Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Incredible Landscape of the Canadian Rockies
It’s hard to find as much beauty mile for mile – or should I say kilometer for kilometer – as you will find in the Canadian Rockies.
Indeed the travel bug has hit again and assuming Covid is contained and we no longer are – and the border reopens – this will be one of our destinations in 2021.
So as a kind of mental preparation for the trip – and in response to Sunday Still’s Favorite Landscapes – I thought I’d share pictures from our last trip to Banff and Jasper National Parks in Alberta, Canada.
I’ll start with Banff where we camped at Tunnel Mountain and found wonderful views of Mt. Rundle with the Bow River winding in front.
We got another view of the mountain on a walk at Vermillion Lakes just before sunset where all was peaceful and serene.
On our way to Lake Louise we stopped for a hike at Johnston Canyon where a kind gentleman took our picture. We rarely get pictures of us together (I’m no good at selfies) so I was happy to get this one.
Later that day we arrived at the Queen of the Rockies – the lovely Miss Lake Louise. Depending on the time of year and from what angle you view her, you will find her waters milky green or turquoise. Or perhaps white if you arrive when she’s covered with snow as we did on one of our earlier trips!
If this lake isn’t enough for you there’s serious competition nearby at Moraine Lake and either one will make your jaw drop. Trust me.
To get from Lake Louise to Jasper we took the Icefields Parkway, one of the most beautiful drives in the world!
“The Parkway is dotted with more than 100 ancient glaciers, cascading waterfalls, dramatic rock spires, and emerald lakes set in sweeping valleys of thick pine and larch forests” according to the Icefields Parkway website.
Click on and scroll through the pictures below to enlarge them.
As if the mountains and the glaciers weren’t enough there are several must-see lakes to stop at along the way including these two: Peyto Lake
and Bow Lake.
We also stopped at roadside waterfalls like this giant,
before we arrived at Jasper National Park where we were surrounded by more of the Rockies and pristine lakes like the one below, Medicine Lake.
And with that I’m ready to go!
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 
Wow, that is spectacular scenery! I do hope you get to go this year!
Thank you! I hope so too! It’s been a few years and there really is nothing like it! 🙂
Staggeringly beautiful, Susanne! The reflections in many of the images are just so clear and perfect! Isn’t it wonderful that this is so close to Washington? Hans has visited Banff but I have not been any further north on the Eastern WA side than where our new home is in Nine Mile Falls. If we can’t travel to Canada, we’ll check out some local areas, like Sandpoint, Grand Coulee Dam, for sure this coming summer. The Canadian Rockies are near the top of my list for a road trip. Thanks for sharing your amazing photos!
Thank you so much! It truly is jaw dropping scenery and makes a wonderful road trip! From our side I think we can be there in a day and a half, so you’d be that much closer. You’re also closer to Glacier National Park in Montana which is just as beautiful just smaller in scale.
Yes, Glacier is high on our list, too! Another blogger, Joe, of Easin’ Along shared some fab photos of their trip this past summer. Such inspiration!
We want to go to Banff, as we have not been that far north before. It looks far more beautiful than the Rockies here in Colorado!
We’ve been there a few times and it truly is amazing! I hope you get to go.
Me, too!
Oh my goodness! I want to go here!!!! my oldest and her hubby drove through this area while helping her sister and brother in law move from alaska and said it was gorgeous!!
It truly is special. I wish everyone could see it!
So pretty! It looks like a fun place to go!😀
Thanks! It’s pretty amazing. It can be crowded at some of the most famous spots like Lake Louise so it’s best to go during the shoulder season.
Wonderful selection of photos. It looks like a great place to visit. I hope you’re able to go again this year.
Thanks Graham. It’s beautiful country. We’re hoping to be able travel again by late summer.
Wow, what a lovely post with amazing photos!
Lake Louise looks stunning and I guess that Jasper National Park is a place that sooner or later I should visit.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks so much for your comment. Banff and Jasper are both amazing with an endless supply of mountains and lakes, well worth a visit! And Lake Louise will take your breath away!
Wow, it is breathtaking. Going to put it on my Travel Bucket list for sure. Thank you for sharing. Hope you get to visit and share some more photos.
It’s a special.place! You’d love it. 😊Hopefully we’ll be able to travel by the end of summer. It makes a perfect road trip from Seattle.
I really love your selection of landscapes Susanne! One day I will get there…I hope!
Thanks so much! It’s a bit further for you but if you ever get to our corner of the world you would love it!
Spectacular scenery! Thanks for sharing – terrific story and photos!
Thanks so much John! I appreciate your comment! It really is a spectacular part of the world and an easy road trip from Seattle. I do hope we get to go again sometime in late summer or early fall.
So much of Canada remains unspoilt, Susanne. It is a huge country, with a relatively small population to its size. There is still that potential for ‘wilderness’.
Best wishes, Pete.
Yes, it’s a beautiful country and I’d love to see more of it. Fortunately British Columbia and Alberta make a nice road trip from Seattle. Banff and Lake Louise are really popular and get crowded in the summer so we try to go during the ‘shoulder’ season.
Fabulous shots of my home province. I never tire of this gorgeous scenery. I hope you get back soon.
Thank you! I’ve been there a few times but I still can’t get enough of it!
I live in Canada, but haven’t been that far west. I’d love to see it some day. Beautiful photos.
Thanks so much! I’ve only explored British Columbia and Alberta and they are both pretty wonderful. But I’d love to see other parts of Canada someday too! 😊
Hi Susanne, I recently joined in #SundayStills and saw your link in Terri’s comments. My husband and I live in Australia and visited the Canadian Rockies for a short trip in 2019. Magnificent, stunning and awe-inspiring are three words that come to mind. We would love to come back one day. Your photos are glorious and have brought many memories back to me reading your post, so thank you. #SundayStills
Thanks so much for stopping by. I’m glad you enjoyed my post. We love the Canadian Rockies and even though we’ve been there a few times already, we hope to make a trip later this year when it’s safe to travel again. I’d love to see Australia someday! I think it’s just about as far away from the Pacific Northwest as one can get! 🙂 🙂
Even with living in the shadow of the Colorado Rockies, I have to admit the Canadian Rockies are amazing. Haven’t been up there in many years but remember the Ice Fields Parkway going to and from Jasper. Stunning. And we drove through a snow storm in early August. This makes me want to go back.
It’s an expansive gorgeous landscape. I’ve been there a few times but I’m still looking forward to a return trip, hopefully this year.
I would love to return to the Rockies and see its wonderful landscapes. Moraine Lake is still one of my favourite places we’ve had a chance to visit many years ago, it’s amazing that such stunning places exist for us to enjoy. Thanks for sharing so many beautiful photos, Susanne and have a good day. Aiva 🙂
Thank you so much for your comment. The entire area is so beautiful and Moraine Lake is one of my favorites too! I hope you get a chance to return. 😊
Hi Susanne, I’m visiting from #SundayStills. Your shots are incredibly beautiful. This was a trip that we had to cancel in 2020 and cannot wait to rebook. What time of year did you go and would you recommend that same time? Also, your photos are tack sharp. Would you mind sharing what camera and lens you used for these.
Thanks for stopping by. These pictures were from our last trip in 2016. We were there in mid August, which was great except for the crowds at the most popular places like Lake Louise. So I would recommend going later in summer when kids are back in school. I used my Sony RX100M3 camera at the time, a compact. Next trip I will take my Sony RX10 which is a little better.
Truly is incredible!
It’s a special place!
Lovely – thank you. Another “takes me back” – I visited Banff and Lake Louise and also did some hiking in Jasper many many years ago (Jasper is where I encountered my very first moose!). If you go again to Lake Louise there’s also another lake nearby that is photo-worthy – I believe it is called “Lake Moraine” and indeed it is an actual moraine (as in, the geological term). The lake itself is inaccessible though there are viewing points via walkable / short hike – that lake has the deepest most startling indigo color you have ever seen. If they are still there, you would also be charmed by the large population of whistling marmots that live among the rocks in the area surrounding the lake.
You must have missed it. Moraine Lake is in the middle of my post after Lake Louise. I agree it’s a real beauty and worth seeing. 🙂