A glimpse of the Banff Springs Hotel (someday I’ll stay here, but a visit to the Rundle Lounge in the Hotel is the next best thing!)
And further down the road, a sliver of beautiful Lake Louise….
Since this is the first of my favourite places I’ve visited (having camped in Banff as a little kid), it’s probably at the top of the list followed by New Orleans, Maui, and Tofino/Ucluelet. Where to next, that’s what’s on my mind – somewhere new, perhaps.
Summer in Canada to me means going somewhere and seeing some of my beautiful country. Canada is such a wonderfully diverse country and I appreciate it all…prairies, mountains, ocean, and our cities, too. I’ve only been as far east as Quebec City, and would love to see the east coast of Canada someday.
Summer Solstice, English Bay, Vancouver 2013
Quebec City, 2010 (wow, seven years ago already!)
Banff (these pictures are from 2014)
Great Bear Rainforest, British Columbia, June, 2013
Prince Rupert to Hartley Bay in a seaplane
Bishop Bay Hot Springs in the Great Bear Rainforest
Near Gull Lake, Saskatchewan, July 2016
Prince Albert National Park, June 2016
Near Mankota, Saskatchewan, September 2016
“Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.” – Anonymous
Less than two weeks until the next trip! 🙂
I took many pictures of the Banff Springs Hotel, here’s one version taken from the Surprise Corner Viewpoint.
Since frigid temperatures are negatively impacting my photography hobby lately, my next few posts are going to be about some of my favourite places.
A couple of days ago I was looking at pictures from a trip to Banff in October 2012 so I’ll start there. I could easily place Banff in my top three of my favourite places. The drive from Calgary to Banff still thrills me like it did when I was a little kid and we went there on family camping trips. I feel like I’m going somewhere, like it’s an important place. The mountains in Banff are my favourite mountains because they are the ones I first saw as a kid. It is one of those iconic places, even the tacky tourist shops appeal to me. And, on this last trip, I felt grown up enough to actually go into the Banff Springs Hotel, so along with the tacky tourist shops, Welch’s Chocolate Shop and the Canada House Gallery (I like looking at the sculptures), the Rundle Lounge with a spectacular view is one of my new favourite places in Banff.
And… like when I was a little kid, I still watch, with much longing, the mountains disappear in the rearview mirror on the return trip home. So, here’s hoping 2014 includes a trip to one of my favourite places.
me in Banff – must be 1978 or so
driving from Kananaskis to Banff
Bow Falls
Looking down to the Rundle Lounge
Bow River
One of my favourite pics I took in Banff last year…
beautiful morning light to start the trip home…
I was actually pretty happy that it snowed in Banff, everything looked so pretty.
I didn’t do too much planning for the trip to Banff so there were only two things on my must do list – go to Lake Louise and actually go into the Banff Springs Hotel and wander around instead of just admiring it from the outside. I did take some pictures inside, but I wasn’t happy with what I took. It is as beautiful inside as it is outside. Had lunch in the Rundle Lounge and the service was surprisingly warm (I thought it would be a bit stuffy and formal) and friendly, and came out with a new favourite wine, Cedar Creek Pinot Noir 2009 (winery is in the Okanagan, about twenty minutes from Kelowna).
