No rush to get up this morning. We were picked up at 10:30, so had time for a leisurely breakfast and walk through town. Banff is a small town, population just over 8,000 and is very clean and almost picturebook. It looked pretty good with some blue sky, some dark grey and light snow on the mountain tops. Would look very impressive on a sunny winter’s day with snow all around.
Our first stop was the Banff gondola. It took 8 minutes to get to the top of the mountain and we were rewarded with spectacular views and falling snow, in summer! A great boardwalk to a meteorology station higher up with 360 degree views. Saw a couple of chipmunks that were obviously used to people and were looking for food. Great views of Banff.
After leaving the gondola, we stopped in Banff for lunch and then headed towards Calgary, stopping to look at the Hoodoos, eroded stacks left behind as the surrounding stuff was eroded. Next stop was at Kananaskis where we had a helicopter flight over the edge of the Rockies. It was stunning, nice blue sky, minimal wind and Rick had the front seat. Not at all scary.
On to Calgary, population about 1.3 million. From the little we’ve seen so far, it seems to be another vey clean city. From our hotel suite (note suite – including lounge area, kitchenette) is in the town, about 15 minutes walk from the look out tower (yes, another one) that we’ll visit tomorrow. Found a great bar this evening and had a light meal and a drink.
Your holiday sounds fantastic and really different from trips around Europe. The scenery looks great and the boat trip sounded pretty good too. Are the people friendly and how does it score on the coffee quality index? Keep enjoying it as it it is cold and wet in Melbourne. Regards Marilyn and John PS: Rick, you looked good with a tie, are you going to wear one more often at home?
ReplyDeleteHi J&M, Everyone we've met has been very friendly. Coffee score would be 1 in 10 very good cups (might be a bit optimistic). Thought I'd wear the suit and tie at home. Suit will keep the clothes clean and the tie will mop up the spilt oil.
ReplyDeleteHi J&M, Everyone we've met has been very friendly. Coffee score would be 1 in 10 very good cups (might be a bit optimistic). Thought I'd wear the suit and tie at home. Suit will keep the clothes clean and the tie will mop up the spilt oil.
ReplyDelete