Rocky Mountains..,.here we come
Our journey continued from Calgary into the foothills rather quickly and in the mountains… Gobsmacked by the sheer beauty of it all, we made our way to Banff National Park.
Hiccup
Amidst admiring all of the beauty we suddenly heard a pop and uh ohhh… we blew a tire… Thankfully there was an off ramp just under a km away and so we slowly limped the trailer over to the off ramp to get farther from the road traffic. Luckily the blown tire was on the passenger side and hence the curb side of the road. For some reason, seeing as the highway wasn’t busy, we were in a safe spot and the surrounding landscape was out of a dream, we didn’t seem all that concerned. I even had time to take a quick picture… although apparently I was the only one who thought documenting this moment was a good idea…
A quick tag team of jack, lugnuts, and change, and we were back on the road… and about a km down the road a large RV was in the process of being towed as it appears they’re tire had blown . We had to expect some sort of breakdown other than the A/C . which by the way, broke down again even with two trips to dealerships and countless discussions about trying to get it fixed.
Tire fixed, and up in the mountains, thankfully the weather is much cooler so no A/C needed. We made it to Banff late morning and proceeded to find a suitable parking spot for our car and trailer and walked the touristy town, got a haircut, picked up some lunch…and of course… had a treat…
Interesting note, it was a strong windy day and my son’s giant hat took life and flew off his head and across the street…. the hat flew underneath moving traffic. Once the traffic cleared I ran over to rescue it expecting the worse and came out unscathed! a miracle… Big shout out to Calgary Stampede for their great hats and saving my son from sheer devastation.
Onto Lake Louise
Lunch in hand, we climbed back into the car and headed to Lake Louise campground in Lake Louise. The temperature had quickly further dropped and pants, hoodies and coats were required upon arrival. A quick setup and we were ready for dinner. With our campsite in view of a majestic mountain, flush toilets within a 2 minute walk and unlimited firewood just a short walk away, we were able to enjoy dinner by the roaring fire before the rain started. It rained for about an hour or so, and cleared up enough so that we could get the fire roaring again before turning in for the night. The temperature dropped to a crisp 3 deg C but we were all snuggled up in our sleeping bags and managed to survive the brisk temps. Strange to go from high 20s in Calgary, 2 days in mid teen temps… only to return to 31 deg C in Kelowna in a few days. The wild swing in temperatures we had prepared for, so lots of layers, toques and such were yanked out of storage.
Lake Louise campground is unique in that it is surrounding by an electric fence. There have been so many bear encounters in the park that they installed the fence to deter the animals from entering and in effect, to save them from being relocated or otherwise. We took a bike ride through the area sometimes inside the fenced area and other times outside but always in stunning surroundings.
Lake Louise
The next morning we woke early or tried to wake early to make our way to Lake Louise. We had heard traffic was insane and that was no exaggeration. By the time we arrived around 9 am, we were one of the last few who were allowed to park in the lots within walking distance to the lake. To say that Lake Louise is a tourist destination is a huge understatement. Gobs and gobs of people all edging their way to get the best vantage point for a photo op was all you could see. To a certain extent, it was almost a shame, everyone is so busy trying to capture the moment that they miss out experiencing the moment. So after we oohed and aaahed over the sights and let the kids dip their hands in the lake we took the obligatory photo with the help of a kind stranger.
We read a few plaques (which both my husband and son cannot pass without reading), took a few photos and made our way back to try to get to Moraine lake. Seeing as it was almost 11 am, parking for Moraine Lake was at capacity. A shuttle service is available for $30/adult return trip which seemed like a lot so on the advice of a local, we decided we’d return at dusk for easier access. Moraine Lake or the Valley of the ten peaks is the lake on the old Canadian $20 bill.
Geocaching at Lake Louise Campground
Prior to heading to the lake we caught the geocaching session at the Lake Louise campground. We were given a 2 minute tutorial on how to operate the GPS unit and then we were sent on our way with the promise to be careful and respectful of campers and nature. Our adventure was to seek out four locations to solve a riddle. We managed the four locations with the GPS unit although, I seem to recall walking in circles and doing a whole lot of back and forth a bunch. In the end we left our signature at four locations and collected the riddle clues to figure out the puzzle. Upon returning the GPS unit we received a hearty congratulations and some stickers and tattoos for the kids.
Moraine Lake
As the day wore on, we finally made our way back to Moraine Lake. The drive to Moraine Lake is much longer than to Lake Louise and at close to 8 pm, we still encountered quite a few people arriving at the lake, although, much much much less than if we were to go during the day. The sun had set beyond the mountain but the ten peaks were lit up by the sun still and it was still breathtaking as ever. There is a short but very vertical climb up to a vantage point that just literally makes you stop… both the view of the ten peaks and Moraine Lake but also in the other less oogled direction the valley of green pine that just goes on and on and on…. Stunning, breathtaking, those words don’t quite do the view any justice .
