We’re off on a Bear trail!!

 Such comfortable beds here at Tonquin Inn so it was very difficult to get up today! Plus I knew I couldn’t go the gym here as it doesn’t open until 9am and we’re being picked up at 9.15. Ahh well, snooze button it is. 

Quick buffet breakfast at the restaurant on the corner of our hotel and before we knew it our minibus awaited!

We then found out that due to fog and imminent SNOW further up, the lake cruise as part of our ‘wildlife tour and Maligne lake cruise incl Spirit Island’ was happening. All boats were cancelled for the day.

We were offered a full refund and cancel or continue on with the tour and a hike with a partial refund. We took the latter as did everyone else on the bus.

The weather was pretty miserable tbh - grey and rainy but animals don’t care about that so we were hopeful. 

Our guide was called Jake and he was really informative and good fun.

It did feel weird handing over our day to someone else and not being the driver but a great weird. I could kick back and relax now!

First up we saw more Elks… 

…and I’m not going to lie, we were a tad blase about them having seen loads outside our hotel room in Banff!! 

We did manage to find a bull Elk though which was fun as they are all kind of hiding/chilling this morning after a big night of rutting and eating!!

 

Can you see him??! 

We moved on further up the Maligne valley (it’s pronounced Malayne valley here!!) and as we did the rain changed to snow which was exciting as it was sticking!!  

Not before too long we saw a moose who was known as ‘Stumpy’ on account he cannot grow antlers! We watched him for a while but only from the bus. 

Getting too close or noisy near them is not a smart move as they can charge at any minute and by all accounts these guys can move at an alarming rate…from 0-40kmph!! Yeah, I’m not willing to risk that for a photo! 

The snow was getting thicker as we continued up to Maligne Lake and it looked magical! Now we were really in Canada!! 

We reached the top and all jumped out for a restroom break and to prepare for the hike. 

It wasn’t a taxing hike and I found that a bit of a challenge being in a group. I’m definitely more of a solo hiker or maybe just 2 or 3 other people. There were 12 of us and it was stop start stop start whilst we kept checking everyone was with us, especially as one couple had a small, not happy to be walking child with them! 

I think I’m just impatient - well I know I am! 

We went up to Moose Lake in the hope we’d see more but I think the group was a bit too noisy to let them come out. 

It was so fabulous though as it was really snowing and getting quite deep. Proper Canada now! 

We made a mini snowman though as one of the group was from Australia and she just never gets to see snow so was absolutely beside herself! 

Time to wander back now to the cafeteria and grab a hot drink and a quick bite to eat as we were now well over time. 

Poutine scarfed and it was back on the bus.

Along the way back we found another moose but this one had the full antlers so he got a major photo shoot situation!! 

From here we basically battered it home. We passed through the fire zone and learned a lot about how it had started.

Long story short it was a matter of nature - a large number of the trees were dying or dead (helped along by some particular beetle) and the only way they can create regrowth is with a fire. Their cones are very tightly closed and the only way to open them and release the seeds is fire! 

Deciduous tree cones open up and birds eat the seeds and spread them about as they do! 

Apparently these fires are needed every 50-60 years and this forest was 150 years old. It was well overdue. What made this one worse though was it combined with a fire from another area so it was off the scale. Temperatures reached over 1200 degrees Celsius and it was moving at a rate of 5km an hour but went up to 15-20km an hour in many parts and actually went up the valley. The only thing that stopped it desecrating both the town and more of the valley was that they suddenly got 4 days of rain. As they couldn’t do much to control it this was a blessed relief.

The regrowth is apparent already (fire was only last year) helped by a very wet spring and summer. They lost barely any animals (one previously injured bear and 3 young elks) but many have been displaced as have around 1500 humans. But they are getting there and the rebuilds are on.

Still no bear sighting though 😞.

We got Jake to drop us in downtown and went off for a couple of beers or three back at the Jasper Brewing Company place as we like it in there. The baseball was back on as it’s best of 5 between Toronto (the Blue Jays) and The New York Yankees and Toronto got beat the night before so it was 2-1 to them now. 

We properly started watching it having agreed the rules are basically the same as Rounders. I’ve said this for years - it’s just pimped up schoolgirl rounders with helmets and massive catcher mitts! We never had any of that, our heads were left exposed and we had to catch them bloody rock hard rounder balls with our bare hands… and all before being sent back down t’pit 🤣🤣)

Anyway, the Blue Jays were doing really well as we moved on for food and just then, we saw the Rocky Mountaineer pull in.. 

Sod that baseball game we needed to see this! Excitement levels piqued and like a pair of train geeks we dashed over to have a good look!! Some bloke standing next to us asked if we were able to get closer to have a look inside and Dan advised him no and then all proud as punch told him that ‘we’re going on that tomorrow for two days back to Vancouver!’ The bloke’s face was like ‘right ok whatever, thanks for showing off mate!!’ Hahaha!! 

After we calmed down we went for pizza at Jaspers pizza place. Well it is a pizza place in Jasper so why try to mess with that detail when coming up with a name!?! 

Holy moly it was so good. The best pizza I’ve ever had and I am picky about pizzas and also rarely have them more than about once every couple of months and here I’ve had 2 in under a week!! 

Even Dan told the server, as we paid the bill, that it was one of the best pizzas he’s ever eaten and the guy kind of laughed and said ‘but it’s just a cheese pizza’ (he’d got the Quattro Formaggio’) then Dan blah blahed on about the combination of the tomato sauce and the base and the cheeses…..yadda yadda yadda. What’s going on here? I thought I was the blah blah blah person in this relationship!! 

 

Whilst in here we saw that the Blue Jays had won the round and that meant they were now through to…through to…well something, the next stage I guess! We may attempt to follow it at home as we now feel like honorary Canadians! 

We headed back after this as we were tired from another full day plus we have a 7.30am pick up for the train.

Though we did still stop for one last one at the bar by our hotel. Well, we’re on the slide towards home now 

and I don’t have to worry about driving! 

Quick one in there and then back to our room to do a power repack ready for the morning as we have to send our suitcases on to our hotel in Kamloops and we have also sent one straight on to Vancouver.

Then it’s time to hit the sack - Rocky Mountaineer tomorrow WOOP WOOP 🚂🚂