft tubes and the water tends to pool there. The front rows are where you're most likely to get splashed so if you get cold, move to the back. I'd find out if they provide wool or fleece sweaters. If not, bring them for yourself (put on over the wetsuits and under the splash jacket). You DON'T want to wear cotton.
Jumping in was a shock at first, then it was fine. Just about the time the guide called us back to the raft I was starting to get cold. But after being in the river, the raft was toasty ;-) Be sure to pull on the elastic wristbands on the splash jacket when you get back in the raft because the sleeve fills with water.
You'll have a blast!
I'm not sure if you're talking about finding your hotel or the rafting company but either one should be able to give you directions. Golden is easy, right off the Trans Canada Highway. For our rafting trip we met at their office in Golden, put the wetsuits on over our bathing suits and then they took the group to the launch point (between Field and Golden) in a van.
As far as I know, all the companies provide wet suits and splash (waterproof ponchos with hoods and elastic wrist bands) to keep the water out. It was cloudy and only 45 degrees F when we went and it really wasn't bad at all. Obviously there is a shock when you get splashed but it only lasts a few seconds. The first section should be pretty calm. Your feet are probably the most likely to get cold because you have to wedge them under the corners of the raft tubes and the water tends to pool there. The front rows are where you're most likely to get splashed so if you get cold, move to the back. I'd find out if they provide wool or fleece sweaters. If not, bring them for yourself (put on over the wetsuits and under the splash jacket). You DON'T want to wear cotton.
Jumping in was a shock at first, then it was fine. Just about the time the guide called us back to the raft I was starting to get cold. But after being in the river, the raft was toasty ;-) Be sure to pull on the elastic wristbands on the splash jacket when you get back in the raft because the sleeve fills with water.
You'll have a blast!
Jun 9th, 2006, 06:38 PM
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Linda in Ohio,
FWIW, I believe it was the owners at Aurum Lodge that told us that Parker's Ridge and Wilcox Pass were pretty similar hikes but Parker's Ridge isn't accessible until later in the season.
FWIW, I believe it was the owners at Aurum Lodge that told us that Parker's Ridge and Wilcox Pass were pretty similar hikes but Parker's Ridge isn't accessible until later in the season.
Jun 10th, 2006, 03:16 AM
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We enjoyed hiking Parker Ridge and would have loved to have hiked Wilcox Pass. Parker Ridge was a short switchback trail and when we reached the top and headed toward the left--the panoramic "on top of the world" view took our breath away. We were up there all alone--it was an impressive view--we didn't really expect such a spectacular sight--great surprise.
Jun 15th, 2006, 07:02 AM
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I take it that Carla's rock was still there.
It was all a front-end loader could do to get it up there. Interesting story how Carla got it up there. The rock came out of the innards of the tunnel and had to be hauled out. It was dumped in the railyard at Field. Carla saw it, wanted it, and her husband John who works for the CP prevailed upon someone he knew who had a front-end loader to haul that monster up there and dump it in the hole.
It was all a front-end loader could do to get it up there. Interesting story how Carla got it up there. The rock came out of the innards of the tunnel and had to be hauled out. It was dumped in the railyard at Field. Carla saw it, wanted it, and her husband John who works for the CP prevailed upon someone he knew who had a front-end loader to haul that monster up there and dump it in the hole.
Jul 20th, 2006, 10:59 AM
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Just wondering how strenuous the Parker's Ridge hike is. My husband and I are 55+ and, aside from walking, aren't terribly energetic. I am a great photography buff and it sounds like the views may be worth the exertion. Any comments?
