Sunday, June 28 : Banff Sightseeing
(Jun. 28) A close bear encounter!
(Jun. 28) These pictures were taken from inside the car.)
These photos are miscellaneous, taken on June 24, June 27, and June 28. On June 24 we took a rest day in order to do some Banff sightseeing, just like the millions of visitors that Banff receives each year. We first took in a narrated boat tour of Lake Minnewanka. We had a good narrator who provided a lot of information that was new to me. Lake Minnewanka is the largest lake in Banff National Park, (BNP) and for many tourists, the first attraction they see upon arriving as the turnoff from TransCanada Highway 1, comes first after entering the park. This area is the homeland of the Stoney Nakoda Nation, the aboriginal people who were settled here when the Canadian Pacific railroad decided to lay tracks in the Bow River Valley. The Stoney Indians were given that name because they would use stones warmed by fire to cook their food.
There are two huge mountains and one small one in the Banff townsite. Mt Rundle forms the eastern boundary of the townsite and has a distinctive shape. The southern slopes are like a giant plane, tilted above the ground at a 40 degree angle. That's the side that is used by climbers who wish to scramble ( climbing that involves the use of both hands and feet, but no special equipment) to the peak. The north face of Rundle Mountain is filled with cliffs, and would be much more difficult to climb. The second huge mountain is Cascade Mountain, which is on the forward horizon as people enter the park. However the road continues straight to the base of the mountain over 10 miles or so, at which point the mountain presents a 5000 foot edifice. Cascade Mountain is named after a waterfall on the front face. Chances are you've seen pictures of Mt Rundle and Cascade Mountain without knowing them, as they are frequently used for mountain scenery in pictures. Finally, there is little Tunnel Mountain which is about 1000 feet tall. It received its name when the railroad was being built, because it was feared they would have to blast a tunnel through it, because there is little room between the cliff face and the Bow River. However, fortunately for the railroad surveyors, they merely had to go around the other side of the mountain to stay on level ground.
The second tourist activity we took is the most popular sightseeing event in Banff which is the Sulphur Mountain gondola. They charge everybody $100 Canadian to take the gondola. Its too bad they charge so much; some people take the hiking trail that zigzags underneath the gondola, in order to save money. From the top, one gets a 360 degree view of all of the mountains that surround Banff townsite, and eagle eye views of the townsite. In the two pictures the townsite appears down below. Tunnel mountain can be seen, in the town area, and Cascade Mountain forms the backdrop. Mt Rundle is closest to Sulphur Mountain, and dominates the right side of the first townsite photo.
The two selfies were taken on June 27, at the finish line of the ride for Audrey, the Banff Springs Hotel. The man of the statue is President of the Canadian Pacific Railroad, William Cornelius Van Horne who famously said, "Since we cannot export the scenery, we will have to import the tourists". That is why the opulent Banff Springs Hotel was built, one of several huge luxury hotels built, across the country by the railroads. Others include The Empress in Victoria, the Chateau at Lake Louise, and the Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City. These are national treasures of Canada.
Our second tourist day was Sunday, June 28. They predicted rain at a 100% chance, and the forecasters were correct. Just a very dismal day, with incessant rain. This rain had a significant impact on my travels, as future blog pages will indicate. We decided to have lunch at my favorite family restaurant in the town of Lake Louise, which is still in BNP, but 45 minutes deeper into the mountains. Then we drove up to the lake itself and got ready to park in the huge parking lot, but decided against it when we found out the rate for parking was $42 per hour. With the bad weather, the parking lot was almost empty. Somehow I felt bad for Canadians who come to Lake Louise, to find the parking cost so high. To me it seems that Lake Louise should be an asset owned by every Canadian, and its sad the Park Service finds they need to charge $42 to let people see the lake. On a side not earlier on June 24, when we drove into the park, we found that the entry fee was free for this summer, due to some legislation called 'Canada Strong'. I believe the legislation is a response to Trump's tariffs, and provides incentive for Canadians to stay home and visit Canadian parks. However, I imagine the $42 parking fee is used to offset the lost gate entry revenue. So we left without seeing Lake Louise, but the sight would have been very poor anyway, due to overcast and fog. I don't think we would have seen the far end of the lake and the surrounding mountains.
So we started on the way back to Canmore and our hotel, and very soon after that we saw one of the most thrilling sights of the entire trip: 2 bears, near the edge of the roadway! I'm so glad we got the pictures from the car, so we can share them with all of you. I don't believe I have ever been that close to a bear out in the wild. I wonder if the lack of tourists today induced the bears to come down from the high elevations, or if this area is where they are living. Indeed, all of the largest wildlife seen on this vacation was seen from inside the car.
Tomorrow will also be a rest day as the main item on the agenda for the day was taking Audrey to Calgary, so she could get up, VERY early for her flight on Tuesday, back to St Louis.
A selfie, including William Cornelius Van Horne
(June 27)
Taken at the finish line for Audrey - Banff Springs Hotel
(June 27)
(June 24)
Cascade Mountain - from the gondola
(June 24)
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