From Mountains to the Sea

After leaving Jasper we over-nighted in Golden, stayed in Kelowna and visited with our fabulous nieces/nephews and their families, met a good friend in Kamloops for coffee, met a new friend in Lillooet and stayed in Whistler for our wrap up dinner.  Here are some pics from along the way...

Heating Things Up in Jasper

Said a fond farewell to my sister this morning and trekked westward to Jasper for the next leg of our trip.  We had some quality brother/sister/sister in-law/sister time and MJ was a great host. Alberta grade A on the bbq, need I say more.

The weather through Edson and Hinton was springlike with hail,rain and sun all along the highway to the mountains.  When we got into Jasper we checked in then went for a hike. We managed to not see any grizzly bears or momma elk defending their babies. We are staying in a cabin on the bank of the Athabasca river that is near a very good restaurant where we spent the evening celebrating our 36 years together.

After dinner we lit this cozy fire you see in the video.  It went out, I re-lit it with lots of kindling that set the smoke alarm off and disturbed our neighbours who were in the middle of lighting a fire of their own, only they weren't using wood to heat things up.

Tomorrow should be our big day, From here to Golden is pretty spectacular. looking forward to it.

Edmonton Idyll

Pictures of beavers, fisherman and family, I will leave it to you to sort out which is which!

Rocky Mountain House Rocks!

Well the road to RMH is outstanding, can't say enough about the trip out of the Rockies to this little burg. The town itself is non-descript but once we worked through the old fort and picked up some of the history it actually started to meet my childhood vision of the place.  On the North Saskatchewan River with a view over the foothills to the Rockies the place makes total sense as the kickoff place for the trip through the mountains. So for me, Rocky Mountain House lived up to its name.

We left yesterday after an over-nighter with Michelle Brierely and a visit with her daughter in law Roxanne and two of her four children. A nice afternoon catching up and playing in the pool with the kids. Stayed at Michelle's place up the mountain at Silver Star and left early the next morning as the trip from Vernon to RMH is a long one.

Pam in the Revelstoke Zen Garden

Won't go on about the route we took and all the sights but its probably enough to say there are reasons people travel from everywhere to see it. Incredible.

We overnighted in a funky cabin in the forest near RMH then hit the road for Edmonton, got here in time for Jane to take us on a walk and bbq some steaks.  Great to see MJ again and looking forward to the next couple of days with her!

Rocky Mountain House. Now that's a place I have to see.

I like names that speak to their location, Trout Lake, Mission, Summerland, they paint a picture that makes you want to visit or at least drop in on your way by.  Rocky Mountain House has been one of those names that got stuck in my little boy imagination a long time ago.  I've always thought of it as rugged, surrounded by mountains where bears are a constant worry. Houses are made of stone and are reminiscent of those tall Swiss lodges hearty hikers stay in and, since this is where your journey through the Rockies begins, lots of stores for provisions.

I've stayed away from googling up images of the town, I want to just arrive and see it for myself.

Pam and I will let you know how it goes. Its one stop on an eight day road trip to Edmonton to see my sister Mary Jane and various other relatives and friends of ours.

Main stops include:
Vernon✔
Rocky Mountain House✔
Edmonton✔
Jasper✔
Golden✔
Kelowna✔
Kamloops✔
Lilloet✔
Whistler✔

See you along the way.