Johnstone Canyon
On Saturday, Kerri was working (well sleeping after night shift) so I took it upon myself to disappear out of the house for the day. The weather had forecast +31 for the day, so I figured a trip into the mountains was on. I needed to have a look around the national parks to check the condition of the trails and lakes. I covered quite a lot of territory in both Banff and Yoho national parks.
Stop 1 was Johnston Canyon along the Bow Valley parkway. We'd been there toward the end of last summer, but I thought it would be a good indicator for the lower parts of the valley. I was hoping there would be some ice on the falls and wasn't disappointed.
There was ice all the way along the stream and around the waterfalls, but none so spectacular as the Upper Falls (below).
Bow Valley Parkway
My next planned stop was Lake Louise. Enroute an extra stop presented itself. This crazy black bear was obviously in need of a snack after winter hibernation. Why he would risk a busy railway line to eat some green chutes is beyond me.
[Edit] As it turns out they eat the spilled grain from the rail cars and many perish thanks to the busy Rail traffic. I thought I'd be cleaver and show off my "Bear Photo" to the guys at work. My smile was wiped when I got beaten to the punch by Don, who is another keen wildlife photographer. He had been down to Waterton on Friday and took some great pics of a grizzly with her 2 cubs from close range. We were there a week early! Rats! Hopefully Alaska will bring the answers.
The Valley of Ten Peaks
My next stop, Lake Louise, was quite disappointing as the tourist volume
was back up to summer numbers, but everything, including the lake, was
covered in ice and snow. I took a couple of photos, but they were
rubbish like the others I took over winter.
After heading down the hill toward the highway, I took the turnoff to Moraine Lake expecting it to be closed. The signs said closed, but the gate was open and the road ploughed, so off I went, curious as ever. The view as I rounded the last big bend was breath taking (above). The peaks were daunting (the best word I can think of) covered in snow in bright sunshine. I've stopped to look at this same view before, but it never had that effect on me.
The Moraine Lake car park was empty and with the depth of snow on everything, it wasn't surprising. Down at lake level the peaks were even more intimidating.
Yoho National Park.
I ventured over to Yoho National Park to get a feel for where winter was at without much success. Most of the access roads and trails were closed. Natural Bridge was about the only tourist spot open.
