28th September 2016

We woke today to find Elk grazing on the grass outside our RV. I went out to photograph them, and they seemed completely uninterested; seen it all before, I guess.

Rather annoyingly, we found that we had picked up a parking ticket from the previous day (it was attached to the windscreen). Our first task was to drive into Banff and pay the $55 fine. Despite being wished a great day by the clerk in County Hall, I scowled at her, pointing out that she wasn’t exactly contributing to my ‘great day.’

We then drove to Lake Louise. The Trans-Canadian Highway is such an easy road to navigate, with superb views every inch of its meandering route. It follows the course of the racing River Bow, which winds its way through the very centre of a valley scooped out millennia ago by a glacier long since disappeared. Rich green forests stretch from the riverbank up to the heady heights of mountains, before giving way to bare rock that even the hardiest plant can’t find a foothold on. To top it off, God put a blob of vanilla ice cream on the very top to make it look just right. As I was filming our journey through the front windscreen (with no tickets in view), God decided to show off a little, producing a brief shower that drew a beautiful arc of rainbow across our path, adding a touch of ‘awe’ to the scene.

Arriving at the lakeside, we could see why this is a ‘must-see’ location in Canada. Absolutely beautiful. After taking quite a few photographs, we decided to hike to Lake Agnes. This was a steep, uphill trail that passed by Mirror Lake before reaching our destination. The trail offered great views down onto Lake Louise at frequent spots through the trees, so many photos were taken. It was hard work, and despite the shade of the trees and the chilliness of the altitude, we lost a lot of sweat.

Arrival at the lake was marked by a small waterfall, which added to our photos of the intense blue lake and the accompanying hotel. We only stopped briefly, as this was not the top. Our new destination was the ‘Large Beehive,’ and that’s the trail we followed. While our previous path had been well-trodden and in good condition, this new one was not. It was steeper and much more winding, and I noticed the altitude was starting to take its toll, as breathing became more laboured. We were at 8,000 feet.

As expected, there were great views all around, and the trail wasn’t crowded;  we only met about half a dozen hikers on this section. Jamie had me film him doing his Facebook press-ups on a rocky outcrop over a precipice with no margin for error. I didn’t feel comfortable about it but said nothing. He survived.

Returning to Lake Agnes, we stopped at the popular little tea room located on the banks of the small lake. It started to spit with rain as we took our seats inside and ordered hot chocolate. We had a long chat with the waitress, who we learned had spent four years in London and now lived in a small cabin near the tea room with the other staff, without electricity or modern conveniences for much of the year.

As we descended the mountain, there was a crash of thunder, and it began to lightly snow. It didn’t amount to much, and by the time we reached our RV, the sun was back out, smiling and glinting off the glacier on the distant shore of the lake.

We drove to the RV campsite near the small village of Lake Louise and checked in. After finding our pitch (the furthest one of all!), we made our way into the village for lunch. We had Canadian fish and chips at a small, pleasant café that, like everywhere now, had Wi-Fi. We posted our location on Facebook.

After a look around the shops, we bought some provisions from the nearby store as we were running low on milk and coffee. During a walk along the riverbank and through the grounds of a hotel, we discussed our next plans when we were interrupted by the noisy Trans-Canada Railway. We decided to visit the Columbia Icefield tomorrow and Moraine Lake today. We returned to the RV.

Our drive to the lake was along a narrow road that kept our eyes glued to the tarmac rather than allowing us to look up at the impressive mountain scenery. We reached our destination after about half an hour and immediately started snapping photos of this enchanting place, which, like Lake Louise, is the location of many iconic photos.

We climbed the rocky outcrop at the mouth of the lake to get even better shots. Thinking that you couldn’t take a poor photo of this magical scene, we were later to learn that while this was true, you could certainly take a much better one. Perched around the outcrop were several very obvious professional photographers with their gear set up, yet they weren’t attempting to take any shots. We stayed with them and waited to see what it was that they were after. After all, perfection was right in front of their eyes. Why weren’t they shooting?

Over the next hour, it slowly dawned on me that they weren’t waiting for the sun to dip down over the peaks, as I had initially thought. Instead, they were waiting for the lake water to become still, so the mountains and forest would be reflected perfectly in the lake. After a couple of hours of waiting, the magic moment arrived, and yes, you really can improve on perfection. I guess these conditions rarely occur, but today they did, and we were there.

On the way back in the RV, we both agreed that the last two hours had been the best experience we’ve had so far. Quite surprising.

Back at the campsite, after a little walk to the river and back, we closed up for the night. The evening meal was bean and chilli burritos, microwaved and devoured in double-quick time, washed down with Sprite and coffee. Jamie played Patience with our cards while I wrote this blog, both of us listening to Canadian radio, which was discussing the recent Clinton vs. Trump debate.

After a shower, Jamie fell asleep, which prompted me to have a shower and follow suit. We were warned by the camp staff that bears have been spotted around the site this week and that it’s likely they will pass through during the night. We shall see what the morning brings.