The Canadian Rockies – 1

At the start of 2022, I decided I would not travel much. I have not explored my beautiful home state of California as much as I would like to and I was also feeling guilty looking at the spending summary for last year on my credit card. I had splurged after a year of minimal trips. Maybe I could cut down on some of the spending if I went on more road trips when I felt like traveling. Nearly the entire first half of the year, it seemed like my plan was working albeit due to a different reason and not owing to my willpower. I had to deal with persistent acid reflux that prevented me from eating anything apart from mild food that I prepared myself. It did turn out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise. I spent all those weekends that I did not go anywhere studying and preparing for job interviews. In a few months, I had a new job offer and I had to celebrate. By then, my stomach seemed to have been tamed enough for me to think about traveling. Soon, I was booking flight tickets and spending a fortune on a car rental that nobody else would be sharing with me. The stay in hostels would make up for a portion of the other expenses.

 Thanks to being one of those lucky few who got a US visa stamping appointment in India last year, I could travel outside the country now. I had some destinations in south America in mind but Canada seemed like an obvious choice for planning in the eleventh hour. My friends living in Canada had mentioned Banff national park and that is where I wanted to go. Most travelers who write online seem to agree it is one of the most beautiful places on earth. I decided to add the nearby, relatively quieter Jasper national park to my itinerary and make it a weeklong trip.

 I flew to an airport within the US close to the Canadian border, stayed there overnight and arrived in Vancouver on a bus the next day. My friends graciously hosted me for the weekend and took me around. They helped me plan the trip since they had traveled there during the same time last year. Banff and Jasper are in the Canadian province of Alberta bordered by British Columbia on the west. I took a short flight from Vancouver to Calgary, a city in Alberta on Monday morning to kickstart my solo trip. I did get an upgrade to an SUV, for the amount of money I was paying for the car. The lady that assisted me demonstrated her best customer service, telling me that I looked so young that she needed to verify that I have a valid driver’s license. Perhaps the end of my twenties makes me cherish these comments a lot more than I would like to admit.

 How grateful I was that my friends had cooked and packed food that lasted me the entire day! Without wasting any time, I started driving towards Banff. Within an hour or so, I could see the snow-clad mountains. It was extraordinarily scenic. I could sense why the astounding beauty around sometimes made people shed tears. For me, it was the thought that I had been bestowed with the time, the wealth and the opportunity to be here. A few months ago, I was worried that my lifespan might reduce significantly if I am not able to eat well and whatever years I did have left might be devoid of good food and all the travel and activities that I love. I also think about how there might not be any nature left for me to enjoy if I put off my trips for later and that makes me sad. Nature will probably take care of itself but at what cost?

 I hopped on the Banff gondola to ride to the mountain top to get a panoramic view of the mountains and the valleys. I had not even reached the top when it dawned on me that I was in the most beautiful place that I had ever been to in my life. Once at the top, I could hardly stop gasping in awe. As I walked on the boardwalk, the immense gratitude that I felt earlier gave way to a thought I had never once had on my travels. I felt it was incredibly selfish of me to be here by myself. All this splendor should be shared. I wished I could tell someone, anyone, how amazing it was. I wished I could point at the mountains and exclaim in joy and someone would respond to me. Quickly, reason took over. There was no way anybody could have joined me unless they were ready to take a week off from work at a very short notice. However, I resolved to tell anybody remotely interested in my travel stories that this is a place that they should make time for sooner than later.

 The rain that I could see at a distance slowly moved towards us and it was time for me to drive to the next stop. Off I went to lake Minnewanka. It is a big lake and popular for the cruises. It was beautiful, however, what I really loved about the spot was the maple walnut ice cream that I helped myself to despite it being windy and cold. After making another stop at the two Jack lake, I drove to the town for some grocery shopping. It is pretty, crowded like most other tourist towns. There was enough traffic to slow me down and take in the views. I should have chosen to explore it on foot or on a bike like my friends suggested, but there is only so much I could squeeze into my few days there and the balance always tilted toward the wild and hikes for me.

 I stayed in a hostel halfway between the town of Banff and lake Louise. It was a wilderness hostel. I had never stayed in one before and wondered how different it would be from other hostels. It was the same, except for it actually being located in the wilderness. I was up early, excited for my first hike in the park. I managed to grab a spot in the coveted Lake Louise parking lot. Rain or shine, weekday or weekend, this parking lot would get filled up within no time after sunrise. This lake is the most iconic, the one you have seen countless pictures of even if you did not know. It was cloudy when I walked closer and I could not see the beautiful turquoise color caused by rock flour carried into the lake by the water from the glaciers. I hoped it would be clearer later in the day. I had decided to hike up to the big beehive which would give me an eagle’s eye view of the lake. I reached the lake Agnes teahouse on the way and was already overwhelmed, not with the effort but with the beauty. Lake Agnes was mostly frozen and set against the rocky backdrop, made for an absolutely beautiful vista.

 Once on the other side of the lake, I could see two hikers making their way up the snow that had covered the trail completely. It was knee deep and I followed their voices to reach halfway to the top, questioning every step of mine. I was trying to grab the ground every now and then with my bare hands since I did not have hiking poles or gloves and was worried my hands might just freeze. While I took a break to contemplate my next move, a couple made their way up. They conversed with the people at the top and I listened intently, to no avail. Apparently spending a week in France as a tourist was not enough to help me understand even a word of what they said. However, they were kind enough to explain to me that it seemed too dangerous to head up, even with all the gear they had. There could be avalanches too. I did not stand a chance and decided to turn back. Now the conundrum – my adventurous spirit was not strong enough for me to simply slide down on the snow and taking downward steps was a lot harder without trekking poles. However, I managed, poking my hand in the snow a few more times. I headed back to the lake Agnes and then up the trail to the little beehive. I reached there soon and was awed! All those who reviewed these trails and said this viewpoint had a better view were not lying. This is where I could truly admire the turquoise color of lake Louise. I managed to take a few photos and it started raining. This would be a common theme throughout my trip, experiencing multiple seasons at the same place in a day.

 I headed to the Chateau for some lunch and then to the second most popular lake in the area, the Moraine lake. It was magnificent too, the mountains behind having a generous amount of snow since summer was arriving late this year. I walked around the lake, deciding that it was too cold for me to be kayaking. Moreover, I did not want to make this trip any more expensive than it was.

 I ended the day with a visit to the Johnston canyon. It was a nice walk by the gushing water, leading to two waterfalls. I was upset that it turned into a longer hike than I had hoped for and did not appreciate the canyon enough. I was exhausted by the end, making me the first person to be back in the hostel. There were some great hikes in the park and the surrounding area that I would be missing this time due to the snow. However, what I had the chance to see was amazing and the snow only made the landscape that much more dramatic.