Tuesday 19 August: Whitehorse, YT

Today I must have walked over six miles, including a 3-mile paved bicycle path loop which I traversed past joggers and bicyclists through the woods on the outskirts of Whitehorse. Near the middle of the loop is the world's longest fish ladder. The fish ladder lies beneath a dam which has all-but-removed the rapids in the Yukon River. The rapids were the reason for the founding of Whitehorse. When the miners poured over the Chilkoot Pass into the Yukon from Skagway, Alaska during the gold rush, their cargo had to be portaged around these rapids. Whitehorse (originally called "White Horse") lies at the downstream end of those rapids which no longer exist.
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Along the way I took photos of the SS Klondike, a restored paddlewheeler which carried cargo and passengers on the Yukon River from the late 1930s until the mid-1950s. The Klondike, which sits on land, is now a Canadian national historic site. I also saw a 15-minute film about the Yukon shown at the Yukon Visitor Center which is not far from my hotel.

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In the afternoon I purchased my Greyhound bus ticket from Whitehorse to Edmonton via Fort Nelson after buying a tuna sandwich at the Subway across the street. Whitehorse boasts all manner of fast food joints, including McDonald's (two, including the implant in Walmart on the edge of town), Pizza Hut, Dominoes, Kentucky Fried Chicken, etc. (There are also two Subways. So I feel like I'm in Hog Heaven!) I visited the sole Dollar Store today too. But the only reason to call it a dollar store is because prices are posted in Canadian dollars (CAD). Very little in the store is priced at one dollar. Items that'd be sold for a buck in the U. S. are at least CAD 1.50 there.

Temperatures rose into the 60s today. There are now over 19 hours of sunlight each day. Sunrise is at about 4:30 AM and sunset is after 11:30 PM!

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Tuesday 26 August 2008: Glendive, MT to Bozeman, MT via rental car (517 miles)

Today we drove our rental car from Glendive (population 4,806) in eastern Montana to Bozeman (population 32,414) in southwestern Montana.
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En route we visited Pompey's Pillar National Monument and Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument.

On a sandstone tower near the Yellowstone River east of present-day Billings, MT William Clark carved his name on 25 July 1806. This signature is the only remaining physical evidence of Lewis and Clark’s passing visible on their actual route.
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For more information on Pompey's Pillar National Monument, visit www.pompeyspillar.org/about.htm, www.nps.gov/nr/travel/lewisandclark/pom.htm, and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pompeys_Pillar_National_Monument.
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At the Little Bighorn in 1876 Lt. Col. George Custer and 262 other soldiers and U. S. Army personnel died at the hands of several thousand Lakota and Cheyenne warriors. Facing the battlefield while seated on a bench outside the interpretive center, Barbara and I were captivated as we listened to a park ranger give a very moving 50-minute talk on the battle. The ranger noted that this national monument memorializes one of the last armed efforts of the Indians of the northern plains to preserve their way of life. The Indians wanted to take graze their horses on summer grasses outside their reservation. On the other hand, Custer's assignment was to return the Indians to the reservation. The U. S. Army was defeated at Little Bighorn due to poor intelligence. Although the Indians won this battle, ultimately, of course they lost the war. Within a few years they were confined to their reservations.
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For more information on Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, visit www.nps.gov/libi, www.nps.gov/libi/photosmultimedia/webcams.htm (for 2 webcams), and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Bighorn_Battlefield_National_Monument.

We stayed in a suite at a Days Inn in Bozeman and had a terrific dinner nearby at Famous Dave's, a national chain with which we were not familiar. We also went shopping at Ross and at Staples.
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The total mileage driven today by Barbara was 517 miles.
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I will post pics from today soon.

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Sunday 31 August 2008: Lake Louise, AB

There was a frosting of perhaps one inch of snow overnight, and was very cold (33 F.) when we first awoke this morning. Then by mid-morning the snow had all melted.
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Due to the low cloud cover we decided to remain at Lake Louise today rather than driving into British Columbia to see some of the parks there along Highway 1 as we had planned originally. Our room at Chateau Lake Louise is tiny but well-appointed and comfortable.
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I will post pics from today soon.

Saturday 30 August 2008: Banff, AB to Lake Louise, AB via rental car (approx. 50 miles)

Moraine Lake near Lake Louise

View near Moraine Lake

Canada Highway 1 between Banff and Lake Louise

Canada Highway 1 between Banff and Lake Louise

Animal crossing on Canada Highway 1

Closeup of same animal crossing

Animal crossing under construction on Canada Highway 1

Post Hotel Lake Louise (above and below)

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise (below)

















Our room at Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise (2 pics above)

View of Lake Louise from the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

Part of the huge lobby at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

Entrance of Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

Entrance of Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

Ted at Lake Louise


Today we drove our rental car from Banff (population 8,721) in western Alberta to nearby Lake Louise, AB (population 1,041). Our route took us over both freeway and secondary roads in Banff National Park.
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En route we visited Moraine Lake (www.canadianrockies.net/banff/moraine.html) and beautiful Lake Louise (www.discoverlakelouise.com/).
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For more information on Banff National Park, visit www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/banff/index_E.asp.
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We stayed at world-famous Chateau Lake Louise (www.fairmont.com/LakeLouise and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chateau_Lake_Louise). We enjoyed a fabulous gourmet lunch after a site inspection at the Post Hotel Lake Louise, which is a Virtuoso property.
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The total mileage driven today by Barbara was approx. 50 miles.
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I will post additional pics from today soon.