Cochrane, Banff and Lake Louise, Alberta

Skies were still pretty sullen when we departed Lethbridge and headed north to Cochrane, a bedroom community northwest of Calgary.  The terrain we passed through was more of the same, mostly flat prairie with grazing cattle and tidy farms widely spaced.  The only “wildlife” we saw, except for a few elk in a pen, were a pair of coyotes heading off on some important errand.  They seemed very focused on their task and moved along at a pretty good clip. 

Our campground in Cochrane is very nicely located in the valley within walking distance of the Bow River.  The hills around us are beginning to show signs of “cliff dwellings”, large three-story homes crammed cheek by jowl along the ridges overlooking the town.  The downtown area features a lot of small boutiques and quirky shops.  So far we’ve found that most goods and services in Canada are significantly more expensive than in the U.S.  In many cases, we can expect to pay twice as much for just about everything while we’re here.  So we’ll try not to be here any longer than necessary.

Both Carolyn and I felt that we saw as much of Calgary as we needed as we drove through the city on the way to Cochrane, so it wasn’t any hardship to just bag it and not go back to explore further.  There weren’t many attractions that appealed to us and those that were of interest were more than we’d care to spend to see them.  So Howie and I made a mad dash to Costco in Calgary to stock up on power bars while Bill and Carolyn stayed in Cochrane to enjoy an over-priced lunch.  Each of us discovered some native customs we’d not encountered before.  One of the grocery chains rent their shopping carts for $1 (we assume it’s refundable) and charge for the plastic bags as well.  We opted to do our shopping elsewhere – the prices were not significantly lower to warrant the lack of amenities.  Meanwhile, Bill and Carolyn stopped for an ice cream; not only was it $3.99 a scoop but there was an additional fee for the dish to put it in.  What would happen if you refused the dish?  Would they just place a scoop of rocky road in your outstretched hand?

Obviously Bill and Carolyn are a good influence on us because we rolled out of the Cochrane campground nearly half an hour ahead of schedule.  The short drive to Banff was smooth and our sites at the Tunnel Mountain Trailer Park were available when we arrived.  This is an interesting campground with a large number of full hook-up sites.  While not exactly pull-throughs, they are more like pull-offs – large half-moon shaped sites arching from the main service road and with service pedestals near the front of the site and plenty of room to park the “toad” behind.  The fee was a bit more than we’re usually willing to spend.  If Howie figured correctly, this site is costing $65 U.S. a night between the camping fee and the daily park entry fee.  A storm knocked out both electricity and water pressure, along with the trio of t.v. stations which filter through the mountains and end up in Banff.   So, for more than three hours, it would appear that we paid a premium for a primitive site.  I’m fairly certain a refund will not be forthcoming.

But, between storms, there was a patch of partly sunny weather.  We raced to downtown Banff and trolled through the high-end shops while Howie hit the library for a wi-fi hook-up.  We picked up some brochures at the Visitors Center and elbowed our way through the hordes of tourists.  It was recommended that we drive to an over-look area to view the Bow River Falls, an absolute torrent racing eastward toward Calgary.  This is the same Bow River that was flowing placidly through Cochrane,where it no longer seemed to be in much of a hurry.

 

 

We took a scenic drive northward to the ski area at Norquay where we were treated to up-close-and-personal views of bighorn sheep grazing along the roads.  Still carrying most of their winter coats, they all looked a bit ratty. 

 

Old habits die hard and I was sorely tempted to leap out and start plucking out that dead coat.  Until I saw a pair of rams butting heads.  They weren’t even very serious about it yet the sound echoed across the hillsides.  We also spotted a pair of babies, probably this spring’s crop, cute little critters who were both graceful and clumsy as they navigated the steep banks alongside the road.

 

Friday was another day of iffy weather but we had to jump on the chance to visit Lake Louise no matter how threatening the skies might appear.  We had been advised to take the Bow Valley Parkway, aka the slow, scenic route, from Banff to Lake Louise.  This road, which parallels Route 1, has a 37 mph speed limit, is closed to commercial traffic and from March 1 to June 25 is closed to all traffic from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 a.m. to minimize accidents involving wildlife.  Of course that also minimizes the chance of seeing any wildlife as well.  The guys think they might have spotted a bear but perhaps it was just a tree stump or some other dark object.  Bill assured us it was moving.  And that was the end of the wildlife viewing for the day.

 

We made a stop at Johnson Canyon.  Three of us made an attempt to hike to the Lower Falls (of Johnson Creek) while Bill wisely sat in a sunny spot and watched the other tourists traipsing about.  Two of us actually reached the Lower Falls but chicken-hearted me made a sharp U-turn as soon as  the catwalk veered out over the churning water of the fast-flowing creek (it’s a BIG creek, folks).  It was later reported by the brave hearts that the falls were right around the next bend of the walkway.  Of course it was!  It was only half a mile to the Lower Falls, or so the sign said, but the sign didn’t mention that was mostly uphill through mud and over fallen trees.

 

When it was time for lunch we stopped at a ski lodge.  If anyone had any notions of taking the gondola ride to the top of the run it was soon dampened when the sun disappeared behind a bank of clouds and the wind chill sent us shivering to the car.  Dark skies pursued from then on.  Lake Louise, even on a cloudy day, is an incredible color, more aquamarine than blue and reflecting the mountains which crowd her shores.  Not a large lake, there’s an easy walking trail around and the hotel had canoes for rent.  By this time it was too cold to do much of anything except retreat to the car.  When you know you’re going to be that close to a glacier, warmer clothes are a good idea!  When will we learn?

 

Our next stop was Moraine Lake, a 14 km drive into the wilderness.  Similar in color to Lake Louise, it is considerably less commercial but parking could be an issue on a nicer day in the busiest part of the tourist season.  Carolyn and I headed straight for the gift shop, hoping fervently that it was heated.  It was and we spent some time thawing out our fingers and toes and fondling the merchandise (all seriously over-priced).

Originally we intended to take the scenic route back to Banff as well but once we got back to Lake Louise Village, it began to rain in earnest and was just on the verge of being cold enough to become solid, so we all voted in favor of taking Route 1 back to base camp.  There are some very interesting bridges along this road and the route is sturdily fenced.  The bridges, which are quite wide and have grass and trees growing on them, are designed to allow the wildlife to pass safely from one side of the road to the other.  This provides a measure of safety for animals and motorists alike.  There are webcams for your viewing pleasure.

Upon return to Banff we went to work preparing for a move on Saturday and then warmed ourselves with large bowls of lentil soup which had been brewing all day in a slow-cooker.  Blessings on the person who invented that wonderful appliance!