Wife and I just returned from a glorious vacation.
We both love to travel but I'm the lucky one -- Wife makes the plans and makes it happen. She spends untold hours doing research and planning an itinerary so that, by the time we are ready to go, all I have to do is pack a bag and either get in the car or board a plane, depending on the destination, and go along.
This year we flew from Nashville to Calgary (via a stop in Toronto). We rented a car there and drove to Glacier National Park in Montana before heading back into Canada and spending time in Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper.
Typically, Wife had planned a day-by-day schedule for us, but it was loose and as we went along we axed and added some things.
The scenery was nothing short of spectacular and we had an incredible time. The pictures below hardly do it justice and it would take me too long to do a narrative of all we did (besides the fact it would bore you to tears), but I'll put a few photos here. They include a glacial lake (thus the teal color), Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, and yours truly fishing on the Bow River near Banff.
Best story of the trip: Wife and I came up on a mama bear and two cubs -- about 20 yards away on a trail, just us and them. We walked the opposite direction before they saw us and they eventually took an alternative route. And no, I did not take time to get a photo (although I wish I had!).
6 comments:
Love Glacier National Park and have spent quite a bit of time there hiking.
Your vacation planning sounds similar to what we generally do. We try to have a rough itinerary that gets changed as we go. A lot depends on how we are just feeling when we wake up or the weather or the crowds. But it is nice to know what is available before heading out so you can at least make sure you are prepared for whatever it might be should you wake up raring to go there, have weather on your side and crowds nowhere to be seen!
Crowd navigation is definitely important. A good way to deal with it, which we can certainly do now, is by going in the off season. For this type of destination, however, and for the things we want to do like hiking and fishing, there is hardly an off season. As you know, many of the accessible parts of GNP are only open during spring and summer months. It's similar in the Canadian national parks. The way we generally handle it is to get up and get going early and pack some food. For whatever reason, the majority of folks don't seem to do this.
What a wonderful vacation and such stunning photos, Bob! I've never been to Canada, but hope to get there someday.
One of my brothers and his wife took a road trip out west about a month ago and came back with some gorgeous photos, too. I live vicariously through all of you!
It was twenty years ago that I went to Glacier and even though we went during "peak" vacation time, it wasn't nearly as crowded as Yellowstone which we did on the same trip. The thing I liked about Glacier was if one went a quarter mile down just about any trail, it felt like you had the entire park to yourself... and the bears. I've found that true just about everywhere I go.
My wife and I spent ten days between Jasper, Lake Louise, Baniff and Golden in the mid-90s. It was incredible except for the fire alarm at 3 AM while staying on the 8th floor of the Chateau Lake Louise. I still need to get to Glacier.
What beautiful photos! Thank you so much for sharing, and warm greetings from Montreal, Canada. :)
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