Crossing back into Canada at Eureka, MT, we spent the night in Kootenay National Park at the Redstreak CG in Radium, British Columbia. The area is known for their hot pools but they are well developed “swimming pools”. Leaving early to avoid thunderstorms, we passed back across the Continental Divide and the Rockies into Alberta and Banff. Beautiful drive through the pass with bighorn sheep and deer beside the road safely behind wildlife fencing with their own bridges for crossing.
This year is the 150th anniversary for the Canadian National Parks. The good part is that day use fees are waived for the entire year in the national parks. On the flip side, this means more people. We saw this immediately when we tried to navigate around the town of Banff. Rental RVs and people everywhere made parking a challenge. We strolled around, had lunch and decided to move further north for several nights.
Settling at Lake Louise CG still in Banff National Park, we chose the more rustic section in the tent/soft sided vehicle area surrounded by an electric fence - a serious reminder that we are in one of the 3 main areas with concentrations of grizzly bears. Two nights back, the electricity went out due to a lightning strike but the park service got the essentials up and running including the fence with generators. Eery feeling and yes we are all carrying bear spray!
Yesterday we took the shuttle up to Lake Louise and the Chateau Lake Louise for a hike along the Agnes Lake Trail. We thought it would be a good one for Harry but proved to be a challenge with 6 miles RT, a 1280’ elevation gain, snow and ice and again lots of people on the trail. The draw was spectacular views and the european style tea house at the top serving tea of course and hot chocolate, sandwiches, soup and many other things. There is no electricity and food, supplies and garbage are hiked in and out. Most everything including bread and humus are made on site. This tea house was built in 1901 by the Canadian Pacific Railroad as a refuge for hikers.
We have since learned that aside from the crowds taking advantage of the 150th anniversary, many trails are closed due to avalanches concerns. There was a lot of snow this past winter and it is still hanging on. I included one photo that shows the snow and a crack line where it will eventually fall off.
With a bit more cold rain in the forecast, Harry traded in his heavy foul weather gear for a lighter hiking raincoat, S & E added a few items and for me a more rain resistant warm coat. We’ll hang for another day to get through the weekend and rain then move along the Icefields Parkway to Jasper.
