July 15, 2013 Monday
Day 8
Went to town, Banff, to a coffee shop, then to browse the shops. Next we headed up to Sulphur Mountain to ride the gondola to the top. Climbed steps to the summit observation deck at an elevation of 7,486 feet & the views were spectacular. I must say that for the rest of this trip, my adjectives will be repetitive because each site is more spectacular than the last. Words & pictures simply do not do justice to all this splendor. The jagged peaks of the Rockies are so magnificently huge and powerful, spectacular just doesn't begin to describe them. Then there are the waterfalls, the lakes and rivers strikingly jade green from glacial flour, the alpine meadows, all the wildlife, wild flowers, spruce fir forests, the stars, the sunsets, the sky colors at different times of day, simply awesome!
After our trek to the summit and the gondola ride back down, we took a scenic drive around Lakes Minnewanka, Two Jacks & Johnson. Saw a male & a female bighorn sheep grazing along he road. People didn't seem to bother them & we got some good close up pictures.
We finished off our day touring around the historic Banff Springs Hotel, ending up on their outside patio, Rundles, for a drink and the view of Bow Falls and the mountains, of course.
Came back to camp, had grilled cheese sandwiches & fresh veggies for a quick dinner, then took a walk around our campsite. We ran into the same folks we had camped right next to in Montana -small world, they were a few campsites away. We recognized their cute little camper & as I was snapping a picture of it, I heard a voice say, "If you stick around, I'll give you a tour", then he recognized us and said, "hey it's you guys!". It was fun talking with them again-camping brings together a lot of nice people.
A little wine & some maple cookies outside by candlelight then to bed by 10:00pm. Tomorrow - Lake Louise, then, Jasper National Park.
Wildlife Sightings
Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep
Mule Deer
Ground squirrels
Magpies