A Mountain Cruise High in the Canadian Rockies: Maligne Lake

The smell of sizzling bacon permeates our little cabin in the woods. Since we have a kitchen, I decided to save a little money by cooking our breakfast each day. Last night, I went into town to buy enough food for our stay and now I'm cooking the first meal in the cabin.

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It gives it a homey, campout kind of feeling.

The range hood doesn't clear the smoke quite fast enough for the smoke detector, however, so we open the windows and turn on the ceiling fan to help clear it out. This has the side effect of pulling that very crisp, early morning, Canadian mountain air in.

We counter that by turning on the gas fireplace next to the dining table. It's a very good breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, and some locally baked, whole-grain toast.

Well fed and ready for the day, we head out for today's adventure. About an hour's drive from the cabin, we cross back into Jasper National Park where a snowstorm last week leaves it presence with a covering of snow on the ground as we climb higher in elevation.

It's a long enough drive that Tim falls asleep in his seat but in good time, we're pulling into the lot for the Lake Maligne Boat Cruise. An email exchange before we left home told us that if we called the morning of our tour, they'd have an accessible boat ready for us. I called this morning and was told "that's not accessible." When I brought up the email exchange, I was put on hold while the operator checked. "You're right, they'll have an accessible boat for the 1:15pm tour."

It's a bit of a walk from the parking lot since the normal trail to the ticket hut is covered with snow so Tim and I have to backtrack to the road and go around that way. We check in and head to the dock.

A lady named Sarah meets us there. She'll be the tour guide on the boat.  She leads us onto the dock, to the back of the boat, where the entrance is. There's about a 12 inch step into the boat.

"Do you want us to back up so you can bring out the ramp?" I ask.

"We don't have a ramp," she responds.

"How are we supposed to get on board?"

She calls up for help and the boat's driver, Scott, shows up. He helps me steady Tim while I pop a foot-high wheelie to get him over the lip. On the boat's fantail, I see the next challenge...a skinny door with a 4 inch lip.

I ask them, "do you expect him to sit outside, here on the back of the boat?" The sheepish looks on their faces tell me that they did. That just won't do in this near-freezing temperature on a speeding boat.

We're very lucky that Tim's travel wheelchair was just skinny enough to fit through the door. A little manhandling over the lip, then the aisle to the front of the boat was plenty wide enough and there is ample space up front.

It does concern me that they told me ahead of time that it was wheelchair accessible. If we'd had Tim's regular power chair, we would have never have made it on board.  You definitely need a light, fairly narrow chair, a lot of gumption, and patience if you're a wheelchair user who wants to take this tour.

Well, we have the necessities so Tim's ensconced in his position near the bow. Scott backs the boat out and Sarah begins her spiel. The journey is underway.

Maligne Lake sits in a glacial valley between two sets of mountains, the Maligne mountains on the east side and the Queen Elizabeth range on the west. The surface of the lake is over a mile high and recent storms have left their mark with the snow. It's cold outside but warm inside the cabin of the boat.

The guide passed around rock samples from the surrounding mountain ranges. Fossils are apparent in the rock from the Queen Elizabeth side.

After we clear the bay where the docks are located, it's full speed ahead. The boat is surprisingly fast. It slows when kayakers or canoers are about but continues it's pace when another tour boat passes the other way. This makes for a little thrill as the craft bashes through the wake of the other boat.

Along the way, Sarah points out a couple of huge glaciers high up in the surrounding peaks, one of which she says we can only see 5% of. It's amazing how big they are and the power they have within. This lake and the entire valley were carved out by glaciers.

About a half hour in, we get to the tour's destination, Spirit Island, several miles south of our departure point. It's actually pretty tiny, maybe fifty feet long, and is not an island. At least not today, when the water level rises in the spring, the small isthmus is covered, cutting off the small land mass from the shore.

We're given about a half hour to explore the area but are told to stay off Spirit Island. This is holy ground for the First Nations people of the area (what we in the U.S. would call Native Americans) and a spear stuck into the ground is evidence of a recent ceremony from these native Canadians.

Unfortunately, this part of the tour is not accessible in the least so Tim has to wait on the boat. I stay with him while Letty goes out to take pictures. Tim and I use the time to strike up a conversation with the driver and guide...Scott and Sarah...and find Scott is getting ready to make a 5-week trip to our neck of the woods. This allows for Tim and I to be a guide to one of our guides and let him know what he should not miss on his visit to California.

Ten minutes before we leave, the boat's horn is sounded to alert passengers to head back and get on board. The trip back is pretty much without narration. Passengers and crew mingle. We can go outside for fresh air, take pictures, and socialize.

Back at the dock, we work our way out and back to the car. On the way down the valley, we make a stop at Medicine Lake.

This lake is famous for it's disappearing act that happens each year.  The bottom of the lake is riddled with limestone sinkholes.

While the spring thaw fills it to overflowing, in the fall the Maligne River does not fill it fast enough. The lake drains to a mudflat, with the river flowing down the middle.  Today, it looks about ten feet below it's peak showing that the draining is well underway.

Next spring it will fill again.

We stop off in the town of Jasper for dinner at the Jasper Brewing Company before heading back to the cabin to relax for the night.

Darryl Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Photos by Letty Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

On Top of the World! Jasper Skytram - Alberta, Canada

This journey to the top of the world didn't exactly start at the bottom. We're around 3,500 feet in elevation at our cabin by the Athabasca River. It's not exactly chilly this morning as I cook breakfast but we imagine on top of the nearby Whistlers Peak it will be cold so we put on our thermal underwear, take our down jackets, and the beanies that Letty had knitted for us before the trip.

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After three days of sketchy accessibility and parking on our daily adventures, it's nice to great handicapped parking right at the entrance of the Jasper Skytram. Tim goes up the big ramp to the ticket office and gift shop while I buy the tickets.

We have about twenty minutes until our allotted time (they call it a 'flight' and you're given a flight number). Tim picks out a shirt in the gift shop, which will be held for us until we return, and we spend a minute looking at the machinery that runs the tram.

The operator lets Tim on first when it's time to leave. It's pretty easy for him to roll on board. After the rest of the passengers step on board, we're off while the operator tells us about the tram and the scenery we're seeing as we go up.

Seven minutes later, we're exiting the tram at the upper station. A combination of paved trail and boardwalk let's Tim wander around this section of mountaintop near the upper lodge. 

We take in the sights, take some pictures, and look down on our cabin, several thousand feet below next to the ribbon of the river.

I point out Mt. Robson, the tallest of the Canadian Rockies, to Tim. It's over in the distance in British Columbia.

Most of this upper chalet is accessible but the restaurant is upstairs and we can't reach it so we browse the gift shop, take some more video and pictures, then queue up to take the tram back down.

Back in town, we do a little shopping before retiring to the Whistle Stop Pub, a friendly little joint across from the train station that Tim bugged us to try. I'm glad he did because it's a neat place to hang out with the locals before heading back to the cabin.

Our cabin resort has it's own gourmet restaurant that we've neglected to try. Since this is our last night here, we decide to give it a go. 

A table by the front window gives us a view of the Athabasca River and a herd of elk decide to wander across the far bank.

The chef has a special of locally caught wild boar, which we take advantage of. Tomahawk style chops come out, filling us up very nicely before we retire back in the cabin for the night.

Tomorrow, we check out and head back down the Icefields Parkway to finish up our trip in Calgary.

Darryl Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Photos by Letty Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Falling Into the Abyss: Athabasca Falls, Jasper National Park, Canada

Our next big adventure in Jasper National Park does not require clear skies but it would be really helpful. There are some clouds hanging around today, obscuring some views, so we decide to switch it up a bit and do a short hike that doesn't require great weather.

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It's maybe a 20 mile drive from our cabin to the parking lot of Athabasca Falls. The Parks Canada website says the trail to the falls is wheelchair accessible. There is no handicapped parking that we can see, however. We end up parking in the RV section, which is the only place where I can park and still have room to get Tim and his chair out.

The weather is fall crisp, not too cold and maybe even on the edge of warm. Tim rolls to the edge of the Athabasca River with no problem.

Getting to the actual falls is a bit trickier.  Yes, there is a paved trail to a platform overlooking the main cataract but boulders and tree roots stick through at random points. The trail leans to the left when it isn't leaning to the right. To get to the main walkway overlooking the falls requires going down about a dozen steps. This tight and crowded platform is as far as wheelchairs can go.

Tim makes it through but I definitely need to guide him around the obstacles and keep my hands on the chair to keep it from veering off to the side. Let's just say that the Canadian Parks service has a bit of a different definition of 'wheelchair accessible' than I do.

Once the work of getting Tim to the viewing platform is done, we get a magnificent view of the top of the falls.

There seems to be three tiers of falls, this upper fall...

...a mid point fall as it enters a narrow slot canyon...

...and the end where the falls exit the canyon into a stunningly turquoise colored lake.

Of course, Tim can only see the upper portion.  Afterward, I take him back out of the parking lot and to the highway bridge that goes over the falls so he can see some more of it.  There's no sidewalk here and you're exposed to traffic but, being careful and watchful, I help him out to where the view is better.

When Tim's seen enough (happens pretty quick with this city guy), we head back to the car to hang out and listen to music while Letty goes over the inaccessible parts of the trail to get some more pictures.

As with every adventure we take in Jasper, we head back into town to have a pint at the Whistle Stop Pub and to browse some of the shops in downtown Jasper.

Tim and I take some time to visit the historic Jasper train depot. A big adventure for a lot of people is to take the train across Canada...it stops here for a couple of hours so passengers can get a taste of the town. Others just take the train up from Edmonton for a Jasper vacation.

There's the pretty waiting room and an old locomotive out front.

Back in the cabin, Letty and I head to the resort's laundry room to take care of our dirty clothes.  It's one of the few places here you can get a wifi signal.  I notice someone is trying to message me on Facebook but I don't have Messenger installed on this phone.

With the very spotty wifi service up here, it takes me two hours to download and install. The message is from our friend, Bart, in Calgary telling us there will be a good Aurora Borealis tonight.

We've never seen it so, before we go to bed, we spend some time in the chilly outdoors...in a dark area behind the resort's maintenance shed...with a few other Asian tourists looking up into the now-clear night sky.

It's not the brightest thing we've ever seen but there they are, materializing every few minutes like a far off used car dealership spotlight...white bands appearing for a minute or so before fading away. Sometimes, even a curtain of misty-like white light.

With another check off the bucket list, being able to see the Northern Lights for the first time in our lives, we bed back down in our cozy cabin to rest up for the next day's adventure.

Darryl Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Photos by Letty Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Taking the Scenic Route: Calgary to Jasper in a Day

If we were to go non stop, the drive from the Calgary Airport Homewood Suites to our destination in Jasper National Park would take about three hours. We’re going to take it a bit slower than that, though, as we see some sights along the way.

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When planning this trip, it was to be between Banff and Jasper National Parks. What swung the balance to Jasper was the best accessible accomodations I could find were in Jasper. Although I would have loved to stay at the Fairmont Chateau on the shore of Lake Louise but, even though I’m sure they have accessible rooms, the price of around a thousand dollars a night (and up) was a big budget buster...even if it was Canadian dollars.

Still, I have always wanted to see the Lake Louise area ever since an aborted ski trip over thirty years ago. Finally, I have my chance.  Today we’ll stop and the plan is to splurge on a lakeside lunch at the Fairmont.

A few miles before the exit to Lake Louise, we start to spot sattelite parking lots where overflow visitors would park and take shuttle buses up to the lake. Uh oh...I don’t have time for this.

The crowds are thickening and parking attendants are pressed into directing traffic into and around the town. Signs on the way up to the lake warn of no parking available and to turn around now to go to the sattelite lots.

I decide to keep driving up...if no parking is available, we’ll press on to Jasper.

We arrive at the hotel, one lot on the right is designated as a handicapped lot. An attendant is waving everybody past. I point to our placard, hanging from the rear view mirror, and she waves me in. The closest parking spot to the lake and the hotel is a handicapped spot and it is empty.

Someone was smiling on me that day.

A small bridge over the creek that drains the lake led us to the path to the shore. The water is world-famous for it’s turquoise blue water backing up into the glacial canyon. Ancient glaciers still perch on the cliffs, dangling precariously over the other side of the lake. Snow covers the mountainsides during this last week of September.

It’s a beautiful sight, which is why thousands of tourists are lined around the eastern shoreline with their selfie sticks, squeezed between the lake and the massive hotel.

Walking around, we take a few pictures ourselves and explore some of the scenery before heading into the hotel.

There are a handful of restaurants open. We head to the Lobby Lounge, which commands the best views of the lake and the glaciers. Hotel guests get priority over day visitors but we get lucky again and a table is found for us right away.

Tim goes with a burger but has poutine on the side instead of basic fries. Letty has a vegetarian pasta dish with spinach and asparagus. I have a bowl of French onion soup.

It’s all very delicious, a bit more than I’d pay below, but it’s a splurge and the view is to die for.

Letty spends a little time in the gift shops (a spool of yarn for $150???) and Tim and I check out the historical photographs off of the main lobby.

It’s back on the road where we drive past a glass floored bridge that you can pay serious bucks to walk on then we arrive at the Columbia Icefield.

This spot is where several glaciers come together and the meltwater forms the headwaters of the Athabasca River, which eventually empties into the Arctic Ocean.

The Athabasca Glacier is across the highway from the visitor’s parking lot. You can hike up to, and climb on, the glacier. You can also take a bus...several which are wheelchair accessible...to take a ride on the glacier and spend some time walking on it.

Tim is not interested so, after taking some picture, we continue on.

We’re making some progress as we leave Banff and enter Jasper park. I should mention that all the national parks in Canada are admission-free this year as they celebrate 150 years of being independent. I cruise through the closed entrance booths.

Before long, I’m being stopped in the middle of the road by a flagwoman. She knocks on my window as I stop.

“It’ll be about 20 minutes before I can let you pass.”

I turn off the car, get out, and she shows me the men dangling from ropes high on a sheer cliff a little down the road. They’re blasting and after the dynamiting, those guys hit it with shovels and rakes to sweep the debris down to a waiting dump truck. They do this to lessen the probability of a landslide in the winter.

Quite a backup has built up behind me by the time she gives me the greenlight to continue on.

No more stops for us and soon we exit the park next to a couple of more empty entrance booths. Just a mile or so beyond, we turn into our home for the next few days...Becker’s Chalets...a cabin village along the shore of the Athabasca River.

It takes me a lap of the grounds before I realize that the office is in the restaurant that I passed at the entrance.

I go in, register, and am handed an old-fashioned  plastic tagged room key.

There are two accessible cabins here with roll in showers. One, closer to the river and the resort’s playground. Our is the second, located in a secluded corner next to the woods.

It’s a large, very large, one room cabin with a queen bed, a twin bed, and a queen sofabed. The roll in shower has a large fold down bench, and there’s plenty of room to manuever.

A full kitchen and dining room is included, as is a fireplace, so I head into the nearby town of Jasper to get some groceries to make breakfast after settling in.

Our rental car has a GPS so I follow it into town.  The road is closed so I follow a detour.  This leads me to a dead end and I double back.

Before I get to the highway, however, I see these four beauties on the road.

After that, I get this jealous boyfriend walking by my driver’s side window.

Evening entertainment over, I finally find my way into town to get supplies and meet back up with Letty and Tim in the cabin. We’ll relax a bit over some wine by the river before bedding down in our very comfortable and cozy beds.

We’ll see you in the morning.

Darryl Musick

Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

Photos by Letty Musick

Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved

A Smooth Start to a Rocky Vacation: The Canadian Rockies of Alberta

Tim's a bit nervous. To be fair, he always gets a bit on edge before a trip. Especially if it involves flying on a plane.  This has been a recent development and has flared up the most when we have a lot of connections with long flights and hit it's peak with the 27 hour, three leg trip we took to Berlin a year ago.

Ever since, it's been a struggle when flying. Once we leave, he's fine, but a couple of days before, no one's life is good.

He's been trying and gradually getting better about it. One of the things that made us choose this destination was that it was a short 3-hour nonstop flight from LAX to Calgary. Baby steps back to his old self.  The frustration for him was that we had to leave from one of the worst airports in the world but, luckily, it turned out to go pretty smoothly and Terminal 2 had recently been upgraded. Really upgraded. In fact, it's been a long time since I can say this, but it was actually pretty pleasant going through Los Angeles' main airport this time.

We whiled away our one hour waiting time having a delicious (!) breakfast at Slapfish.

Westjet treated us very well, we had good seats, easy boarding, and an actually delightful flight up to Alberta. Navigating customs and passport control was a breeze.  If I could complain about anything, maybe the very long walks through the sparkling clean Calgary airport concourses to the rental car centre would be about it.

Enterprise was very quick and helpful getting us into our Ford Escape and it was a five minute drive to our first night hotel.

We'd be spending the night at the Homewood Suites near the airport, then driving up to Jasper National Park in the morning.

Homewood had our room waiting, just as ordered. A Tim Horton's across the street provided a nice dinner of paninis and Boston cream donuts.

We had a peaceful night's sleep and a delicious breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon in the morning.

Now, we load up the car and we head out. We're planning on a long, slow day's drive...taking in a few sights along the way...to a cabin we have reserved in Jasper.

We'll cover that on our next post.

Darryl Musick
Copyright 2017 - All Rights Reserved