We packed up all the stuff we had carried in back out to the truck. Webid farewell and safe travels to our Aussie friends, Brad and Julie.
Andrew and I went out to hike in MaligneCanyon in Jasper. It’s a short hike along a steep canyon with arushing river at the bottom, forming waterfalls all along it. The hike wasquite popular and crowded. It lead to a lodge and teahouse at anotherlarge parking lot. We chose a different trail back, not along the canyon,and didn’t see anyone.
After a brief stop in town, we drove south to ColumbiaIcefield, between Jasper and Banff Parks. The Icefield is HUGE, thesize of Vermont, and feeds several glaciers. It sits on a true"hydrological apex". Meltwater from here drains into three majordrainages, the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Arctic Ocean. Wedid a short hike that took is to the "toe" of the AthebascaGlacier. We walked on a glacier! How cool is that? (Or rather,COLD!)
We’re entering the Canadian Rockies. Instead of the gently rollinghills we are seeing the great jagged peaks the Rockies are known for. Thesun is shining, but it’s quite chilly, especially around the glacier. Wefound a campsite along the road for the night. The temperature got belowfreezing overnight.