Mr Bear wanted to cross and road and we let him.

 Prince of Wales summer home in Waterton, Alberta

 Waterfalls at banff

 Glaciers look dirty and cracked

The road down and up to the glacier

7-21-12

We awoke to rain which had me worried.  But Larry, the eternal optimist, said we should try to do the glacier anyway.  We dressed warmly and head out with clouds hiding the tops of the mountains.  The streams ran muddy now.  Yesterday, they had been a milky green.  The Icefield Center was busy but organized so that people were being shuttled every 15-30 minutes on buses.  We had to wait as the shuttle with the lift was up on the glacier.  There were all sorts of exhibits downstairs that we visited while waiting.  We learned the glacier is miles deep and had been receding and building since the Ice Age.  When it was time, we were put in a van with a lift and taken part way up the mountain.  From there, we were transferred to a large snow tractor which held about 120 people and took us down a very steep road and up the other side so we could stand on the glacier, well slip and slide on it.  The glacier looks like dirty snow on top because of all the dirt it brings down with it.  Below that the compressed snow has had the oxygen pressed out of it so that it only shows a pretty blue color.  The surface is rough and full of crevices.  I didn’t stay long as it was blustery out there.  Larry couldn’t get any traction so didn’t get very far from the lift.  Luckily, Owen, the assist on the tractor was able to maneuver Larry and chair around.  He was a very personable young man from BC but worked on the glacier in the summer.  Since it had stated to drizzle, he dropped us off right at the RV.  We head for Jasper and after finding a parking place on the street, walked into the best pizza place I think we have ever had, the Jasper Pizza.  And, we got to watch some football.  We had phone service and internet for the first time in several days.  Problem was we didn’t have a place for the night so after checking with Jasper national Park information, we head for the campground that was not full.  We had to pay to get back into the park, only to learn the Wabasso camp didn’t have pullthrus.  It didn’t even sound like they had a space if the van wasn’t attached.  So, we drove to a turn out and stopped for the night, without paying a fee.  And we could run the generator whenever and however long we needed.  Somewhere in there, we came across a black bear grazing in a meadow but it was a distance away. 

7-20-12

Back a few days ago, we had gone over some reeeeealy dusty roads.  Well, the seal around the bed isn’t that great so the dust got in under the bed.  What a dirty mess that was.  Today was the day to clean that up.  We had put insulation under the bed to keep it from getting so hot from the engine.  That all had to be wiped down and the carpeting vacuumed.  Larry reattached the seal and glued it in place.  I gave up and pulled the bed skirt off totally and will wash it later.  The dust in the bedroom in general was amazing but is now cleaned up.  And we should be safe from any additional gravel roads.

After a late lunch and a quick rinsing of the van with water from the brook, we figured it would be good to check out the Icefield Center.  What an afternoon.  Driving to the Icefield Center was amazing enough.  The mountains were draped in glaciers all along the way with streams coming off them or the snow remaining on the mountain tops.  Once we got to Icefield Center tho, we got to experience a big glacier.  We had not dresses for glacier walking so decided we would come back tomorrow to ride up.  We got back to the RV and a young lade from Switzerland came by to practice her English.  She was a delight.

7-19-12

Well, Tomtom did not give us good directions.  On the way to Banff, we ended up on a dirt road.  Luckily, there was a guy in a pickup just as we got to the dirt who gave us some help.  After some fancy maneuvering, Larry got us turned around and we continued on our way thru beautiful mountains with lots of glaciers hanging yet.  Banff reminded Larry of a small Mackinaw Is.  We parked on the side of the road facing traffic like the rest of the rigs we saw and so Larry could get out. (His lift is on the passenger side of the RV) We got back to the RV with a $50 fine on the windshield for parking on the wrong side!  I wonder how many tickets that person wrote.  Heading further N, we tried one of the campgrounds suggested but after unhitching the van, found that most of the sites would not work for us.  We had seen a sign for overflow camp site.  Not only was this freer of mosquitoes, but Larry parked the RV so we were along side a babbling brook, well more like a raging river.  What a delight.  I got out my rocker, made a rum and Coke and sat and enjoyed.  As the evening wore on, more and more RV and trailers came into the area.  AND it was only $15/day compared to $30 where they had water but no sites big enough for us.    

7-18-12

After a good walk, we left the campgrounds, headed for Waterton.  A deer decided she wanted to get to the other side of the road right in front of us.  Larry saw her in time and blew the horn.  Did she pick up speed then!  Waterton is a continuation of Glacier National Park on the Canadian side.  It was so different as there were homes surrounding the park so it was more like a Swiss village.  The Prince of Wales used to live here in the summer and his “home” sat up on the top of a hill overlooking the lake and shadowed by the mountains.  It was a fairly windy day but people were going out on boat rides around the lake.  We had parked on the street and had lunch as a health restaurant across the street.  We walked around the park side of the lake with the prairie dogs keeping us company, and then along the creek and out to the waterfalls.  After that hike, I was tired so went back to the RV to rest and try to find updated maps for the Tomtom or Garmin.  We both took a little snooze and then for dinner at a restaurant that had outside dining on the water.  What a setting.  We had walked by this place earlier and I think I smelled every peony.  The locals put fencing around all their flowers to protect them from the deer and elk.  We helped by having elk and bison for dinner.  On our way out of the park, we finally got to see a bear.  It was crossing the road in front of us and didn’t stop to say hi.  It wasn’t very big and cinnamon in color.  So cute.  No wonder people aren’t afraid of them.  We continued to move N for way too late and ended up in Black Diamond which wasn’t even on our map.  The campground host met me and said they had no room for a rig our size but we could stay right on the street for the night.