The Bow River meandered occasionally along the way, its crystal blue waters contrasting with the intense green and tall fir trees on its banks. Rapid currents would have made for a wild ride in a canoe.
Banff National Park was established in 1887 and covers an area of 2,564 square miles of meadows, lakes, the Bow River, glaciers, and peaks with popular ski slopes and even a gondola with an expensive ride (89 Canadian dollars) to the top to experience the view of the breathtaking Lake Louise. The park is located on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and abuts the border with British Columbia.
Our lucky and serendipitous visit to Canmore and Banff was occasioned by our trip to Calgary to cheer our very talented grandson play hockey in the junior category. On this glorious Sunday, there were no games scheduled for his team which lost to the better trained Canadians who lived and breathed hockey every year. After all, it is their national sport, and the government provides excellent subsidies for teams to learn, practice, play, and to excel. That is not the case for American players who must pay their own way and their coaches. As I learned early on, hockey is a very expensive sport.
To say that our trip was breathtaking, literally and figuratively, is an understatement. We were not prepared for the other-worldly beauty of the 11,700 ft glacier and the frigid lake, Lake Louise, that it feeds with ice-cold seafoam blue water. The altitude tended to take our breath away, especially trying to keep up with energetic children who can walk really fast, while adults like us huffed and puffed.
The 8-minute shuttle ride to Lake Louise was more expensive than I had expected but much less than the gondola ride. The views were spectacular in every direction we looked. The photographs appeared surreal, as if we had used fake backgrounds, that is how amazing the landscape was.
I was secretly hoping that my husband would not get his wish to see a live bear in its habitat and my prayer was answered. I am not sure what we would have done if we encountered such a magnificent and dangerous creature. Ever so jocular, hubby said, all he had to do was run faster than I did. I was elated that the closest he ever came to a grizzly bear was the stuffed one at the visitor's center.
Lake Louise is fed from the glacier above. The water was a translucent teal blue in color, made so by the powdery deposits resulting from the constant rubbing of the glacier against the surrounding rocks.
Photos: Ileana Johnson June 2023
The land bridges for animals and fencing along the highway sound wonderful. Just returned from the Quad Cities to Kansas City and saw many dead animals large & small along I-35 (north & south) & I-80 (east & west). There were multiple deer 🦌 laying dead by the side of the road. On the way back, going south on I-35 through Iowa, then Missouri and into Kansas, a smaller deer ran across north bound lanes into center grass then I told my son, who was driving, "look out, it's coming back on the road!" It was bouncing erratically around then appeared to bolt right at us, then turned back to the center as we passed. My son surmised it heard our deer whistles we place on my car each 5 1/2 hour trip from KC to (& from) the Quad Cities. He then mentioned we need fences and bridges for the animals to pass or prevent them from going onto the road.
ReplyDeleteI see dead deer, skunks, racoons, foxes, and other small animals killed by cars on the side of the Northern Virginia highways all the time. Poor animals could benefit from such fences and animal bridge crossings.
Delete