The day had started with a late start from Edmonton as we headed West towards the Rockies mountains.

Expectation of a big game take was medioc as previous trips had yielded only a glimpse of a black bear and occasional Big Horn Sheep and a Moose many years ago.

However the smoke from the BC fires had cleared and the skies while still overcast showed promise of some actual sunlight.

Our party of four were all equipped from bears to birds. The scenery of The Rockies always compensated for any lack of wildlife with the snow clad mountain peaks reaching over 3000m some dusted with a light coverage of snow from the previous night.

The main change this year was the rapid spread of the beetles that are killing off millions of pine trees their only enemy being a growth in Woodpecker numbers. While mountain sides showed the devastation as once green areas now become brown.

The mauve mountain heather was still evident but declining in quality as the fall approaches.

Rounding a bend on the return up from Miette Hot Springs I quietly whispered the word all hunters respond to "Bears"

I quickly parked and reached for my weapon of choice as did the other three in the party.

In seconds not one but all four black bears were in our sights and shot.

As I drove next to them it was only then that we realised it was a mother bear and her three cubs, what a take!

Our journey continued in the prospect of gaining futher great shots.

Recent reports in The Calgary Sun (Monday Aug 27,2018 pp4-5) suggest that rapid growth of The Rockies has reached such a state that it may become necessary to take actions such as restrictions on the numbers of tourists allowed into the area and especially hot spots such as Lake Louise,Banff and Jaspar.

In no time if left to the politicians they will kill off tourism and the resulting billions of foreign income that flows into the Canadian coffers as a result.

The solutions offered are so common as to hardly warrant repeating.

Ban private cars

Increase public transport (at an ever increasing cost)

Impose a congestion tax.

Prebooked tours only (the tourist providers love this option of mass feeding,mass tours you see what we want you to see attitude)

Of course Climate change,aka Global Warming are seen as the cause.

Harvey Locke follows this theme to the extreme say "limiting the number of cars is fine,but it doesn't lessen the number of visitors and the strain they place on infrastructure and the environment". Doesn't this man and the department he leads (in an acting role) realise that these tourists pay money eg to get into the Park an Entrance fee is charged for starters and this money should go back into the infrastructure not given onto general revenue and spent elsewhere. Does he not realise that these people come to see the environment not to be locked out and the natural environment become overrun by weeds and pests?

Of course Plan B has been floated get tourist to come in unpopular times of the year Winter? Well that's a silly comment from Angela Anderson of Banff Lake Louise Tourism as already the winter season is usually a full house as the winter sports community move into the area to enjoy the trails and snowfields.

Returning towards Calgary while daylight still existed we came across two Elk close to the road and shot then leaving a herd of four by the river to provide shooting experience for later tourists.

I trust you will look at the great shots in the accompaning photo album then plan your visit to The Rockies where plenty of wildlife shooting opportunities will await your camera.