Jasper National Park, Alberta

We moved on to the Mecca of tourism in Canada: the Rocky Mountains corridor of the National Parks. As we were starting from Edmonton, it made sense to begin with Jasper, about 3.5 hours west, and then head south to Banff.

Jasper was impressive from the get-go. The Rocky Mountains began to be visible about 1.5 hours out. The immediate sense that this was a special place was only heightened the closer we came, and especially as the blue/green glacier lakes fed by the lovely Athabasca River came into view.

There was also another immediate sense upon arriving at our campsite: loathing. It was an open site without any privacy, to be sure. But the openness allowed for a panoramic view of three impressive mountains, and on the whole it was picturesque. There was no problem there. The issue was that it had been occupied (and apparently for some time) by my mortal enemy, the geese. They had the absolute run of the place and their turds provided ample evidence that their reign was longstanding. In the National Parks, animals are king--no matter the shitty results.

After shooing away the winged rodents and removing the turds from our site with a long stick, the place was quite comfortable indeed. They provided unlimited firewood as well, though it was somewhat undried and too large. I had managed to get through on this trip without an axe up to this point, but it was clear these things needed to be chopped. A kind old feller from Arizona, who was stopping over for the night on his way south from Alaska provided the axe after seeing me struggle. "Hello there young fella."

The first evening also brought a visit by two bull elks angling for territory. They seemed to be a fixture of the campsite as well, though the novelty made them a welcome one--at least at first. I was a bit put off when the dominant bull was standing in the path of the wood pile later, and sufficiently cowed enough to call it quits on refueling the campfire for the night.

The next day we woke up, ignored the geese and went on our first hikes.

Then we called it a night with Pyramid Mountain in the background. Again, tiptoeing around geese turds whenever a trip to the bathroom was necessary.

This site was 5 stars easy minus the geese, but they could not be ignored. Even so, the atmosphere was outstanding. It had a mystical aura, there was no doubt. Everybody I talked top said the same. Stellar place, but for the geese. It's clear a national conversation needs to be had about a geese cull at some point.

Day 2 saw us wake up to a balmy -3C and a frozen water hose (but not pipes as we had the propane water heater on for the first time on this trip). The sun brought instant warmth though, and by the time we started our hike in the Valley of the Five Lakes the temperature was well into the double digits. 

The colour of the lakes was the draw here.

We ended the day with a tour of Pyramid Island, which is overseen by the namesake holy mountain of the area.

Kenting once again sampled the fresh water.

We also spent some time in the Jasper village doing laundry, getting groceries, and such. I used the excuse of waiting for the laundry to grab a quick pint at the local brewery. It was fair, but nothing special.

Then we headed back for our last night in Jasper's Whistler Campground. Note, again, Pyramid Mountain in the distance. 

Oddly, the geese were nowhere to be seen. They may have been put off after I loosened Kenting's leash a bit that morning and he send them flying. They wouldn't return again.

By days end, Kenting was spent.

In the AM we got our first cloudy day in Jasper, but it brought its own atmosphere. And no geese, so no complaints.

The elk once again were making the campsite their own. Note the cow and her calf grazing amidst the campers. They seem to always be accompanied by a bull who goes ahead and calls to them with a rather haunting cry, as if to say "this way is safe, when you're ready." The bull also spends his time chasing off contenders.

This is one of the younger bulls who was intimated from the quarry. Very close to the action indeed. Sadly (or maybe it was for the best), we didn't see any actual duels.

We got a last look at the bull and then drove on through the Icefields Parkway, southward toward Banff. While Banff itself may be a little overrated/too touristy, the Icefields Parkway was probably the most beautiful 3 hours of driving we've had the pleasure of on this trip. And that was on a cloudy day, which is saying something.

Along the way we stopped at the Athabasca Falls. It was touristy at first, but once you went a little further there were no other people to spoil the view. We managed to get up-close to the river and found it to be one of the nicest spots we've been to on the trip.

The main destination on the Icefields Parkway is the Columbia Icefields. We weren't too interested in chasing down winter any further though, so we stopped briefly for a quick look and drove on southward to Banff.

It was very cold there.

On the whole though, we found Japser to be one of the nicest places we've been to on the trip. Quite possibly the nicest. It certainly gave Gros Morne in Newfoundland some competition, at least, and was more recommendable than Banff for being a little less packed in September (though I'm sure a few weeks earlier it would have been filled with the misery brought by human masses). I would go again in a heartbeat.