The last couple of days, we have seen the most incredible mountains and glaciers.  The photos can’t possibly capture their awesomeness and grandeur but I’ll share some here.

Friday June 8
These photos are taken through the Roger’s Pass, a landscape abundant with mountains and peaks of which I have never seen before.  As we made our way through the pass, I’m sure make my exclamations of their beauty must have driven Guy nuts because of course he had to keep his eyes on the steep and winding road and didn’t get the full experience like I did.

Our goal on Friday was to camp overnight in  Glacier National Park.  We found out the campsite was closed as were many campsites on this pass.    We had to press on.  We spent the night at Golden in their Municipal Campsite on the Columbia River.  It was a nice setting but the train switch for trains going between Alberta and the Coast was right across the river from the campsite.  Holy cow,  all night long the business of trains went on noisily and loudly.  I tried to console myself with the idea that I was having a truly Canadian experience as trains helped build this country.  Guy slept through all the train activity but I just managed to catch a few kips between trains and sometimes all the noise became part of my dream.   At one point, it sounded like a train had derailed and I woke up thinking train cars were toppling into the river.  It was,  needless to say,  a really bad sleep.

Guy did a painting that afternoon of our friends’ house in Salmo.  While he was painting, a neighbor at the campsite from Switzerland introduced himself and Guy showed him his painting in process.  This fellow whipped away to his camper and got his phone and showed Guy  online pictures of his paintings which were very good.   He spoke very little English but he and Guy struck up some form of a bond and understanding even with the language barrier.  All afternoon he checked in with Guy’s progress and in the evening when the painting was done, they shared a fire and a drink as the sun went down.

Saturday June 9th

We made our way to the Banff and Lake Louise Area.  We set up camp at the Castle Rock campsite near Lake Louise.  It was bear country so there were lots of signs about keeping a clean campsite.  I am a little fearful of bears but consoled myself with the fact that there were lots of tent campers there and they would be the first to be taken by a rogue grizzly.  I’m kind of kidding………  Awful aren’t I?

We spent the afternoon with Bill and Joka checking out Banff.    It’s like Whistler but only smaller.  There were seas of people on every street and  it isn’t even the height of tourist season.  But apparently Banff is like this all year around.  We had coffee at a sweet little and very busy café,  looked at some galleries (almost bought a rock carving of three polar bears for $80,000.00) and had a walk out to the Banff Springs Hotel just to see it.  I love the old hotels that were built as the railways were put in.  They are grand places built one hundred years ago and you have to ask yourself how it was possible without all the modern tools and machines involved in the construction of large buildings today especially in remote areas like Banff was in the day.

We made our way back to our campsite and had a nice curry dinner at Bill and Joka’s trailer.  Then we hunkered down in our little camper early and were lulled to sleep by the heavy rain on the rooftop.