Canadian National Parks - Banff and Jasper


We crossed the border rather expeditiously and as we drove
north into Alberta we wondered where the mountains had gone?

The next morning we were happy to find them again as the blue skies
greeted us on our drive west from our campsite outside Calgary to Banff.

The Rockies near Banff rised up rather dramatically from the plains in Alberta.

And once we emerged on the other side of the bustling village
of Banff, we were awed by the landscape once again.

This rock formation, referred to as a castle, was imposing on the horizon.

We saw evidence of avalanche chutes on many of the hillsides.

Crows foot glacier used to have three toes hanging down into the
valley (hence its name), but as it has receded those toes have disappeared.

The water and rock formations allowed for some creativity in photography.

As we entered Jasper National Park, Banff's
neighbor to the north, we started seeing more glaciers.

At Icefield Centre, we caught sight of the
Athabasca Glacier dropping off the Columbia Icefield.

As we got closer to the glacier, we realized we were not alone.


But we fought the crowds and hiked up to the toe of the glacier,
stepped on the ice in our tevas and hiked back down.


Just outside the village of Jasper we caught
sight of a young elk on a gravel bar in the river.

The Palisades area of Jasper were quite impressive, even from a distance.

A recent fire created a fresh contrast with the mountains of Jasper as a backdrop.

This elk emerged from a swim and proceeded to graze
while getting photographed by us and many others.

Not as many folks seemed to be interested in these Big Horn
Sheep perched safely above a road cut just a few miles away.

And to top it all off, we found this eagle scanning the distant burned hillside.