When you go to the snow in your summer shoes.
- Luciana
- Sep 25, 2018
- 3 min read
Updated: Dec 27, 2018
BANFF NATIONAL PARK, Canadian Rockies.
After living 7 years in London, the last thing I want right now is cold and rain.
Our round the world trip was planned to hit every location in summer. Even though we carry 5 big suitcases, 2 pushchairs, 2 carseats, 1 cot bed and 4 backpacks, they are all full of summer things: wetsuits, googles, masks, fins, floaters, sunscreen, swimsuits, some shorts and dresses.
We definitely were not prepared for snow!
"Who could have ever imagined that in mid September it would be zero celsius and snowing? "
We flew from Toronto to Calgary in order to visit the majestic Rocky Mountains in Banff National Park.
It is a long 6 hours flight (amazing how big Canada is!)
Who could have ever imagined that in mid September it would be zero celsius and snowing? We bought some basic jackets and put a lot of layers below them.
All hotels in Banff were booked up, so we decided to stay in Canmore, a little town 30 minutes from Banff National Park.
Over the first two days of our stay, we were fortunate enough to see the mountains for a few minutes due to the fact that the visibility was almost non-existent. Taking a chair lift to the top of the mountains was definitely not an option.
Instead, we went into Canmore and Banff towns, both super cute, typical alpine resort towns where restaurants mix with château-style hotels and souvenir shops.
Cannmore town and around.
On the clearer (but still cold days) we drove around Banff National Park area to try to see some of the sights.
Our top destinations were:
Lake Minnewanka. Beautiful. A glacial lake located about five kilometres northeast of the Banff townsite. For more than 100 centuries, people hunted and camped along the original shores of the lake. The Stoney people called it “Minn-waki” or “Lake of the Spirits”. We did not have the right gear for long walks and either way, the cold weather would have made any excursion an arctic experience. We stayed there long enough to take some photos and from there we went straight to the Banff Upper Hot Springs. THAT was the hit of the day. Outdoor pools with 100% natural mineral water flowing from the mountains at a temperature between 37 and 40 degrees Celsius. Just what we all needed.
Lake Minnewanka and Banff Upper Hot Springs.
On our last day we took advantage of the comparably clear wether to visit Lake Louise.
The windy drive itself, through the park, was magnificent. We spotted deer and some foxes. Then we arrived to this turquoise green lake with shimmering water, surrounded by snow-capped mountains. Next to the lake is the Fairmont Lake Victoria Hotel (reminiscent of The Shining) where we escaped from the cold and the rain for a warm lunch and the best possible view.
Lake Victoria in Banff National Park
We ended our days in the hotel spa where the kids would refuse to leave the hot pools. The hotel also had a large cinema room which was perfect for the kid's pre-bed movie time. I wish we had had better weather as it is a shame to travel so far and not be able to enjoy some of the long walks and outdoor activities. However, we did manage to see enough of the mountainous landscape, the town centres, Lake Louise and many hot springs to know that this is a spectacular, picture perfect destination that you won't want to miss.
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