Grande Cache, Alberta sits on a mountain plateau at 4,200 feet high above a river valley. When we headed out for breakfast in Grande Cache, we saw clouds in the valley obscuring the river below us. It was an unusual sight. After filling up with food and fuel, Rick and I headed east about 8 a.m. before turning southeast on Highway 40 108 kilometers to the Yellowhead Highway near Hinton, Alberta.
As the pictures show, it was a very nice day on top of the mountain plateau but by the time, we arrived down at Grande Cache Lake, the weather was deteriorating.
However, as we drove further along the Muskeg River towards Hinton, we stopped to take pictures of some rapids. Later, we came upon a young buck caribou and other animals near the road as the sun began to shine through the clouds.
The Yellowhead Highway, I had followed from Prince George to Prince Rupert earlier. After stretching our legs in Hinton, we headed west to Jasper and Jasper National Park. As we neared Jasper National Park, the weather began to close in again. We paid for a three day pass to the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks ... seems they did not want to honor my U.S. Lifetime Pass. Of course, we were in Canada. Once inside the park, the sun managed to shine again.
We arrived in Jasper to mingle with all the tourists at lunch while braving a couple of short rain showers. We decided that as the weather appeared to be improving to head south towards the Columbia Ice Fields, Lake Louise and Banff about 1 p.m. As the weather was extremely variable, we did not stop often to take pictures as we headed to the Columbia Ice Fields. We did run into a few mountain goats and their kids that were losing their wool..
As we climbed higher, we began to see evidence of glaciers as we neared the Columbia Ice Fields. In the logs, we have not included many of the flower pictures which both Rick and I have taken but these are deserving. We also ran into one of the motorcycle riders who I had met in Fairbanks.
Just beyond Brussel's Peak, the Athabasca River cut a grove into solid rock and the turbulence really becomes beautiful but deadly. Rick took these pictures while I just hoped that he did not slip. There was no way, he could be rescued if he did.
The weather began to close in and intermittent showers could be seen in the mountain peaks around the glaciers. Near the roadside, we began seeing several waterfalls.
As we got close to the Columbia Ice Fields, the rain began to make driving interesting. At the Visitor Center, we found a Brewster Ice Explorer bus and as luck would have it, the Visitor Center gift shop had a Brewster model bus for Rick's collection of buses. The day had gotten really dreary and cold. It was only 42 degrees F at 2:45 p.m. and drizzling.
Heading south on the Ice Fields Highway, we came upon Bridal Veil Falls. Shortly we found another massive sink hole created by the Mistaya River which Rick decided that he must photograph. The river begins in Peyto Lake and then plunges into a narrow canyon. Potholes in the rock, formed by swirling water and rock debris has dissolved the limestone rock over centuries.
We then pressed on towards Lake Louise which as usual was ringed in clouds, damp and drizzly. As it was late, we headed to Banff for the night and the Caribou Lodge there.
The trip from Grande Cache was a long day but we enjoyed every minute except when Rick was trying to get those pictures of the sink holes ... that was a little scary. After dinner, we edited the Market Musings prepared by Lewis McLain and Hank Mulvihill and sank into a welcome slumber. Today we drove 316 miles.
Partaking the Caribou Lodge breakfast buffet, Rick and I looked at the weather and hoped for the early morning clouds to disappear. In the meantime, we decided that I could take advantage of the hotel's guest laundry while Rick took off for his 5 mile morning run. Upon his return, the sun was peeking out and we headed out to see Banff before heading back towards Lake Louise and further north if the weather was cooperative.
Upon our arrival at Lake Louise about 1 o'clock, it was chilly and damp, just like all the other times that we had visited. Despite the rain, Rick thought we needed to hike to the far end of the lake so off we went.
After surviving the trek, we decided to have an early dinner and were given fabulous seats while we enjoyed a early respite. After relaxing over a great meal for about 90 minutes absorbing the scenery, it was time to return to Banff. We made a short detour to Morraine Lake before returning to Banff for the evening.
Today, we only drove 94 miles.
After another sturdy buffet breakfast at the Caribou Lodge surrounded by a large group of bicycle riders who were out to ride through the Canadian Rockies, we were ready to tour Banff and then head back up towards Lake Louise and farther north if the weather cooperated. The Bow River falls at Banff drew a lot of attention from Rick as he took almost 40 photos of them.
The road north from Banff follows the Bow River. As we neared Lake Louise, the sun broke through and the low clouds lifted. We decided to take the tram ride and hopefully, get some pictures of Lake Louise. We then decided to retrace our steps north so we might get some better pictures of the mountains and glaciers that were hidden by clouds and mist yesterday.
After arriving at the Ice Fields at 4 p.m., we turned around and retraced our steps as our reservations were for the Holiday Inn near the Calgary Airport so Rick could catch a 7 a.m. flight back to Dallas. We arrived at the motel about 10 p.m. ... it had been a great day for seeing the Canadian Rockies. We drove a total of 316 miles.