Footloose Canadian Parks

We got into Seattle well after midnight (June, 1999) following the only airline foul-up of our trip, much too late for the briefing with other trekkers. But from the experience of our previous Footloose canyons trip, we knew what to expect and were ready for the 7.30 departure after just four hour's sleep. Fellow trekkers included three Kiwis, two Poms, two Scots, two Dutch and Bob and I were the only Aussie representatives. This time we had two guides; all the better to give more hiking choices. Once again, our first stop was at the supermarket, where I found myself given the task of chief supermarket shopper, (Did they know what they were doing?) and Bob was rostered into a cooking group. 

Our first taste of rugged Canadian scenery came at Fraser River Gorge. To my embarrassment, Bob was able to pinpoint the locations where Rambo jumped off the cliff onto the tree and where he sewed up his wounds down by the river in First Blood. We set up camp at Lake Paul State Park, quite a pretty park with  a few short hikes and no pretence of a shower block. That night, we had whole baked salmon fresh from the Seattle fish markets and cooked over the coals, to the accompaniment of a woodpecker in a nearby tree. It was just as well we enjoyed it because we had leftovers on sandwiches for a few more meals.

A walking highlight was the next day's heli-hike from Berg Lake to the visitor centre at Mt Robson. We were rugged up in our winter woolies as the helicopter dropped us off (in 3 trips) in freezing rain at Berg Lake, so named for the beautiful turquoise blue icebergs  broken from the glacier nearby. The trail followed the river  downstream  through the Valley of a Thousand Falls, all of which were performing well in the rain and with the snow still melting. Also performing were a frisky pair of marmots. By the time we reached our lunch stop, the rain had stopped and weather warmed enough that we were able to strip off to shorts and t-shirts. Although we were the last of our party to reach the visitor centre, we were not too wrecked, buoyed by the incredible scenery for the whole 23 km. 

I managed to sleep through some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet on the Icefields Parkway between Jasper and Banff. But I roused myself from time to time to see some waterfalls and Canada's most photographed lake, Lake Peyto. We spent most of our free day in Banff riding our hired bikes around the lakes searching for the elusive beavers. We found one lodge just where the information centre staff said it would be, but either no beavers  were home or they had closed the blinds and locked the door.  Banff is a very pretty town with a dramatic mountain backdrop and thousands of tourists. We spent our last evening soaking in the Hot Springs, the original reason that  tourists began flocking to the place.

Lake Louise has always been a dream destination of mine. In the dream, I pictured myself staying in the chateau, but the reality was that we stayed in a rough cabin at Roy's campground beside the Kickinghorse River. However, the hiking lived up to everything I'd ever hoped for. The walk began at Lake Louise and climbed to the Lake Agnes tea-house (where all the supplies are carried in by mule), across to the Plain of Six Glaciers and back down to the starting point . At least I was able to have a drink at the Chateau on our return. At Yoho, some of our party rafted down the Level 4 rapids of the Kickinghorse River (very favourable reports), while the rest of us climbed Mt Hunter, our hardest walk yet. Some of our party actually encountered a bear in the woods, something we'd looked forward to and dreaded at the same time. But the bear had his own agenda and wasn't interested in humans. We'd seen plenty of bears before, but always from the safety of the van. People in this part of Canada treat bears respectfully, but matter-of-factly.

Vancouver meant another day of walking, but this time around city streets. As well, we took the skytrain, ferry and bus, so used (if not mastered) the public transport system. We saw Granville Island, Chinatown (where we celebrated Ian's 40th birthday), the fabulous Stanley Park, the library modelled on the colloseum, the downtown shopping area, the port, and Gastown with its steam-powered clock in operation. We were lucky to have had a fine day, because the next morning, true to its reputation, Vancouver was experiencing yet another rainy day. We hurriedly bundled up the tents and gear after our last night of camping, abandoning the orderly roster of careful cleaning and packing. Some of our party flew out from Vancouver, so our depleted group continued on to Seattle.

In Seattle we had time to look at the Pike Place Markets, including the famous fish market, before heading to our hotel in Pioneer Square. We flew out late the next day so spent the full day exploring the town -  the underground tour of the area around Pioneer Square (our favourite area), the Jetson's style Space Needle, taking the streetcar between the two. We also managed a look downtown where we did some last-minute shopping, including a t-shirt for me with the Sag Harbour label. I would have thought that any mention of sag in the t-shirt region would have been poor marketing. But what would I know! After all, I bought it.  Our homeward flight afforded views of Mt Ranier, something to put on the list to explore another time.

The return journey was uneventful until the final leg between Sydney and Brisbane where the smell of an Aussie breakfast preceded the food trolley. I could hardly believe that I was getting excited about airline food. But it was true! I'd missed that aroma of tasty food and hadn't noticed. It was good to be home!