JEWISH INDEPENDENT

July 29, 2005

Visit the Rockies ... once more

Wildlife, glaciers and turquoise lakes are among the highlights of a nine-day car trip.
KYLE BERGER

Just about everyone I spoke to before leaving on my nine-day road trip through the Canadian Rockies and back recalled visiting the area once before.

"Oh, it must have been 15, 20 years ago," they said.

"Yes," I replied, "I remember doing this trip with my family when I was 10 years old. But my wife's never been there, so we're making it our vacation."

My advice to anyone who remembers visiting the Canadian Rockies 15, 20 years ago: Do it again. Soon.

Milking the money-saving concept of not having to spend $1,000 on flights for this vacation, we decided we would also pack up the camping gear and make it a combination indoor/outdoor trip. Staying in a Canadian Rockies hotel was not in our budget.

Our first few days took us through small-town British Columbia, with stops at Osoyoos, Christina Lake, Nelson, Kootenay Lake, Cranbrook, Castlegar and Radium Hot Springs.

We camped at beautiful provincial sites right on Christina Lake and Kootenay Lake the first two nights and at a private site with a creek running through it in Radium Hot Springs on the third night.

Although Radium boasts the largest public hot springs pool in the mountains, we particularly liked the pools at the Ainsworth Hot Springs Resort Just 20 minutes north of Nelson. Between its large warm pool and cold plunge pool, the Ainsworth resort has an even hotter pool that leads adventurers into real mountain caves where minerals can literally be wiped off the cave walls. Mini falls of hot, fresh spring water feed the pool.

Without a doubt, the highlight of the trip came as we left Radium for the first of five national parks that line the B.C. - Alberta border.

Almost immediately upon entering Kootenay National Park, you are hit with the spectacular views and wildlife that make the Canadian Rockies great. We drove for only 20 minutes before another road-tripper stopped at the side of the highway and brought our attention to a dark, furry friend roaming in the bush. This would become the first of three black bears and one grizzly we saw near the highway in the three days we spent roaming the Rockies. This first bear even crossed the road right in front of our car (with us safely inside, of course).

The many visitor information stations around the area provide great insight into the many walks, hikes and viewpoints that make the region such a unique destination in addition to information regarding Banff, Alberta, Canada accommodations.

While in the national parks area, we decided it was time to sleep on a real bed for a few nights. We made our reservations with the Decore hotel which is a Canadian Rockies hotel chain, which features a wide range of accommodations in the Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper areas. Our first night, in Banff, was at the Juniper (formerly known as the Timberline Inn), a gorgeously renovated facility with classy, retro styling overlooking the town. We got a sampling of paradise when we opened our blinds to a spectacular view of the ridge-peaked Mount Rundle, the Vermillion Range and the Vermillion lakes. No wonder guests love staying in a Canadian Rockies hotel like the Juniper.

A few minutes after arrival, we were greeted with a cold-stone plate of fresh fruit and cookies – a personal style of service that we quickly became used to at the Juniper. This was almost culture shock after the mosquitoes that had greeted us in our tent.

Day five of our journey stood on its own as the most spectacular adventure. That sunny day, we made the 230-kilometre tour from Banff to Jasper on the Ice Fields Parkway.

As our guide map had suggested, we set our odometer to zero at the Lake Louise Junction and spent the next seven hours navigating through glorious site after glorious site with our informative guidebook in hand. The rocky peaks, surrounded by turquoise mineral lakes, canyons and miles and miles of glaciers make this drive more like a scavenger hunt of the most spectacular kind.

Bears, elk, mountain goats, sheep, chipmunks and deer came out to greet us throughout the day as we hiked, trekked and strolled through some of the world's most imaginative landscape. We even stopped at the Columbia ice fields, which cover more than 200 square kilometres, where we were able to spend a few minutes walking on the foot of the Athabasca glacier. By the time we had arrived at Decore's Chateau Jasper, another Canadian Rockies hotel, we were ready to make like bears and hibernate.

We headed back to the Lake Louise area the next day, where we checked into the Castle Mountain Chalets. Located right between Banff and Lake Louise, under the watchful eye of the appropriately named Castle Mountain, the chalets were made up of a village of log cabins and apartments in a camp-like setting. Two well-kept barbecue stations, a general store, a fitness room and a steam room make Castle Mountain a great place to spend a week or two. Its close proximity to Lake Louise and photographers' favorite spot, Moraine Lake (which is as nice in person as it has ever looked on film), were an added bonus.

We left the area by way of Yoho, then Revelstoke national parks and took in the town of Revelstoke's Canada Day celebrations. We spent that night, back in our tent, on the beaches of Shuswap Lake, just outside of Salmon Arm. Our final day included a stop to pick some berries on our way back home to Vancouver.

This trip was, indeed, an adventure of discovery, with each day bringing a whole new element to the experience.

Information on the Banff, Alberta, Canada accommodations and any Canadian Rockies hotel can be found online at www.travelalberta.com and at www.explorealberta.com. Information on traveling throughout British Columbia can be found at www.hellobc.com. The website for the Decore hotel chain is www.decorehotels.com. Information about Banff, Alberta, Canada accommodations like The Juniper can also be found online.

Kyle Berger is a freelance journalist and graphic designer living in Richmond.