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Quebec City Lower Town

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Old Quebec City

In December, I posted a handful of photos from the day we spent rambling around Quebec City, and I have just a few more to share. The 400-year-old city is divided into two parts, an upper, walled portion (Upper Town, called Haute-Ville in French) and a lower section (Lower Town, called Basse-Ville in French) that is level with the St. Lawrence River. The pictures in the first blog post were taken in Upper Town, but I enjoyed Lower-Town even more. It felt the more like a European City with its narrow streets and cobblestone squares.

The photo below shows the view of Lower Town from Upper Town. The picture above was taken in Lower Town and looks up at Upper Town and the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac.

Old Quebec City

Within Lower Town is a section called Quartier Petit Champlain. Named after Samuel de Champlain, the French explorer who founded Quebec City in 1608, Quartier Petit Champlain is considered the oldest commercial district in North America. Although small, it’s a great place for tourists to wander around because of its many shops, restaurants, and art galleries.

Quartier Petit Champlain Quebec City…

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Old Quebec City

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Old Quebec City Ramparts

Earlier this fall, I shared photos from our visit to the 400-year-old town of Plymouth, Massachusetts, and our rainy walk through New Hampshire’s Flume Gorge. I still have pictures from downtown Boston and the Boston Freedom Trail, as well as Lexington and Concord, but first I want to share the details of our time in Quebec City. It was chilly (40F, 5C) and windy, but we spent the entire day walking through Old Quebec and had a blast. Old Quebec City is surrounded by a wall. You can usually walk along the ramparts (photo above), but due to construction, large portions were closed during our visit.

Old Quebec City Ramparts

Before leaving our hotel (Hotel Plaza Quebec–a well-priced, modern hotel located about 15 minutes from the old city) that morning, we decided two things: 1. We weren’t going to stress about having to see every little thing. 2. We wanted to indulge in as many different authentic foods as possible. Since we were on our feet walking for six hours, we didn’t feel too bad about No. 2. I was about 27 weeks pregnant during our trip, and while I was tired at the end of the day, it felt good to get out and walk….

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Canadian Segway Adventure

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When I was a teenager, several of my many cousins from Europe visited our family at various times. My parents always tried to plan special activities to allow my brother and I to bond with them, since we had (and still have) very few opportunities to see them. During one such visit, my parents booked a Segway tour.

Have you ever seen a Segway or been on a Segway tour? They are those personal “vehicles” with small platforms that have two large wheels and a bar with handles that the rider holds onto. You make them go by gently leaning forward (the more you lean, the faster you go) and you steer with the bar. When you first hop on, it constantly feels like you’re going to fall over, but after about 10 minutes of practice, you can usually get into enough of a groove to feel relatively comfortable.

My brother and I had a blast on our Segway excursion with one of our cousins. Fast-forward 10 years, and Mr. Handsome and I are driving out of the Canadian Rocky Mountains after an eventful seven-day excursion through Banff and Jasper. On our way back to the Calgary airport, we spend a day and a night in Edmonton visiting some folks, and they surprise us with a Segway tour of the Edmonton River Valley.

Now you have to understand that as long as I have known Mr. Handsome, I have been wanting to take him on a Segway, so I was elated, to say the least. It took a bit of time for both of us to get the hang of it, but the tour was a blast, and the River Valley was gorgeous. If you ever have the opportunity to ride a Segway or to visit the Edmonton River Valley, I highly recommend both.

Our Last Day in the Rockies

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I hope you all have enjoyed my posts about our trip to the Canadian Rocky Mountains. I have photos from one last mountain hiketo share.After spending the night at the Miette Hot Springs Resort, we rose early on Day 7 to hike the 5-mile (8-km) Sulphur Skyline Trail, which begins at the Miette Hot Springs parking lot. The first few minutes were easy, but then the climb began, and we quickly realized that this hike was not for the faint of heart.

The trip to the top, an elevation gain of 2,300 feet (700 meters), took about 2.5 hours. I’ll admit we had to stop for quite a few water breaks. The last 30 minutes were the most difficult, as the trail became quite steep and rocky. It was a rough journey, but the 360-degree view from the top was beyond incredible.

We spent about 30 minutes up there, eating a snack and soaking in our last day in the mountains.

The top is a gravely plateau, and the view from each side is different.

The trails we hiked on our trip gave us a wonderful “survey” of the Canadian Rockies. We saw a little bit of everything! Jasper National Park and Banff National Park have their own unique views, so we were grateful to be able to tour both.

The Sulphur Skyline Trail was the perfect end to a perfect trip.

And just when we thought the excitement was over, we were treated to one last surprise when we finished the hike. As we rested at the picnic tables near the parking lot and campground, a herd of female bighorn sheep arrived.

There were several other people in the immediate area, but these sheep had no fear. We didn’t stalk of feed them, but we enjoyed watching them graze. (All my photos were taken using the zoom on my camera. We did not approach any of the sheep.)

 

If you look closely in this picture, you’ll notice that one of the sheep has her head down, as she has just head-butted another.

Sheep are attracted to salt, so when one discovered a car that was covered in road salt, the rest of the herd rushed over, and they all began licking the car. It was certainly a sight to see.
Wondering why the sheep are so rough looking? It’s because they were in the process of shedding their winter coats.

If you wish to look back at my previous posts, here are all the links.

Canadian Rockies Day 1
Canadian Rockies Day 2
Canadian Rockies Day 3
Canadian Rockies Day 4
      Lake Louise
      Moraine Lake 
Canadian Rockies Day 5
      Icefields Parkway Part 1
      Athabasca Glacier
Canadian Rockies Day 6
     Icefields Parkway Part 2
     Jasper



Flowers of the Canadian Rockies

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On our trip through the Canadian Rocky Mountains, we hiked 32.3 miles in 20.5 hours and gained a total elevation of 9,284 feet. I always had my iPhone camera handy to capture all the beautiful scenery. While we walked, I made a point of taking pictures of the many types of flowers we encountered. Can you name any of them? Which are your favorites? Mine is No. 8.

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Icefields Parkway Part 3

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Two days ago, I told you about the first half of day six of our Canadian Rocky Mountain journey (click here to read). Here’s the second half:Medicine Lake is a quick stop, but if you continue to follow the road another 30 minutes, it ends at beautiful Maligne Lake.

We spent an hour walking along the lakeside trail and admiring the gorgeous view. Mr. Handsome’s Tennessee shirt earned us a conversation withe a couple from our neck of the woods. They were on their way back from a long road trip to Alaska and happily told us that the scenery in the Canadian Rockies was better than anything else they had seen on their journey.

Although it is very much in the middle of nowhere (no cell service, either), Maligne lake does have a nice cafeteria, where we purchased an iced coffee. Kind of ironic. After all, it would be a major travesty to have to embark on a mountain hike without first getting your coffee fix.

We browsed the small gift shop and saw this hanging decoration. Mr. Handsome is an avid fisherman, so it made us both chuckle.

Before heading back to our car, we snapped some photos for painting inspiration.

The day was quickly getting away from us, but we want to get a good hike in before dinner, so we stopped at Old Fort Point Loop, near Jasper Townsite, and made the 2.5-mile/4km round-trip to the summit. The 360-degree view was wonderful.

The parks service had even hauled a pair of lawn chairs up there.

We were surprised to only see a few other hikers along the way.

After the hike, we snarfed down pizza at a restaurant in Jasper and then headed east to our accommodations, Miette Hot Springs Resort.

It was 10:30pm when we arrived. The sun had just gone down, and Miette Hot Springs was about to close. Much to our dismay, the “hot springs” is just a regular old swimming pool fed by the hot springs. When we found out that they empty it daily and add chlorine, we weren’t too interested in paying to go swimming.

Icefields Parkway Part 2

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After our Athabasca Glacier tour on day five of our Rocky Mountain journey, we spent the night at the Glacier View Inn.The inn is located in the same building as the Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Center, which is where the tours meet, so during the day, it is packed full of people. But in the evening, the crowds disappear, and only the few hotel guests are left. We ate dinner in the cafeteria, next to a large window looking out at the glacier. It was so peaceful.

The following morning, we checked out of the hotel and continued up the Icefields Parkway to Jasper. Our first stop–only 6.5km north of the Glacier View Inn/Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Center–is Tangle Falls. It is right off the main highway but easily missed. A multi-tiered cascade, Tangle Falls is 114 feet (35 meters) tall. Our stop was quick, but it was the perfect way to start the day.

We hopped back in the car and drove about 25 miles (40km) north to Sunwapta Falls.

Just a short while up the road, we stopped at a viewpoint of the famous Athabasca River.

 

After another short drive, we came to Athabasca Falls, one of the most iconic stops along the Icefields Parkway.

The sheer volume of water that runs over the falls is incredible…approximately 4,000 cubic feet per second! As you can imagine, it is quite loud.

From Athabasca Falls, we drove about 40 minutes (past Jasper Townsite) and stopped at Maligne Canyon, a limestone canyon. We had seen a couple other canyons on our trip (Johnston Canyon and Mistaya Canyon) and they were all beautiful and worth stopping at.

Six bridges cross the narrow gorge of Maligne Canyon, and as you look down, the water is 50m (164 feet) below your feet. Yikes! We were on a time crunch, so we only walked to the first bridge, but someday we hope to return and do the full 7km hike.

From Maligne Canyon, we continued on down the remote Maligne Lake Road and stopped 20 minutes later at Medicine Lake, perhaps the most unique “lake” in the Rockies. You probably won’t believe me when I tell you that it has holes in the bottom and isn’t a real lake, but allow me to explain.

In summer, runoff from melting glaciers gathers to create what appears to be a lake, but in the fall, the “lake” becomes a muddy flatland with a stream connecting scattered pools of water. Here’s the shocking part: What creates that abrupt change is a process in which the water from the “lake” drains out through the holes in the bottom and empties into an extensive underground cave system that researchers believe to be one of the largest in the world.

Maligne Canyon is actually the next spot where the underground river surfaces. I had to laugh when I read that folks in the mid-1900s made unsuccessful attempts to plug the holes with mattresses, magazines, and other materials in order to attempt to set up a ferry service.

We saw several more sites before the end of the day, but I think that’s enough for now. I’ll pick up where I left off next time.

Athabasca Glacier

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Have y’all been enjoying seeing photos from our trip to the Canadian Rocky Mountains? For those who have missed past post, here are all the links:

Canadian Rockies Day 1
Canadian Rockies Day 2
Canadian Rockies Day 3
Canadian Rockies Day 4
      Lake Louise
      Moraine Lake 
Canadian Rockies Day 5
      Icefields Parkway Part 1

And now for my next post, our tour of the Athabasca Glacier. This was certainly one of the highlights of our trip.

After spending the day driving along the Icefields Parkway, we stopped at the Glacier View Inn for the night. We dropped our bags off in our room; grabbed our winter jackets,
hats, and gloves; and embarked on our glacier tour. A coach bus took us
partway up the mountain to a transfer station, where we boarded a giant
Ice Explorer, which took us up onto the Athabasca glacier.

The Ice Explorer is a very unique vehicle that is able to climb up extremely steep slopes while gripping the ice. Aside from the one used by the United
States Military up in Alaska, they are all currently being used on the
Athabasca Glacier.

From
the hotel, the glacier looks very small, but once you’re up there, you realize just how massive it really is. As deep as the Eiffel Tower is tall, the Athabasca Glacier is approximately 6 km (3.7 miles) long and is receding at a rate of about 5 meters per year.

On the way up, we passed pine trees that are 300-700 years old. The growing season is only 60-90 days, so despite their age, the trees are quite skinny. They aren’t
very tall, either.

When the Ice Explorer completed its climb up the glacier, we were able to hope out and walk around. It was crazy to think just how thick the ice was below us.

Although the park officials were unable to legally prevent visitors from walking outside of the designated area, we were not about to wander off after hearing about the danger of falling into a crevasse (a deep, narrow opening in the ice).

Although it was cold, we took our gloves off and took the opportunity to try some fresh glacier water.

After the glacier excursion, we spent a few minutes on the Glacier Skywalk, a transparent platform jutting out from the edge of a mountain. It was a bit disappointing, as it didn’t actually look out over the glacier but over a valley a few miles away from the glacier. If you’re afraid of heights, you may not enjoy the skywalk, as it hangs 30 meters (98 feet) in mid air.

 

 

Check out this video that we made on top of the the glacier:

 

Icefields Parkway Part 1

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On day five of our Rocky Mountain adventure, we woke up at the crack of dawn and began our road trip up the Icefields Parkway. Cell service cut out almost immediately and would not return until the following day, so I pulled out the list I had made of all the stops along the way. The signage was pretty good, but we still would have missed some of the highlights had it not been for my handy list.Our first stop was Herbert Lake. It was just off the road and definitely worth the 30 seconds it took to walk from the car to the lake. Simply beautiful.

We hopped back in the car and continued driving, passing the Hector Lake viewpoint after 10 minutes but deciding not to stop. About 10 minutes past that was a pull-off that provided a fabulous view of Crowfoot Glacier. Naturally, we snapped a picture from both sides of the road.

 

Another short drive (about 8 minutes) and we arrived at Simpson’s Num-Ti-Jah Lodge. My family and I stayed there when I was about eight years old, so I have great memories of that place.

The lodge sits on the rocky shores of beautiful Bow Lake, making it a popular stop for tourists. When I visited as a child, it was an especially chilly summer, and the surrounding mountains were still covered in ice and snow, like a winter wonderland. I remember it vividly.

Our next stop was Peyto Lake (another 10 minutes up the road). Named after turn-of-the-century guide Bill Peyto, Peyto Lake is known as “the bluest lake in the Rockies.”

Also in the same location is Bow Summit, the highest point on the Icefields Parkway (2,135 meters/7,000 feet elevation).

After a 25 minute drive, we stopped at Mistaya Canyon. We walked 0.5 miles down a steep incline and arrived at this spot.

If you look closely, you’ll see the powerful current rushing through the canyon. Truly an incredible sight! There were additional trails we could have hiked, but we were on a tight
schedule, as we had to make it to our glacier tour by 4:00pm. We made the grueling trek up the steep hill and back to our car.

A short five minute drive along the main road brought us to Saskatchewan River Crossing, the first oasis with gas and food that we had hit since Lake Louise. Still no cell reception, though.

Twenty-five minutes later, we made our way up the “Big Hill” and pulled over on the side of the road for a breathtaking view of the North Saskatchewan Valley.

 

By that point, we were only 10 minutes away from our destination for the night, a large building that houses the Glacier View Inn and the Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Centre.

I had called the hotel a few weeks before and booked their very last room that week. What a blessing! It is the only hotel and restaurant for many miles and was the perfect place to stop. But before calling it a night, we still had to take our glacier tour, my most anticipated stop on our entire trip. This has been a long post already, so I’ll have to wait until next time to tell you all about our excursion on the Athabasca Glacier.

Moraine Lake

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A few days, I shared photos and details from our visit to Lake Louise on our fourth day in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. Although it was late in the day when we finished our 6.5-hour hike, we were determined to visit Moraine Lake before leaving the area.

It was about 6:00pm by the time we started the 30-minute drive up the narrow, windy road to Moraine Lake. There was no cell service and no turnarounds. When we were about one mile away from the lake, traffic came to a stand still.

We had spent our first few days in areas where there were not many tourists, so this was a shock to us. But Moraine Lake is arguably the most iconic spot in the Rocky Mountains (both in the U.S. and Canada and is often used as the “postcard picture” of the Rockies. So considering we were in Banff over what was expected to be one of the busiest weekends in years, it actually wasn’t all that surprising.

We sat in traffic for another 30 minutes before we were able to secure a spot in the tiny parking lot. There are
trails to hike at Moraine, but we elected to just enjoy the
breathtaking view from on top of the giant rock pile next to the parking
lot. It was one of Mr. Handsome’s favorite views, and after we returned
home he painted a beautiful picture of it.

That evening, we stayed at a beautiful cabin at Storm Mountain Lodge.