Lake – Page 2 – travellingzombie.com

Day Trips from Jasper National Park

Places to visit from Jasper National Park

Last year, we were lucky enough to spend some time in Jasper National Park.

Waking up early one morning, we heard hushed voices right outside the cabin. Peaking out, a herd of elk were lazily wandering down the embankment. We must have watched silently with about ten other travellers as they made their way from the river to the thick tree coverage.

What a beautiful way to start the morning!

Although we weren’t in Jasper for long, we did get chance to take a couple of day trips. These are our ‘don’t miss’ suggestions:

Athabasca Falls

A furious waterfall on the upper Athabasca River, this was a great way to spend a morning. It was only around a half hour drive from our base in Jasper and was fairly easy to find. The force of the water is incredible, as is the noise as it crashes down into the gorge below. Over the years, the water has channelled a way through the softer cliff walls, creating a twisting, turning chasm.

The viewing areas for the waterfall are well thought out, jutting out at a variety of places across the water. Athabasca Falls is located just off highway 93A, making it a great little stop if you are visiting the Athabasca Glacier or driving down the Icefield Parkway.

Jasper Town Centre

If you are heading through Jasper, you can’t miss a trip to the town centre. Set out on a long stretch of road, multiple little shops await, full of the usual souvenirs and bear spray. This is not why you should visit the town centre. I have a bit of a pet hate of natural parks and remote places adding lots of shops (I’m looking at you Banff). I can completely understand the need for a couple of little stores, stocked with essentials and set up to blend in with the surrounding area – however national parks don’t need shopping complexes in my opinion. Anyway, with that in mind: go to Jasper town centre, find the shops and then turn your back on them. Look in exactly the opposite direction and you will be greeted by an incredible view of the Rockies.

I’m not sure if it was the contrast of the mountains against the shops and cars, but this was truly an amazing view. It looked just like a cardboard cut out of a storybook skyline and it was breathtaking.

Athabasca Glacier

This was a slightly longer drive from where we were staying (about two hours). Try to keep your eyes peeled on the drive down the Icefield Parkway as early morning trips are likely to reveal lots of wildlife spotting opportunities.

The weather change from Jasper town centre to the glacier is huge – we started in shorts and ended up wrapped up in layers and winter coats! You can read all about our Glacier Trip here.

Maligne Lake

This was the underdog of the day trips from Jasper. I didn’t know much about the lake and we’d not really done much research about the visit, deciding our destination on the spur-of-the-moment.

If you plan to visit the lake, it’s worth trying to have as long there as you can – you won’t want to leave! What a setting this place is! Emerald waters stretch away from the sandy shore, framed by the glacial mountains in the distance, it’s clear why this location is one of the most photographed in the Rockies.

One of the main attractions is Spirit Island – reachable by one of the many over-priced boat rides on the lake. The Stoney Nakoda First Nation believe that the Island is a spiritual place, particularly as it is overlooked by three of the glacial mountains, which they believe to be their ancestors. As you can’t actually set foot on Spirit Island, we chose to do a walk around the lake instead.

A trail follows the outline of the lake, giving glimpses of the mountain range through the tree line.

I found Jasper to be far prettier and much more relaxed (and cheaper!) than it’s much-discussed Banff neighbour. Lots of other travellers told us to spend longer in Banff than Jasper, but I’m going to be rebellious and suggest that longer in Jasper would have been better. This might have been something to do with our little log cabin stay at Jasper House Bungalows which, although fairly expensive, were in a gorgeous setting, looking out over the Athabasca River.

We had some incredible sunsets here too, it was such a tranquil setting.

Getting Lost Close To Home

Feet sinking into the snow, we realised that there was no path anymore and getting down off the hill was going to be a bit of a challenge.

We’d set off for a wander around Ullswater and Aira Force, following the A ira Force and Gowbarrow Trail. The promising views from the summit of Gowbarrow had tempted us out from warm spots by the fire into the snow and wind.

Aira Force is about 1 hour 45 minutes from where we live. We’d packed the car up and headed off to play tour guide for a couple of friends who hadn’t visited before. We were all feeling a bit restless, having been kept inside recently through the bad weather.

We started off towards the falls and even though it was really cold, the sprinklings of snow really highlighted the magic of the falls, making them seem otherworldly.

The Old Norse name of Aira Force translates to ‘the waterfall on the gravel bank river’.

Following the path, we headed towards the open hillside where the snow was much thicker. Due to the depth of the snow, we couldn’t see the path properly and we must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. A small fence led up the hillside and we navigated uneven ground as we walked, the snow sometimes giving way to reveal holes made by a hidden stream. We were all being very careful not to hit one of the drops wrong and twist an ankle as we ascended the steep hillside.

At the top of the hill, the view was stunning. It was hard to believe that we were less than 2 hours away from home. The snow-topped hills in the distance, surrounded by a shimmering lake were reminiscent of any trip to Canada or Europe or the USA.

After snapping a few photos. We quickly realised that the path down wasn’t clearly visible and that going down was going to be much harder than coming up. Although we were all feeling warmer following our trek up the incline, the snow was thicker and it was harder to determine where the drops in the landscape were hiding. After walking some distance towards the gleaming water of the lake, we came to an sharp edge, which would have certainly seen one or more of us loose our footing.

Leading the charge, one of my most confident and positive friends encouraged us all to shuffle-slide down the hill on our bums. It was one of the best parts of the walk and really sticks out as a highlight of the day- the four of us taking turns to help each other down the steep embankment, sliding through snow on our bums, soaking wet, but laughing and triumphant as we reached the bottom.

I love the pictures from this hike more than any others taken on local treks. They prove to me that beautiful scenery can be found close to home if you know where to look. They remind me that travel doesn’t always have to mean the other side of the world and they encapsulate a day that was filled with love, friendship and adventure – the best kind of days you can have.

An Unexpected Favourite: Whistler, Canada

A quick stop in summer-time Whistler

Before we went on our most recent trip to Canada, many people told us that Whistler wasn’t as popular or beautiful as Banff and therefore we probably shouldn’t spend as long there, if we visited it at all. Seeing as we haven’t been before, we decided to build in a day’s stay at the little ski resort on our way through to our next big stop.

The journey from Vancouver was stunning, at every curve of the road there was something to see. Deep blue lakes with imposing mountings rising upwards to transform into snow-dusted peaks. If this was scenery that people thought we could miss, then they were missing the point!

Arriving at Whistler was a really nice surprise – the little complex is really well built, hiding amongst the scenery without impacting on the surrounding landscape. We were staying at Pan Pacific Whistler Mountain which was absolutely stunning – all wooden panelling and log fires!

The immediate area around the hotel was paved to create a meandering, circular complex, full of restaurants and shops. Although it was quite commercial (it’s going to be, the whole place is designed as a ski resort), it managed to be so well designed that you almost didn’t mind. A stream cut through the centre of the stone walkway, which broke up the run of shops and ensured that the natural draw of the mountain wasn’t forgotten.

We went in the summer, so there was no skiing on the mountain, however, that didn’t mean that it was quiet. In fact, the place was bustling, with biking and dirt trails replacing the snow and ski boots.

As we were only there for a short stay (just the one night), we went in search of a short trundle to see what Whistler had to offer. It was quite late in the afternoon and so we chose to head off down towards Lost Lake, a stunning lake in the middle of Lost Lake Park and only a short walk from the hotel.

Within minutes of leaving the village complex, the trees closed in, hugging the edge of the woodland trail. It was a beautiful walk, initially requiring us to cross over a roaring stream which was captivating to watch. We made sure to create noise and check our surroundings frequently as we were the only ones on the path and we didn’t want to unintentionally creep up on an unsuspecting bear! Being bitten alive by all of the mosquitoes helped to keep us shouting!

The lake itself was beautiful. The surrounding mountains created an imposing backdrop to the calm waters. What we hadn’t expected was the beach and grassy areas surrounding the lake. As it was summer, there were people playing ball games and chilling out on the sand. Its easy to imagine a very different picture in the winter when the lake freezes over and the beach is covered in snow! It would be nice to see it in winter to compare our experiences.

Leaving Vancouver, the people we shared our route with told us to expect places to get more commercial and expensive, the closer we got to Whistler, Jasper and Banff. This felt like almost counter-intuitive advice, given that we were heading away from the big cities and towards mountains and national parks. It did hold to be true, however, which was somewhat disappointing – we like our mountains and lakes to stay rural, not to be encompassed by a shopping street! That being said, Whistler integrated the shopping areas and natural beauty well. The design of the village was well thought out to ensure that the sight of the mountains towering across the skyline wasn’t lost.

Although we loved Whistler, it was still easily one of the most expensive places that we stayed on our trip. This was partly because we’d left it fairly late to book accommodation, but also because Whistler is a fairly expensive place generally. Obviously, if you are heading there in the winter to ski, some of the cost is unavoidable. If you aren’t bothered about skiing, consider visiting in the summer instead. Although it’s not classed as ‘off peak’, there are some better deals on hotels and with a great number of trails to explore, there are lots of cheap (or free!) things to do!

Did you find Whistler expensive or cheap? What are your tips for easing the costs when staying at this location? Tell us in the comments.

What a difference a month makes

How Mirror Lake in Yosemite Changes in Just Two Months

We often struggle with picking where to go on our holidays. Holiday time is so precious and if you don’t get that many days off, you have to make the most of them when you do. So we usually spend ages looking at where to go and what to see when we get there.

Often the ‘when’ of our trips can be pretty set in advance – usually when the flight prices are cheaper or working around particular seasons (e.g. avoiding rainy seasons). One thing that it’s easy to forget to consider is the differences that a couple of weeks can make to your experience of a destination.

A good example of this is our trip to Mirror Lake in Yosemite. We’ve been there on a couple of occasions but the last time we visited, we went slightly earlier in the year – there wasn’t too much of a difference, we are talking a visit in early June rather than late July. The difference in scenery, however, was astounding.

This is Wandering Beeb’s photo of Mirror Lake, or more accurately, Mirror Meadow on our first trip. Green lush grass and trees with lots of boulders and sand filled the valley.

The visit in late July saw stunning scenery, the centre of which was a field, surrounded by Yosemite’s recognisable granite cliffs. It was a lush setting, with huge boulders dotted throughout the area and sand drifts marking the uneven ground. Mirror Lake (or Mirror Meadow as it’s sometimes known due to the lack of water) is around a 1-3 hour round-trip, starting at shuttle stop number 17. The lake is a hangover from the glacial lake which once filled most of Yosemite Valley, standing at 4000ft elevation. Standing in the middle of the meadow, the cliffs surrounded us, building cut-outs in the blue sky.

Jumping forward to our visit to the same spot in early June a couple of years later and the place was unrecognisable in comparison! The same granite cliff faces surrounded us but this time, there was no meadow to stand in. Instead we stood on the edge of a serene lake, silent and glass-like. It was hard to believe that the small number of weeks had made such a difference.

Mirror Lake in early June – the water was full and still, creating the perfect reflection. We has stood here a few years earlier in the July when it was a dry meadow.

The still lake reflecting the granite cliffs. It was dizzying to look down on the reflection without seeing any disturbance in the water.

The trail around the lake is a really nice walk, lined with little cairns. These piles of balanced rock had filled one part of the trail, creating an interesting spectacle. Cairns have been used throughout history for a range of different reasons, often marking buried resources, graves or trailheads. The ones at Mirror Lake don’t seem to serve this purpose and raise an interesting debate on how people view them. Some say they see them as a temporary art piece, an example of humans making their mark in an environmentally friendly(ish) way. Others say they are a form of graffiti, disrupting natural placement of stones and making a mark on nature that shouldn’t be there.

Little stone cairns dotted around the trail at Mirror Lake in Yosemite. Historically used to make trail heads, resources or burial sites, these ones don’t seem to hold any purpose. Some say these are an eyesore, a type of graffiti, others see them as temporary art work.

Much less organised than the cairns were the huge rocks dotted around the lake. Standing on one of the larger boulders, the stillness of the water perfectly reflected Half Dome and we quickly set down our day packs to whip out our cameras to capture the image. The dual image of the rocks above us and their inverted view below was dizzying but beautiful, the images we captured failing to do it justice.

Wandering Beeb at Mirror Lake, silhouetted against the huge granite cliffs of Yosemite.

Have you been to Mirror Lake? When is the best time of year to visit? What’s your take on the cairns – are they temporary art or graffiti?