Canada Part II

Last summer we ventured to the Eastern side of Canada visiting Montreal and Quebec. This summer had us exploring the Western side of Canada in the Calgary and Banff area. After leaving the airport, we gathered provisions at the local Costco. We checked out a local park right after we got off the plane to stretch our legs and see who was in the neighborhoods in Calgary. In the park we visited, mainly Indian groups were gathered. There was a temple of some sort next to the park. Many families were having graduation and wedding photos taken.

After we were settled in our condo, made tacos for dinner and had a quick swim, we went out exploring Policeman's Creek which ran through the center of town.

There were many boardwalks and different mountain views to take in. Bed was late at 11 pm central time (10 pm mountain time).

It is a good thing the sun doesn't set until 10 pm each night and rises at 6 am every morning. Lots of daylight hours to take in all the sights.

On our first hiking day, we drove an hour out to Kananaski's Country. On the way, we encountered mountain goats in the road.

We thought we would explore Rawson Lake but when we arrived the trail guide told us that it was still muddy from all the snow melt and that upper parts of the trail were still snowy. He directed us to the Black Prince trail as a starting point.

We spent some time acting like robotic dinosaurs by the river. The Black Prince would sure to be entertained by our comedic style.

After finishing the Black Prince trail, we listened in on another couples conversation and asked them which hikes they were planning for the day. They were doing Black Slate trail with the suspension bridge. We decided to check that one out too and hoped we could reach the swinging bridge before lunch. We were successful and made it back down the mountain with time to spare.

After lunch we did the Lakeshore walk around the southside of the lake because the northside was closed due to bear activity.

We saw people swimming in the water where signs read, even 10 minutes in the water could cause hypothermia.

We stayed around the edge of the lake and found a few waterfalls with bridges to cross over.

The lake was a breathtaking turquoise color that will remain imprinted on many of our minds in future years. After our hikes, we traveled back to Canmore for church followed by a spaghetti dinner. Of course we visited the hot tub and pool as well before the night came to a close. The hosts for our condo also had many DVDs that we found interesting. There was a show for every night. Once again, we stayed up a bit later than we had planned. Next up for our second hiking day was Johnston Canyon and Hot Springs. This was a calmer hiking day than our first.

We spent the morning climbing up the Canyon to visit the Ink Pots. While we climbed we encountered many bridges that clung to the cliffs.

Rushing water was always close by in the lower part of our climb as well as tons of people. We encountered two waterfalls, one containing a cave which Dan and the girls explored.

As we climbed higher, fewer and fewer people continued on. At higher elevations, we found a pronghorn sheep resting on the side of a grassy cliff.

We took out our bear bells and did lots of clapping as we rounded corners. Many times it was a bit too quiet as we got closer to the ink pots.

When we reached the ink pots, we saw what looked like pools of different colored paint. This area was so peaceful and calming.

Unfortunately knowing you had a long journey back, and knowing that the rain would be coming in the afternoon, we started our journey back before many of us were ready to leave the pots.

As we descended, once again more and more people were on the trails. We had to stop many times because crews weren't moving quickly. We were thankful we started out early enough that we were not stuck behind the groups as we climbed.

When we reach the base, we ate lunch and headed to Banff. We visited many of the downtown shops as well as the garden at the end of the main street.

After the garden, we headed to the Hot Springs to relax our muscles. We discovered that the pool was quite small in comparison to the Hot Springs we went to in Wyoming a few years back. We didn't stay long because there was nowhere to sit on the sides and the water was much hotter than we expected. Staying in too long made one feel drowsy. Next up was Father's Day dinner of eggs, watermelon and shrimp. We hung out at the pool afterwards and finished up the previous night's movie. We did our best to be in bed early on this night because our morning would begin with a 5:00 am start as we boarded our shuttle Banff at 6 a.m. Our third day of hiking started before the sun was rising. We got to our shuttle and made it to Lake Louise by 7 a.m.

We started our hike for Lake Agnes right away before the crowds came. Thankfully it was cool as we climbed and everyone was so amazed by the scenery that we forgot about how much our legs and feet hurt. By the third day of hiking toenails were being rubbed by boots and people were aching a bit.

On our way up, we encountered a short resting spot at Mirror Lake. Although we got a lot of posed photos a few goofy ones got in the show as well. As we continued to climb we ran into an Indian group that told us to watch out for the bear poop because it was highly stinky and fresh up ahead. When we actually reached the "bear poop" we discovered it was horse poop and had a good laugh. Some people don't know the difference between horses and bears we guess.

When we finally reached Lake Agnes (400 meters above Lake Louise) we discovered that much of the lake was still covered in ice.

We found that the trail was also covered in snow at certain parts.

We pulled a bit of ice off the lake and put on our extra layers because temps were in the low 40s that high up.

Analise got a photo with a chipmunk at the Teahouse next to Lake Agnes. She was very much an affectionado of the chipmunks anytime we saw one zip by.

As we came back down the mountain, we saw a group of skiers that were climbing up to where they planned to ski. We all couldn't quite imagine what their ski experience was going to be like and were impressed by their bravery.

After descending, we walked around Lake Louise and found a beach on the other end.

Next up was a connector shuttle to Moraine Lake where we hiked up a Rock Pile for some amazing mountain top views.

As we went down the Rock Pile we saw a creature coming out of the rocks. Dan looked it up and found out it was a hoary marmot.

We also walked around Lake Moraine before heading back on the shuttle.

On our way back, a black bear cross the path of the shuttle. Everyone on board stood up to take pictures. We were unsure if the fascination was because everyone had never seen a bear before or what was going on. The bear didn't seem to want to be around any of us and raced down the hill. As we took our final shuttle back to Banff, Erin managed to get a photo of the girls fast asleep.

A moment is needed to compare the sleeping to when these two were just little babes. Complete exhaustion!

We got back to our condo around 3 p.m but had already had such a tiring day. We visited the pool when we got back and went out for pizza at a local place in Canmore. Next to the pizza place was a place called Blondies. The girls decided to take a photo there because Grandpa Bruce always called them blondies when they were little.

We did a final stroll around the Canmore downtown so Dan could find a bridge he was looking for before heading back to the condo.

The fourth hiking day was an easier one with a hike up Tunnel Mountain located next to Banff. We reached the summit and could easily see the town in all directions.

After we made it to the bottom, we went into Banff and purchased a few souveniers from the shops. Analise got a giant Needoh and Emma got a necklace. We also walked next to the Bow River where we witnessed the rapids up close.

We also saw many groups going out white water rafting. We returned back to the house at 1 pm for lunch and some early pool time. The temps were finally perfect for wearing shorts and a t-shirt. The group decided to spilt up for the evening. Emma and Dan went biking on e-bikes and Erin and Analise did another walk through Canmore next to the Bow River.

Erin and Analise also visited the candystore and went in the downtown. They got Emma her much wanted Pop Rocks and Analise got some gummies. We had a simple dinner of potatoes, chicken and cheesy broccoli for our final dinner in Canmore. Last stop was Calvary for some exposure to city life. We started the day off early leaving Canmore at 8:00 am and getting to Calvary by 9 a.m. We visited Prince's Island Park first to walk around a beautiful garden, cross suspension bridges and see the city skyline.

Next up was the Calvary Zoo where we encountered many animals we had not seen before. We encountered a Kimodo Dragon, Polar Bear and the Grizzly bears.

We also had an amazing time watching the wolves wash and dry windows with their fur. They were highly interactive with the zoo staff.

After the zoo, we headed to a Korean Street Food place for lunch. Emma, Ani and Dan tried the bibimbap bowl. Analise was worried about using chop sticks but in the end, she was a fan.

Next stop was over to the Science Museum for some learning. We found many exhibits about the human body to be enjoyable. Dan had his moment of drinking water from the toilet, Emma laid on a true bed of nails (she said it actually hurt), Analise tried her hand at drawing a portrait of Emma and Erin measured her feet in comparison to largest person in the world.

We also got to see how much fluid was in our body when we stepped on a scale and timed our reaction speeds (Ani on left and Emma on right).

Analise a Emma created a stop motion video with animal characters and danced in front of screen that turned their bodies to smoke.

Our final activity was riding a robotic arm named Rosie. The group rode the level 4 ride which flipped and turned them in all directions. They had the option of trying level 5 but were glad they only went to 4 because 5 would have been a bit too jostling.

We ended the evening with spaghetti and veges at the airbnb as well as an evening walk to a nearby park. Once again we watched a movie,"The Intern" on Netflix. The next morning we got up for our flight at 4 a.m. and were back home by 10 a.m. It was an unforgettable trip but we are glad to be back in Minnesota relaxing at home.