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After my brief visit to Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks on the US/Canada border, I drove approximately 400 km (approx 240 miles) on Friday, July 1 to meet two other Jeep Expedition Group members and their wives in Banff, Alberta. Canadian highway signs and speed limits are in kilometers and gasoline prices are in CAD$ per liter, so I had fun making mental calculations as I drove. I stopped for gas in Black Diamond, AB where the gas was CAD$1.104 per liter. That comes out to around US$4.50 per gallon, which I thought was high, but it turned out to be about the lowest price I paid for gas in Canada. Most of the time, I paid between CAD$1.25 – CAD$1.50 per liter (and as high as CAD$1.75 along the Alaska Highway).
I arrived in Banff in time to check into a hotel and to meet my friends for dinner. At that time of year, sunset in Banff was at about 10 pm Mountain Daylight Time and sunrise was at about 5:30 am MDT. Banff was crowded with visitors because of the Canada Day holiday weekend.
On Saturday, July 2, we checked out of our hotels in Banff and traveled to Lake Louise, a distance of about 60 km (35 miles).
My friends checked into the luxurious Moraine Lake Lodge (CAD$450 per night), which is about 14 km from Lake Louise, while I set up camp in the Park Service’s Lake Louise Soft-Sided Tent Campground (CAD$30 per night). Due to the numerous bears in the area, the Canadian Park Service operates two campgrounds at Lake Louise. One campground is for hard sided vehicles such as RVs and trailers and the other campground, which is surrounded by an electrified fence, is for tent campers.
Moraine Lake:
After setting up camp, I joined my friends at Moraine Lake to take a short (6 km) hike from Moraine Lake to Consolation Lakes:
My friends Tim, Sam, Ziggy and myself at Consolation Lakes:
The next day, Sunday, July 3, started with fog and rain. We had planned a more ambitious hike (11 km) to Eiffel Lake starting around mid-morning, but due to the weather, we considered canceling the hike. The rain stopped and the skies began to clear by noon, so we decided to proceed with the planned hike at about 1 pm. The trail took us up the side of the valley where we got great views of the glaciers and of Moraine Lake.
Upon returning to camp, I saw a crowd gathered along the electrified fence watching an adult bear and her cubs:
The older bear caught a small animal. I couldn’t tell what she caught.
On Monday, July 4, we hiked from the Chateau at Lake Louise to the “Plain of Six Glaciers”. This was about a 10 km round trip. This trail led to the quaint Six Glaciers Tea House, where you could purchase lunch or a snack.
Lake Louise as seen from the east end of the lake:
The Chateau Lake Louise as viewed from the west end of the lake:
Hiking up the trail:
The menu at the Six Glaciers Tea House:
Chateau Lake Louise:
Following the hike, I returned to camp, cleaned up, changed clothes and joined my friends to celebrate the Fourth of July with an elegant dinner at the Fairview Dining Room in the Chateau Lake Louise (the Fairview’s dress code is smart casual: no denim or athletic wear, shorts or T-shirts).
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I arrived in Banff in time to check into a hotel and to meet my friends for dinner. At that time of year, sunset in Banff was at about 10 pm Mountain Daylight Time and sunrise was at about 5:30 am MDT. Banff was crowded with visitors because of the Canada Day holiday weekend.
On Saturday, July 2, we checked out of our hotels in Banff and traveled to Lake Louise, a distance of about 60 km (35 miles).
My friends checked into the luxurious Moraine Lake Lodge (CAD$450 per night), which is about 14 km from Lake Louise, while I set up camp in the Park Service’s Lake Louise Soft-Sided Tent Campground (CAD$30 per night). Due to the numerous bears in the area, the Canadian Park Service operates two campgrounds at Lake Louise. One campground is for hard sided vehicles such as RVs and trailers and the other campground, which is surrounded by an electrified fence, is for tent campers.
Moraine Lake:
After setting up camp, I joined my friends at Moraine Lake to take a short (6 km) hike from Moraine Lake to Consolation Lakes:
My friends Tim, Sam, Ziggy and myself at Consolation Lakes:
The next day, Sunday, July 3, started with fog and rain. We had planned a more ambitious hike (11 km) to Eiffel Lake starting around mid-morning, but due to the weather, we considered canceling the hike. The rain stopped and the skies began to clear by noon, so we decided to proceed with the planned hike at about 1 pm. The trail took us up the side of the valley where we got great views of the glaciers and of Moraine Lake.
Upon returning to camp, I saw a crowd gathered along the electrified fence watching an adult bear and her cubs:
The older bear caught a small animal. I couldn’t tell what she caught.
On Monday, July 4, we hiked from the Chateau at Lake Louise to the “Plain of Six Glaciers”. This was about a 10 km round trip. This trail led to the quaint Six Glaciers Tea House, where you could purchase lunch or a snack.
Lake Louise as seen from the east end of the lake:
The Chateau Lake Louise as viewed from the west end of the lake:
Hiking up the trail:
The menu at the Six Glaciers Tea House:
Chateau Lake Louise:
Following the hike, I returned to camp, cleaned up, changed clothes and joined my friends to celebrate the Fourth of July with an elegant dinner at the Fairview Dining Room in the Chateau Lake Louise (the Fairview’s dress code is smart casual: no denim or athletic wear, shorts or T-shirts).
(continued)
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