The drive from Jasper to Kananaskis is just over 4 hours along the very scenic highway 93. We took our time and didn't rush part of the journey. In fact, we made several stops along the way starting with the drive through Icefields Parkway. The landscape along this drive is filled with magnificent views of the Canadian Rockies with countless jagged, snow capped mountain peaks and dozens of impressive glaciers. The presence of the mountains and glaciers was awe inspiring. We stopped in at the Athabasca Glacier but due to the rainy cold weather didn't spend much time there to explore the glacier up close and personally. The drive into the glacier has markers indicating where the glacier reached over the last 125 years. It's sad to say this glacier is receding by 5 metres per year and has lost over half of its volume over that same period. Even still with the rate of recession, this glacier remains massive covering 6km; at least in my opinion that is massive and it measures up to 300 metres thick in areas. The weather wasn't the greatest during our drive as we experienced periods of fairly heavy rain and overcast skies but even still this drive is worth doing as it truly provides an opportunity to appreciate the beautiful nature that surrounds us.
Another stop was at Athabasca Falls. The walk to this picturesque waterfall is very easy. The waterfall itself is not very tall, but rather is powerful due to the force of the water falling into the gorge below. The water level seemed rather high during our visit which made the rushing of the waterfall quite intense. While we were there, we noticed a film crew who happened to be filming a Tourism Alberta video. I don't think we made it into the video though.
Several of the parks in Alberta require a Parks Canada pass which we realized very shortly before we left so we managed to quickly buy one, but didn't get our actual Parks Canada pass in time so instead we needed to display a printed copy on our dash. As we were driving down to Kananaskis we noticed a couple cars had stopped at the side of the road, and noticed as we were passing they had stopped to watch a black bear grazing on berries on the side of the road. I was driving at the time and couldn't exactly stop in time, so we ended up pulling over a little further down, and when safe I pulled an illegal but safe u-turn and head back so we could get a better look of the bear and try and get some pictures. With the bear safely on the opposite of the road, I opened my window so that I could start taking some photos. For some reason, Z decided to open his window too and a gush of wind entered our car taking with it our paper Parks Canada pass with it and blowing it not only to the other side of the road, but also up the road a bit to a closer distance of the bear that I was comfortable with. I of course panic slightly because we now no longer had our pass and I thought we'd get a ticket if we didn't try and retrieve it, and because Z decided it would be OK to cross the highway, head towards the bear and pick up our pass. This all happened very quickly, and thankfully by the time Z got to the other side of the road, the bear had wandered back into the surrounding forest. Crisis averted and Z didn't turn into lunch.
We made it to Kananaskis after a quick stop in Canmore to stretch our legs, grab my free birthday coffee at Starbucks; can't let that one go to waste, and give the car a quick wash to try and rid the car from all the dead bugs we picked up along the way. Canmore's first impressions that it was a quaint looking town and possibly worth spending some time exploring another time. It's a popular ski destination and certainly has a ski resort feel to it. It also has an abundance of outdoor recreational activities in the summer.
Our stay in Kananaskis was at the Kananaskis Mountain Lodge; a fairly newly renovated property surrounded by the mountainous beauty of the Canadian Rockies It's located fairly remote from anything of significant but is surrounded by a very small ski resort village. Unfortunately most of the very small number of stores in this village were closed due to Covid. There are trails all around that are good for walking, running, or hiking. We had a very nicely appointed room with a balcony overlooking the nordic spa. We were greeted in our room with a nice birthday note and chocolate treats which was a very nice touch. Our plan was to use this hotel as a base and explore several different hiking trails, including hiking up in Banff which was a 2 hour drive north....that plan was adjusted once we talked through what time we would have to leave this hotel to get up to Banff in time to get a coveted parking spot at the trailhead, but more to come on that later.
Peter Lougheed Provincial Park surrounds a good portion of the area we were in and there are countless hikes with varying levels of difficulty and distance you can do. We decided to start with a scenic driving route, known as Smith Dorrien Trail. Also known as Highway 742 its total distance is 70km from Canmore to Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. This trail is a gravel road filled with potholes and makes driving it challenging at time particularly with the dust that kicks up. Despite this, the drive is incredibly scenic with opportunities to spot wildlife at the side of the road. We saw deer at the side of the road and also run across the road at a distance. We saw a family of Rocky Mountain goat grazing on the grass not caring a bit that we pulled over right beside them for a closer look. We spotted a marmot who cautiously watch us while standing on his two hind legs to make sure we didn't come too close. You have to be fairly alert driving this trail because of the wildlife that can cross the road at any moment or as we discovered coming around a bend you'll find a goat standing in the middle of the road and in no hurry to move along. The surrounding forests look much healthier in the area and did not appear to be infested with the pine beetle like the forests in Jasper. A cool point of interest is that this trail also has one of the highest mountain roads in Canada, at 6,250ft above sea level. Along the Smith Dorrien Trail are many hikes. We stopped at did the West Wind Pass, which can be extended into the Windtower hike but we didn't have enough time for both. This hike is just over 5km but with an elevation gain of almost 400 metres and has part that are not for the faint of heart. The trail starts at the side of the road. It is kept in pretty good condition, sometimes not as well marked than I would have liked which caused us to veer off in one section but we managed to get back on track with a little extra "climbing" than probably was needed. It's highly recommended to carry bear spray and a bear bell which helped keep away any unwanted observers of our trek and I took a lot of comfort in hearing other hikers and their bells because at times I think that Z thought the bear bell was annoying. The West Wind Pass with its elevation gain is a bit harder than I anticipated and I'd say is not for the faint of heart as portions of the trail are narrow with a sharp cliff on the other side. With the hot weather, the trail was also very dry which made the trail feel slippery in sections. The views were gorgeous and despite my complaining about how windy it was when we got to the end and right before the Windtower (appropriately names for the conditions) portion started, it was well worth it.
Driving south on the Smith Dorrien Trail connects you to Hwy 541 which we then took to the Turner Valley to stop for lunch at the Chuckwagon Cafe. The cafe is a quaint place set up in a red barn building. I've gotta say that this place had the best burger I've ever eaten in my life with their beef is raised in their "backyard" according to our waitress. It was certainly worth the journey here.
Part of our plan was to hike Lake Louise. The challenge though, with staying in Kananaskis, was the 1.5 hours drive north from our hotel and getting there early enough to ensure a parking spot which fills up very quickly due to the popularity of the lake. Even without international travellers we read that the near parking lots were filling up by 8:30 which meant a super early morning if we were going to get there. After thinking this through a little, we actually thought the better plan would be shorten our stay in Kananaskis by one night and instead stay at Lake Louise. In the end, this plan worked out for the best....we stayed one night at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, got to park in the hotel parking lot giving us easy access to the lake, got a lovely room with a breathtaking view of the lake and the Victoria glacier, and were surprised with a birthday wish, this time for Z!
We wanted to hike the Plain of Six Glaciers whose trailhead is accessed at the other end of Lake Louise, a 2km shoreline walk from the hotel. The hike starts off fairly easy, with a gradual incline that becomes progressively steeper half way through. The overall elevation gain is about 370 meters and the hike is roughly a 10km out and back. The trail is well maintained and provides amazing views of Mount Lefroy, Mount Victoria and the Victoria Glacier. As you gain elevation and look back towards the lake and hotel, you can see tiny black specks which are all the canoes on the lake. We saw a lot of chipmunks and squirrels along the way, some a little more skittish than others. No bear or mountain goat sightings on our hike, maybe because of my trusty bear bell, but this wildlife can be spotted. At the end of the trail you come upon a small meadow and a teahouse. The teahouse was built in 1924 by Swiss guides who used it as a rest stop for mountain climbers making their way to Abbott Pass. Today it is a teahouse providing different meals and snacks made daily on site along with various beverage, and tea options. The staff hike in and stay there for a week long shift, often bringing with them additional supplies for the teahouse operations. There is no electricity or running water and all hikers are expected to pack out their garbage too. A trail continues about 1km past the teahouse and is fairly narrow ending at the Abbott Pass viewpoint. This stretch had a further elevation gain of about 50 meters and it was extremely windy at the time which made the last section a little more tricky as we hiked across a very narrow rocky ridge to get up close up view of the glacier and surrounding moraines. We were lucky to have a clear sunny day for this hike making the views that much more stunning.
Our last adventure at Lake Louise was to go canoeing. We were lucky to have received a free canoe rental from the hotel and considering this is a very popular excursion, we were also very happy to learn that hotel guests had a priority line. This turned out to be great because early on our departure day, we got on the lake as the first canoe, bypassing an every growing line of non-hotel guests. Despite the concerns I had with paddling with my tennis elbow issue, we managed to get to the far end of the lake and back within the hour rental we had. The lake was calm, beautifully turquoise, and cold to the touch. It was so peaceful early in the morning and gave us another opportunity for a different vantage of the glacier; still stunningly magnificent. What a fantastic way to end our Canadian Rockies leg of this road trip!
No comments:
Post a Comment