The Road to Jasper
Jasper is a wonderland that I consider heaven. As we ventured towards the National Park, we made some stops along way…
My pal Debbie + I awoke early early + left Canmore lickety split! We headed northwest towards Jasper National Park! Neither of us had been there before. I was really anticipating the trip. Anytime I mentioned my trip to Jasper to a local, they would get a faraway look in their eyes…
and say…”Jasper is what Banff was 40 years ago. Sigh!”. I’m not kidding EVERYONE said it! Banff is really overcrowded + can be crazy congested, so I couldn’t wait to find out what everyone was talking about!!!
Our first tourist stop was an hour + 1/2 drive to Bow Lake. It was a gloomy morning + the lake wasn’t as blue as it usually is, but still stunningly beautiful!
A fisherman waiting for a morning catch.
Num-Ti-Jah Lodge, 16 rooms, a general store, gifts + restaurant! My brother + sister-in-law were married at Bow Lake! Dreamy!
It was early yet, but a flock of buses had arrived!!!! Our adversaries:
Just kidding! They were so cute taking pictures of squirrels! But seriously, travel early to beat the tour buses!!! We were outta there!
Next stop, Peyto Lake! Another crowded tourist spot – but if you take the trail heading further up, there are sensational views of the lake + WAY less peeps!!!
Debbie taking it all in.
The milky run-off from the glacier trickling into the lake.
If you look closely, you can see the rock flour deposits that I mentioned in my last post, giving the lake it’s bright turquoise color!
The Peyto Glacier has receded at an alarmingly fast rate. It’s so sad. Hello global warming!
When entering Jasper National Park, there are ranger stations where we were stopped, + payed for entry. The ranger asked for my Native Card. Huh? Debbie was laughing her a** off. The ranger thought I was of First Nations heritage! OMG.
On to the Icefields Parkway!!! It’s a nice stop to stretch your legs, but it was too crowded for us – look at the parking lot! Speaking of global warming, Athabasca Glacier used to fan out, covering where the parking lot is today.
I personally would skip Athabasca glacier. It’s too much of a tourist trap. You’ll see in a couple of posts that we had a lovely woodland hike along another glacier with minimal crowds! 
This bus will take you up the glacier for around $50.
I preferred this old school vehicle!!!
I am really milking this trip because there’s too many pictures + too much to tell you guys!!! So there will be more Jasper, keep on reading!!!
how's it going, eh? 
Hi, Nan, again terrific wonderful Photo’s…keep up
the great picture taking,…Wow, Jasper is awesome
for photo geek’s, huh…lol !!!!! Take Care, say Hey
2 Jeff & Meg’s, watched, ”Hell On Wheels”, good
stuff, tell Jeff, he should ask 4 a raise, Cheers Dad’s
Jasper is a dream!!! Oh good, I’m glad you liked the Hell on Wheels season premiere!!! Jeff works SO hard on that show! It’s dirty + muddy!
I started researching Jasper yesterday – there’s so much to see! We’re only going to be there for two nights, which is basically just one day, so we’ll definitely have to go again. It looks amazing!
I could have spent a month there!!! I’m excited for your trip!
I have to admit, you make me want to go visit Jasper right now!! 🙂
Haha!!! It is beyond gorgeous!!! I couldn’t believe it!
I am thankful that we live in an age of digital information, photos and documents of all sorts! I get to virtually visit just about every nook and cranny of this great country and beyond! 🙂
I have never been to Jasper. I should have Kyle take me when we head out to Alberta next week.
YES!!!! If you guys are in Canmore/Banff CALL ME!!! Let’s get coffee!!
Woo hoo I totally will!
Loved Peyto Lake! Looking forward to going to Jasper on another trip. ~M.
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Yes! You’ll be in photo taking heaven!!!