The Glorious Canyon, Falls and Lakes

The yellow school bus used as the hop-on hop-off service picked us up early in front of the Moose Hotel. Tyler was the conductor, and George our driver. Tyler was funny, and kept referencing to the wildlife in the area and how it is quite understandable if we were one or two member short by the end of the tour. I have to say I did get a bit excited and scared when he kept warning that bears might be about early in the morning.

Johnston Canyon was the first stop. It was very interesting how the earth was carved and eroded into what it is now by the flow of water and weather elements over a long period of time. There were huge evergreen trees surrounding the area, and the sun outlined the silhouette shapes of the tall, wooden giants with yellow and orange hues as it climbed into the sky.

Then we boarded the yellow bus again, this time with Lewis in it. He reminded me of Quicksilver in the Xmen film. He guided us on how to plan the rest of the day.

Next stop was the Fairmont Chateau. It was opulence at its best, and its true soul lies in its strategic location. Its high ceilings and expansive windows were pregnant with the views of lake Louise. It was a magical moment, dining while taking in such a majestic sight. Mount Fairview and the Devil's Thumb, towering on both sides, leaving a slight gap in the middle, allowing Mount Temple to be visible, and like a funnel pointing downwards to where the earth meets the sky. We also went outside and took plenty of pictures. I managed to ask a fellow tourist to snap some photos of us and the family, it was interesting as he was aware of my camera and he made a positive comment of it. Then my sister and I walked halfway on the track towards a nearby falls then back again.

After that mystical time, we then boarded the bus again to head to Moraine Lake. There, we were mesmerised by its raw strength and elegance. The Valley of the Ten Peaks were more imposing, more jagged, hard pressed against the lake compared to the refined views at Lake Louise. But the range filled with white caps reminded me of Rocky Road Ice Cream. It was a very memorable time just sitting on a nearby log, watching the clouds roll by and soaking in the view as much as possible. Unfortunately, however expensive the camera one might possess, there was just no way one would be able to evoke that sense of awe elicited by actually being under the towering peaks and beside the crystal clear glacial lake.

On the way back to Banff, I was hoping for a chance to see some bears/elks to no avail.

We were in Banff a couple of hours too early for our bus back to Calgary. We went to Whitebark Café (operated by an Aussie lady) just across Moose Hotel. Then my sister and I took another round of walking around town once more, while mom and dad opted to chill in The Cascade Shops (their local mall).

We saw a Filipino grocery store filled with Pinoy delicacies, and also a trinket and charms shop that my sister enjoyed checking out.

It was well and truly dark when we walked our way to the train station. While waiting for the bus, two Korean blokes ran into some sort of trouble with their reservation and they became chance passengers. They were lucky as the bus had seats enough to accommodate them.

We dozed in and out of sleep on the way back to Calgary, my mind still thick with glacial lakes, evergreen trees and a multitude of snow and cloud covered peaks.Read more