Fri, Aug 15 2003 - Smoke Tour of the Canadian Rockies (View Original Event Details)
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This event was originally scheduled as a Johnston Canyon Hike. We renamed it to "Smoke Tour of the Canadian Rockies", because sadly, it fell on a day when forest fires were raging all over Alberta and BC.
We set out unsure if we should even be going - the smoke in Calgary was so thick you could hardly see the sky. An American tourist told us that the Banff area was just as bad or worse.
We set out anyway, and when we got to Johnston Canyon, the smoke wasn't really that bad, but they had the trail beyond the lower falls closed due to fire risk.
So, we did the 1.1km to the lower falls, which was jammed with people. There was a moderate amount of smoke, but the canyon and boardwalk were still beautiful.
Next, we decided that we'd better do some more hiking, and chose Tunnel Mountain, which I'd always been curious about. On the way, we drove past the Hoodoos and had a look at them. Tunnel Mountain was a good hike - a steady incline up to the round summit where there were fabulous, albeit smokey, views.
Our hiking needs met, we stopped in Banff at Joe Btfsplk's for greasy food and milkshakes, where we saw the world famous "Fenton Burned Me" spatula.
On the way back, we had to share the joy of Chief Chiniki's restroom with Marlis (to see what we mean, stop at the gas station near Chief Chiniki's, grab a snack for the road, and try out the facilities).
See our photo album, linked above, or Mandy's album.
- Rhonda