Au revoir Goodbye Canada

Here we are in Calgary, a short and uninspiring stay - but to be fair we have not been here long enough to really appreciate what it has to offer. For us a stopover in order to start our long journey home. A very pleasant suite in a downtown hotel with a very nice Vietnamese restaurant nearby for dinner last night. Home to watch some AO tennis and as much sleep as possible to charge the batteries before we spend over 24 hours in airports and planes.

A shot from the bus as we left the Rockies sadly behind us.

And an atistic sculpture of the Calgary Stampede in a nearby park. 

The last we'll see of snow too for a while.

Packing done, a few relaxing minutes before we head off.

Thanks for following us, we hope you could share and appreciate some of the amazing sights and moments we have experienced on this trip.

Beautiful Banff

A little easier trip to Banff from Lake Louise. Just over an hour but it did mean we arrived a frustrating 4 hours before we could check-in. A dull, cloudy and cold day welcomed us as well as an arctic blast of cyclonic wind as we got off the bus. Fairmont seem to have reckoned we'd had enough upgrades so back to basics. Still, quite pleasant but not what we have becomed used to! A quiet day while we recovered. Woke this morning though to a beautiful day, sunny skies and little wind. A good nights sleep and we were keen to get out and about.

A misty welcome to town on arrival

Fairmont Banff

A mounted Mountie

Valley views from the hotel.

Snow sculptures in town

A gondola ride to take in the stunning views

Looking down towards the hotel

Looking back North towards Lake Louise

Back in town and a reuniting with Tony Roma after more than 30 years!

Just the same - stunning ribs.

Taking a break before dinner as we head to Calgary tomorrow 

for a night then a very long trip home.

N ice times at Lake Louise

So, an early start to get the bus to Lake Louise after a light dusting of overnight snow.  The Fairmont and Lake Louise for so long a dream, and the reality has proven so much better. The iconic Fairmont resort on the lake - an absolute picture in both Summer and Winter. We're biased because we're here in Winter, but being a naturally alpine climate it seems to suit it best, I'll let the pictures do the talking! On the bus we missed a lot of what is promoted as one of the best drives "in the world". Dark and the windows with the condensation freezing constantly on the inside!

Not great images, but the best under the circumstances!

Arrived at the Fairmont Lake Louise 3 hours later.

The main hotel

Our wing

Another welcome upgrade to a suite with amazing lake and valley views.

A warning everyone seems to conviently ignore.

An ice sculpture contest was in full swing.

N'ice

Even an ice bar!

To end the day a sleigh ride round the lake edge.

A frozen waterfall on our sleigh ride.

Very "Cool"

Off to Banff tomorrow, should be good if reports prove true.

How suite it is!

Recovering emotionally, not physically, from the amazing train trip and bonus 3 hours in the morning on board. Now in our Fairmont Hotel in Jasper Park. A sprawling collection of cabins and hotel suites amongst snow walks and looking out onto frozen lakes. We've been lucky again with a substantial upgrade here to a (frozen) lakeside suite. HUGE. Here's the view from our room!

 Dress circle position with the lake view through the trees.

And the cabin (suite) itself.

A short walk to freshen up after the train, well rugged up for the -12 degree temp.

Nice shot - even if I say so myself!

Seem some have ignored the warning!

Some views of the lake on our walk.

Some of the guests enjoying a spa surrounded by the snow.

The wee town of Jasper. A late but really yummy brekky in here.

A little in the distance but a herd of about 30 wild Elk grazing beside the road into town.

Maybe not so lucky, but lovely to be by the fire writing this blog. 

Off to Lake Louise tomorrow very early by coach for another stop on our way to Calgary and the trip home!

Training

One of the most keenly anticipated parts of our trip was "The Canadian" train trip from Vancouver to Jasper. It lived up to our expectations and more ...

It all started with a little celebration!

The train track followed the valley floor and the Fraser river. The mountains in the distance here but a raft of logs as we left Vancouver testified to the areas large timber industry.

The stunning Mt Robson, rarely seen as clearly as this according to the train attendant who had been working on the train for 12 years! 

It  was a stunningly clear and sunny day.

As we settled in for the night and dinner on board we said goodnight to the unbelievable vista.

We were expecting to be at Jasper at 8.00am but a number of goods trains had priority through the night slowing us by 3 hours. The bonus being we were able to have extra daylight time to admire the views.

A dull but fascinating scene near dawn.

The snow draped trees masked the mountain scenery.

Jasper ... at last but feeling really invigorated.

It was an interesting trip people wise. We sat with a number of fellow travellers through the trip, at meals and while watching and photographing the scenery. Some really nice people to share our time with. Would thoroughly recommend the trip. Now relaxing in our thankfully upgraded suite at the Fairmont Hotel.

Vanishing Vancouver

Well, it's a sad day indeed! We have loved Vancouver and she has loved us with perfect weather and a stunning situation. We had to move hotels today to start our "The Canadian" train journey through the Canadian Rockies from here to Jasper with a night on board. Not sure what  the Wi Fi will be like but we're both looking forward to the trip. We stay at Fairmont hotels the whole way including Lake Louise, Banff and then finally at Calgary before we head home. Back to the freezing temps and snow - just after we've thawed from Quebec and Minneapolis.

The Canadian awaits us.

As the sun sets we say our fondest farewells to Vancouver.

Sensational Sunset Beach

Well, we now know why they call this Sunset Beach! Right out the front of our hotel a sensational Sunday sunset! It seems the whole of Vancouver came out to promenade by the sea wall - all shapes and sizes and that includes the numerous dogs as well! Vancouver is known for it's wet weather and an unseasonal, brilliantly fine, day has drawn an appreciative crowd.

Sylvia just before sunset.

Hundreds, if not thousands come out to promenade.

A mystical sea mist announces sundown.

Sunsets always seem to be popular.

It's only 5.00pm and the crowds traipse home as the sea mist blanks out the view 

as it rolls in.