Canada - Sept. 4th

We started our Friday with a trip to a wolf center outside of Golden.  You can learn all about this place at their website: http://www.northernlightswildlife.com/about_us.html

It is a very small educational center with just four wolves. 

The wolves here just serve as ambassadors to their cousins in the wild, the guide told us.  They were brought here from less than desirable habitats - from zoos to homes where they never should have been pets.  They will never be reintroduced to the wild.  Volunteers gave a presentation just outside the fence, where they told us the truth about wolves.  There were many things we didn't know or understand, and with all the talk about them in our state, it was good to hear this side of it.

The owners of this establishment are seen as the alpha male and female of the pack.  The wolves are kept in just over one acre of land, with only two sides exposed to humans so they are easily able to stay out of sight and have their privacy.  The owners do take them out to freely roam the wilderness quite often.  Here's Maya coming back from her outing.  (They only put them on a rope when walking by tourists at the facility)

The wolves in their home habitat:

 

 

They had all four wolves together before, but a superiority battle broke out between the two females and they had to split them up.  They said this happens often in the wild, and the result is usually one leaving the pack.  Because these wolves are unable to leave, the owners had to find a way to let them co-exist in relative peace.  You still see the battle through the fence from time to time.  When Maya returned from her walk, Aspen greeted her with a tail raised high, which is to say "I am the boss".  A lot is communicated by the position of a wolf's tail.

After that enlightening visit, we headed into the small town of Golden.  There were a few galleries and shops to check out, but I was most interested in this bridge.

 

From woldweb.com: "The covered, timberframe pedestrian bridge that spans the Kicking Horse River in Downtown Golden ranks as one of Canada’s longest single span timber frame pedestrian bridges. Built by volunteers from all over the world it is evidence of what community corporation can accomplish."

 

I must admit it made me a tiny bit uneasy when I looked up and saw their methods of joinery...but it really is true timber frame construction and I love it.

 

 

Our picnic lunch of the day was at some wetlands known for good birdwatching.  We heard bird songs every now and again, but didn't really see any birds!  It was peaceful though.

 

Canada - Sept. 1,2,3

Sept. 1st...I remember being a very relaxing day.  I believe we played games and watched Wall-E.  That might have been the day Andy taught me to play tennis too.  And, I love the game now!

Sept. 2nd, we went to another resort down the road that had much better swimming facilities and paid for a 2-visits-in-1-day pass.  We spent the hours before lunch floating and playing in the naturally warm water and watching brave kids do flips off the diving boards.  Then, after dinner we returned to soak in the very crowded hot pool and swim some more.  We even got to watch the moon rise over the mountains as we enjoyed the warmth of the hot springs.

It was raining a little as we ate breakfast on Sept. 3rd.  There were fewer golfers outside our windows, but it didn't keep everyone away.  At one point, we looked out the window and saw what looked like an ice cream golf cart zipping by!  I wonder if it plays music...

 

The rain went away before long and we went for a drive to find more lakes.  We ended up on a winding gravel mountain road that went along Whiteswan Lake and Alces Lake, where moose often hang out.  We didn't see any, but it was a beautiful day to be out and about anyway.

 

Young collared mountain sheep trotted alongside the road as we drove slowly by.

 

The older ones hid in the brush away from the road. 

 

Once again, we were awed by the intense colors of the water here!

 We'd packed a lunch and found a spot near the lake to lay out a picnic.

 More driving brought us to the next lake where Don and Andy skipped rocks.

 

 I love mountain lakes!

 

Further along the winding road, we found a little creek.  Don, the rockhound, went wading to see what he could find.

 

Faith joined him and they came back with all sorts of cool rocks.

 

Back at the resort, I was hoping for another game of tennis.  But, the racquetball courts were calling to Andy and Faith, so I learned a little about that game before stepping out to let the two of them tear up the court.

  That is one intense sport!

 

Sightseeing in Canada

August 31st - Our first real vacation day in Canada, we were determined to see as much as we could!  After breakfast, we headed for Banff.  The scenery along the way was beautiful, and we were amazed at the color of the streams we caught glimpses of from time to time.

Just outside of Banff, we found a gondola up the mountain and took a ride to see what we might find there.

 

 

We were greeted by an awesome building at the top with restaurant, gift shops, all kinds of information about the mountains around us, and some options for hiking.  There is actually a trail from the bottom of the mountain up to this lodge.  We met one woman who'd come up that way.  I think she said it had taken her 6 hours.  The more popular trail was one to a lookout point (you can see it here in the distance).

 

This wasn't like any trail I've ever hiked on, but it got the job done and kept the throngs of people from getting off the "trail" and trampling the plants that were growing at this elevation.

 

There were lots of wide landings to check out the grand views, and we lucked out with a beautiful, clear day.

 

 

Then, we continued to the lookout point.  It was a locked up stone hut with lots of people wanting their turn to peek in the windows.

 

We spent the next couple of hours exploring the shops in Banff...

 

...and wondering how many car/bear accidents there really have been here!

 

Back to the highway to find Lake Louise - passing through lots of cool tunnels on the way.

 

Found it!  This lake is also a very unique blue color, but it was hard to capture with the sun shining so bright today!  We were told there are some good-sized glaciers on the mountain beyond, but the sun was blinding us from that direction and we couldn't make them out.

 

While we waited for the sun to move, we took a walk around the lake and found a fun place to snap portraits:

 

 

And throw each other in the water??

A huge hotel overlooks the lake.  This is where Don's parents spent their honeymoon!

 

We went inside to check it out.  The views from inside are breathtaking!

Grand lobby

 

The sun finally hid behind a cloud as we were leaving, and now you can see the glaciers on the far mountain.  This would be the first time I've seen one, knowing what it was at least.  Pretty cool!

 

Next stop: Moraine Lake.  This one was more peaceful.  The water was so clear and still, it was the perfect mirror.

We spent the bulk of our time here watching the chipmunks!  They were such curious creatures and two of them were vying for this box of crackers someone had carelessly left behind.

 

We were satisfied with our day's adventures by this point and headed back to Fairmont Hot Springs.  As we cruised along, the sun was setting and the wildlife were out and about.  All-in-all a fabulous ending to our first day in Canada.

 

 

 

On the Road Yet Again...Destination: Canada

It was time for Andy to have a vacation, and he was nice enough to take me with him even though I'd already had more than my fair share this summer!  We also invited Don and Faith to spend the week with us in Fairmont Hot Springs, BC, Canada.  They've been so generous in sharing their timeshare vacations with us, and we wanted to pay them back in some way!  Besides, they're great company :)

Andy had been eyeing a project car listed on Craigslist for months and we just so happened to be somewhat passing by where it sat, so he called up the owner and arranged to meet him on our way through.  We met the guy just off the main road and then followed him along winding gravel mountain roads, saying to each other as we went that he could definitely get us lost if he wanted to!

Thankfully, he really did want to show us a car and we spent some time looking at it and others in his yard and talking to him about projects he's built in the past.  Pretty fascinating guy!  Andy looked long and hard at the car and told him he'd think about it over the next week and maybe we'd be stopping by on the way home.

 

 

Then, the nice fellow gave us good directions back to the main road and we continued on to our destination, the condos at Fairmont Hot Springs!