Day 4 - Lake Louise and Moraine Lake

After breakfast, we had a guided tour of Moraine Lake with a very entertaining and enthusiastic naturalist, and Moraine Lake ambassador, Nadine. There are 10 peaks around the lake that provided some beautiful scenery. Also, the lake was a very beautiful, deep and bright blue. She explained that the bright blue colors (or blue-green) of the glacial lakes is the result of rock flour in the water. Rock flour is what happens when rocks on the bottom of glaciers grind over rocks on the ground. They grind the rocks into a very fine powder (hence the name rock "flour"). When the glacial water runs down to the lake, this flour becomes suspended in the water and affects the diffusion/reflection of various light waves. The lake was given its' name due to a large rock pile that forms a sort of dam that helped to create the lake. The rock pile was believed to be the result of rocks being pushed forward by a glacier (when the glacier recedes, this sort of rock pile formation is called a "moraine"). However, geologists determined the rock pile is more likely the result of a landslide. Oh well... the name stuck! I guess "landslide lake" didn't have the same appeal.

After returning from Moraine Lake, we had the afternoon to ourselves. Lisa and I decided we wanted some exercise, so we went for a hike heading for the tea house at Agnes Lake. This is about 2.2 miles away from the hotel, and increases elevation of about 1,200 feet. It took us about 45-50 minutes to get up to the tea house. This was an interesting place... No electricity. It was built originally in 1901 as a rest stop for hikers. It closed for a period, and then was bought, rebuilt, and reopened around 1960. The proprietors kids now run the tea house and call it home for the summer months. They have to hike supplies up to the establishment almost daily (they also have to hike their garbage down the mountain). The original owner's children actually had to hike up/down the mountain each day to catch the bus to school in Lake Louise. That was something that really struck us as we felt pretty wore out from the hike.

After the hike, we sat in the Adirondack chairs behind the resort that overlook Lake Louise and took a brief afternoon nap. Then we had a wonderful dinner in the Fairview Bar and Grill with Carolyn and Dennis, as well as another couple, Joe and Lane, from Westchester, PA.Read more