Still the beautiful scenery along the way made it way more tolerable...
Taking a coffee break at Bow Lake en route..
As we approached Jasper, we noticed that there were cars stopped randomly on either side of the road and people running around in a panic. We automatically thought that there had been an accident, and someone may have been hurt! However, we should have known better because as we got closer it became clear that everyone's attention was focused toward one side of the road and they were all holding their cameras.... then we spotted the reason..... there was a black bear roaming along the side of the road. We too then joined in on the mayhem and pulled the car over and reached for the camera!
Bear Alert!
In this area we have since got quite used to the scene of cars being abandoned on the side of the road, with doors left wide open, all road sense apparently gone as people desperately try to get a shot of the wildlife that may have wandered into view. Suddenly their whole lives depend on getting that crucial shot! Some we now refer to as the "drive by shooters". They normally drive large dark coloured SUV's with tinted windows. Whilst slowly coasting down the middle of the road, you see them slide down the window, push up their sunglasses and then point their 300mm SLR zoom lens out the side. Not quite sure what happens when these guys meet oncoming traffic or photographers, they probably just think they hit a bump in the road..
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However after all the travel (plus unpacking), we managed to relax and end the day with a romantic meal at the Pines restaurant (situated at the hotel), with views over Pyramid Lake!
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On our first full day we found that it was much easier to find somewhere to hire mountain bikes than when we were at Kicking Horse....just a walk to the hotel reception in fact! Photo of Svan above with Lake Edith in the background.
We really enjoyed this cycle as we found some great terrain and with NO mosquitoes! The one dicy moment came just before the photo above was taken where I had been feeling particularly good, picking up speed on some downhill stretches. At the bottom of one there was a puddle, but I had to try and take more speed and go though it as there was an incline the other side, so I just sent to ride straight through it. This is when I discovered that large holes can hide under small puddles! My front wheel jammed in the hole and I flew straight over the handle bars landing on my helmet - well I guess that's what they're there for! Luckily nothing was hurt, apart from my pride that is, and we continued to enjoy the rest of the ride!
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On our final day we had thought about cycling out to Maligne Lake and Maligne Canyon after my friend Martin had said that he thought this lake was even more stunning than Lake Louise..... with a recommendation like that we had to see it!
Luckily we checked the distance from Jasper town down to the Lake. It was nearly 40 km! So we decided to drive...
I have to say that I agree with Martin, Maligne Lake is stunning (as is the cost of the ferry trip across it at $57 each by the way, needless to say we declined). With dimensions of 22.5x1.5km it is massive when compared to Lake Louise at 2.0x0.5km! I agree that size doesn't always matter, but in this case with the snow topped mountains and evergreen trees surrounding it I think it is prettier than Lake Louise even though Louise is often quoted as one of the most beautiful lakes in the world!
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After seeing Maligne Lake we popped in to see Maligne Canyon - the shot above is a side on view of what is Canada's deepest and longest limestone canyon! The fast flowing water here is amazing and has to be seen to be believed!
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View of one of the glaciers forming a part of the "Columbia Icefield" driving back from Jasper down the Icefields Parkway (Highway 93). No detours this time so we had more time on the way back down to Lake Louise including stopping for photos, a popular hike (the Parker Ridge) and yet another stunning blue lake!
Photos above of the Parker Ridge Trail hike, it's not a particularly difficult hike, and after a series of "switchbacks" you are then truly rewarded with some great views of the Saskatchewan Glacier!
Our final stop on the way to Lake Louise was at Peyto Lake, where we dodged the showers to get this shot!
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