Last week, in the second episode of this three-part camping series, I recounted our journey tenting in Alberta’s bear country.
Although I was feeling less than refreshed after my sleepless night, we packed up our tent and headed down the highway. Our next stop was the Columbia Ice Fields in beautiful Jasper National Park.
It was interesting to see and walk on the Athabasca Glacier, which is the largest body of ice in the Canadian Rockies. There were markers showing how much the glacier had receded over the years. I would be curious to see how much the glacier has melted since we were there over twenty years ago.
After we finished the ice fields tour, we proceeded further into the park, found a site and set up camp. It was extremely dry that year and the ground was like a fine, black powder.
After supper, we took the Jasper SkyTram from the lower to the upper station. The Hubs, who claims he is afraid of heights, waited in the parking lot. From there my brother, sister-in-law, myself and the kids hiked the Trail of Whistlers Mountain to the Summit Viewpoint. It was amazing to stand on the summit and look over and see Mount Robson in British Columbia. My son got to the top first and was standing there like a little statue when I arrived.
After supper, we took the Jasper SkyTram from the lower to the upper station. The Hubs, who claims he is afraid of heights, waited in the parking lot. From there my brother, sister-in-law, myself and the kids hiked the Trail of Whistlers Mountain to the Summit Viewpoint. It was amazing to stand on the summit and look over and see Mount Robson in British Columbia. My son got to the top first and was standing there like a little statue when I arrived.
I wasn't in great shape and struggled a bit on that upward hike. My kids were like little mountain goats though and scampered up with no problem.
One of the memories I have of that hike up the mountain was how my brother and his wife encouraged me to continue even when I wanted to quit. With their encouragement, I made it and felt so good standing on the summit on that beautiful July evening. I had accomplished something that was definitely out of my comfort zone.
The trip down the trail was easier than going up obviously, but my daughter got a little over enthusiastic to get back to the tramway. She was running ahead of us, down the steep trail, when she fell and went tumbling down the mountain in a cloud of dust. She finally came to a halt and we caught up to her and checked her over for injuries. She was fine, just dusty and her pride was hurt. I can still visualize the image of my eleven-year-old girl falling down the mountain in front of me and there was nothing I could do to help her.
We enjoyed the rest of our evening in Jasper and packed up and went to Maligne Canyon and the Miette Hot Springs the next day. I remember the cute little mountain goats that hung out in the parking lot at the hot springs. The heat from the hot springs was amplified by the scorching temperatures outside, so we were pretty much roasted when we left there.
My brother and sister-in-law headed back home to Edmonton and we carried on and eventually made our way back home to the village.
Getting lost and taking a police car ride with my son, the Hubs sleeping with an axe under his pillow, fire fears, bear fears, my daughter falling down the mountain, heat exhaustion - good times!
It is a lot of work to go camping; especially tenting, but the memories we made with our kids and extended family made it totally worth the effort.
I hope you are planning a few adventures for this summer!
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Listen to Alberta Camping Adventure: Part One: Sylvan Lake on my Podcast Link
Listen to Alberta Camping Adventure: Part Two: Bear Country on my
Listen to this episode - Alberta Camping Adventure: Part Three: Jasper on my @ Podcast Link
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