As we walked out of our hotel tonight to look at beautiful Lake Louise one last time, the song that came over the outdoor speakers was Louie Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World". So very true - and this trip is helping to remind us of just how wonderful. One week in and we've already made some amazing memories, seen incredible sights, experienced things we have never done before and met some of the most wonderful people. Life is good.
Today we took a tour up a bit north (yeah - even Canada has a "north" :)) along the Icefields Parkway which National Geographic has named as one of the top 10 most beautiful drives - it did not disappoint. Our first stop was at Lake Peyto. You walk down a short way from the bus parking lot and are met by the most amazing view. I wish I had better adjectives to describe what we have seen - but I'm not sure words can do it justice. Truly breathtaking.
Along the drive there were many incredible sights - with lots of oohs and aahs - and tons of pictures.
The destination today was the Columbia Icefield with two stops. The first was an opportunity to walk on a glacier. They load you up in this specially equipped "Ice Explorer" truck that was built specifically to drive on the glacier with minimal damage. Only 24 were made - and 22 are here. The other 2 are in Antartica. The tires are 5 foot in radius and 3 feet wide - we took a picture next to it to give an idea of the scale.
On the way to the glacier you go down the 2nd steepest non-paved road in North America. It is a 32% decline - and, honestly, a bit intimidating as you are staring down the hill. Obviously they do it all the time - but as our first time there were some white knuckles - at least for me. The reward though was a stop on the Athabasca Glacier and the ability to walk around it. It is 6km long, 1 km wide and just over 200 meters deep - yep, it's big. We were surprised it wasn't more slippery - but there is a decent crunch on the top level. We were able to walk around and even had a chance to sip some fresh glacier water - a bit cold but super yummy.
The next stop was at the Glacier Skywalk. They have built a glass skywalk that juts out in a semi-circle over the valley. I am afraid of heights and was extremely nervous. For some reason though - may be it was the Yoho spirit - I was totally fine and actually really loved it. Thanks to Craig for his encouragement! The views were incredible.
We then headed back to Lake Louise for our last night. As mentioned in the beginning, we were able to enjoy the beautiful lake after dinner. Below is one of our favorite pictures.
It truly is a wonderful world. Enjoy the Ride!
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