The rest of our drive to Lake Louise along the Icefields Parkway continued to be a most spectacular journey. We were surrounded by very tall peaks with all kinds of shapes, some geometric, some with long ridges and escarpments, many looking like giant slides, and many with glaciers in hollows along their top slopes, which from that distance looked like bowls of cream. Some of the mountains were so tall you really had to crane your neck as you looked out of the coach window to see their tops.
Since it had snowed just a few days earlier, trees on the upper slopes looked like crystal Christmas trees, shimmering in the afternoon light. This produced a picturesque striped effect with ice and snow above them, the dark green trees further down the slopes and the brown-grey rocks in between.
There were places where you could see there had been giant ‘rock avalanches’. Goodness, so many rocks and stones! These has been carved out and loosened by past glaciers and the water from melting snow. At one point we had to stop while a rock fall was being cleared. Of course there have been avalanches of snow here too.
On the way we stopped to see one more river from up above. It was very notable up here that the rivers were a creamy blue-green colour that is hard to describe. This is because the grinding of glaciers on the rocks has produced finely powdered ‘rock flour’ that has entered the water. We were told not to drink it because of its laxative effect . . .
At this stop, we had a chance to see some ‘Christmas trees’ up close. The frost on them was like tiny glass crystals - gorgeous to see. The altitude here was quite high, so we huffed and puffed our way down and up the path to the lookout. When we arrived there, the view was sensational, but Oh my - the ‘selfie nuts’ were taking risks again!
Finally we arrived in Lake Louise as the sun was setting. It was a beautiful large lake of that same milky blue-green colour surrounded by snow-capped mountains and trees, and a glacier perched high above the other end. And it was right here by the lake that our hotel was located. What a magnificent setting!
The following photos show that journey and views from up in the hotel that evening. The photos of the mountains until we reached the spot where we saw the river were taken out of the coach window. I took more photos at out hotel in Lake Louise early the next morning before we set off for Banff, which I will publish in my next post.
From the Athabasca Glacier to the river:
At the site of the lookout to the river:
Lake Louise and our hotel:
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