Wednesday, 13 July 2011
Day 36 - Wednesday July 13th - Coming Home
Day 35 - Tuesday 12th July - At the Stampede
After a late breakfast at the excellent EasyOver restaurant Martin & I took the Silver Bullet to the GM garage to get a problem engine warning light sorted out. He is having a big problem with GM's warranty as they seem to ignore the conditions of his warranty. We then chilled out for a bit before setting off for The Stampede. The weather at this stage was great. The Stampede is an enormous event that takes place here annually lasting for 10 days. Each day the crowd can exceed 100,000! We visited an enormous tented area called Nashville North which has live country bands and beer. Most of the crowd dress in western/cowboy style and the atmosphere is electric - great fun. We had a burger then slowly made our way down Midway which is full of fairground type stalls.
We stopped at a few to bet on the various spinning wheels and bouncing balls and we were all quite lucky especially Heather who is on a very lucky streak. Martin had booked great seats for us in the giant stand and we settled down to watch the Chuck Wagon racing. Teams of 4 horses attached to a small wagon race around the showground. The start is an outrider throwing a stove into the back of the wagon then they're off! It is an amazing sight and full of colour.
While we were watching a friend of Heather had spotted us and invited us to their V.I.P. table before the entertainment show started. We managed this after no help from security but a bit of persistence on our part, their maxim seems to be if you have to ask you shouldn't be there! Our hosts were Randy & Holly and we had a great time there. Randy arranged for us to get some luxury outside seats under cover for the spectacular show. This was most fortunate as the heavens opened up with a spectacular show of it's own - we would have been soaked. We felt sorry for the poor folk! The show was absolutely fantastic and on an enormous scale.
On our way home we called into the Stampede Casino which was jumping - Heather, as usual, scooped some bucks! It was great fun watching her playing dice as she, like the rest of us, didn't have much of an idea what was going on however appeared to keep on winning! Don't ask about me! We got back to Heather & Martin's at 02.45 absolutely shattered but we had all had a brilliant day out!
We stopped at a few to bet on the various spinning wheels and bouncing balls and we were all quite lucky especially Heather who is on a very lucky streak. Martin had booked great seats for us in the giant stand and we settled down to watch the Chuck Wagon racing. Teams of 4 horses attached to a small wagon race around the showground. The start is an outrider throwing a stove into the back of the wagon then they're off! It is an amazing sight and full of colour.
While we were watching a friend of Heather had spotted us and invited us to their V.I.P. table before the entertainment show started. We managed this after no help from security but a bit of persistence on our part, their maxim seems to be if you have to ask you shouldn't be there! Our hosts were Randy & Holly and we had a great time there. Randy arranged for us to get some luxury outside seats under cover for the spectacular show. This was most fortunate as the heavens opened up with a spectacular show of it's own - we would have been soaked. We felt sorry for the poor folk! The show was absolutely fantastic and on an enormous scale.
On our way home we called into the Stampede Casino which was jumping - Heather, as usual, scooped some bucks! It was great fun watching her playing dice as she, like the rest of us, didn't have much of an idea what was going on however appeared to keep on winning! Don't ask about me! We got back to Heather & Martin's at 02.45 absolutely shattered but we had all had a brilliant day out!
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Day 34 - Monday July 11th - Calgary
Went to visit Eileen B's daughter, Elaine and her 6 month old baby, Kieran. We programmed the sat nav to assist in this journey and after leaving late, because I couldn't find my driving glasses, we drove the 20kM across town and arrived safely at her house xxxx Bowglen Rd. Eileen tried, unsuccessfully, to get access by knocking on the front door, the back door and even the basement windows! No reply! We were by this time a bit concerned, and on getting no response from her neighbours decided to go back to Martin's to phone again - no mobile phone. As we reset the sat nav for the return journey Eileen noticed that we were in Bowness Road and not Bowglen Road which was only 200 yards away. We corrected our error and arrived even later and shame faced. Sheer fluke that the house number was the same in both streets as they are usually of a fairly random nature.
It was great to see Elaine again, last time was 13 years ago. Kieran is a super wee lad and the splitting image of his Dad when he was the same age. Unfortunately we didn't get to meet Guy as he is a fireman and on a training course. Their house is lovely, much better than the first one we were trying to get in!! Guy has done an enormous amount of work building garages, recladding etc.
After a short visit we set of for the Elbow Falls which was about 45 minutes away. A really super looking place with a decent trail for us to walk before it started to rain when we were furthest from the car. On arriving back in Calgary the sun was belting down and it must have been twice as warm as Elbow Falls.
After I had posted this yesterday Michael, Eileen's other son, called round with his girlfriend to take us out for an ice-cream. We went to a shop with so many flavours the mind boggled - there was even liquorice Fern! We took the ice-creams to a park besides the same River Elbow and once they were finished we played a Spanish version of boules. It is just the same rules but is played with larger boules - typical Spanish!! No need to report who the winner was but suffice it to say that Eileen is on a roll just now - we have to get her to the Stampede Casino somehow! When we arrived back at the house Martin & Heather had returned after having driven close to 1000Km that day. Heather was shattered and had gone to bed but Martin bravely stayed up for a while and we had a great chat.
It was great to see Elaine again, last time was 13 years ago. Kieran is a super wee lad and the splitting image of his Dad when he was the same age. Unfortunately we didn't get to meet Guy as he is a fireman and on a training course. Their house is lovely, much better than the first one we were trying to get in!! Guy has done an enormous amount of work building garages, recladding etc.
After a short visit we set of for the Elbow Falls which was about 45 minutes away. A really super looking place with a decent trail for us to walk before it started to rain when we were furthest from the car. On arriving back in Calgary the sun was belting down and it must have been twice as warm as Elbow Falls.
After I had posted this yesterday Michael, Eileen's other son, called round with his girlfriend to take us out for an ice-cream. We went to a shop with so many flavours the mind boggled - there was even liquorice Fern! We took the ice-creams to a park besides the same River Elbow and once they were finished we played a Spanish version of boules. It is just the same rules but is played with larger boules - typical Spanish!! No need to report who the winner was but suffice it to say that Eileen is on a roll just now - we have to get her to the Stampede Casino somehow! When we arrived back at the house Martin & Heather had returned after having driven close to 1000Km that day. Heather was shattered and had gone to bed but Martin bravely stayed up for a while and we had a great chat.
Monday, 11 July 2011
Day 33 - July 10th - Calgary
Eileen caught up on the washing and ironing while I brushed out the debris of Alaska, Yukon, British Columbia and a wee bit of Alberta from the Silver Bullet.
Next on the agenda(?) we walked to downtown Calgary to stretch our cramped legs and have a look around - as it is Sunday nothing much was happening but it was good to walk some distance again in pleasant weather. It was a bit of a struggle walking back uphill to Martin & Heather's and we arrived back fairly knackered. BBQed steak and some salad, an excellent bottle of Oyster Bay then I taught Eileen how to play Cribbage. She must have been cheating as she won the second game! No photos today. Off to Kananaskis tomorrow so hope weather holds up.
Next on the agenda(?) we walked to downtown Calgary to stretch our cramped legs and have a look around - as it is Sunday nothing much was happening but it was good to walk some distance again in pleasant weather. It was a bit of a struggle walking back uphill to Martin & Heather's and we arrived back fairly knackered. BBQed steak and some salad, an excellent bottle of Oyster Bay then I taught Eileen how to play Cribbage. She must have been cheating as she won the second game! No photos today. Off to Kananaskis tomorrow so hope weather holds up.
Sunday, 10 July 2011
Day 32 - 9th July - Jasper to Calgary (the end)!
5369Km - 3336Mls
We've made it! The Silver Bullet purred on 'til the end.
We had a super stay at Becker's Chalets outside Jasper despite the absolutely rubbish weather. To console ourselves we decided to eat at Becker's Restaurant and we certainly wern't disappointed. Eileen had Sockeye salmon and I had half a cow! Walking back to our chalet we saw some Elk on a nearby hillside and within a few minutes one of them had arrived amongst the chalets. Great viewing and so close. A little while later this Elk and her two sisters made their way to the central grassy area and were much admired and not in the least put out by the enthralled campers. Then the Elk settled down for the night and so did we.
In the morning they had all gone at 06.00 (according to Eileen) however they had returned + 1 before we left at 07.30. The morning was really bad with very low cloud and heavy rain. Our first stop of the day was at Athabasca Falls which were a brilliant sight especially as the heavy rain had swollen the river. Eileen says (from all her reading of interpretive plaques!!) that the rivers are milky in colour at this time of year because of "Rock Flour" which is finely ground rock carried by glacial water. Every day's a school day! We motored on until we reached the Columbia Icefields - very cold and windy although the rain had stopped. Had a look at the Athabasca Glacier then a coffee and bun and it was time to resume the journey. Martin had suggested a hike along Parker Ridge but as it was raining hard again and with low cloud we decided to carry on with the journey. On reaching Bow Summit the weather had improved and we walked to the viewing area and were rewarded with magnificent views of Bow Glacier and Lake which has the bluest water in the Rockies.
A little later we saw a Black Bear very close up, he was munching the grass at the side of the road and didn't pay any attention to the very close viewers. Then we turned off the highway into Louise Village making our way to Moraine Lake. We had been there with the children 13 years ago and it still looked great despite the RV traffic jam and parking problems. At Lake Louise Lake, the big difference we noticed was that the number of visitors, mostly oriental, had increased enormously. When we were there last the children had "enjoyed" canoeing - ask them about it! In all the hustle and bustle we witnessed a wedding ceremony taking place on the lake shore in front of the massive Fairmont hotel! The photographer was getting really shirty with the spectators - a most bizarre scene. More interpretive data from herself! "The Louise Creek flows into the Bow River which joins other rivers then flows for 4000 Kms across Canada to the Hudson Bay".
We finally descended from the Rockies and arrived in Calgary at Martin & Heather's super house. We are both very weary but safe and sound.
We've made it! The Silver Bullet purred on 'til the end.
We had a super stay at Becker's Chalets outside Jasper despite the absolutely rubbish weather. To console ourselves we decided to eat at Becker's Restaurant and we certainly wern't disappointed. Eileen had Sockeye salmon and I had half a cow! Walking back to our chalet we saw some Elk on a nearby hillside and within a few minutes one of them had arrived amongst the chalets. Great viewing and so close. A little while later this Elk and her two sisters made their way to the central grassy area and were much admired and not in the least put out by the enthralled campers. Then the Elk settled down for the night and so did we.
In the morning they had all gone at 06.00 (according to Eileen) however they had returned + 1 before we left at 07.30. The morning was really bad with very low cloud and heavy rain. Our first stop of the day was at Athabasca Falls which were a brilliant sight especially as the heavy rain had swollen the river. Eileen says (from all her reading of interpretive plaques!!) that the rivers are milky in colour at this time of year because of "Rock Flour" which is finely ground rock carried by glacial water. Every day's a school day! We motored on until we reached the Columbia Icefields - very cold and windy although the rain had stopped. Had a look at the Athabasca Glacier then a coffee and bun and it was time to resume the journey. Martin had suggested a hike along Parker Ridge but as it was raining hard again and with low cloud we decided to carry on with the journey. On reaching Bow Summit the weather had improved and we walked to the viewing area and were rewarded with magnificent views of Bow Glacier and Lake which has the bluest water in the Rockies.
A little later we saw a Black Bear very close up, he was munching the grass at the side of the road and didn't pay any attention to the very close viewers. Then we turned off the highway into Louise Village making our way to Moraine Lake. We had been there with the children 13 years ago and it still looked great despite the RV traffic jam and parking problems. At Lake Louise Lake, the big difference we noticed was that the number of visitors, mostly oriental, had increased enormously. When we were there last the children had "enjoyed" canoeing - ask them about it! In all the hustle and bustle we witnessed a wedding ceremony taking place on the lake shore in front of the massive Fairmont hotel! The photographer was getting really shirty with the spectators - a most bizarre scene. More interpretive data from herself! "The Louise Creek flows into the Bow River which joins other rivers then flows for 4000 Kms across Canada to the Hudson Bay".
We finally descended from the Rockies and arrived in Calgary at Martin & Heather's super house. We are both very weary but safe and sound.
Saturday, 9 July 2011
Day 31 - 8th July - Becker's Chalets, Jasper
Eileen blogging today!
Well, they say we are in the Rockies but we haven't been able to see them! The weather has been horrid and the clouds have been really low that we've had to imagine how spectacular the views are when it's sunny. We are terribly disappointed as the Rockies were part of our 'must sees' . Matthew said it was like a March day in Glencoe and the temp dropped to 5 degrees!! Now, no laughing!! Just hope the weather improves for a long drive to Calgary tomorrow and hopefully some great mountain views!
We went for a drive in the pouring rain to beautiful Maligne Lake - it is the largest lake in the Rockies, 22km (14miles)long. No point in taking a lake cruise as visibility so poor and boats were all docked! Anyway the coffee shop was excellent; I can vouch for the Danish pastry and the planet-size muffin that M. had!! Saw some lovely picnic spots as well but actual picnic was eaten in the van! (it was good too, but still raining!)
Drove to Punchbowl Falls past Pochohantas but it was the only river not in spate!! Lucky White Heather!! It cleared up late afternoon and we managed a nice walk along the Athabasca River bank here. It is flowing very fast and we saw some rafters whizzing by. We're looking forward to dinner in the restaurant here tonight. These chalets are lovely and beautifully situated overlooking the river.
Well, they say we are in the Rockies but we haven't been able to see them! The weather has been horrid and the clouds have been really low that we've had to imagine how spectacular the views are when it's sunny. We are terribly disappointed as the Rockies were part of our 'must sees' . Matthew said it was like a March day in Glencoe and the temp dropped to 5 degrees!! Now, no laughing!! Just hope the weather improves for a long drive to Calgary tomorrow and hopefully some great mountain views!
We went for a drive in the pouring rain to beautiful Maligne Lake - it is the largest lake in the Rockies, 22km (14miles)long. No point in taking a lake cruise as visibility so poor and boats were all docked! Anyway the coffee shop was excellent; I can vouch for the Danish pastry and the planet-size muffin that M. had!! Saw some lovely picnic spots as well but actual picnic was eaten in the van! (it was good too, but still raining!)
Drove to Punchbowl Falls past Pochohantas but it was the only river not in spate!! Lucky White Heather!! It cleared up late afternoon and we managed a nice walk along the Athabasca River bank here. It is flowing very fast and we saw some rafters whizzing by. We're looking forward to dinner in the restaurant here tonight. These chalets are lovely and beautifully situated overlooking the river.
Friday, 8 July 2011
Day 30 - July 7th - Prince George to Jasper
After our luxurious nights sleep we pointed the Silver Bullet(Brick) East by South East and headed for Jasper. Very low cloud to start changed to slightly lower cloud and some showers. Nothing much to report but we stopped at McBride for lunch. The railway station is the place to go for lunch and it was excellent - Bacon & Bean Soup (!) + Meatloaf salad sandwich - yum. While we were having lunch a goods (freight) train pulled into the siding, it just went on and on. I asked one of the old boys outside the station about the trains, he told me that the train that had just pulled in was 1500 yards! They are planning to extend the siding to accommodate 2500 yard trains.
Later on we stopped at Rearguard Falls which is the highest point in the Fraser River that salmon swim up to spawn - 800Km from the sea. The falls were spectacular as you will see in the photos. It had started to rain there and continued as we crossed into Alberta and a new time zone - just like going to Kirkaldy!
Before you get to Jasper you enter the National Park which you have to pay a toll. Fortunately for us Martin has a yearly subscription for the Silver Bullet. On arriving at Jasper the weather really closed down with torrential rain, thunder & lightening! Eileen had to be pulled from under the bed. We are staying at Becker Chalets and it is very comfortable. Our chalet is half the top floor of a chalet over looking a large grassy area. If we could see more than 100 metres I'm sure that the views would be great.
Don't think that I'll manage to upload photos from here but I'll give it a try.
Phew that was a struggle, took over 1 hour to upload 5 pics.
Later on we stopped at Rearguard Falls which is the highest point in the Fraser River that salmon swim up to spawn - 800Km from the sea. The falls were spectacular as you will see in the photos. It had started to rain there and continued as we crossed into Alberta and a new time zone - just like going to Kirkaldy!
Before you get to Jasper you enter the National Park which you have to pay a toll. Fortunately for us Martin has a yearly subscription for the Silver Bullet. On arriving at Jasper the weather really closed down with torrential rain, thunder & lightening! Eileen had to be pulled from under the bed. We are staying at Becker Chalets and it is very comfortable. Our chalet is half the top floor of a chalet over looking a large grassy area. If we could see more than 100 metres I'm sure that the views would be great.
Don't think that I'll manage to upload photos from here but I'll give it a try.
Phew that was a struggle, took over 1 hour to upload 5 pics.
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