Had lunch at Canmore and found myself staring at the mountains where the light constantly changed.
We did not realize Labor, make that Labour, Day, was a 3 day weekend Canada. As retirees we don’t get many opportunities to join holiday traffic, but it was a remarkablybeautiful drive through the park (even if a bit slow) and down to Fairmont Hot Springs where our timeshare trade awaited us. (Banff so beautiful it gets it’s own separate post. Oddly once through the park there were no crowds at all, but still a beautiful place.
Complex, bursting with bloom gardening at the resort… coupled with lots of deer…..HOW?
Our plan was day trips to explore the area and we added the goal of avoiding the holiday crowds. (And of course using up that time share week that was soon to expire). We borrowed movies and enjoyed the US open. We had 3 TVs in the condo and made good use of them in the evening. There was a big kitchen and 2 grills so I refreshed my cooking skills. Lots of great produce (the grapes were from Bakersfield!) and a large pint of blueberries cost about 1.75. The exchange rate is very favorable for US visitors.
The hoodoo hike was 3 minutes from the condo. Here they are from the highway….…and here they are from the top.It was a nice hike where we met only one other couple (who coincidentally like to kiteboard at La Ventana). Su casa man (see below)recommended the hike for seeing bald eagles but we alas saw none. Here is the view from the hoodoos. That evening there was a little smoke which actually made for some nice sunbeams.
Our first night there we asked the clerk if he could recommend a good place for a margarita. “Absolutely! Go to Su Casa, just around the corner!” Well, Su Casa did not have a liquor liscence and high school students were the servers. So we continued our search.
This has not been photoshopped. It is the actual color of the “margaritas”. The bartender was not sure how to make a margarita but he mixed up something that was cold and sweet with a faint taste of lime. Then he asked, “who is this man? “ He also wanted to know what he had to do with cheeseburgers (as others had mentioned earlier in day).He sat down and chatted while we listened to Jimmy Buffett music on Spotify. I think Jimmy would have liked it.
The next morning it was drizzling so we decided to check out the local pickleball group. On rainy days they play indoors.
…inside meant playing at the curling club! Yes, they do have an ice rink in the winter. I asked how they keep these baskets blooming. She said they fertilize every day! So the ice is applied to a plastic liner layer placed on the cement. Surprisingly not slick at all (as a pickleball court). Next we are looking for clay courts!
Our timeshare also had 4 tennis courts so Brant and I decided to work on getting back to play tennis. After playing pickle ball that tennis court looks huge. At first I thought I might never be able to play again but gradually remembered why I love to play tennis .
I think they wanted to play with us. Note all the flowers in background. Do Canadian deer have better manners?
In our area there are many hot springs. Most have been corraled into pools but some remain natural. At Fairmont springs we had heard and read there was a natural spring area hidden away. We found the entry point but there were 2 gates and 4 signs explaining why we shouldn’t go…. Most importantly a large fine. Instead we began up a small trail that lead to house.
As it turns out this was where Native Americans had used as a sacred bathhouse for many hundreds of years. The trail seemed to end but we followed up the rocks to the plateau above.The water was warm and it must be coming from somewhere… so up we went…A short climb up and we found this pool … so perfect for soaking our legs…. Very warm. Just love this pic…. The sunbeams were beautiful. A woman came while we were there and stretched out in the pool and said she had been there for 3 hours the day before. Then a guy came by who was a cardiology fellow from Calgary. He advised us on places to go (said to ignore gate warnings) and we advised him on Northern California where he was headed soon. very friendly people here.. And here is one of my all time favorites. I attached my phone with a hairband to a pole at the end of the platform. I set the timer for 10 seconds and took off running. I jumped into Brants awaiting arms without a second to spare. The perfect place to renew our kiss as we bought Brant his fourth wedding band on this trip…..at Walls Drugstore in South Dakota.
Lots of provincial parks here. They have great hikes, facilities and views …. Without the crowds! Premier Lake had great hiking and we had fun watching them reel in rainbows. We did a 4 mile hike up around the lakes. Saw only 6 other hikers the whole day …. And it was Labour Day!
A perfect picnic spot…. And only later did I notice the dragonfly. (Yankee Lake) The clarity in this lake was amazing. You could look down and see the fish 10-20 feet below. (Premier Lake)So many trails and so well maintained. We saw an elk shortly after taking this pic.
We took the cardiologist’s advice and drove to White Swan/Top of the World Provincial park. Another beautiful hike …. Followed by a good soak in the Lussier hot springs.
If it weren’t for all the fir trees it would like the BajaThe camera cannot really capture how beautiful the scenery is here.An easy hike down to these “pools” after our hike was perfect. The springs come in from sides and feed into the pools.This is the warmest one as its closest to the spring. (Notice that blue water)And the one where the people are below is just right! Those folks gave us lots more suggestions of more Hot Springs to visit on our trip. They say the temperature at these springs remains constant and has for the past 20 to 30 years they have been visiting here (even in the winter).View from deck of condo. Such a perfect place to stay.
So after several days of hike, hot pools, tennis… repeat, we headed to Nelson. We puzzled over the best route to take but Su casa man once again had advice (which we unwisely accepted).
They have very lifelike yard ornaments here.… and this is what I was taking a picture of….so many pristine lakes
Life's Been Good To Us So Far! 