We left Calgary on Canada Day and drove towards Banff National Park. We had two nights without a campground reservation. The first night we stayed at a free campsite that Vinz found online. It was a road with lots of places to park. We found a very nice site with a beautiful view.
The next day we did a short hike in the Grotto Canyon and then slept in Canmore in the parking lot of a casino. We had to sign in at the casino reception to sleep there legally for free. It was my least favorite place to sleep so far because it was very bright from the parking lot lights.
On Sunday, we entered Banff National Park. We hiked up Tunnel Mountain, along with lots of other people. It seemed to be one of the most popular hikes in the national park. In the afternoon, we visited the town of Banff. It reminded us a lot of St. Moritz. There was even a fondue chalet. We drove to Vermilion Lakes during sunset to look for wildlife and take some photos. We saw some beavers in the lake, but they disappeared very quickly.
The following morning, we visited Marble Canyon and the Paint Pots. The hike to the Paint Pots was very muddy, and we weren’t wearing appropriate shoes once again. It rained the entire afternoon and evening, so we decided to go to the cinema in Banff and watch Minions.
The next day, we got up early and went on a 4-hour hike to Lake Bourgeau. This was our favorite hike so far, mainly because there were almost no other people on the path. Also, the views were excellent, and we saw mountain goats and hoary marmots. On the way up, we had to cross a river. Because of all the rain during the last few days, there was a lot of water in the river and no bridge to cross it. It would have been too deep to walk through, so we built a bridge using tree branches. It was very unstable, and we both ended up having wet feet. Again, we were wearing the wrong shoes for the hike. On the way down, we saw that other hikers had improved our bridge with more branches, which made it a little more stable. After that hike, we immediately drove to Canmore and bought waterproof trail running shoes.
On Wednesday, we drove to Lake Louise to hike to Lake Agnes, one of the most popular hikes in the area. We arrived at 9 am, but the parking lot was already full. Apparently, one has to arrive before 8 am to get a parking space. We decided to visit some other sites nearby and do the hike in the evening. We visited Takakkaw Falls and the Natural Bridge. Then, we wanted to visit Emerald Lake, but again, the parking was completely full, and we decided to skip it. In general, there are way too many people in Banff National Park!
At 5 pm, we returned to Lake Louise and were able to park. We hiked 3 hours to Lake Agnes and the Big Beehive. It was a great idea to hike in the evening. We passed lots of people coming down but only a few going up. On the Big Beehive, we were completely alone, which was fantastic!
The following day, we drove to Silverhorn Creek Campground, at the northern tip of Banff National Park. It rained the entire day, and we spent it mostly relaxing in the van. In the evening, we visited Mistaya Canyon.
Now we are in Jasper National Park, where we reserved two nights at a campground near Jasper. We are unlucky with the weather. It has been raining almost every day since we got to Banff National Park. Today in Jasper National Park, it has also been raining a lot. We hope for some nice weather for the last hike tomorrow before heading to the Pacific Coast.