Heading West again!

As we write this, we’re on the Canadian Rail train “The Skeena” which runs from Jasper in the Rockies to Prince Rupert on the west coast of British Columbia, some 1160 km away.  It travels through some remarkable landscapes – from the snow-capped peaks of the Rockies through thick forest and great stretches of wilderness, lakes and rivers.  Moose and deer are seen all along the track and black bear foraging near the edges of the thick forest.  Our first sighting of a bear was only an hour out of Jasper and the train driver stopped and reversed to allow everybody on the train to get a good look and a few photos.  This, of course, is quite an unusual occurrence and the driver received a round of applause from those in the observation car.  We spotted many black bears in the clearings on the edges of the forest foraging for fresh spring growth.  Apparently, around June, they head higher into the mountains when the young ones are more independent and the snow has melted.

Day one on the train is some seven hours with stops at some small communities on the way.  We stop at Prince George for the night (as there is no sleeping car on the train) and continue for a 12 hour day on the second day.  At this time of year the train is quite small, with a limited number of passengers, but as summer progresses, the train increases in patronage.  We started out with some 64 passengers including a tour group which did a 2 hour run to Dunster and was met by a bus for the remainder of their tour, reducing our numbers by almost half. 

Yesterday we arrived back at Jasper for another night at “The White Brick Inn” where we stayed on our way out.  The drive from Golden was in bright sunshine and mid-20’s temperatures, unlike our trip down the Icefields Parkway, last week, when we encountered -4 degrees on the road, snow flurries and somewhere below minus 10 (with wind chill) in a snow storm on our tour out onto the Athabasca  glacier.  The contrast could not have been more remarkable.  There were an amazing number of self-drive RV’s, many with Australian flags in the rear windows on this return journey and we were quite thankful that we had decided to travel so early in the season. 

We passed through the same country we’d travelled through last week, but again the difference was significant.  There was spring budding everywhere, trees starting to leaf and lakes and streams thawing from the frozen winter.  

One of the strange quirks of Jasper is that the B & B’s are not allowed to serve breakfast – something of a contradiction in terms.  Apparently there is some kind of local ordinance which limits the serving of food only to restaurants and ‘approved accommodation houses’ – hotels and motels.  You can bring your own food in, but the hosts cannot supply or prepare food.  Anyway, we found a great little place in town called “Papa George’s” which served a very good $6.95 breakfast with 2 eggs, 2 rashes of bacon and a good supply of mini-hashbrowns, with 2 slices of toast.  Plus, they served a great bottomless cup of coffee.

Banff from Sulphur Mountain

Banff Ave - a pretty town

Big Horn Mountain Sheep

Lake Louise - frozen solid

Lake Louise

Frozen waterfall at Lake Louise

Covered pedestrian bridge in Golden - beautiful

Le Beausoleil - B&B - fantastic hosts

The view from our balcony at Le Beausoleil

Mumma Bear and 3 cubs by the side of the road on Kicking Horse Mountain

Lake Minniwanka, just outside Banff - 20 kms long

The Princess at the Dividing Line between East & West of the Rockies

Our arrival in Banff was greeted by bright sunshine and a crisp 5 degrees although 20 degrees plus was the norm for the next few days – most welcome after the drive down the Icefields Parkway.  Negotiating the town’s roads was a little daunting as we had only travelled on highways to this point.  Canada has a system of 4-way Stop signs.  All traffic must stop and the first to blink, loses.  Actually it is very civil, with the first to the intersection having right of way and the drivers here readily give way to others.
We found our B&B with little trouble and booked in – carried our bags up stairs – they seem to be getting heavier.  The House Manager is an Australian girl and staff everywhere we’ve been have been extremely friendly and many are Aussies.  Everywhere has free wi-fi and we can logs phones onto the wi-fi as well – very handy!
Banff is essentially a ski town and during the winter is extremely busy, but we’re now into Spring and the ski season is well and truly over except in a few places – still some snow-boarding at Sunshine Peak near Banff, but most other mountains closed.  During our 3-day stay in Banff we travelled on the gondola to Sulphur Mountain as well as visited Tunnel Mountain and some of the nearby lakes and falls.  This country is spectacular, everywhere you look.  There is still lots of snow on the mountains, but out of the wind and around town, we found the days quite warm.  As soon as the sun goes down – around 9pm – the cold hits and temperatures drop to nearly zero overnight.  Banff is a very pretty town with lots of accommodation and restaurants and bars and we took advantage of the atmoshere.
We did a daytrip up to Lake Louise, which is quite famous for its Fairmont Hotel and spectacular blue lake and although the sun was shining, it was very cold and the lake is still frozen after Winter.  We hiked the Lake Louise trail to the other end of the lake, rugged up against the cold.  By the time we returned, we’d removed a couple of layers, even though we’d hiked through knee-deep snow in places.  The jeans went straight into the wash-basket, but we were very glad that we’d equipped ourselves with the proper gear before leaving home.
After Banff we travelled on to Golden, which is a sleepy town between the Columbia Mountains and the Rockies.  It’s actually larger than we imagined and undergoing some major development as it is the centre of the rail-freight system and is surrounded by ski peaks, one of which is the spectacular Kicking Horse Mountain only a few k’s from the centre of town and a sight which greets us when we open our drapes at the B&B Jules found on Trip Advisor – Le Beausoleil.  This is a fabulous spot and our hosts Heather and Bob are very hospitable and friendly and the breakfast is fantastic.  If you’re in the area, it’s a great place to stay. (www.lebeausoleilbandb.com ).

On a drive from Golden to Rogers Pass, we sighted our first Big-Horn Mountain sheep as well as many deer grazing by the side of the road.  Rogers Pass is amazing, the highest point on the trans-Canada Highway, much of it cut through the mountains by labourers with opick and shovel.  The Pass visitor centre is quite engrossing, showing the development of the road and rail through the mountains and the yearly struggle to maintain an open highway.  Avalanches are a constant problem and they blast suspected trouble spots through the winter.
On our return to Golden we drove up the Kicking Horse Mountain road to visit the gondola centre and encountered our first wild bears, a mother and her three cubs grazing by the road.  What an amazing experience – black bears in the wild.  Unfortunately they wouldn’t pose for the camera, but we got a few shots anyway.  Tomorrow we leave for Jasper again, to catch the train – “The Skeena” across Canada to Prince Rupert and the Alaska Marine Highway.

The Canadian winds its way through the forest

Pyramid Falls

 

Frozen lake next to the road

Beautiful downtown Jasper

Athabasca Falls

The Icefields Parkway - stunning!

Frozen Athabasca River

The Ice Explorer on the Athabasca Glacier

We have never experienced cold like this!

Welcome drinks on The Canadian - very welcome too.

The Dome Car on The Canadian

Icefield Parkway

Vancouver to Banff via "The Canadian"

So we left Vancouver at 8pm on Tues night, aboard "The Canadian", a train which crosses Canada from east to west, taking about 3 days.  We were shown to our cabin for two, containing 2 armchairs, hand basin & mirror, a large window and a toilet in a separate cubicle.
We went to the Park Car, a sort of lounge with big picture windows & armchairs, and were served drinks & little cakes as a "Bon Voyage"  gesture.  It was still quite light until after 9pm, then we returned to the cabin, where Paulo, the attendant, had pulled two large bunks out of the walls!  The bunks were quite wide & properly made with sheets & thick doonas, so with the help of earplugs, we both slept really well.  It was amazing to wake up the next morning to the sight of the huge Fraser River flowing alongside the train, with mountains in the background. 
Breakfast was served in the restored dining car (the train dates from the 50's) and was surprisingly good, juice, omelettes & toast.  Then we went upstairs to the Dome Car, with large windows all around & above, and watched the scenery unfold.  It was a little overcast, but we could see the view changing as we rose higher, with more snow appearing & the mountains getting higher.
A cold but again enjoyable lunch was served in the dining car, & before we knew it, it was 5pm & we were pulling into Jasper, our destination.  It was freezing, and as we walked to our B&B a small flurry of snow fell, but then the sun came out again.
Jasper is a small town but quite pretty & surrounded by high, snow topped mountains.  There was a very chill wind blowing as we walked up the street for dinner that night & it didn't really get dark until about 9.30pm
Our B&B was actually a small apartment in the basement of a house, very well appointed & warm - special mention must be made of the Canadian's love of heated bathroom floors, a great idea in this cold climate.
We both overslept, but by about 10am we had picked up the hire car, a newish Hyundai Sonata, and were on our way down the Icefields Parkway, a scenic highway that runs from Jasper to Lake Louise.  We made several stops for photo opportunities, despite the fact that it was FREEZING!  About -4C most of the way.
At the Athabasca Falls we rugged up (ie thermals, fleeces, hats, gloves & scarves, topped with a Gortex jacket!) & walked for about 15 mins,but the wind off the water was icy cold.  Around 12 we reached the Athabasca Glacier on the Columbia Icefield, where we stopped to ride the Ice Explorer bus onto the glacier.  The glacier is about 6kms long & 1km wide, and 300m deep, with about 2m of snow on top.  The Ice Explorer took us to a graded area, where we all got out to take photos, & marvel at how cold -7c, with a windchill of about an extra -10c can feel!  It was very windy so the snow was blowing all around us too - not something you would do everyday. 
Back in the car, & we headed down the Parkway to Banff, our next destination, with a couple more stops for photo opportunities.  It became warmer & sunnier as we came down into Banff & by the time we arrived in town at about 5pm it was a positively toasty +5C!  we found our next B&B, Pension Tannenhof and settled in for 3 nights.

Vancouver

After a long but enjoyable flight via Auckland with Air New Zealand (highly recommended), we were met in Vancouver by our hosts, Karen and Tom Watson, with whom we became friendly in Turkey last year.  It was great to see them again and share stories of the last several months and we went to dinner at Horizons Restaurant on Burnaby Mountain, which overlooks the Fraser Valley and provides a great overview of the Vancouver area.  Over the next few days Tom and Karen showed us the major sights of Vancouver and we realised how similar the city and lifestyle is to what we have at home.
We explored the central city area including Gastown, Stanley Park, downtown Vancouver and Robson Street, Granville Island, Cypress Mountain lookout and Karen and Jules explored a couple of the shopping centres!  The Fraser River running from central British Columbia is huge and opens via a delta into the sea through Vancouver and is the longest river in Canada.  One of the highlights of our stay was a day-trip to Whistler where there was still quite a lot of snow on the ground – the day was beautiful and many skiers and snow-boarders were still enjoying the late season.  Whistler Village is most impressive and well planned and the scenery is spectacular.  On the way, we had stops at Shannon Falls and Porteau Cove – a very beautiful area.
Another highlight was a visit to Capilano Bridge, which is a pedestrian cable suspension bridge over a deep ravine in one of the valleys close to Vancouver.  This bridge was originally built privately in the 1880s using ropes and cedar timber walkway and rebuilt twice with steel cables as visitors became more numerous.  It’s estimated to be able to support 47 full-grown elephants and is quite a spectacular sight.  The surrounding forest is now a state park and has a tree-top walkway as well as a cliff-walk.
The city of Vancouver is situated in a most beautiful setting, between the mountains and the sea and we were quite taken with the similarities in the way we live.  Presumably our common British heritage has given us somewhat similar traits although there is a good deal of influence here from their proximity to the USA.  They have some very pleasant wines which Karen and Tom were happy to share with us and we thank them sincerely for their hospitality.
Next stop is Jasper, travelling on the VIA Rail train, “The Canadian”.

The Princess on the Capilano Bridge with Tom and Karen.

Hanging on!

Central Vancouver from the Aquabus station.

Aquabus service runs across False Creek in the central city area in several spots

Jules hopes that this is the only bear we get close to!

Looking Cool at Whistler!

Jules with our hosts Tom and Karen

Skiers on the slopes at Whistler

Shannon Falls - spectacular.

Birds-eye view of Vancouver

With the totems in Stanley Park.