SUNDAY 24TH – LAKE LOUISE

Those of you who have been here will recognize the photos above and below. It is of course The Chateau Lake Louise and the view looking over the lake towards Plain of Six Glaciers.

We are now very comfortably camped in the Parcs Canada Campground at Lake Louise. While there are 189 sites here, they are brilliantly laid out in a forest setting so not even the immediate neighbours have any impact.

Today we completed the navigation of Rogers Pass. We saw a movie at the Information Centre which demonstrated how military artillery is used in winter to cause avalanches before conditions get dangerous. The amount of snow which accumulates on the mountains above the pass in winter ready to wreak destruction on the road and rail below is spectacular.

We also gained an understanding of the Spiral Tunnels, a means by which trains spiral around the mountains in tunnels to climb the Big Hill on Kicking Horse Pass as they head towards Lake Louise. The photo below shows the engines coming out of the tunnel in the middle while the train is still entering the tunnel at the top. What can’t be seen in the photo are the last carriages of the train which are hidden in the trees immediately in front. The train in the photo is descending the hill.

We plan to stay here for at least two nights while we explore the area between here and Banff. We will then head north along the Icefields Parkway to Jasper.

These little critters are everywhere. We’re not sure whether they are a squirrel or a chipmunk.