Family Trip 2009
During the summer of 2009 (August) I took my family to the Canadian Rockies
for 2.5 weeks - their
first trip there, so we redid a number of things I have done several
times previously but also several new things for me. We car camped
the entire time except for 2 nights in hotels for clean-up and
restocking. Akilah 15 and Kiernan 9 (almost 10) hiked all of the
trails I did, including 11.5 mile Wenkchemna Pass.
Lake Louise & The Plain of the Six Glaciers
This is one of the all time great hikes. I have done it before and it
is very popular. Starting at Chateau Lake Louise you
hike the length of Lake Louise and then climb up eventually almost
to the base of Mt. Victoria. On a previous trip I was at the very end
of the trail and observed a massive avalanche down the sheer cliff face.
On this trip we observed an avalanche on Mt. Lefroy. |
![Lake Louise](LakeLouise_ASm.jpg) |
![Lake Louise Tea Hut](teaHut.jpg) |
One of the rewards of this hike is that a bit more than 3/4 of the way
up you come to a 2 story tea hut offering fresh baked goods, tea,
lemonade and such! The hike is called the Plain of the Six Glaciers
because you stand above 3 glaciers and look up at another 3. |
![Mt Lefroy](MtLefroySm.jpg) |
Mt Lefroy |
Valley of the 10 Peaks & Wenkchemna Pass
This hike begins at the very popular Valley of the 10 Peaks
Moraine Lake tourist parking area (right). However, as soon as you
head out on the trail the human population goes almost to zero.
I have been to Moraine lake twice before and attempted
Wenkchemna Pass in early June of 1989 but was turned back near
Eiffel Lake by heavy snow and avalanches. This time we made
it all the way to the pass, 11.5 miles round trip. |
![Valley of the 10 Peaks](ValleyOf10PeaksSm.jpg) |
![Wenkchemna Pass](WenkchemnaPassSm.jpg) |
When we arrived there was a ranger at the trail head
enforcing a minimum party size of 4 due to Grizzly bear
activity along the trail. We were 4 so no problem but there
was a young couple from Finland who, as a party of 2, were
not allowed to continue so we let them join up with us. We all
hit it off well and their addition really contributed to the
fun of the hike. Here we see our destination from near Eiffel
Lake. |
Eventually we reached the summit of Wenkchemna Pass which
provided spectacular views back down the Valley of the 10
Peaks (right) as well as back into the next valley. We did
have to cross a few snow fields (me in flip flops per usual)
to gain the summit. |
![Eiffel Lake](EiffelLake10PksSm.jpg) |
![Pika](pika.jpg) |
We did not see any Grizzlies on the hike but we did see
Pika (left), marmots, and a mother Ptarmigan and chicks. It
was fascinating to observe the protective coloration of these
animals - when they stood still they each blended in so well
with their backgrounds that even knowing where they were it
was very hard to see them unless they moved. |
Lake O'Hara
Lake O'Hara was a new experience for me. A friend had told
me about it with rave reviews. However, unlike the rest of
park system, the Lake O'Hara area in Yoho National Park has
a very tight limit on the number of people who can access the
area in order to maintain the wilderness feel. Camping
reservations can only be made 3 months in advance and sell out
in the first hour - I spent 45 minutes on the phone hitting
redial exactly 3 months before our planned trip! From Lake
O'Hara, trails lead up to 3 spectacular lakes. Our first day
we hiked to Lake Oesa, my personal favorite which is right
behind Mt. Victoria and Mt. Lefroy (seen from Lake Louise).
The difference in solitude between the throngs on the Plain
Of the 6 Glaciers hike and this was dramatic! |
![Lake Oesa](LakeOesaSm.jpg) |
![Opabin Plateau](OpabinPlateauSm.jpg) |
The second day we hiked up onto the Opabin Plateau (left)
and on to another spectacular mountain lake (Opabin) nestled
in a high cirque fed by a large glacier. Finally on our third
day we hiked to Lake MacArthur. Lake MacArthur has the most
stunning vivid blue. It is a much larger lake but again,
surrounded by soaring peaks and glaciers. |
![Lake Oesa](2009_Oesa_4438_4442_sml.jpg) |
Lake Oesa |
Mt Edith Cavell & Cavell Meadows
Mt. Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park is a place I have
visited many times, including the previous year before setting
off into the Tonquin Valley. In 1984 I saw a large avalanche
down the right side of Angel Glacier. This year we were up in
Cavell Meadows and heard and saw a similar avalanche down the
left side. |
![Cavell Lake](CavellLakeGlacier_ASm.jpg) |
A short time after witnessing the Angel Glacier avalanche
we heard several more avalanche sounds (sounds like thunder)
and finally realized that vertical slices of the Cavell
Glacier were shearing off and falling into the lake. |
On the way up to Cavell Meadows we saw the usual marmot and this time
the meadow had significantly more wildflowers than the previous year.
But the really unique thing on this visit was a heard of cariboo. We
had just gained the lower edge of Cavell Meadows, seen the avalanche
and iceberg calving and the kids, tired from previous hikes were
voting to go back down rather than continue up to the high point.
Then we heard from someone that there was a herd of cariboo high on a
ridge, visible only from the top end of the trail. Whoosh! The kids
were off and I was racing to keep up! While I had seen cariboo in
Newfoundland, I had never seen them before in the Rockies. They
eventually came down from the ridge and quite close to where we
were sitting!
![Cariboo Stag](cariboo.jpg) |
![Caroboo herd](caribooGrp.jpg) |
Cariboo Stag |
Cariboo herd |
Icefields Parkway
The Icefields Parkway from Banff to Jasper may be the most
spectacular road in the world: miles of spectacular mountain
scenery with the largest icefield in North America feeding
many glaciers such as Athabasca, Saskatchewan and Dome, not
to mention abundant wildlife. To the right is Andromeda
Glacier. |
![Andromeda Glacier](AndromedaGlacier.jpg) |
![Athabasca Glacier](AthabascaGlacier.jpg) |
We took the obligatory glacier bus ride out onto Athabasca
Glacier where we had a chance to get out and walk on the
glacier. This was my third time - the first time when I was 7
was in one of the little half-track vehicles which resembled
an overly ambitious snow mobile more than anything else. |
We traversed the Icefields Parkway several times and twice
saw a resident black bear who apparently lives near the
highway and is known to forage in that area. |
![Black Bear](blkBear.jpg) |
![Big Horn Ram](BigHornRam.jpg) |
I had planned to do a different hike for our final outing
of the trip, but several locals we met camping at Lake O'Hara
suggested Wilcox Pass across the road from Athabasca Glacier.
Not only did this provide the spectacular views shown here of
Andromeda, Athabasca, and Dome Glaciers, but we also saw
several Big Horn Rams and another group of Ptarmigans. |
Often the ice you see is only a small part of the glacier
and what you may think is a lateral or terminal morain is
actually a thin layer of rock covering more of the glacier.
We observed this in the valley glaciers on the Plain of the 6
Glaciers (whole glaciers which at first glance appeared to be
no more than rock). If you look closely at Dome Glacier, the
visible ice is only part of the glacier - the glacier continues
all of the way down to the lake but the lower half is covered
in rock. Also note the edge of the huge Columbia Icefield on
the mountain top feeding both Dome and Athabasca Glacier.
| ![Dome Glacier](DomeGlacier.jpg) |
Other
We had a number of other adventures, including swimming in Miette
Hot Springs and the Banff Hot Springs, and taking a boat ride on
Maligne Lake. Along the way we saw a huge elk by the road. We also
saw a bald eagle, fox, and deer. We took several dusk drives looking
for moose but alas, I have not seen moose on any of the last several
trips. Surprisingly, we did not see any Mountain Goats - in the past
I have seen several small herds.
![Maligne Lake](MaligneLakeSm.jpg) |
![elk](elk.jpg) |
Maligne Lake |
Elk |
Another highly recommended spot is the Canadian Dinosaur National
Park and Royal Tyrell Museum, both located about an hour East of
Calgary. The Museum has one of the best dinosaur exhibits I have ever
seen and in the Park you can take a range led hike to a place where
they recovered so many bones they left MANY in place - you can see
them laying partially exposed in the badlands landscape. You can (with
full approval of the rangers), bend down and touch a dinosaur bone
where it has lain for more than 65 Million years - talk about a
connection with the past!
Contact: Jack Sanders-Reed,
Jack.Sanders-Reed@boeing.com