Into the Rockies...

We awoke early on the 23rd, eager to begin what everyone had told us is the most beautiful part of the cross-canada drive.

It was ... Gorgeous. We just passed Banff when I realised we needed to fill up on gas and I had no idea when the next gas station was. Coincidentally, it happened to be at the lake Louise exit (a lake I had literally been recommended by every human in canada) and we impromptu realised we had time to kill so we decided to go see it!
I had thought that it would be expensive but I was suprised to see the day pass was only $22 for the three of us! So we parked by the entrance and were feeling bless until we found out the parking was $36.5!!! That's where the bastards get ya. But it was a lovely lake and I thoroughly enjoyed the hour visit we had.

It was cloudy at first, but the sun soon burst through and the valley that the lake was nestled in-between was truly gorgeous. We sat and chatted and enjoyed the view for as long as we could, before heading onwards to our respective homesteads: we dropped off Madeleine just beyond Golden and drove through the kootenays all the way to Kimberley and found our hosts, celebrating at a local brewery.

Our hosts are a lovely couple: Ally and Steve who have lived on their land for coming on to 12 years now. It was Steve's 40th birthday the day we arrived so the festivities were already in full swing and upon arrival we found out that the whole weekend would be celebration vibez!
Friday we went for a hike up to some hot springs with Leo, a Wwoofer who had already been here for a month and who was leaving the next day. The hike was gorgeous and the hot springs divine: a perfect 38-45°C so you could stay in there for hours (which we did)!
Saturday was Steve's 'party' where we helped prep hummus, salad, bread and the lot for his family and friends who were lovely, funny and very chatty! Ally plays the fiddle and her band performed just two doors down at a neighbours home. We all migrated there for a great show of folk and country tunes. We returned for a big bonfire and spent the night sitting around the fire drinking and chatting with everyone. It was truly a fantastic introduction to the kootenays and ended the weekend feeling blessed to be in this beautiful area of BC.Read more