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It
took us a couple of long driving days to get from Calgary back home,
coming through the Kicking Horse Pass, Golden, Kamploops, Hope, and
then over to the ferry at Tsawassen. We had thought about
going
south through Alberta and over the Crow's Nest Pass, but time was
starting to run out for us, so we took the most direct route.
It
is a very spectacular drive!
The
weather was hot and sunny one moment, and then we'd get clouds the
next. This somehow made some of these remote places seem
ominous.
We enjoyed a number of rest stops through Yoho
national park.
It
has been a long time since we have been in this part of the province.
I had forgotten how pretty some of these little towns were.
This is taken in Golden.
This fellow let me get up pretty close.
I think he was stalking something - maybe Cheryl.
I
used to think that mountain lions were pretty ferocious, but not so.
I guess that's why they let them in to the Rogers Pass
Visitors
centre. By the way, the centre is well done and provides a
good
break from driving. Among other things, it tells
the story
of the construction of the CP rail line through this pass, which is
interesting since the Trans-Canada highway parallels the railroad and
you get views of tunnels and bridges as you drive along.
It
was worth the stop - we ended up staying longer than we thought.
We
often go for hours without taking a picture, despite passing countless
beautiful vistas. Then when we do stop and take a photo, we
frequently take two - one of each of us at exactly the same spot.
For instance, consider these two, which were taken at a
private
campground just outside of Revelstoke. This pair reveals a
manoeuvre that we frequently make as an attempt to disguise this
approach to photo-documentation, which is to move about 10
feet
before taking the second photo, or to use a slightly different
angle. But, the mountains clearly give us away, so I thought
I'd
come clean this time.
We
could have rushed and caught the last ferry back, but we decided to
pull up just past Hope at Bridal Veil Falls, and make a noon
reservation on the ferry the next day. This worked well and
was a
very stress free way to come home - which is not easy considering the
huge delays on BC Ferries at this time of year.
This was one of the most awesome slugs I'd ever
seen!
I'd never stopped and hiked up to see Bridal Veil Falls before.
Very pretty, even in late summer.
So our summer 2007 holiday slowly wound up as we headed back home the
next day. For me, it was extremely memorable as the "Real
Canadian Rockies Experience." I always thought of Jasper as a
poor man's version of Banff, but the two are definitely equals, and
both offer an incredible way to experience some very unique terrain.
We are priveleged to live in such a beautfiul place.
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