I'm back...

And my holiday was fab. I've already worked a whole week after getting back.

I felt like I had a few lucky moments on the trip:
1- We drove my brothers car from Saskatoon to Regina, then back to Mom and Dads, and then all the way to and through the Mountains. When we arrived at Vernon, it stalled once- but started up again and took us to Kelowna and drove us around there. When we went to go on a day trip- it stalled again- and didn't want to start- but we were only about 2 blocks from Canadian Tire at that time. If there was a good time for a car to break down- that would be it.
2- We wanted to do the Consolidation Lakes hike. We arrived and saw a sign that it was mandatory to hike in groups of 4 due to high grizzly activity. Moments later a really nice couple from Rochester, NY arrived looking for a pair to hike with. Good timing, and great nice people.
3- The 5 day forecast when we left for our camping trip was rain, rain, rain, rain, rain. All in all, it rained cats and dogs the first night but our tent didn't leak. We tended to get mostly only showers for the first few days- and it was usually a case of get in the car the showers started- get out they stopped. And then the sun came out! How stunning the mountains are in the sun when you can actually see them.

A brief overview of the camping trip- we stayed the first night at my brother's new home in Lloydmister, and then journeyed to Edmonton for half a day of shopping before proceeding past Hinton and into the park to pitch our tent before the rain & darkness hit. The next day we did a big walk up the Bald Hills which offered a great view of Maligne Lake. A deer and a bear were spotted on the drive. We stayed that night at Whistlers camp group near Jasper. We then did the Edith Cavell short walk, spotting a hoary marmot- and then we journeyed on to Athabasca falls and then my FAVOURITE spot in the mountains- Horseshoe Lake. That night we stayed at Waterfall Campground (my favourite that I've stayed at in the Rockies). The next day started in cloud- we visitied Peyto Lake but couldn't see the lake so instead we went to Bow Lake and did the walk up to the waterfall- by which time the cloud had lifted and we could return to Peyto and see the Lake. We also went to Stanley Falls before arriving at Lake Louise where we checked out the shopping. We also did the Consolation Lakes & Moraine Lake walks. We then proceeded to the Lake Louise tent site where we waited in line for an hour and were lucky enough to get the 2nd last tent site for the night. The next morning we did the strenuous Lake Agnes teahouse & then Big Beehive walk. What a view!! We then drove to Banff and checked out the town- and ate some tony romas for dinner. Yummy baked potato soup. Saturday we did a few easy walks around Banff- Tunnel Mountain & Stoney Squaw Lookout (although we got off the trail and took the more difficult one before backtracking!) Sunday we started our drive to BC after a short stop at another Banff waterfall. We then stopping at Yoho to see the cool ingenous train system (spiral tunnels) in the Kicking Horse pass. And we also stopped at the very magnificant Takkakaw Falls as well as Emerald Lake. We found some poutine to eat in Vernon and finally arrived at my sister in laws parents in Kelowna Sunday evening.

It was a good few days in Kelowna. We floated the channel in Penticton, I went for a horseback ride on my sis in laws horse, checked out the tressles, did one last shop, hung out with the family- and ate way too much!! Plus we played a lot Rockstar on xbox. I had fun on the drums, although a little tricky.

Friday my bro & sis in law dropped us at the airport in Vancouver for our big flight home- and we arrived back here on Sunday morning.

More photos of the trip to come...