Bordering Banff, are two other beautiful Canadian national parks. First, Jasper National Park.

Catching the sunrise somewhere on the way to the park
Catching the sunrise somewhere on the way to the park
Beautiful and crisp sunrise
Beautiful and crisp sunrise

If you want to do a boat tour, you can take the tour on Maligne lake to Spirit Island. It’s the only way to reach the island. It’s a peaceful place that you have to share with only 40 or 80 fellow tourists 🙂

Maligne Lake
Maligne Lake
Spirit Island
Spirit Island

Jasper Skytram takes you to the top of a mountain where a layer of snow was already covering the ground.

6R8C8953

6R8C8927_mix

View from the top
View from the top
Fall on the ground
Fall on the ground
Winter on top
Winter on top

We spent some time around the Athabasca glacier. The hike to the glacier does not get you close enough to the ice. They blame the unpredictability of the glacier ice. Don’t know, in Alaska they don’t have that problem 😉

A short hike from the parking lot, leads to an area near the glacier.
A short hike from the parking lot, leads to an area near the glacier.

I think the real reason, for not letting people walk up to the glacier is to encourage them to buy tickets for the bus tour, but I may be wrong of course. The tour to the Athabasca glacier was surprisingly fun. They load you on these huge ice buses and drive to the middle of the glacier where you get out and walk on the ice for a few minutes. The road there is like a roller coaster. The bus very slowly goes down a 34 degree slope which in real life looks more like 90.

The slope down looked terrifying
The slope down looked terrifying
Huge busses
Huge busses
There are red chairs like these all around the parks in the most scenic places
There are red chairs like these all around the parks in the most scenic places
Just a bus on a glacier
Just a bus on a glacier

After the glacier they drop you at the Skywalk – a glass bottom bridge over a canyon. It’s not for those with fear of heights.

Pretty deep
Pretty deep

6R8C9105

Yoho National Park coming soon!

# # # # # # # # # # # # #

October 23, 2016

Leave a Reply