Day 18

And so our trip comes to a close. Starting with a plan in a man's mind and culmintating in the exploration of a lifetime, this has been a trip to remember. We leave tomorrow at 6:30 AM and will hopefully arrive in DC by 3:30 PM. See you all soon!
If you enjoyed this blog, be sure to check out some of my other blogs; just click to view my complete profile! Many more are scheduled for release as the year progresses! Become a follower today!
~Logan

Day 17

     Today we woke up and ate our last continental breakfast in Banff, then headed out in the direction of Spokane. Our first stop was the Continental Divide, then an awesome chasm called Marble Canyon, then Indian Paintpots. After those hikes we drove through the Sinclair Canyon and were soon at our hotel.
     Not until the last twenty or so minutes did mom and dad suprise us with the fact that the hotel in Cranbrook had a water slide! It was really awesome and Kendal and I managed to spin ten times in the slide before being shot out (not easy mind you! >.< It still hurts...)
     For dinner we went to Arby's and feasted (2 junior beef and cheddars, curly fries and cheese, and  apple turnovers for me! With root beer too.). Unfortunately... well not really- there is a wedding at some point and all the rooms with 2 beds are taken, so Kendal and I are sleeping on a fold out couch. It's only one night though, then we're off to Spokane! See you all soon!
        ~Logan

Day 16

Last full day in Banff and we spent it at a really slow pace.  After a late breakfast we headed to the Cascade Gardens for a slow stroll.  Next was a drive along the Banff golf course and a stop along the river for some relaxing rock skipping.  After pletty of relaxation by the Bow river (and a stop to get some more milkshakes) we took a tour on the Sulfur Mtn Gondola which took us to the top of Sulfur Mtn for some great views of the mountains and valleys around us.  Now we are trying to decide where to eat dinner (like I said, relaxing day today).  Tomorrow we head out of Banff and go through Kootenay NP on our way back to Spokane.  PS. The temp today is in the upper 50's, low 60's.

Cascade Gardens in Banff

View of Banff Ave from gardens

Doesn't get much better than skipping rocks

And relaxing

Next stop, Sulfur Mtg Gondola ride

Town of Banff

Old weather station

Info about weather station

Gondola station w/ restaurant

Day 15

     This morning we awoke at 6am and ate our breakfast at the hotel. We then proceeded North onto the Icefields Parkway and saw some sights including the Bow and Peyto Lakes, Mistaya Canyon (really cool but pictures didn't do it justice) and then used the washrooms one last time, as we would not get another chance until after the five hour glacier walk.
     When we arrived, dad was insistent about packing all kinds of winter gear. We all thought it was crazy until the frosty glacier winds struck us. Let's just say that my backpack (which held the gear) was very light for the rest of the trip. Our guide was an epic guy named Peter, who remembered everyone's names on the first try and then used them for the rest of the hike!
     When stepping on a glacier, the first thing you notice is how grippy its surface is. Glaciers are not smooth; in fact, I'll argue that they are easier to walk on than rocks! Another odd thing is how cold they make the air around them; the temperature never rose above 2 degrees Celsius (never got above 9 degrees during our drive today)! They even affect the weather patterns in their vicinity! Whereas it was raining down at the parking lot, it was sleeting on us as we ascended! Like the scales of a gigantic dragon's back, the glacier has countless small ridges and valleys that have been forged by meltwater (the higher up on the glacier we went, the larger the mounds and crevasses got. Distance and size is difficult to gauge, as there is nothing to use as a comparison. Not until you see another person in the distance do you realize how massive the glacier truly is!
     When we summited the ice river (IE arrived at the lower portion of the ice falls), the sun came out (God is good!) and several small avalanches tumbled down in the distance. Our guide then used a Mars candy bar to explain how glaciers work. Curious? Buy me a Mars bar when I return and I will demonstrate. It was really cool and surprisingly easy to grasp!
      A picture tells a thousand words, so we attached plenty of pictures to solidify what I wrote.
      After the walk, we had to drive two hours to get to dinner (that was a terrible two hours >.<). We ate a a place called the Mountain Restaurant (sampler plate with 2 spring rolls, two buffalo chicken wings, 5 garlic sauteed shrimp, a caesar salad, and fries for me [it wasn't as big as it sounds; it was a sampler]) For desert, we went to a gas station and bought candy bars (king size Reeses package for me).
     We then went to Lake Moraine that mom and dad saw the other day. It was pretty and we saw another pika! We then drove another hour back to the hotel and collapsed (9:30 by the way; that's 11:30 for you all).  Thus I wrote the blog this morning because, well yeah... I collapsed. Three more days!
       ~Logan
P.S. $15 Canadian dollars equals $15.45 US dollars.

Bow Lake and Bow Glacier on the Icefields Pkwy

Next stop, Peyto Lake on Icefields Pkwy

Voted best bathroom view

Our first steps on the Athabasca Glacier

Look at piece of duct tape on pole just beside the guides glove.  This tape was put there on June 1 this year (That's a lot of melting).

Cont'd trek up the glacier

Sites along the way

Don't jump!

Sleet storm while we are walking (also while we ate lunch)

Almost there ...

Getting closer ...

A look back over just a portion of the glacier we covered

Sites around us

We made it !!!

Can't go any further w/out climbing gear

Small avalanches around us

Perspective (see 2 dots in front of the ice falls, that's people)

Walk back down

Millwell (holes in the glacier where the water goes)

Lake Moraine stop after dinner (long day)

Day 14

   Today Teri and I separated from the kids so we wouldn't have a mutiny on our hands.  They were given 15 Canadian dollars and told to have some fun.  Their idea of fun was eating Cup O' Noodles for lunch and going to get (2) chocolate milkshakes from that 'Shakes' store and coming back to the hotel room to veg out.
Teri and I on the other hand continued exploring and went to Lake Moraine (adjacent to Lake Louise but after 10 miles hiking yesterday we couldn't drag ourselves to go see it).  Lake Moraine is the most beautiful lake yet.  We attached several pictures and a video but the camera just doesn't do it justice.  We spent a good hour just sitting and marveling over the color of the lake and the stillness.
   Our next stop was Johnston Canyon.  The lower falls were a 1/2 mile walk, the upper falls 1 1/2 miles one way.  I chose to go to the lower falls, Teri chose to continue to the upper falls.  Pictures of both the lower and upper attached. 
   This evening we had tickets for a dinner show called 'Oh Canada, Eh!'. 
~Logan~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   The show was alright. Funny, but slightly questionable from the moral point of view... Ahem! Anyway, yeah: got to see a Mountie! Fake, but a Mountie non the less.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   Tomorrow will be a very long day as we need to leave our hotel at 6:30am and head towards the Athabasca Glacier (3 hr drive one way) where we have an ice walks tour scheduled.

Lake Moraine

More of Lake

Clark's Nutcracker

more Lake Moraine (my new screen saver)

Lower Falls at Johnston Canyon

Upper Falls at Johnston Canyon

Mountie!

Drive back from show

Sunset... 9:00...

Day 13

   Sigh... Today was just one of those days: tough, rewarding, but... exhausting! We woke up early  this  morning, ate breakfast, and hit the road to go hiking. Our trail was the Plain of the Six Glaciers that started by the turquoise Lake Louise and ended at the Six Glaciers Teahouse. On the way we saw a pika, a mouselike creature that squeaks like a... uh... Haha, I guess a bird, but it was really weird. The sights in between were breathtaking (we even got to see several small avalanches, which sounded like thunder!), as was the hike! When we arrived at the teahouse, we ate lunch and were greeted by a chipmunk that we treated with a piece of PB&J, Chili Cheese Fritos, and chocolate cake for desert!
     Rather than go down the trail we hiked up on, we decided to take the branch off trail to lake Agnes and its teahouse. We literally went uphill both ways (well... up, down, up, down, but still!)! The views and exercise were rewarding though, and so was the prime rib and shrimp afterward (we ate dinner at a place called Bumpers Steak House)! All in all, we hiked over 10 miles today in a 7 hour period (Mom hiked 1 mile more to see an overlook that the rest of us just couldn't push ourselves to go see).
   The weather here is cooler, staying around anywhere from 60-70 degrees. Also, we have obtained Canadian silver dollar, aka a Looney, but have yet to see any Mounties! I really want to see one of the Royal Northwest Mounted Policemen in his epic red uniform! Alas, maybe tomorrow... or the next day...
~Logan

Pika

Walking up the trail and upper Victoria glacier

View of Lake Louise and its chateau

First Teahouse

Chippy!

Cake... (it kinda tasted weird...)

Upper Victoria glacier

Bridge near the teahouse (family photo) lower Victoria Glacier

Lake Louise from above (black dots are canoes)

Mom and dad with lake view

Lake Agnes

Lake Agnes Teahouse

Me at Mirror Lake

In front of the Lake Louise Chateau