On Friday morning, we were all ready to fly to Calgary, Canada. I was ****very**** excited as I had wanted to go to the Canadian Rockies for a long time. (Ever since I saw, “Lodges of the Canadian Rockies” in 2001 on PBS).
Our flight to Calgary went fine, we were on a very small plane, so Dennis checked his carry on when we got to the loading area.
The couple behind us were travelling up to Banff for their 5th anniversary, and they were very expressive and quite vocal in voicing their excitement. In fact, after about 15 minutes both Dennis & I were tired of listening to their banter. Lucky for him, he brought his Ipod.
We landed and went through customs (they didn’t stamp our passports!). Then we waited for about an hour for Rachel. Once she came, we got our rental car and hit the highway.
The Trans-Canada Highway turns into a normal road as it meanders through Calgary, so it took us nearly 30 minutes to get out of town. Just before the road turned into highway, we stopped for a bite to eat at Earl’s. It’s a chain, but a nice quality establishment. We were all delighted with their ice tea, it had ginger and a tad bit of mint & lemon. Tres Bien!
To top off lunch, we three shared a sundae. Yummy!
Back on the road, we passed the remains of the ski jumps from the Olympics, back in the 70s. Neat. Rachel soon dozed off. I read a little, and watched as we got closer to the rockies.
The first thing I noticed, when we got close to Canmore, was Mt. Yamnuska.
This crag is so prominent, you just know it’s got climbing! By this time, the mountains were in our faces, and everybody was totally alert. They are so scraggly, and jagged. The grey tones of the rock are in complete contrast to the green and soft texture of the trees.
The Canadians really know how to trim their roads! The highway is clear of trees for a good 40 meters on either side, so driving is super pleasant. One is constantly treated to sweeping mountain vistas.
We arrived in Canmore around 6:30pm, and made our way to Lynn & Peter’s (our Canadian hosts) place. Lynn was there waiting with Mango Salsa and chips, what a treat! We all went outside on the porch and enjoyed the scenery. We got acquainted, and talked about the upcoming weekend.
Then there was dinner. We had a wonderful fresh salad, pasta, and salmon. It was just lovely. The salmon had been marinating in capers & garlic & parsley, and I made a mental note to try it when we were back stateside.
After dinner, Dennis & I went for a little stroll, as the last bit of light disappeared…it was 10:15pm! One extra perk about Canmore is the extra bit of daylight. For a night owl like me, it’s just great to have so much light after dinner!
With such a wonderful first day in Canada, I just couldn’t wait for day two!
Tags: Calgary, Canada, Canmore, Mt. Yamnuska