Jewels of the Canadian Rockies

Our last few days in Western Canada were made even better by the arrival of our great friends Jim and Lynn. For years there have been a group of us, self-labeled the Four Seasons and who, early on in our amazing friendship, dreamed of a roadtrip to Banff. The OG, Outdoor Bob, may he rest in peace, declared (from a place of hiking god authority) that it was only 8 hours from SLC.

Suffice it to say, we never made that trip as a group….unfortunately. But four of us did finally make it, raised our glasses to Outdoor Bob and took on the area for four action-packed days. On the heels of the beautiful Emerald Lake and Yoho National Park, we now ventured in to Johnston Canyon, Banff, Lake Louise, Moraine Lake and the Icefield Parkway up to Athabasca Falls. EXTRAORDINARY BEAUTY. The offer stands for anyone to join us for a few days along the route….we’ll leave the light on.

Mary Oliver says:

“Sometimes I need only to stand wherever I am to be blessed.”

Her words are constant on this journey….

Day One was an early one with the goal of being to Johnston Canyon by 8:00…dropped ZsaZsa off serendipitously at a boat inspection spot off Hwy 1 and hit the trail. Raining at first, but not bad…the canyon hike is almost entirely on a suspended bridge that engineers chiseled into the rock to allow for access. Great adventure! Then we hit Banff for brunch at Touloulous and ate significant calories between eggs bennies, poutine and deep fried French toast and French fries. It was a feast….

Some window shopping ( a bit disappointed by the unimaginative tourist shops!), ducked into the Rose and Crown (one of Banff’s oldest pubs on Eli’s recommendation) and had a toast to Bob! Rested, cleaned up and met at The Post Hotel in Lake Louise for a prix fixe dinner rated by Condé Nast and did not disappoint. If you ever want good food on a road trip, take Jim Ack with you…he hunts it out! Bison Carpaccio, Elk, Octopus, Lemon Basil Risotto, Cod, Berry Crumble, etc….not to mention your choice of wine from the 25,000 bottle in the cellar (which of course we toured!). Foodies UNITE!

Day Two was Lake Louise and Moraine Lake and then back to ZsaZsa for games and easy dinners. The 4 first photos are from the hike at Lake Louise that morning, the last three from our return to the Fairmont on Day 3 in the evening for a cocktail at the Fairview Restaurant….high end, great table, wonderful waitress! We didn’t stay for dinner but loved the view on our last night together…

After Lake Louise hike we took shuttles to Moraine Lake and hiked up the Rockpile for glorious views and then hung at the lodge to watch the lake, the tourists and the birds. At both lakes we witnessed guests doing the polar plunge, jumping into the lakes after shedding their plush white hotel robes. Wonderful memories for them….too cold for us~~

Moraine Lake was spectacular…glaciers seemed closer, canyon tighter and lake an amazing glacier blue. It was lower key for me and I loved the more mountain resort vibe. Goal to come back and stay at that lodge!! Check out these photos:

Day Three: Icefield Parkway here we come….Started out early for the parkway and had our GuideAlong tour guide with us explaining the sites, habitat, history, wildlife, etc…really enjoyed that service because you learn so much! We knew we wanted to see Athabasca Falls so we went pretty fast up, stopping at Peyto Lake and the Icefield Visitor Center and then straight to the falls. We were more leisurely on our way back…Sumwapta Falls, picnic by the river, Mistaya canyon, Tangle Creek, and the star of the drive…a huge ELK on the side of the road. We stumbled upon the red chairs again at our picnic site…serendipity~ Long day of driving, but spectacular scenery.

Although this time of year has been cool, and some trails still closed, it has made for breathtaking waterfalls and rivers all through the drive.

Athabasca Falls

Finished the day with a drink at the Chateau Lake Louise Fairmont ( see above) and a late dinner at Bill Peyto’s cafe…another Jimmy find and a wonderful, legit diner named after the same guy as the lake. It’s hidden in the HI Bill Peyto (Pee-toe) was an infamous mountaineer and explorer and wildly adventurous. This description was in the cafe’s menu:

Jim and Lynn left us on the 3rd of July and we rested and got ready to move again. We are leaving Canada after 15 days and have loved every minute of it. Beautiful, clean, kind people everywhere, interesting, wild and committed to preservation and sharing important histories….