Canada Trip Report, Day 3: Moraine Lake, Yoho National Park (Takakkaw falls, spiral tunnels, natural bridge, Emerald lake); Day 4: Johnston canyon, Gondola

Day 3, Sunday, Aug 27, 2017:

Moraine Lake:

Having seen Lake Louise the previous day, our next target was Moraine lake.

Moraine Lake is a glacially fed lake in Banff National Park, 14 kilometres outside the Village of Lake Louise. So it has the Awesome turquoise color of ground glacial flour! It is situated in the Valley of the Ten Peaks, at an elevation of approximately 6,183 feet.

We had read several reviews that parking is scarce and the road gets closed. In fact the same complaint for Lake Louise also. People had written that the shuttle from overflow parking was $30. however, we had had a free ride. Anyways, we left early and arrived at Moraine well before 9 am. No hassles regarding parking. 

Walked to the rock pile, with a pile of fallen logs and rocks. Reviews had said one has to climb this for an excellent view. Son started clambering while I was reluctant. In fact I yelled at him also to come down soon. 

We walked to the left of the pile and saw the real rockpile trail. Now that was a great trail to take and gave AWESOME views. 

In fact we were the only ones at a view point and it was surreal watching the Ten Peaks reflected in the teal colored waters.

Walked to other viewpoints and had a great time.

Yoho National Park:

 Then we drove toward Yoho national park. Though it is not hyped as much as its famous cousins Banff and Jasper, Yoho is AMAZING. With 28 mountain peaks towering more than 3000 m it's aptly named after the Cree word meaning "awe." Not to be missed.

Spiral Tunnels lookout:

On the way we stopped at the spiral tunnel lookout. These tunnels are a marvel of engineering on a steep hill the Kicking Horse route,with four-percent grades.

The railway was as much a political as a transportation tool, designed to unite the country and encourage settlement. A northerly route would have ignored great tracts of valuable prairie near the US border (around Calgary), and allowed much of the area and its resources to slip into the hands of the US. On the Big Hill, the line drops 330m in just 6km from Wapta Lake to the flats east of Field. The first train to attempt the descent plunged into the canyon, killing three railway workers. Trains climbing the hill required four locomotives to pull fifteen coaches; the ascent took over an hour, and exploding boilers (and resulting deaths) were frequent. Runaways became so common that four blasts on a whistle became the standard warning for trains careering out of control (the wreck of an engine can still be seen near the main Kicking Horse Park campground).

The Spiral Tunnels are two vast figure-of-eight galleries within the mountains; from a popular viewpoint about 7km east of Field on Hwy-1, we can watch the front of goods trains emerge from the tunnels before the rear wagons have even entered. After they finished the spiraled tunnels, only two engines were needed.

There was a train whistle and noise quite close, so we waited and caught the terrific sight of train entering and exiting the tunnels at the same time. These pics show the trains when you zoom in. Our video has a better show, link in the end of this post.

Takakkaw Falls:

We then drove on to the Takakkaw falls ...Takakkaw" in Cree, means "it is magnificent" and they are! 850 ft high, The falls are fed by the Daly Glacier which is part of the Waputik Icefield. They can be seen from the parking lot. 

There is a nice picnic area with lovely views of the falls. We had our picnic meal, 

then set out for the small hike over the bridge across the river to the foot of the falls. 

AMAZING views for relatively very little effort!

Confluence of  Rivers Yoho and Kicking Horse:

We drove on and stopped at a pullout where we get to see the confluence of 2 rivers Yoho and Kicking Horse.

 Really lovely with the gushing waters of both rivers meeting up and creating a huge churnup!

Emerald Lake:

We reached Emerald lake. The parking was full and we had to park on the road. I got dropped at the entrance and son parked the car and walked up.

Emerald Lake is the largest of Yoho's 61 lakes and ponds. The lake is enclosed by mountains of the President Range, as well as Mount Burgess and Wapta Mountain. Due to its high altitude (4264ft), the lake is frozen from November until June. The vivid turquoise color of the water is caused by fine particles of glacial sediment, also referred to as rock flour, suspended in the water. It is STUNNING! 

We walked along the shore, admired the lodge, chalets and the awesome lake.

Canoes are available for hire, 60cad for an hour, 3 persons in one boat.

Natural Bridge:

We then drove on and reached the Natural Bridge. 

Natural Bridge is an impressive natural rock formation that spans the Kicking Horse River. The Natural Bridge is a powerful reminder of how much influence water has in shaping the landscape. The river encountered rocks...Softer rock found below the Natural Bridge's hard limestone band eroded more quickly, and fissures in the rock widened until the flow of water was diverted below.

The sight is awesome to see the gushing waters under the rock bridge. There is a man made bridge parallel from where we can observe. We even went down and dipped our tired feet in the icy waters and felt rejuvenated.

The lookout also serves as an access point for the Kicking Horse Fire Road trailhead, which leads to the Meeting of the Waters where the Amiskwi River and Emerald River merge with the Kicking Horse River. The fire road is popular with cross-country bikers and skiers. Lucky hikers may also track down the mineral lick, which attracts moose, deer, elk, and other animals.

Our next target was the Wapta falls. This was a mistake and wasted quite a lot of time. We had read that there are no signs to the falls when we drive from Field, so we drove up to Golden. Pretty windy roads, quite scenic but took a lot of time. Then we realized we had overshot by quite a distance. We turned back and on the way saw the sign for Wapta falls. We turned into the road and parked. The parking lot had warnings which made us uneasy. It was a gravel road and we were not comfortable driving and trekking with just one car around. It had become pretty late too and we drove back to Banff. We were caught up in a traffic snarl due to construction and hardly moved for an hour. Should have checked the road conditions website to know about this and avoid.

In retrospect, I wish we had just gone on the Lake Minnewanka drive.

Anyways it had been an awesome day with top notch sights and experiences. So no major regrets!  

DAY 4, Aug 28, 2017, Monday

Johnston Canyon:

Carved steeply into the limestone bedrock by thousands of years of water erosion, the dramatic Johnston Canyon is a must-visit natural attraction in Banff National Park. Overhanging canyon walls, waterfalls, the deep pools of Johnston Creek, and lush forest leave a memorable impression.

 It is a scenic 17 km drive down the Bowfields Parkway, well signed. We reached there by 8.30, so parked right at the entrance lot. 

LOWER FALLS HIKE:

The morning was pretty cold requiring a jacket which came off as we warmed up on our hike. The pathway winds along the canyon walls above the rushing torrent of Johnson Creek - it's all drama and noisy too. Most people will be able to make the 1/2 mile walk to the lower falls in about 30 minutes. 

We reached the Lower falls in good time enjoying the whole ambience.

 Crossing the bridge, son went into the cave while I thought I'll sit it out. He came out saying it's not too low and pretty worth it to go inside. 

So I went in too. A stocky man who was returning came crashing into us as he slipped on the cave floor. Thankfully I got out of his way and was not hurt. People sometimes are so careless!

It was up, close and personal with the thundering falls inside the cave and we enjoyed it. We returned safely and went on toward the upper falls hike.

Upper falls hike:

It is about 1 1/2 mikes to the upper falls with some significant elevation gains and some steep sections. Most of the path is paved and well-protected with railings. The scenery is spectacular

If you've lots of energy and time, you might want to go beyond the upper falls to the Ink Pots, spring fed pools with amazing colors. We were pretty happy with our hike to the Upper falls and turned back.

On the way back we saw a huge line waiting to enter the cave at the Lower falls. It always pays to be the early bird!

We lingered around at the visitor center, having some fun with the bears there... ha, ha!

Lovely flowers ...

Lake Louise Gondola:

Next we decided to have a gondola experience. I had compared the Banff gondola and Lake Louise gondola, felt the latter will be more worth it for us. Banff gondola is 65cad and return is also scheduled at 90 minutes after you reach the top. Lake Louise gondola is 35 cad, has an option of closed cabin or open chair lift for going up and down. We drove to the site, 

On the way is this scenic pullout with the lovely Bow River

We reached the gondola site,

bought the tickets and went up in the closed gondola. Going up the views are behind you, so chair lift may be counter productive. 

Had a great view from the observation platform, 

walked about a bit drinking in the terrific views. 

Then we came down by the chair lift. TOTALLY AWESOME!

The whole place is very clean and posh, there is ample free parking and they ply a free shuttle to Lake Louise! 

This was what I had meant to use on our 1st day but we went into the overflow parking and their free shuttle, anyways no regrets.

Only whinge is that we did not see any grizzlies which many people spot in this area. Guess we should have gone in the early morning when people reported sightings of 2 mother grizzlies playing about with 2 cubs each!

It had been a lovely day and we returned back to our hotel very happy. Stocked up at the IGA mall near by, sat on the Canada 150 chair there and then called it a day.

VIDEO LINK:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/elpZjuz1aqHRajP42

has Bow falls, lake Louise, Moraine lake, Yoho NP, Spiral tunnels, Takakkaw falls, Natural bridge over Kicking horse river, Johnston canyon hikes, Lake Louise Gondola

Next post is at:
http://adventuretrav.blogspot.com/2017/10/canada-trip-report-day-5-icefields.html