Here are the journal notes I took while on vacation in Banff Canada.
Day 1:
* Travel Day: Minor issues with the flights, one of our flights was cancelled, but Delta got us up here and we have a fun Chrysler 200 as our rental. Flight brought us to Calgary and then two-hour drive to Banff. We checked into the Fairmont Banff Springs and had a wonderful check in experience. Our room 427 has a spectacular view of the Bow River, crystal Ice blue in color, it felt like we were transported into a postcard. The Fairmont is a castle hotel, built in1888, and has a rich history with spectacular service, an amazing spot to travel back in time to another era. Night comes around 10pm and rises at 5am.
Day 2:
* Today was an acclimation day. Getting our bearings right and knowing where things were. We did not plan any specific activities for the day, but taking time to breathe in the fresh clean mountain air and hike around. Temperature in the morning was around 47 degrees with highs in the mid 60's. In the morning we walked down to the Bow river to view the Bow falls; we learned the river temperature is around 50 degrees and feeds into Hudson Bay on the east coast of Canada. We got some great pictures and hiked across the river on a walking bridge to take pictures of the Fairmont from the other side of the river. We later walked into town and scouted out a few restaurants we'd want to check out, visited a few shops, and made our way back to the hotel for our 1pm High Tea. Spectacular views with traditional tea service, very tasty treats and great tea. Later in the day we enjoyed a game of croquet, teaching Josh and Sarah how to play, Sarah is all ready for a rematch. Evening was spent enjoying a gentle rain and seeing double rainbow appear in the valley, and a nice dinner at the Bow Valley Grill in the Hotel.
Day 3:
* Today was our first adventure, driving an hour to Lake Louise. Being a guest at Fairmont in Banff allowed us to park the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise hotel for no cost and enjoy the spectacular lake. This was a dream spot of mine to visit for many years, and I can say the lake is even more spectacular in person then the pictures. The amazing blue color water is a result of the glacier grinding the stone as it moves and produces a "dust" that gives the lake its emerald blue color. The water temperature is 45 - 50 degrees and they say the lake is frozen from November - May and the ice can grow up to 3 feet thick. After some hiking around, we made our way to the Brewster stables for a 3 hour horseback ride up to the Agnes Tea house. A tea house situated at 7005 feet, up from 5700' of Lake Louise. The house is situated at Agnes Lake, another wonderful clear lake, with a water fall that feeds Mirror lake a few hundred feet below. They serve sandwiches and over 100 varieties of tea. I enjoyed an Assam tea while overlooking Agnes Lake. Everyone enjoyed the ride, even though my horse "Roper" was the slowest and the last in the caravan, it was a lot quicker then walking and great to see the rich green spruce's throughout the trail. The day ended quickly, with a nice drive back to Banff and a dip in the outdoor heated pool to relax after the ride.
Day 4:
* This morning we woke up in a morning fog, nice cool misty mountain air covered the castle. We started out with some morning croquet and then packed some lunch and headed out to Lake Minnewanka for some fishing. The lake is over 28km long, and has depths up to a couple hundred feet. Mostly fished the Canadian White fish, and also tried for some Trout. The water temperature was around 50 degrees, crazy cold, so no jumping in to cool off. Our guide took us to a great spot where a gentle water fall streamed into the lake. He explained this had better oxygenated water and attracted lots of fish. We hung out and everyone caught a few nice sized fish. The highlight was watching a Bald Eagle on the tree watching us fish and waiting for a prize, it never came for him, but we enjoyed his majestic presence watching our catch. The evening was quick to come upon us, with dinner downtown on the way back to the hotel and a nice relaxing dip in the pool.
Day 5:
* Today was another cool crisp morning with sun shine and bright blue skies. After a nice bite to eat Kristin and I headed out on an adventure walk around the hotel grounds. We ventured beyond the golf course to explore some of the surrounding woods and mountains. We walked among the tall dark pines and ventured to the base of a mountain with slopes of shale pilling up at the bottom. I scampered up the shale to get a fantastic view of the Fairmont Castle above the tree lines, but coming down was a little more treacherous as there was no firm footing and I ended up almost sliding down to ensure I did not end up in the emergency room. The lush forest we explored on an old road covered with green moss and running streams trickling down the pass. This was more like a Lothlórien in Middle Earth. After the walk Joshua and I ventured to Norquay, about 5 minutes outside to Banff, to do some climbing 'Via Ferrata' style. Wiki defines via ferrata (Italian for "iron road) is a protected climbing route found in the Alps and certain other locations. Our group of 7 was equipped with harnesses, helmets, and carabiners. We ventured up the route laid out by the cables, and connected to them with our carabiners to protect us from a fall. Our guide was an experienced climber, Katsu Goto, who was one of the original climbers to set the routes and bring via Ferrata climbing to Norquay. The trek took us over 7000 feet to spectacular views of Banff and the Bow river. An amazing adventure that took about 3 hours from start to finish, and Josh and I both said we'd take the longer route if we were to do it again. A great time. On our dive back we saw mountain goats and took a few pictures. Later we cooled off in the pool, read, and enjoyed a fondue dinner at the Waldhaus restaurant at the Fairmont. The evening ended with a cool rain and thunder storm.
Day 6:
* Today everyone was a little under the weather, and rain looked like 50% throughout the day, so after breakfast we ventured out to Johnston Canyon for a popular hike to see the upper and lower falls. Even with the weather as it was, the hike was crowded, but views were spectacular. The Johnston Canyon creek is clear ice blue and meandered through the canyon down some nice falls. It was about a 3 hour hike in total, taking time to enjoy the sound of the river and take pictures in an attempt to capture the moment. The memories, I'm sure, will be better than the pictures. We ended with a late lunch, early supper downtown Banff at the Irish pub to enjoy some Fish and Chips for the boys along with Bangers and Mash for the girls. A little stroll around town and back to the castle for winding it down at the spa and some good reading.
Day 7:
* Today we started the day with a couple croquet games, and met an nice lady, Kathy, on a tour with her husband who wanted to join in. It was nice having an experienced croquet player in the group to make sure we were playing by the rules, and not just making it up as we went along. Later Sarah and I took an adventure and walked up Tunnel mountain. A nearby mountain that gave great views of Banfff and the Bow River. It was approximately 3 miles round trip, and the views were fantastic. We stopped close to the top to watch some rock climbers make their way up the side of the mountain, took some great pictures and had some fantastic conversation about being a senior in high school and growing up. Still feeling a little under the weather, the afternoon was spent reading and enjoying the spa's steam room / sauna / and mineral pool. In the evening we walked into town, enjoyed a dinner at “Park” and ate some ice-cream at “Cow”…great fun “Moo” puns on the wall…. “Doctor Moo”, “PikaMoo”, “Moocraft”
Day 8:
* Our final day in Banff started with a breakfast and the adventure back to Lake Louise via the A1, a road that winds its way through the National Park and provides better opportunity to catch the native wildlife. This journey was not to disappoint, moments after we started down this slow road we came across a bunch of Long Horned Sheep crossing the road. Readying the cameras, we watched as the herd made its way to the other side of the road. Further down we saw more cars pulled over and I asked a driver in the other direction what everyone was looking at, "Bear", came the reply, as he pointed to a berry bush deeper into the forest. Sure enough, we focused on that spot and could see a large black bear foraging through the woods, eating as many berry's as he could. We turned the car around and joined the others slowing watching is movements and taking pictures in hopes to get a "good one". After 20 minutes the bear made its way out of the woods and bounded down the road, crossing to the other side and deeper into the forest. A spectacular animal to see in the wild and just amazed to actually see one. I'm not sure if my pictures will be focused, but I did capture one that shows the Bears "ear tag" as he was moving across the road. After the bear we took a few more photos of the landscape and made our way to Lake Louise. Taking in a lunch at the hotel overlooking the lake, we took a walk around the lake the other side. At the end of the trail we took our shoes off and ventured into the water to feel the chill, I lasted about 30 seconds before my feet started to feeling numb, they say the water is around 45-50 degrees, just crazy cold. The afternoon was spent driving back to our Castle at Banff and doing some resting, reading, and board game time in the lounge. Sarah taught me Mancala, which she went on to beat me in, and we enjoyed drinking tea and eating snacks. Tomorrow we head back to Louisville, and I must say this has been one of my best vacations. The mountain air, cool mornings, multiple hikes, and spectacular scenery, had my every moments expressing a WOW in some form or fashion. This was one vacation we'll want to do again in the future.