Banff & Jasper National Parks – June 23 thru 26

June 28, 2026 / dadartphotography / 1 Comment

Alaskan Adventure: Days 23-26. Internet was real iffy in the National Parks. Signs along TransCanada Highway 1 say “No cell service next 350 Kilometers”. I’m way behind on posting pics so this post will cover several days.

June 23 – Tuesday: Another beautiful sunny day. We were still ahead of the rest of group from church so we decided to do the drive up through Banff and then up toward Jasper on the Icefields Parkway. We would see this again on June 26 when we moved from our campsite at Banff to our campsite at Hinton but would not be able to stop at the overlooks with the RV and tow car. Also looking at weather ahead it was forecast to be rainy on our travel day which turned out to be true so we were glad we did the drive on a sunny day.

Breathtaking mountains, glaciers, waterfalls, turquoise rivers and lakes! This is a beautiful drive.

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Such a variety of different mountains. I didn’t keep track of place names, just enjoyed the drive and took a few pics along the way. Really wanted to get up to Sunwapta Falls near Jasper. Next group of pics and videos is of Sunwapta Falls.

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Tourists enjoying one of our favorite places on earth.

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The “Weeping Wall”

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The Banff Visitor Centre at Lake Louise. We stopped here on our way back. There are some shops nearby and a small grocery where we picked up some sandwiches for dinner.

We stopped at Johnston Canyon Campground and had dinner with Damon and others who had arrived that afternoon. Enjoyed seeing everyone from home after 23 days on our own!

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Sad to say I have no pics of the evening at camp. But I did take this pic of the tallest, healthiest dandelions I’ve ever seen… We said our goodbyes for the day and headed back to our campground about 30 minutes away. Very soon after leaving the campground Becky says “Oh! I thought I saw a bear but it’s just a culvert” We drove right by and both went “It WAS a BEAR!” so turned around a got a pic. This bear was headed in the direction of the campground, looking for a pic-a-nic basket no doubt.

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The “Culvert”

The Bear.

June 24 – Today was a day of errands. We both needed haircuts so drove into the nearby Town of Canmore for that and some groceries. While there we checked with Aspen Glass to see if they could fix the crack in our RV windshield. They said yes, if we could be back with the RV in an hour. So we rushed back to Banff and got back to Canmore with the RV. They worked for almost an hour to inject some kind of glue into the crack. Some went in but not as much as Brian (the shop owner) would have liked. I was shocked when he would not accept any payment for his time and materials. Highly recommend Aspen Glass and thank Brian for his help and generosity!

After getting back from Canmore we drove up to visit with the Johnston Canyon Campground group and have dinner with Damon. We had purchased some baby back ribs in Canmore so Damon heated those up on his grill. It was a good time together.

The only pictures today are from our campsite. As we were getting ready to drive to Canmore a herd of elk were walking through. They walked right by. We had to wait for one of them to move so we could back out of our parking spot.

Waiting in the car for elk to finish grazing so we can back up and go. There were lots of baby elk who made cute squeaky noises amid a few bellows from the bull elk watching over his harem.

June 25 – This morning we drove back up to the Johnston Canyon Campground. We picked up Damon and headed for the Lake Louise ski area where all the buses come and go for visits to Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. Becky and I paid for a bus trip to Lake Moraine and back so pics that follow are all Lake Moraine. Damon had a ticket for both lakes on a different bus line.

Day 25 Banff Moraine LakeUntitled_Panorama-1

It’s called “Moraine Lake because it is held back by a moraine of rocks blocking the valley and creating the lake. At the lowest spot the melting snow runs out of the lake here where there is a stream under all those logs. Each winter avalanches drag trees down into the frozen lake. In the spring they all float to here in a big log jam.

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While waiting for Damon’s bus we walked along the lakeshore path and enjoyed views of the clear water and turquoise colors.

View from the parking lot where we met up with Damon.

Becky waited for us at the Cafe/Gift Shop area while Damon and I went to climb “The Rockpile”.

Damon really wanted to see a bear. Making the best of things by befriending two pet bears.

Getting ready to climb the Rockpile.

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Moraine Lake from the Rockpile.

Mug shots from “The Rockpile”.

This is “Castle Rock”. Below the front edge of that mountain in the valley is Johnston Canyon and the Johnston Canyon Campground. Damon (the mountain goat) climbed a trail that ended just above the tree line at that front edge.

Hanson’s said “we’re going to Banff for vacation; if anyone wants to tag along you’re welcome” and look what happened!
Photo credit goes to Haley Ney. Herding cats credit goes to David for getting everyone together for this shot. I don’t know all the names so not even going to try. If anyone wants to send me a list I’ll post it here.

“The Hoodoos” rock formation near our campground.

Elk at the turn-in to our campground. Obeying the stop sign and checking traffic before crossing…

June 26 – We left Banff and traveled through Jasper to Hinton. It was a rainy day as expected but the views were still beautiful with low hanging clouds in the valleys. Below are three pics for the day, all from the dashcam.

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Wildlife overpass bridges look much more natural. We saw them 10 years ago as they were just being built.

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This is the “Welcome to Jasper” sign with the entire area burned by massive fires. Very sad after seeing this area 3 years ago before the fires.

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The massive smooth black rock here has been rubbed over by a glacier. I think that’s cool.

We arrived in Hinton at the Jasper/Hinton KOA. That’s it for this “Part 1” of the trip. We will do laundry and shopping in Hinton before heading up the “Scenic Route” to Dawson Creek where we will meet the rest of our RVAdventureTrek group for the next two months in Alaska.

Favorite Bible verses for today: Matthew 6:25-34

²⁵“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^[a]?²⁸“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Waterton to Banff NP – June 21 & 22

June 27, 2026June 28, 2026 / dadartphotography / Leave a comment

Alaskan Adventure: Day 21 & 22. Travel day from Waterton National Park to Banff National Park with a stop at “Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and the first day visit to downtown Banff.

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When we raised the front blind we discovered a crack in the front windshield. There was a little chip in the glass right at the bottom. Must have happened several days earlier when traveling from Glacier to Waterton but the crack going up was new. Hopefully will not get worse.

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Leaving Waterton on another sunny day we stopped at an overlook with a wide open view of the open grasslands.

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Explanation of the area. We have seen lots of antelopes and deer on our travels but either too far away or no place to stop for photos.

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We stopped to see the “Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump” World Heritage Site because, curiosity.

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Explanation of where the name came from is not what we expected.

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Looking out from above – the Buffalo’s perspective.

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Looking up from below – the Indians perspective.

Picture doesn’t give the impression of how high and dangerous the cliffs are.

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Illustration and diorama of the buffalo jump kill site.

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Interesting to learn about all the planning and prep that went into this.

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Seeing small herds of buffalo in Custer State Park was great but sort of sad to know they once ruled the plains.

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Winter Count Robe records with symbols the most important thing that happened each year.

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Napi is Indian name for “the creator”. I thought erratics were just random glacial left behinds, not grouped in a “train”.

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There was an Indian “Fancy Dancer” at the Visitors Center with lots of people sitting around watching. Way too loud for me. We left quickly because of the amplified noise and because the mosquitoes were fierce!

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We left Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and headed north toward Calgary on Highway 2 but had to turn around and backtrack due to a bad accident that they told us would block the road for several hours. It worked out well because that sent us to Highway 22 that was a beautiful drive along the edge of the mountains instead of across the open plains. Photo above is our campsite at Banff called Tunnel Mountain Trailer Court. We stayed here 5 nights.

Day 22 Banff DowntownUntitled_Panorama-1

On our first day we rode the “Roam” shuttle bus from the campground into downtown Banff. A quick stop at the Visitors Center then stopped at a bank to get some Canadian money. We walked the main street with lots of expensive shops (Banff Avenue) down to the Bow River and then along the river to the Bow Falls.

Tourists and flowers in Banff.

The beginning of Bow Falls (on the Bow River). The town of Banff is in the Bow River Valley and Bow Glacier is the primary origin of the river. After walking the trail along the rapids for awhile we headed back into town for lunch at Indian Curry House.

Reading two books as we travel. “No Ordinary Woman” was recommended by Becky’s sister Deanne. Interesting story of a Quaker woman from Philadelphia area who loved the Canadian Rockies and had a significant part in the history of the Banff/Jasper area. “Jesus the King” is a Tim Keller book on the Gospel of Mark.

Favorite Bible reading for the day: Isaiah 66: 1-2

This is what the Lord says:
“Heaven is my throne,
    and the earth is my footstool.
Where is the house that you would build for me,
    and where will my resting place be?
All these things my hand has made,
    and so all these things came into being,”
        declares the Lord.
“But this is the one to whom I will look favorably:
    to the one who is humble and contrite in spirit,
        and who trembles at my message

Waterton Lakes National Park – June 19th

June 19, 2026June 24, 2026 / dadartphotography / Leave a comment

Alaskan Adventure: Day 19. We crossed into Canada today! Changed the Garmin from miles to kilometers.

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Sign for Alberta, Canada just after crossing through customs. No issues, the crossing was easy.

Day 19 Waterton Lakes NPWaterton Glacier Map

Map of Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks. Together they are the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park. We traveled today from Saint Mary, up to Cardston, and over to Waterton Lakes. It was too early to get into our campground (Crooked Creek) so we went to visit the town of Waterton Village.

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Coming into Waterton Lakes area is strange. Here there is no “Front Range” of lower mountains before the Rockies pop up. It’s just rolling green hills of prairie until bang, the mountains stand up.

Parked in Waterton Village with mountain and burned trees in background. We visited the Prince of Wales Hotel in a quick trip 10 years ago in 2016 but did not make it down into the village below the hotel. We did not remember much of the surrounding mountains being burned off then. There was a huge fire, started by lightning 9 years ago in 2017.

Nice house and flowers near where we parked in Waterton.

There is a really nice new Visitors Center.

Deer walked right through the Visitors Center plaza.

Got the Waterton Lakes stamp to go with the Glacier stamp.

Cool relief diorama in the Visitors Center

Parka, the official female beaver mascot of Parks Canada.

Looking north up the lake to Prince of Wales Hotel. We will visit the hotel tomorrow. Named after the popular Prince Edward of Wales back in 1927 (who later became King Edward III) in an effort to entice him to visit. No Prince of Wales has ever visited the hotel… This hotel, like the one not far away at Many Glacier, was built by the American Great Northern Railway. It is worth a visit to Waterton to see this impressive 100 year old building.

Looking south down the lake. That’s the United States (Glacier National Park, Montana) at the far end of the lake.

Already feeling “Woke Canada” and the worship of water, without acknowledging the Creator of water.

Crown of the Continent is a fitting title for the beginning of three major rivers: Saskatchewan emptying into Hudson Bay, Columbia emptying into the Pacific Ocean, and the Missouri/Mississippi emptying into the Gulf/Atlantic Ocean.

This makes me sad.

Favorite Bible reading passage for today: Job 38:1-4

Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm. He said:
“Who is this that obscures my plans
    with words without knowledge?
Brace yourself like a man;
    I will question you,
    and you shall answer me.
“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
    Tell me, if you understand.

2023 Fall – Canadian Rockies

August 14, 2023February 23, 2025 / dadartphotography / Leave a comment

Preface:

Seven years ago (2016), while Becky and I were still working, we flew to Spokane, WA. for a whirlwind visit to Glacier National Park and the Canadian Rockies. We met up with Becky’s sisters Jennie and Deanne and Jennie’s partner Roni. That trip was breathtakingly majestic. We all wanted to go back someday. This more leisurely trip with our friends John and Pam Hanson was to be “the longed-for relaxing return visit.” The main goal was to enjoy an extended, unhurried time in the beautiful Jasper (#11 on the map), Kootenay (#12), and Banff areas (#13).

This was the Route map we planned for this trip. We left August 20 and planned to return October 15. We followed the plan up to stop #11 at Jasper National Park. The map below shows the route we took home.

The trip to Jasper was as planned up to Jasper National Park (where we were staying at Hinton KOA – #11 on the map). However, after 20 days, including five days at Jasper National Park, we got the terrible news that our son Daniel had died. We left John and Pam and headed straight home to Indianapolis from Jasper; as fast as we could. This revised map shows what we actually did and the sad, anxious 4 day trip back home to family and friends. There is so much that could be said, so many thoughts and prayers on that day and the days since; so much tension between ‘we don’t want to think about it’ and ‘we don’t want to forget’. It has taken so long to get back to this post that many things are jumbled and forgotten. But, up to that point, it had been a good trip with memories we do not want to forget so what follows are photos and memories of the first 20 days.

Part 1 – FROM INDY TO JASPER NATIONAL PARK

First stop – Indiana Dunes National Park/State Park (the campground and nearby areas are a State Park within the larger National Park). This was a stop we added at the last minute when we learned that our friends Bob and Lisa were going to be there and we could visit with them. I was looking forward to visiting Indiana Dunes. I thought I would enjoy lots of memories and ‘Deja-vu’ moments from childhood family weekend visits and camping trips in the sandy campground. Turns out I was wrong. My memories were from the Michigan “Tower Hill” Warren Dunes State Park which is closer to South Bend where I grew up. We stopped on our way to the campground at the National Park Visitors Center to get the stamp for one of America’s newest National Parks. We enjoyed the day and discovered a park I had absolutely no memories of. Unfortunately, on Monday night I began to feel poorly. Tuesday morning I tested for covid and was negative. Two days later I would test positive for covid. The weather started to really get hot so we looked forward to quickly getting further north and cooler temps. To finish the covid saga of the next two weeks; I got it, then when I started feeling better, Becky got it. Providentially, we were both over it by the time we met up with John and Pam in Canada.

2023 JasperIMG_3775 — Monday, August 21, 2023. All road trips seem to start with a stop at Walmart. In northern Indiana Amish country that includes a horse and buggy with railing to tie-up on.

2023 JasperIMG_3776 — It was going to be a really hot day so first thing Tuesday morning we went for a walk to the beach with Bob. We followed the “Beach Trail” from the campground to the beach.

2023 JasperIMG_3778 — Arriving from the trail this is the first view of the beach area. If I had ever seen this before I had completely forgotten.

2023 JasperIMG_3786 — This building, called The Dunes Pavilion, was originally a bathhouse with a restaurant, concessions, and a rooftop observation deck. It was built in 1929 for $100,000. The history of the “Dunes” area is interesting as the shoreline has been jerked back and forth between industrialization (think Gary steel mills) and conservation. Back in 1899, Stephen Mather, first envisioned a “Sand Dunes National Park” but it took 120 years for it to happen. Indiana Dunes received National Park designation in 2020 as the 61st National Park and the 1st National Park in Indiana.

2023 JasperIMG_3779 — Propeller from steamship that sank nearby in 1911

2023 JasperIMG_3781 — J.D. Marshall steamship signage

2023 JasperIMG_3780 — Becky and Bob exploring the Beach and Dunes

2023 JasperIMG_3785 — In the foreground is “Dunes Creek” which flows through the campground and out into Lake Michigan. In the background is the restored “Dunes Pavilion”. After our morning walk we went back to the campground, had lunch, and packed up at our campsite #119. We said goodbyes to Bob & Lisa then left early afternoon for Ludington, MI where it was about 10 degrees cooler.

2023 JasperIMG_3791 — The steep steps down to Lake Michigan from Buttersville Campground in Ludington, MI. We saw some colorful reddish sunsets from this campground which we later figured out were mostly due to the beginning stages of Canadian wildfire smoke in the air. The smoky air would get much worse as we traveled further north.

2023 JasperIMG_3796 — Leaving Ludington we headed north, crossing Mackinac Bridge to the Upper Peninsula. No photos but we stayed one night at Fayette Historic State Park, and another night at Frontier Bar & Campground. The UP of Michigan is deeply wooded and beautiful to drive through. We especially enjoyed passing through the town of Escanaba.

2023 JasperIMG_3802 — Becky driving. She took over as I was feeling pretty sick at this point.

2023 JasperIMG_3819 — Saturday, August 26 we arrived at Itasca State Park, Minnesota. This is the shallow stream exiting the lake where Lake Itasca becomes the headwaters of the Mississippi River. Hard to imagine this little stream eventually drains 40% of the continental United States (all or part of 31 States).

I walked across the Mississippi on a log.

2023 JasperIMG_3824 — The 1783 Treaty of Paris (signed by Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, etc.) included establishment of the Northwest Territories described as all the land east of the Mississippi River. As the river gets bigger and well defined that’s easy but at the northern end in Minnesota it was hardly clear but very important.

2023 JasperIMG_3826 — Not a National Park – so not an official NPS stamp – but in my mind a unique State Park with an interesting historical story. After one night at Itasca we went to nearby Bemidji KOA for two nights where we made last minute preparation to cross into Canada and meet up with John & Pam at Winnipeg West KOA. We did laundry and ate meals to use up things we couldn’t bring across the boarder like eggs, chicken, fruits, and vegetables.

2023 JasperIMG_3840 — Winnipeg West KOA bathrooms

2023 JasperIMG_3837 — Flowers outside the bathrooms

2023 JasperIMG_3841 — The land of Ketchup potato chips

Screen capture from my phone showing all the wildfires around where we were heading (Jasper and Banff National Parks are north and west of Calgary on the map). There were no fires directly in the areas we were going but they were all around.

2023 JasperIMG_3843 — Our motorhome and John & Pam’s travel trailer side-by-side at a rest stop.

2023 JasperIMG_3883 — River Valley RV Park in Langham, Saskatchewan. This was a really nice stop that we wished we could have stayed another day to enjoy. Beautifully well kept and clean. The only downside was the wildfire smoke was getting really thick so we stayed mostly inside.

2023 JasperIMG_3881 — Reddish sun seen through dense wildfire smoke.

2023 JasperIMG_3882 — Doing our part to reduce the Canadian insect population…

2023 JasperIMG_3895 — Rapeseed fields were abundant in Canada. A genetically modified version of this plant is where Canola oil comes from.

2023 JasperIMG_3893 — I was reading this book as we traveled. I am convinced this was Providential as it helped prepare my heart to receive news of Daniel’s death.

Our last stop before Hinton was “Camp N RV” in Lloydminster. This picture from my phone shows the worst air quality of “Hazardous” that we encountered.

2023 JasperIMG_3917 — Reddish smoky sky sunset as we arrived at Hinton KOA.

Part 2 – JASPER NATIONAL PARK

Jasper Day 1 – Old Fort Point and Five Lakes Hike

Becky was feeling better but wanted to wait one more day to be certain of not exposing John and Pam to covid. She stayed behind on this first day trip from Hinton KOA into Jasper National Park. The air was still smoky from wild fires but clearer then it had been on the trip into Hinton. The drive each day from Hinton into Jasper National Park (and back) took about an hour but each day the scenery was different and we almost always saw some beautiful sites and lots of wildlife.

Jasper day1_DAD8423 — The first drive into Jasper resulted in this beautiful bull elk standing majestically along the roadside.

Jasper day1_DAD8355 — Elk bull and cow showing off for the tourists.

Jasper day1_DAD8329 — The tourists all stop for the majestic wildlife. The locals get aggravated…

Jasper day1_5 Lakes Hike_DAD8307 — We saw Bighorn Sheep on the drive into Jasper. After stopping at the Visitors Center in Jasper and getting some advice on things to see and places to hike we started out to hike to an overlook called Old Fort Point (there was never a fort there).

2023 JasperIMG_3927 — Stairs at the beginning of hike up to Old Fort Point.

2023 JasperIMG_3945 — We hiked most of the way up and admired the smoky view of the Athabasca river valley and town of Jasper below. Pam and I were content to stop here but John needed to get to the top so he headed on up. When he came back down I met him and he asked “Where’s Pam?” Seeing she was not where she had been sitting and getting no response to calling out for her, John thought she might have headed up to find him. He hurried up looking for her and I headed down looking for her. Turned out she was just over the hill a little further down so after a bit of panic it all worked out. In that photo: nearly all of the trees in the valley and part of the town of Jasper were burned away in the wildfires summer of 2024.

2023 JasperUntitled_Panorama-1 — This is looking up to the top of the overlook. I think that is John talking with a couple other people he met up there. The elevation gain from the bottom of the valley at the stairs to the top is 130 meters (426 feet).

2023 JasperIMG_3947 — John and Pam reunited and relieved.
The next two pics (below) were from across the valley a few days later. They show the ‘hump’ where Pam and I stopped and the top of the overlook where John reached the peak.

Jasper Day 4_DAD9655 — Old Fort Point Overlook

2023 JasperIMG_3954 — Our next stop was the Valley of Five Lakes. We hiked the 9a/9b short loop.

Jasper day1_5 Lakes Hike_DAD8533 — John and Pam taking a break at one of Canada’s “Red Adirondack Chair” scenic locations.

Jasper day1_5 Lakes HikeLAKE EDGE_PANORAMA-1 — Clear and beautiful lakes.

Jasper day1_5 Lakes HikeLAKE_PANORAMA-1 — The lakes are still there but from what I read online the lakes are now muddy and the trees are all burned away after the summer of wildfires in 2024. Grateful to God that we were able to visit Jasper again before the fires.

Jasper day1_5 Lakes Hike_DAD8566 — We saw Bighorn Sheep on our drive back to Hinton.

Jasper Day 2 – Maligne Canyon and Maligne Lake

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8571 — We were grateful that Becky was with us and the air was less smoky so we could enjoy the Beautiful Mountains and wildlife on the 2nd day.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8637 — Up close with Bighorn Sheep.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8860 — We really enjoyed Maligne Canyon. This is at the beginning of the canyon where the water is starting to carve down into the rock in smooth pools and eddies.

The next 4 photos show where swirling rocks and water have worn away smooth ‘pot holes’

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-LakeMALIGN CANYON POTHOLES2_PANORAMA-1

Jasper Day 4Canyon Bridge_Panorama-1 — The canyon hike is beautiful as the water cuts deeper down in waterfalls, sluices, and whirlpools. A series of bridges cross the river. Becky and I hiked to bridge #2 then turned around and returned to the van while John & Pam continued on to bridge #5 where we picked them up.

Jasper Day 4Canyon Falls_Panorama-2 — The name Maligne comes from the French word for ‘wicked’ or ‘evil’. While the English verb maligne is pronounced ‘muh-LINE’, the local Jasper pronunciation of the canyon’s name is ‘muh-LEEN’

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-LakeMALIGN CANYON COLLAGE_PANORAMA-1 — Panorama shot stitched together from 10 photos.

Jasper Day 4Canyon Bridge 5 Stream_Panorama-1 — View from the “5th Bridge” where we picked up John & Pam.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-LakeMALIGN LAKE MOUNTAIN SNOW_PANORAMA-1

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8867 — It had snowed on the mountaintops overnight which just increased the majesty of the surrounding peaks.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-LakeMALIGN LAKE_PANORAMA-1 — Maligne Lake. Becky and I enjoyed the gift shop and restaurant while John & Pam went for a hike.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8900 — A storm rolled in and rain started just as they got back from the hike.

2023 JasperIMG_3962 — Historic Boat House. The Boat House survived the fires of 2024 but much of the surrounding trees and infrastructure did not.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8886 — Not sure what bird this is in the bushes by the Boat House but the ‘birder’ lady that pointed it out to me seemed pretty excited about it.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8939 — John was driving and said “what else do you want to see?” I said “moose.” A little further down the road John pulls over and says “there you go”…

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8948 — Mama Moose nursing Baby Moose.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD9036 — Saw more Elk on the way back through Jasper while returning to Hinton KOA for the night.

Jasper day2 Maligne Canyon-Lake_DAD8996 — King of the road

Jasper Day 3 – Athabasca Falls and Sunwapta Falls

2023 JasperIMG_3970 — More snow during the night on the mountaintops

Jasper Day3_DAD9092 — Saw more Elk along the road coming into the Park.

Jasper Day3ATHABASCA FALLS6_PANORAMA-1 — Athabasca Falls

Incredible amount of water pouring down the canyon.

To be so close, to feel the rock foundations vibrate.

Jasper Day3_DAD9282 — And we saw Bears. Up close, probably too close, but they seemed more interested in grazing on leafy greens.

Jasper Day3SUNWAPTA FALLS_PANORAMA-3 — Sunwapta Falls

Jasper Day3SUNWAPTA FALLS_PANORAMA-2 — Sunwapta Falls (means “Turbulent Waters”) is a series of cascading waterfalls.

Jasper Day 4 – Mt. Edith Cavell

Jasper Day 4Mt Edith_Panorama-1 — The hike from the parking lot is long, steep, and beautiful. A stream follows the path part of the way. Eventually the trees become little short stunted pines above the tree line elevation.

Jasper Day 4Mt Edith Lake_Panorama-1 — Mount Edith Cavell (3,300 meters=10,800 feet) and Angel Glacier.

Mount Edith Cavell is named after a British nurse executed during World War I for her part in helping Allied prisoners escape occupied Brussels.

Photos below from our visit in summer 2016 compared to 2023.

Jasper_GLACIER LAKE_PANORAMA1 — August 23, 2016

Jasper Day 4_DAD9571 — Annual lines in glacial ice.

Below: John making careful rock selections (notice the distended pockets) and posing by high elevation pine tree.

Jasper Day 4_DAD9616 — John taking a moment to enjoy the mountain views

Stream of meltwater from Angel Glacier

Melting Angel Glacier Waterfalls

Jasper Day 4_DAD9753 — We stopped to see a mountainside with lots of bighorn sheep.

Jasper Day 4_DAD9735 — A Canadian military plane surprised us as it flew low through the valley on our return trip to Hinton.

2023 JasperIMG_3998 — Our campsite at Hinton KOA as we prepared to say goodbye to Hanson’s and head home.

Our last drive of the trip as we headed home was back through Jasper National Park and on down the Icefields Parkway, past the Athabasca Glacier, and Banff National Park.

A little post-trip travel analysis:
This is all based on only our RV mileage (we traveled lots of other miles in Jasper NP with John & Pam in their van).
4,636 miles according to RVparky route, 4,691 actual miles.
436.25 gallons of gas. Cost – $1,761.77 for average cost/gal $4.04
10.75 miles/gal
22 nights/23 days total = average of 204 miles/day
13 different overnight places/14 days of traveling = 335 average miles per travel day
Our longest Travel Days were the days coming home:
1st day: 638 miles from Hinton, British Columbia to Ponderosa Campground, Swift Current, Saskatchewan
2nd day: 362 miles to Old Settlers Park in Burlington, ND (includes border crossing)
3rd day: 623 miles to Stoney Creek RV Resort, Osseo, WI
4th day: 530 miles to Home = 2,153 miles home.

Cherokee & Great Smoky Mountains National Park, SC

May 1, 2023May 20, 2023 / dadartphotography / Leave a comment

10 of 13 Jekyll Island Trip Series.

We camped at Cherokee KOA after a long drive, made longer by our stop at Ninety Six National Historical Site. It was fun leaving the flat coastal areas we had been visiting for three weeks and heading inland to start our next goal of; “Drive the Blue Ridge Parkway”.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NPIMG_3322 — Got the stamp at GSMNP Oconaluftee Visitors Center. This is the Eastern entrance to GSMNP just outside of the town of Cherokee, NC.

We stayed in Cherokee because the Blue Ridge Parkway ends (or in our case, starts) in Cherokee as the Southern terminus of the BRP. We had a day to rest before starting the BRP so we drove into GSMNP. The RV did great motoring up to the top of Newfound Gap and the views were wonderful out the big front windshield.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NPIMG_3313 — View of clouds on the mountain from our campsite this morning. Reminded me of Smoky Mountain backpacking adventures in younger days.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6811 — View from the Oconaluftee Visitors Center.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6807 — There was a chicken wandering around loose at the Visitors Center. I stopped worrying about bears.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6827 — We made it to the top at Newfound Gap. That’s our Axis RV in the parking lot. The only RV in the parking lot, hmmmm…

Admission to GSMNP is free but there is now a ‘parking fee’ if you are going to stop and park anywhere in the park longer than 15 minutes.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6826 — The Appalachian Trail (AT) mostly follows a mountain ridge inside of GSMNP. Here at Newfound Gap the trail crosses the road and picks up again on the edge of the parking lot. Only 1,972 miles to the Northern end of the trail at Mount Katahdin in central Maine.

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6825 — Views from Newfound Gap

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6817 — At the bottom of Newfound Gap Road, near Cherokee, the road follows along the Oconaluftee River. The water is so clear!

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6831 — This area of the woods was full of white flowers blooming

Cherokee_Smoky Mtn NP_DAD6812 — Ending this post with a bunch of beautiful butterflies. There were a bunch of bees too so I didn’t stay long. Someone had spilled something sugary on the pavement-not very natural but the butterflies were cool… (maybe pipevine swallowtails?)

Gros Morne National Park: Western Brook Pond

August 11, 2022May 20, 2023 / dadartphotography / Leave a comment

A UNESCO World Heritage Site: Amazing place on earth, go here if you ever get a chance.

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We stayed at Gros Morne National Park two times. This first time we visited “Western Brook Pond”.

Parking out by the road, we walked about an hour across flat coastal lowlands to reach the entry to the 540 foot deep “Pond” (we would call this a lake). The glacier carved pond is 10 miles long and the surrounding cliffs tower 2,200 feet high. The weather was sunny a few moments but mostly overcast and threatening rain. We were grateful to get finished without getting more than a few sprinkles.

The mountain range (in photo below) that rises up along the western edge of Newfoundland is called the “Long Range Mountains”. It is an extension of the same mountain range we in the United States call the “Appalachian Mountains”. I had no idea that the Appalachian Mountain Range continued that far north into Canada.

Following are a bunch of photos – none of which really capture the grandeur of the place – but they bring back good memories. I hope they inspire others to visit Gros Morne.

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Gros Morne Western Brook Pond_20220811_DAD3485 — My kids hate it when I stop to read markers but it helps to understand how this unique place ‘happened’. Feel free to skip this if you are like my kids.

Gros Morne Western Brook Pond_20220811_DAD3479 — Jennie & Becky headed to Western Brook Pond for the boat ride

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Gros Morne Western Brook Pond_20220811_DAD3471 — Scenes along the trail

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Lots of waterfalls off the surrounding cliffs fill the pond with fresh water.

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Two examples of lava forced upward through cracks then exposed by glaciers. I think that is called a “diabase dyke” and according to Gros Morne geology the cracks formed when the supercontinent began breaking apart.