For The Love of Travel

An unexciting trip from Valemount by and large, to Jasper. It rained most of the way, but stopped briefly for me to be able to jump out and snap this meandering river….and this ‘stand off’ between deer and driver…….

At the BC/Alberta border, the sun came out suddenly with a very pleasing rainbow (I was sitting for 20 mins waiting for the road works official to wave me on)…not a very good image of it, but you can see a bit. 

I was surprised that the ranger at the border, welcomed me in French (bienvenue) and then English, before collecting National Park fees…now that I’ve googled, discovered Alberta has had a French-speaking population since the 1700’s, since the settlement of fur traders.

The weather just continued to get worse, so decided to rest up in Jasper and make an early start. Pyramid Lake and Patricia Lake had muted, but nice sunrises.

A 5-hour road  journey to Banff was rather scary in parts, where it got close to a total whiteout and a bit of black ice on the road. But I drove slowly, so the usual 3 and a half hrs turned into 5. That was quite exhausting!

The sun came out for a bit at Vermillion Lakes, close to Banff.

After a bit of a rest, ventured out tonight to the viewpoint on Mt Norquay and took an okay pic of the town in the valley. I managed to get the silhouette of mountains in the distance including Mt Rundle, I think.

 

 

A big travelling day today! A 3 hour journey by bus, ferry, bus from Vancouver Island to Vancouver city; car rental pick up and driving 2 hours to my first stop – Brandywine Falls, just south of Whistler. The falls are steeped in pre-historic history…it’s believed that the walls of Brandywine Falls are made up of more than 4 different basalt lava flows dating back around 34,000 years! Loved the waterfall – just 1 km walk from the car park.  Another hour’s drive to Lower Joffre Lake…a lovely walk from the car park through a pine tree forest, to the lake’s edge. Even though it was cloudy, the reflections of the hillsides were still beautiful in the lake. A further 2 hour drive to Lillooet, to overnight accommodation. Loved Highway 99 all the way.

Just started driving this morning, came around a bend and suddenly noticed a Canadian Railways train, coming around the corner and disappearing ….managed to get the camera out just in time 

Pavilion Lake with crystal clear water was stunning, so much so, that I drove back to take unexpected pics.

Crown Lake in Marble Canyon Provincial Park had lovely yellow deciduous trees with lake reflections this morning. 

The folds of the Monashee Mountains just outside Kamloops looked brilliant in the sun that just appeared for a few minutes…

Helmcken Falls, in Wells Grey Provincial Park, is the 4th highest waterfall in Canada. Named after John Sebastian Helmcken, a physician with the Hudson Bay Co. who arrived in Victoria in 1850. He helped bring BC into the Canadian Confederation in 1871.  50 kms off the highway going north-east…. a wow! spot to stop off…before you drive back to resume your journey. The spray from the waterfall is incredible. The park’s admin have ensured some beautifully placed benches close to the cliff edge, so that visitors can spend some time reflecting on the power and majesty of the falls. Fantastic spot! 

On the way to Valemount, my stop for the night, came upon these fluffy-coated grass-eating bears ….Mum and a couple of cubs…..I remembered that 95% of black bears’ diet is plant material! Too AWWHH for words.

 

My first day on Vancouver Island and it poured with rain. Couldn’t stop me from exploring, as I only have 3 days here…drove from Victoria, through the Cowichan Valley, and back to my accommodation for the night on the outskirts of Victoria. Very moody hillsides, with swirling white and grey clouds and the occasional deciduous tree adding a burst of colour.  Passed through Duncan – known as the “City of Totems”, with one of the world’s largest, outdoor collection of publicly displayed totem poles – designed to attract visitors. The totem pole collection is located on the traditional lands of the Quw’utsun’ (Cowichan) people. Cowichan Tribes has the largest First Nations population in British Columbia. And some beautiful totems they were! 

Dahlias are out in many gardens and I stopped to take some pics of these beauties on the roadside.

My next port of call was Nanaimo – a vibrant ferry port on the east coast of Vancouver Island. Shops and cafes fill the Old City Quarter. Offshore, on Newcastle Island, trails lead to beaches and First Nations sites. I drove around to find some locations for photo taking tomorrow (when the weather is supposed to clear)…and on the way, found this delightful gate entrance with a Japanese vibe and colourful house on the edge of a rail track.  

Woo hoo! Lovely day today – off to shoot a waterfall – Elk Falls on the east coast, just outside Campbell River.  And then tonight, revisited the beautiful Houses of Parliament and the Fairmount Empress on Victoria’s waterfront.