Banff National Park: Plain of the Six Glaciers at Lake Louise

This day we would be hiking the Plain of the Six Glaciers Trail which starts at Lake Louise. Dad says it is probably the most popular trail in all of Banff. Dad also wanted to add on the hike to Lake Agnes if time permitted.
It was still pretty early when we arrived at Lake Louise and the parking lot was fairly empty. A big difference from the day before when it was packed and there were tourists everywhere

Lake Louise with the Victoria Glacier in the background

We followed the path around the lake to get to the Plain of the Six Glaciers Trail

 As we were nearing the back end of the lake we came upon a rocky area and we spotted the most adorable creature ever, a pika!

Pika

 This cute little guy was hanging around the area as well

Golden-mantled ground squirrel

 The trail started to climb at this point. Nothing too steep yet, just a gradual incline.

We passed by this cliff face Do you see what I see?

 At some point we had to walk single file across a narrow part of the path that had a nice "little" slop on one side. I just told myself not to look down and I got through that part quickly.

We(I) had stopped for a short little break at one point and Dad got to chatting with an older English couple. The wife was having a hard time due to the arthritis in her knees, I was amazed that she was hiking at all with that condition. Dad encouraged her to continue and that the hard part was almost over. We weren't sure if they would continue but they stuck pretty close to us for the rest of the way up (thanks to my slow pace).

 We finally reached our destination, the Six Glaciers Tea House!

 Isn't it cute?!

It was a nice incentive to make the climb up. I had been reading about it before the trip and it seemed the general opinion was that the soup and chocolate cake were to die for. We had to make sure to bring cash on the hike as the tea house doesn't have electricity (naturally given where it is located) and thus they don't take credit or debit. The supplies for the tea house need to get hiked up on a regular basis and everything is made on premise.

We grabbed a table outside and tied Marcus to the table so he wouldn't stray..

Here is the menu

 We all got chocolate cake which was scrumptious! I also got a cup of raspberryade which was also delicious!

The way the tea house works is you go upstairs to place your order and pay, they then send the order to the kitchen which is on the bottom floor. A server then brings it to your table.

The waitress who brought our food immediately recognized Marcus from when Dad and the stepmother had visited the year before. I know Marcus is adorable but I found it rather funny that she remembered him a year later. The tea house is a busy place, well, as busy as a tea house gets up in the middle of the mountains requiring two hours of uphill hiking.

 This little guy was also hanging around while we were eating.

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

 After our snack break we were going to finish off the rest of the trail but there was a sign posted saying that the trail was closed due to poor trail conditions. Well the others decided to flaunt the rules and went down the path anyways. I am a rule follower (and a chicken) and I wasn't about to go down a trail that the National Park Services had posted as closed. They handed Marcus over to me and I found a nice bench to wait on until they returned. The English gentleman we had hiked with briefly joined me on the bench and we talked about various parts of England and Scotland that would be great for me to visit.

There was also an Asian family sitting on the bench next to us, they loved Marcus and paid him lots of attention. He also got lots of attention from people passing by on their way to the Tea House. I think he was one of the most photographed sights for some of these people that day. Oh look at the beautiful lake and mountains! Oh look! A dog with his own hiking pack! Click!

Here are some pictures from the area where Marcus and I waited.

 After we were all back together we started to make our way back down the trail we had hiked up.

 We stopped at the "viewpoint" to take a few pictures. Dad put down his hiking pole for the pictures and he forgot to pick it back up. He didn't realize this until later and by then it would have taken too long to go back and get it, given the spot where he left it we were sure that some other hiker would pick it up.

Instead of hiking back down to the lake we veered left about halfway down and continued the hike on the Lake Agnes trail. 

We continued along the trail, it offered beautiful views of Lake Louise below and there were hardly any people on the trail so it felt like we were all alone out there.

This is the "Big Beehive", there is a trail that will take you to the top, it is a very demanding climb. Dad said we would have hiked it but it was already getting a little too late in the day for that. He said the views from the top are magnificent.

 After a steep climb we arrived at Lake Agnes. I was the last one to the top and found the others waiting for me.

  Once I arrived we continued a little further down the path and the lake came into view. It was beautiful!

Unfortunately due to the time of the day the sun was in a bad position for photos.

 Marcus decided to take a refreshing drink from the lake.

 I decided that I would like a refreshing drink for myself and what do you know? There was another tea house! This one looked a little fancier than the Six Glaciers tea house, would it be as good?

 They had indoor and outdoor seating. The sign said to seat yourself and that a server would come and take your order. We grabbed a table inside since it wasn't as busy in there.

Here is their menu board

 Well, we waited and waited and nobody came to serve us. I eventually got fed up and said they clearly didn't want our business and I would just finish off the water in my pack rather than wasting time waiting for service. So if you ever hike in the area and are not sure which tea house to go to, I recommend the Six Glaciers tea house as it has good food and good service. 

 I had found a path that would take us back down to Lake Louise. It was the horseback riding trail so it wasn't as steep as the path we had climbed on the way up.

 Marcus was being silly and kept trying to walk through Dad's legs. It was funny to me but annoying to Dad.

 Back at Lake Louise. Wow! Just look at that colour!

Banff National Park: Fairview Lookout at Lake Louise

After finishing the Consolation Lakes hike we still had a few good hours of daylight so I suggested that we head over to Lake Louise and climb up to Fairview Lookout, a very short trail that gives you a nice view of the lake and the Chateau.

Upon arrival at Lake Louise you will find a large parking lot and a view of the Chateau off in the distance. 

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

 It was late afternoon but the area was still fairly busy. We lingered at the lakeshore for a few minutes taking in the view and then made our way to the left in the direction of the boathouse.

Lake Louise with Victoria Glacier in the background

The Fairview Lookout Trail is located near the boat house where you can rent canoes. It is a short trail that takes you to a nice view of the Lake and Chateau. It takes about 20 minutes to get to the lookout point. It is not a terribly exciting hike but it is quick and relatively easy and you get a nice view.

It is amazing to see how the colour of the lake changes with the sun. Absolutely beautiful.

After enjoying the view for a bit we returned to the Lake Louise campground for the night. We attended a Parks Canada lecture about bears. This particular lecture was about the differences between Black Bears and Grizzly Bears. One of my brothers was chosen from the audience to dress up as a Grizzly Bear. It was a fun lecture and very informative. The Lake Louise campground offers one hour education sessions like this on a nightly basis during high tourist season.

Banff National Park: Moraine Lake and the Consolation Lakes Trail

I thought that I would start this blog off by posting about the trails that I have experienced in the Canadian Rockies. As a child I had visited the Rockies on several of our moves across country; however, I had little to no memory of those visits. August 2011 marked my first trip to this magnificent area of the country as an adult. It was a spur of the moment trip and the main purpose was to meet my dad's cousin in Lake Louise in order to pick up our Great Aunt who we would then be taking back to my dad's home in BC so that she could visit with her sister, our grandmother. Having only a few days notice of this trip threw me through a loop, I am a planner, and the notion of taking on this trip having done little to no research was a tad overwhelming. Never fear though, my dad had been to the area before and I was able to locate some books and plan on the flight out. 

We would spend three full days in Lake Louise, Banff before meeting our Great Aunt on the fourth day and driving back to my dad's home.

On the first day we arrived at the Lake Louise campground around 10 in the morning after having spent a very wet night in Glacier National Park. After we set up camp  and hung our belongings out to dry we had the afternoon to take a short hike. I suggested that we head up to Moraine Lake and hike the Consolation Lakes Trail. I was aching to set eyes on the magnificent Moraine Lake and the Consolation Lakes trailhead was located right at the lake and the hike was described as being short and easy, a perfect way to ease in.

Moraine Lake was about a 20 minute drive from the Lake Louise campground and the views on the drive are not too shabby.

Road to Moraine Lake

Upon arrival at the lake there is a medium sized parking lot. Since it was the early afternoon in peak tourist season the lot was packed but we were luckily able to grab a spot. You get a very small glimpse of the lake from the parking lot.

In order to get the traditional view of the lake you need to climb up to the top of the moraine. No worries, it is a well-designed path, no scrambling up over rocks here. Pretty much anybody can manage the steps to get to the top of the moraine. This is the view you are greeted with when you get to the top. Beautiful, even on a cloudy day. It is even more magnificent on a sunny day when the true colour of the lake is reflected beautifully.

Moraine Lake

The family from left to right: Dad, Stepmother, the brothers, and myself. Of course, can't leave out the star of the family: Marcus, our beloved pup.

Once the family got tired of my taking about a million photos of Moraine Lake it was time to set off on the Consolation Lakes trail. The trailhead is located right next to the moraine. As with all trails in the Moraine Lake area you are required to have a group of four to hike the trail and you must stay close together. This is sue to the fact that you are in bear country. There was a lovely American couple looking to join a group so they could explore the trail and we invited them to join us.

Babel Tower is one of the first sights along the trail. 

The trail is relatively flat with very little elevation gain. An easy hike to start out with if you are just getting acclimated to the altitude, don't want a strenuous hike or if you only have a few hours to explore. The majority of the trail runs through a forested area with little to see but towards the end you emerge from the trees and see some very pretty scenery.

 Lower Consolation Lake

There are two Consolation Lakes: Lower and Upper. There was no defined trail leading to the Upper Lake and due to the time we did not want to go exploring to find the trail. Guidebooks do tell you how to get to the upper lake but we did not have one with us at the time. My dad, brothers and I scrambled around on the large boulders that lay to one side of the lake for a bit. True to our natures the brothers jumped around from boulder to boulder carefree while I carefully and slowly found my way.

 As you can see, the skies cleared and the sun came out while we were on our hike. This meant I had to take more pictures when we got back to the trailhead and Moraine Lake!

Babel Tower