Archive for July, 2009

Day Hike – Mt. Fairview (9,001 ft)

Saturday, July 25th, 2009

Mt Fairview Panorama (West)
Our last day full day in Canada was celebrated by a lovely hike up Mt. Fairview from the Chateau Lake Louise. The hike climbs just over 3,400 ft to the summit, over 9 km. We followed the Saddleback Pass Trail to the Pass (at around 7, 700 ft) and then made the final summit bid up scree to the top.

VFF's Kept My Toes Clean, But My Feet...
I decided to do the hike in my new VFF (Vibram Five Finger) shoes, it was an experiment in foot dexterity & toughness!

Clare & Dennis Champions of Mt. Fairview

Our stats:
Start Time: 12:35 pm
Saddleback Pass: 1:50 pm
Mt. Fairview Summit: 2:40pm
Finish Time: 4:30pm

For More Pictures of the hike, (more…)

Whitewater Rafting – Kicking Horse River, Canada

Friday, July 24th, 2009

What’s a trip to the Rockies without white water rafting? It had been a very long time since either of us tried it, so we thought, why not! We called up Wild Water and made reservations to do the Whitewater Exciter. We were quite excited to give it a whirl!

White Water Rafting is FUN!

The Whitewater Exciter is described as such, on their website: “There are numerous rapids, such as, “Roller Coaster”, “Hopi Hole”, “Goat Rapid” and “Twin Peaks” that are certain to leave you with big smiles. The most famous rapid is known throughout the area . . . the “Portage” and “Shotgun” rapids! (Cue dramatic music!) Long, continuous, quick and tricky, this section of river is, without question, the most popular and memorable section of true class IV to IV+ rafting in the Alberta area.” (more…)

Canmore & Calgary

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

Canmore, Main Street
Wednesday was the busiest day of our vacation.

We started off doing a little shopping in Canmore. We stopped at Tin Box; a boutique shop, and also the Canadian equivalent of the dollar store. There was a third store, but I forget the name. It was in half of a person’s house, and contained a bunch of nic nacs with an old west theme.

Rachel Chilling at Grizzly Paw Brewing Company
Then we had lunch at The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company. My favorite part of lunch was the root beer. They make their own from scratch and it is by far the best root beer I’ve tasted! (more…)

Rock Climbing – Lake Louise – Outhouse Crag

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

Dennis & Clare at Lake Louise

Rachel at Far End of Lake Louise
After our rest day, we were amped up and ready to climb. We had done Mountain Biking, Hiking, and a scenic drive. Now, we wanted some rock.

Before setting out, we stopped in Canmore at the Rock Shop, Vertical Addiction where we gleaned beta from a super nice dude, Ben. If you climb in the Canmore area, I would highly recommend this shop, the guy there was a great source of information, and ultra friendly!!! (more…)

Rest Day – Icefields Parkway – Scenic Drive

Monday, July 20th, 2009

We Love Bow Lake & Crowfoot Glacier!
On Monday, exhausted after two days of activity, we decided to do a scenic drive. We had heard rumors about the drive from Banff to Jasper, so we thought it would be a nice way to spend our rest day.

Clare & Dennis Columbia Icefield
This drive is the most beautiful drive I’ve ever experienced…and we just barely made it to Jasper National Park! (more…)