Banff National Park and Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada
So our campground is surrounded by an electric fence. And I promptly touched the fence by accident whilst pretending to electrocute myself for Matthew. Call me Grace.
We were down at the sinks, washing our dishes this morning, when a man called over to his son, "Hey Junior! (I don't remember his name) Look, it's a bear!" So we immediately waddled over to the fence to take a peek and saw a grizzly bear mom and her two cubs in the meadow.
Warning: Lisa geeking out.
Now, a grizzly bear differs from a black bear in a few fundamental ways. Most obviously, a grizzly has a large and prominent hump behind the shoulders, a muscle build-up from all the digging for berries and squirrels they do. Black bears have no such hump, so their hind quarters are higher up than their front. Grizzlies also have much longer claws, and a more dish-panned face than black bears, which, by the way, are not only black, but reddish, brown, and blond. Black bears are also much more accustomed to people, and have no qualms with hanging around by the side of the road, while grizzlies want their peace and quiet. Additionally, grizzlies reproduce much less frequently than black bears, which is a factor in the endangered status of grizzly bears. I will stop here. Feel free to ask me more questions about bears, though.
The mother was hunting a Colombian Ground Squirrel, which she snatched right up from its hole, when suddenly one of her cubs ran in front and grabbed the squirrel from her mother, instigating an epic chase. Adorable.
Minutes after we started watching, the Bear Squad ("Save a bear, Don't stop and stare") pulled up. After quite a crowd had gathered, we saw a man suddenly pop out of the undergrowth way too close to the bear, and the Rangers immediately set about identifying who in the world could be so brainless.
What a treat, all the same.
After my experience on the Bow River, the river that cuts through much of Banff National Park, I was hooked on canoeing. Give me a hollowed out log and a branch and I would be across the lake or trying my hardest to get there. I think Auntie sensed my growing obsession, because as soon as we pulled up to Lake Louise, a deathly tourist trap if I ever saw one, she suggested we grab a canoe and hit the lake.
Now, Lake Louise is special for many reasons. Named for the daughter of the Queen of England, she consists of purely glacial water, mostly from the glaciers on Mt. Victoria, which looms behind her. She is surrounded by many other stately peaks, like Mt. Fairview, The Beehive, and Mt. Lefroy. Lake Louise, like many of the lakes in the area, contains a sediment called rock flour, which absorbs all the colors except blue, which it reflects out in a stark, pure way, thereby giving Louise her gorgeous coloring.This is where I brag. The three of us paddled out basically to the other side and back in one hour. It was so humbling, seeing these transcendent peaks up close, watching as the hordes of people receded to pinpricks in the distance, the deep blue radiating from the frigid water.
But as wonderful as Lake Louise was, I prefer Lake Morraine, another underrated jewel in Canada's crown. The water was even more vivid, so bright it almost hurt to behold, and her placement in the Valley of Ten Peaks offers great hiking challenges. I for one am determined to return to climb Mt. Babel, named after that Biblical tower.
Matthew quite enjoyed the chipmunks and squirrels, who posed patiently for photos, then waited expectantly for food morsels. Clever little critters.
No comments:
Post a Comment