John Harvey Photo

Radium Hot Springs to Calgary
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By way of Kootenay National Park and Banff





Foggy Hill
We left Radium fairly early in the morning, and drove up highway 93 towards Banff. Very quickly we drove into the snow zone, and watched the fog grab the surround mountains.  We drove down km of highway, seeing only to the forest at the side of the road.


Numa Falls

Fog On Top Of Hill
Our first stop (in the soft rain) was Numa Falls.   The fog was starting to lift and we could see how beautiful the surrounding mountains were.  Walking the length of the parking lot, I could hear and then see the falls.

River SideNuma Falls (Veiled)


The Vermilion River has been carving this valley for a long time, and the rock around the falls shows the history of this friction.  These rock pictures remind me of the rock in antelope canyon in Arizona.

Layers CarvedStuff On Rocks

Carved Layered RocksStone Carved With Waterfall

Paint Pots

Mound Of Ocre
Back on the road again, we weren't in the car very long before we came to the paint pots.  I visited these as a child, so I was quite happy to see them again. 
 
  Ocre SoilPatch Of Yellow

By now the clouds are definitely burning off and the views are spectacular.   It really makes me wish I could get out to beautiful places like this more often.

Three Of Us Suspension Bridge

Purple BerriesMountainsMountains In Snow
 

Banff

We have been in small town British Columbia for the last two days so Banff was a bit of shock.  Big stores from Vancouver were here (Lush, The Old Spaghetti Factory, Club Monaco) as well as the tourist traps, specialized in removing dollars from Tourists.  There were a few "authentic" retail operations that seemed to represent an older day, but Banff was thoroughly commercial.

Grizzly HouseJapanese TouristsShops In Banff

One happy consequence of being so tourist oriented, was great asian food.  We found a small deli style restaurant specializing in Japanese food and I had a great Curry.

Tofu Curry

After a short walk around town (yup, just like Whistler - even the shop workers are imported from Australia), we drove over to the Cave and Basin to see what it's about.  The traffic was a little slow going down the road and we soon found out why - elk were feeding at the side of the road.  We pulled into the large parking lots and played tourist, taking photos of the local wildlife.

Baby ElkMale Elk FeedingElk Doe Sitting Down

The Cave and Basin didn't look to attractive, so we drove over to the Banff Hotel (wow!) and saw the falls.

  Banff HotelMountain Across River

Day 4: Calgary



Mountain Across River
Tags: mountain, river
River Side
Tags: fog, mountain, river
Ocre Soil
Location: Go To...
Tags: mud, plant
Banff Hotel
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Tags: hotel, Rocky Mountains
Stone Carved With Waterfall
Tags: rock, waterfall
Japanese Tourists
Tags: photographer, Rocky Mountains
Suspension Bridge
Tags: river
Tofu Curry
Tags: food porn, restaurant
Patch Of Yellow
Tags: mud
Elk Doe Sitting Down
Species: Cervus elaphus (Elk, Wapiti)
Location: Go To...
Tags: BC fauna, Rocky Mountains
Fog On Top Of Hill
Tags: fog, mountain, river
Numa Falls (Veiled)
Location: Go To...
Tags: waterfall
Purple Berries
Tags: fruit, tree
Baby Elk
Species: Cervus elaphus (Elk, Wapiti)
Location: Go To...
Tags: baby, BC fauna, Rocky Mountains
Mountains
Tags: mountain
Carved Layered Rocks
Tags: rock
Male Elk Feeding
Species: Cervus elaphus (Elk, Wapiti)
Tags: BC fauna, Rocky Mountains
Layers Carved
Location: Go To...
Tags: rock
Foggy Hill
Tags: fog, mountain
Mountains In Snow
Tags: mountain, Rocky Mountains
Grizzly House
Location: Go To...
Tags: restaurant, Rocky Mountains
Shops In Banff
Tags: shopping
Three Of Us
Person: Jeremy, John, Karen
Mound Of Ocre
Location: Go To...
Tags: Rocky Mountains
Stuff On Rocks
Tags: rock
Tags: Rocky Mountains(8), mountain(6), rock(4), river(4), BC fauna(3), fog(3)
People: Jeremy(1), John(1), Karen(1)
From: John Harvey Photo > A BC Road Trip > Radium to Calgary
From: John Harvey Photo > John's Overnight Page > A BC Road Trip > Radium to Calgary

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Last Modified Tuesday, June 9th, 2009 at 00:47:38 Edit
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