Continued from My Canadian Rockies Trip, Part 3: Waterton and Glacier International Peace Park.

The visit to the spectacular Glacier National Park in Montana, whetted my appetite for the Canadian Rockies. This morning we headed north from Pincher Creek through the scenic Kananaskis valley on our way to Banff, a beautiful, vibrant mountain town in Western Canada. Our first stop was the Bar U Ranch, now a national historic site.

This is a big ranch that in its heyday had over 30,000 heads of cattle and 1000 Percheron horses, the ultimate war horse prized by Napoleon for their strength and intelligence. This, and other fun facts, were narrated to us by the owner, a self-described daughter of ranchers, mounted on a large bay. I listened to her stories gazing at the rolling vistas of the ranch while munching a delicious, freshly-baked cookie thoughtfully provided by her, a very hospitable gesture.

But the highlight was Rich Roenisch’s sculpture, “A Question of Survival” depicting an incident in the life of George Lane, a legendary rancher.

Lane was tall and athletic, a born leader whose life story reads like those of the fabled cowboys of yore. In 1886, he was visiting his pregnant wife in a Calgary hospital. As he was riding back to Bar U Ranch, he saw wolves feasting on a carcass. Bison, the natural prey, were by this time wiped off the prairie and the wolves had started preying on cattle. There were thousands of those around on the many ranches, presenting a large, slow-moving smorgasbord. Lane rode closer to inspect. Their meal interrupted, two wolves attacked.

Luckily, he always packed a loaded revolver and was good with it. He shot both. Two others launched themselves at him and his horse. He shot them too, at close quarters, straight into their snarling muzzles. The wolves had had enough and fled. This is superbly captured in the sculpture on site at the Bar U Ranch. I spent some time admiring it.

As we were leaving the ranch we saw some old farm equipment. One in particular was a covered, horse-drawn wagon with the cute Bar U Ranch logo shown below.

We continued on our way to Banff. I noticed a curious feature of the landscape—fences. That was nothing unusual. But behind them I saw another fence of sturdy, closely spaced vertical wooden slats. They were snow barriers that prevented snow and ice from drifting onto the road. The howling winds in the frigid Canadian winters can cause massive snowdrifts, a danger to traffic.

As we approached Banff we began to see more wildlife. We saw a black bear in the forests around us partly hidden by trees. We could not take a picture. But, soon after, our disappointment was assuaged by a herd of bighorn sheep grazing placidly or sunning themselves on the cliffs beside the road, seemingly oblivious or disdainful of the heavy traffic below. They were shedding their white winter coats and turning brown.

We arrived in the afternoon and parked in front of the Banff Gondola. Our tour director went inside for the tickets and distributed them to us for the ride to the summit of Sulfur Mountain. It was warm and sunny at the base but at the summit it was breezy, we were told. I took a light jacket as a precaution.

I got into a gondola cab with my son and were on our way up. Soon we were at the summit. It was June. The tourist season was gearing up and there were many visitors from all over the world. I heard so many languages spoken around me including English with different accents. I tried to guess their origins, an interesting intellectual exercise.

We stepped out onto the rooftop deck and looked around the stunning landscape—majestic, serrated, snow-dusted peaks with heavily wooded slopes over which sun and shadow flitted in a game of hide and seek. The thermometer said 70 degrees Fahrenheit, but it was windy. We were glad we had our jackets and hats.

We saw the long, broad boardwalk wending its was along the side of Sulfur Mountain and started walking, stopping at every view point to take in the scene. We saw six mountain ranges, Lake Louise and the Bow River wending its way through the landscape with picturesque Banff nestling beside it. Breathtaking. I walked slowly, mindful of the altitude. No point in overexerting oneself on vacation. We descended and drove to our hotel for the night.

Next day we started with quick visits to Two Jack Lake and Lake Minnewanka. We would see many such pristine, blue lakes with unspoiled grandeur all around on our trip.

Then we stopped at the Cascade Gardens under the towering Cascade Mountain. This is a very pretty garden with stone-flagged walkways, cascading waters, colorful flowers, gazebos and thoughtfully placed seats to rest and take it all in. I did just that. After the walks along lakes it was time to take a breather. This garden was just what I needed at that time.

We strolled through the garden in the warm sun admiring the pretty flowers. Some just sat on benches taking in the view. The trash cans in the park are designed to be bear-proof. They are angled and you have to insert your fingers into an opening and press a lever to pop the cover. You can see such a trash can in the picture below.

It may be that some bears, in time, figure it out. Pizzas, chocolates and sodas are just as tempting for bears as they are for humans. Some traits are evolutionarily conserved.

Next, we took a trip on a raft, floating down the scenic Bow River that flows through Banff. We donned life jackets and got into sturdy orange rafts. A young man from New Zealand named Roan was our guide. These guides and other seasonal workers are often students from Australia, New Zealand and UK (Commonwealth Countries) who come to work during the summer months on special visas. He stood in the center working the two oars that steered the raft. It required effort, muscle and skill. At places the river was flowing fast, and the water, choppy. I was glad for the personal flotation devices we had on.

Roan talked about the history and wild life of the area and, when asked, about life in New Zealand with a pleasant accent. We saw the Sleeping Buffalo mountain, a sacred spot for First Nations people and the iconic Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.

We floated, listening to the gurgle of flowing water, the soft slap of waves against the raft and the intermittent grind of oars in oar locks. It was almost soporific—the warm sun and the gentle rocking as we drifted downstream with nature’s beauty enveloping us. Too soon we arrived at the disembarkation point. That required some maneuvering but we all got off safely. You can see a young man sitting on the raft to prevent it from drifting off as we alighted.

On the way back we stopped at the Bow River Falls, the backdrop of a scene in the 1953 movie “River of No Return” starring Marylin Monroe. Banff is no stranger to film stars having hosted several over the years.

After a delicious vegan lunch (the in-thing for the younger generation), eaten outdoors, I headed back to my hotel for a much needed nap.

Later, my and son and I set off on foot to explore Banff. We had the whole afternoon to ourselves and being so far north, the sun sets late. We had many hours of daylight. We walked along the river watching the black-and-white magpies chattering away. I understood how the expression “chattering like magpies” came into vogue. They belong to the same family as crows, the corvid family, and are very intelligent. They kept looking intently at us with their heads cocked. I got the distinct feeling they were urging, “Come on tourists, give us some of that you are eating.”

Then we headed for Banff Avenue that runs through the center of town. The Clock Tower Village Mall looked interesting with its rows of potted flowers along the balcony. We entered and headed upstairs to the Banff Avenue Brewing Company. I was not leaving Banff without tasting some of the delectable local brews and ordered a beer flight. After the long walk in the warm sun, this was delicious and most refreshing. They tasted different—something to do with the local water, I am told.

We spent some time drinking and watching the scene below from the balcony. Soon it was dinner time. We strolled along Banff Avenue now filled with tourists enjoying the evening. A section of this street was for pedestrians only, no traffic. There were stores selling souvenirs, ice creams, cookies, sandwiches and sundry other delights. There were bands playing. It reminded me of cities in Europe.

We headed for an Indian Restaurant, Masala, that was highly recommended by our tour guide. The food was delicious. Several other members of our group were already there. We chatted and ate. Then, back to our hotel for a sound sleep. We had packed a lot of activities in one day. Very satisfying indeed.

#Banff, #BowRiverFalls, #SulfurMountain, #BanffGondola, #BarURanch

Next: Jasper and the Athabasca Glacier.