STOP#1 KICKING HORSE REST AREA AND BRIDGE VIEW
For years the trip through the Kicking Horse Canyon from Golden to near Lake Louise was always a winding twisting drive up through the canyon with a couple of very narrow bridge crossings - it was a highway death trap - in the past few years the Fed and Prov governments have been funding its gradual four laning and bridge replacement - this rest area give you a good view of the new Bridge which is a bit of an engineering marvel - it cost something like $300M but has reduced the traffic accident rate substantially.
STOP #2 NATURAL BRIDGE - YOHO NATIONAL PARK.
I had hoped to stop at both the Hoodoos and the Spiral tunnels but when i got to the Hoodoos campsite it has basically been closed and there is only an overflow area and therefore the walk to the Hoodoos was considerably longer - as for the Spiral Tunnels - too much traffic to take the time to stop and see the trains goes through the tunnels.
As I was turning off the main highway onto the Emerald Lake Drive - there were 3 moose making there way to some water at the turnoff - because of some construction there wasn't a safe area to pull off and get some pictures.
Just up the road from the turnoff is the Natural Bridge.
STOP #3 EMERALD LAKE - A GEM IN THE ROCKIES AND A HIKE I REALLY ENJOYED.
When I arrived at the Lake I wasn't sure just what I was going to do - the views weren't that sharp because of some smoke haze and the position of the sun but I started to hike in a clockwise direction - before I knew it I was at the upper end of the Lake so i just continued along the remainder of the Lake - it is about 5.2 KM around the lake and the trail is flat but on the east side it is much less developed - also a lot more people were arriving as a lot of canoes started to dot the colorful lake - with the sun higher in the sky the views started to increase greatly - there was also a good flower show which will be reflected in the next stop.
When I arrived at the Lake I wasn't sure just what I was going to do - the views weren't that sharp because of some smoke haze and the position of the sun but I started to hike in a clockwise direction - before I knew it I was at the upper end of the Lake so i just continued along the remainder of the Lake - it is about 5.2 KM around the lake and the trail is flat but on the east side it is much less developed - also a lot more people were arriving as a lot of canoes started to dot the colorful lake - with the sun higher in the sky the views started to increase greatly - there was also a good flower show which will be reflected in the next stop.
STOP #4 WILDFLOWERS IN BLOOM IN THE ROCKIES.
While walking along the Lake there was a good display of alpine wildflowers - I will let the pictures tell the story.
STOP #5 HIKE TO HAMILTON FALLS.
This is advertised as a short hike - less than a km up to a waterfall and then on to a lake - it climbs most of the way and I was more than a little disappointed with the end result - while the canyon wall is impressive the water flow was quite low.
STOP #6 LAKE LOUISE IN ALL ITS SPLENDOR.
My final stop of the day before heading into Banff was at Lake Louise - as the traffic seemed to be back up getting to the parking lot I parked on the road and walked the last km to the Lake - turns out one of the reasons that the traffic was backed up is that Parks were checking each vehicle for their Park Pass.
I walked around and down the lake before returning to the truck and heading for Banff. The pictures tell the story of the beauty of the area and why it is so popular.
This last picture is taken along the Bow Valley Parkway - the slower and more scenic way to Banff - it wasn't far from here that traffic had stopped to watch a bear - unfortunately by the time the cameras came out it had wandered into the forest.Thus ends Part Two of this trip.
Part three will be of my time in Banff - including town scenes, a walk to Bow Falls and the floral beauty of Cascade Gardens.
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