Author Archives: Dave Hodson

Day 11 – Skiing at Lake Louise (again)

Posted on by
Reply

After doing a bit of hiking the past two days, we were determined to return to the ski hill today. Fortunately, the temperatures and ski conditions were excellent. And, perhaps more importantly, so were the crowds!

We arrived rather early to get parked close, and to be on the hills early. Here we are, ready to go, just waiting for the lifts to open.

20160215_083255

Once the lifts opened, we headed up to carve up the freshly groomed trails.

20160215_090020

Here’s a video of Nadine skiing down her first run of the day.

We spent the day skiing mostly the front side of the mountain, and a little bit on the back side. Unfortunately, we were unable to ski Larch, as it was closed the entire week we were here, as the lift was down and waiting for parts.

20160215_112333

20160215_112824

Instead of returning to the Whitehorn Bistro for lunch, we decided to get food at the main lodge and eat it on the porch overlooking the base of the hill. We finished eating, and headed back up for a few more runs.

20160215_135946

The sun was nice and bright for most of the day. Below is a nice shot of the main lodge as we’re coming back down on our last run.

20160215_150915

After returning to the van, we once again headed over to Lake Louise, since the weather was a bit sunnier than earlier in the week. It’s getting late in the day, and the lake was mostly in shadow, but it was still a beautiful sight.

We walked around the main skating area and ice castle for a bit. When we return next winter, we plan to stay in Lake Louise instead of in Banff, so perhaps we’ll get a chance to go out skating, which I haven’t done in probably 30 years!

20160215_160940

20160215_161525

20160215_161616

20160215_161643

Here I am, standing on the snow bank, gazing up at Mount Whyte.

20160215_161930

Before returning to the car, we watched a bit of a very typical Canadian sport played all across the country… pond hockey (but with more impressive background scenery).

20160215_164250

And here’s one final image of Lake Louise on our way back to the car.

20160215_164621

It was a tiring but very good day! We returned to Banff, had a nice dinner in the Gold lounge, and relaxed at the hotel for the evening.

Day 10 – Grotto Canyon

Posted on by
Reply

The original plan for today, was to return to the Lake Louise Ski Area, for another day of skiing. On the drive north, the day was shaping up to be a nice one!

20160214_100856

We arrived at the ski area, and realized quickly that we had made a mistake in our planning. This is the Alberta Family Day weekend, and the ski area was packed. The nearest parking spot is a very long shuttle ride away, and the lift lines are massive. We quickly decided to change plans, and head back down the highway from where we came.

After hearing about Grotto Canyon, just a bit southeast of Canmore, we decided to check it out. Unlike yesterday’s hike along the side of the canyon walls, our hike today would be right up the middle of the frozen river.

The trip started out a little boring, making our way away from the parking lot, along an icy trail through the woods behind a very large and loud mineral processing plant.

20160214_131744

Eventually, we made it to the bottom of the canyon.

20160214_132723

20160214_132942

As we made our way along the ice, it became obvious there were two types of hikers here… about half of us with ice traction devices and the other half without. Watching people try to make their way up the hills of ice with nothing but snow boots, and in some cases, running shoes, was certainly interesting.

As we continued up the canyon, the river bed was winding through increasingly taller walls on each side.

20160214_133454

20160214_133851

We paused for photos all the way along. In places you could hear the water moving under the ice. In other places, you could see the ice was frozen solid right down to the creek bed below.

20160214_134333

20160214_135153

20160214_135400

We’re approaching the top of the canyon…

20160214_135444

20160214_135728

Once at the start of the canyon, we explored the area, seeing where the water feeds the river from a few different places above and beyond the tall walls surrounding us.

20160214_135750

20160214_135930

20160214_135949

20160214_140232

20160214_140242

I decided to climb up the side of one of the waterfalls for a better view.

20160214_140356

Nadine is climbing up to join me.

20160214_140819

20160214_141424

20160214_141433

20160214_142645

These waterfalls completely frozen in time are really a site to see.

20160214_143351

As it was starting to get late, we made our way back down the river.

20160214_143524

20160214_144453

20160214_144708

Back at the parking lot, we had a quick snack and made our way back towards Banff.

Day 9 – Johnston Canyon

Posted on by
Reply

When we were last in the Canadian Rockies in late summer 2014, we did a hike up Johnston Canyon.  For a different perspective, we decided to check out the same area in the winter.

20160213_120649

Between the snow and freezing spray, we were told to expect the area to be slippery, and considering much of the hike is not flat, we purchased traction devices to attach to our boots, and also carried our ski poles with us. Both of those items would prove to be wise choices!

As we headed into the canyon, much of the ice had a beautiful blue colour to it, where waterfalls appeared frozen in time behind a thin blanket of snow.

20160213_121217

We continued up the canyon toward the lower falls.

20160213_121900

20160213_122606

20160213_124031

After wandering around the creek near the lower falls, we continued along the trail toward the upper falls.

20160213_125549

20160213_125553

20160213_130516

Arriving at the upper falls, there were a few groups of ice climbers ascending the cliffs behind the canyon.

20160213_133034

We explored the area around the upper falls for a while, able to get a very different perspective of this magnificent area in the winter than on our summer visit.

20160213_133103

20160213_133132

20160213_133217

20160213_135845

Here we are on the ice at the base of the upper falls.

20160213_141228

20160213_141958

20160213_142003

20160213_142009

20160213_142021

Nadine made this short video of what it’s like standing at the base of the falls.

On our way back, Nadine decided to capture another video, of the one tricky crossing in accessing the upper falls. Here I am, very glad to have boot traction devices and poles, trying not to test the capabilities of my waterproof hiking boots.

We headed back down the canyon, returned to the van, and headed back to Banff for the evening.