In June, my mom had a cousin and his family visit all the way from Melbourne, Australia. It was their first time to Canada and they wanted to explore the Canadian Rocky Mountains. My mom has never been comfortable driving the highway so I volunteered to be the designated driver and tour guide for a weekend. After all, the Icefields Parkway is one of the world's most scenic driving tours.
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We left Edmonton early on a Friday morning in July. Traffic was fairly light, most likely because the Icefields Parkway saw 10cm (!) of snow the day before. Other than a quick bathroom stop in Hinton, we made it to Jasper in less than three and a half hours.
Maligne Canyon
First stop, Maligne Canyon, the deepest canyon in Jasper National Park, with a depth of more than 50 metres at certain points. Our family from down south were looking for a gentle hike so we got as far as the First and Second bridges, where the views of the limestone canyon is incredibly beautiful. The Second bridge happens to be the highest point of the canyon, standing more than 50 metres above the water.
Jasper
Next stop, the town of Jasper. After a quick lunch, we took a leisure stroll through downtown. There are a variety of retailers to suit everyone from Tea Leaf Boutique, a women’s fashion boutique and fine tea shop, to Mountain Air, a clothing store with an emphasis on Canadian-made products, from Jasper Rock & Jade, a mineral and jewelry gift shop to Candy Bears’ Lair, a candy shop known for its mouth-watering homemade fudge, caramels and candy apples.
There are also a number of famous local eateries such as Jasper Brewing Co., Canada’s first national park-based brewery, and Bear’s Paw Bakery, a coffee shop that offers European-style pastries and Canadian style cakes.
Our intention was to take the world-famous Jasper SkyTram up to the top of Whistlers Mountain. The SkyTram is the longest and highest guided aerial tramway in Canada. Unfortunately, when we checked the webcams on the website, there was zero visibility so we continued on.
Columbia Icefields Discovery Centre
The Icefields Parkway is a 232km driving tour through some of the most impressive and majestic landscapes in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. In fact, the Icefields Parkway was featured once in the National Geographic’s World’s Top 10 Most Spectacular Road Trips. This stretch of road is dotted with more than 100 ancient glaciers, cascading waterfalls, dramatic rock spires, and emerald lakes set in sweeping valleys of thick pine and larch forests.
Travel Tip #1: There is one gas station located between Jasper and Lake Louise, at Saskatchewan River Crossing so you may want to fill up before you start your drive! There is also no cell coverage along the entire route from Jasper to Lake Louise!
The Columbia Icefields Discovery Centre is the midway point between Jasper and Lake Louise. The newly-renovated facility features the brand new Glacier View Lodge, an all-inclusive lodge at the edge of the Athabasca Glacier, restaurants as well as a café, shopping and the Glacier Gallery interpretive exhibit. The Centre is also the departure point for the Glacier Skywalk, a cliff-edge glass walkway overlooking the spectacular Sunwapta Valley. The glass floor is all that separates you from a 918 foot drop, and due to the kinetic energy of visitors, you may feel the walkway move!
Lake Louise
Lake Louise is one of the most popular attractions in Banff National Park, attracting thousands of visitors from all over every year. Lake Louise is world-renowned for its glacier-fed turquoise waters backed by the Victoria Glacier and tall imposing mountain peaks. The lake is also the location of the luxurious and iconic Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.
Travel Tip #2: For those who want to indulge, consider having Afternoon Tea at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. Afternoon Tea is open daily in the Fairview Restaurant from 12:00PM to 2:30PM and features an assortment of delectable pastries.
While we stuck to the shoreline for some beautiful photo ops, there are a number of easy to moderate hiking trails around the lake, including Agnes Tea Trail which takes you through a forest and up to the historic teahouse where you can enjoy a cup of tea and fresh scone or pie.
Banff
Lake Louise to Banff is a quick drive, around 40 minutes or so. We enjoyed a delicious and relaxing supper in town at Tony Roma’s and ended the night with a soak at the Banff Upper Hot Springs. There’s nothing quite as soothing as lowering yourself into a steaming pool after a long day of driving. The sulphurous water is heated geothermally, coming from 1.8km under the Earth’s surface and is supposed to have healing properties.
My mom and I (coffee fanatics!) spent Saturday morning at Little Wild: Coffee by Wild Flour catching up over some of the best hand-crafted lattes after we dropped off the rest of the group at the base of Sulphur Mountain because a visit to Banff is not complete without a ride on the Banff Gondola.
The Banff Gondola is an eight-minute ride to the summit of Sulphur Mountain where you are treated with a bird’s eye view of Banff National Park. At an elevation of 2,281m (or 7,486 feet), you’ll enjoy incredible panoramic views of six stunning mountain ranges. Recently renovated, the facility has restaurants, cutting-edge interpretive exhibits, a multi-sensory theatre, and a 360-degree rooftop observation deck. It is completely your choice to stay behind at the summit and simply enjoy the stunning views or take the 2km self-guided interpretive boardwalk hike to Sanson’s Peak and the Sulphur Mountain Cosmic Ray Station—a National Historic Site of Canada.
Travel Tip #3: Alberta residents are eligible for discounted admission. While discounted admission can be purchase online or in advance at an Explore Rockies location, proof of residency will be required upon arrival. Kids also go free before 11AM with the Family Experience. Click here for more details and restrictions.
We managed to squeeze in an hour and a half of window shopping and strolling through town. Banff Avenue is lined with a variety of shops, cafes, and restaurants. I found the cutest matching Cool As A Moose long sleeve tees for Jordan and Evelyn, as I promised them a souvenir for ditching them at home with Dad!
Lake Minnewanka
Lake Minnewanka is located 5km from Banff town, on the other side of the Trans Canada Highway. It is a great place to stop off and have a picnic along the rocky shoreline. The lake is also great for fishing, diving, hiking, mountain biking, canoeing, and boating.
Lake Minnewanka is the only lake in Banff National Park to allow limited use of power boats. Scenic boat cruises go out daily to Devil’s Gap, with an interpretive tour guide that can tell you about the rich history and local lore of the lake and surrounding mountains. Boat rentals along with canoes and kayaks are available at the Lake Minnewanka docks.
Calgary
Our second night was spent in Calgary at the Best Western Plus Calgary Centre Inn, located just minutes from downtown Calgary. Recently renovated, the rooms are modern and surprisingly spacious with luxurious pillow-top mattresses. Add in the complimentary deluxe hot breakfast buffet, this hotel is the perfect combination of value, comfort and location.
Our Saturday night outing was to Yum Yum Seafood Restaurant, an Asian-fusion restaurant in Northeast Calgary. If you are after authentic Chinese cuisine and fresh seafood at market prices, this is the place!
We spent Sunday morning exploring a little bit of downtown Calgary, namely Chinatown, Peace Bridge and Eau Claire Park. Peace Bridge is a pedestrian bridge designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava as a pedestrian and cyclist walkway across the Bow River. The design is quite unique and striking to see in person. While the bridge has been opened for use since March 2012, I am embarrassed to admit that this was my first visit.
Since everyone was craving Vietnamese food, lunch was at Pho Dau Bo, voted one of the best Vietnamese restaurants in Calgary in Avenue Magazine. The food was phenomenal especially the Bone Marrow appetizer (which was to die for!), the service was excellent and the prices were reasonable.
After we filled our bellies, it was time to head home!
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