Day 4 – Jasper

This morning we left Banff and began our journey to Jasper, with a few detours along the way. The first of these was a beautiful walk at the Johnston Canyon to see the lower falls; a wonderful display of how nature can make art out of ice. It was however incredibly slippery at times so thank God for the railings of the walkway, which was suspended off the side of the canyon wall. The shades of blue of the frozen falls against the white of the snow was a photographer’s wank bank, so we managed to get a fair few snaps.

Back on the bus to thaw out and we started the drive along highway 1A, which I have to say is probably one of the most scenic drives I have ever been on. The sky and the landscape was constantly changing and it was hard to know which window to look out of.

We stopped at Lake Louise ski resort for a spot of lunch which was absolute torture as I was desperate to go and join them on the slopes. One day I will get to ski in Canada! At least I got to have some of the tasty slope cuisine that is chips and a hotdog.

Back onto the highway and we stopped at another frozen waterfall to watch some crazy people climb up it. I’m all for extreme activities but I think I’d draw the line at that.

We arrived in Jasper around 4pm and I have to say I’m not sure how I feel about the town. The surroundings are beautiful, but walking around the town itself, it’s just got such a odd feeling about it.

We decided to head into the woods again and came across Old Fort Point Trail. This lead us to sunset over the Athabasca River which was wonderful to see. It was such a treat and totally worth being out in the -8 again.

We ate in another brewery tonight (again.. sorry Santa) and watched some ice hockey before coming back ready to do it all again tomorrow. The walls at this hotel are rather thin…. let’s hope there’s no horny people in the vicinity!