Grant fancies himself as a mountain connoisseur which often leads us to some of the worlds most beautiful mountains. Each time he travels to the Canadian Rockies, his obsession with those mountains grows. For the past 5 years, he has been trying to convince me to move to Banff. I would love to, but unfortunately for him, I have no desire to take the Physical Therapy Licensing Exam for Canada. As we crossed the border into Canada from Montana, I was ecstatic to see these mountains he constantly raves about. Unfortunately for us, we arrived just at the beginning of a four day rainstorm. 

Because the areas we were camping in were mostly national parks, we had to stay at paid campgrounds. As we checked in to the first campsite, we were greeted by a very friendly ranger. I mentioned how kind she was to Grant who responded with “Haven’t you heard of the Canadians reputation of being extremely friendly?” He was right, most everyone we met was super friendly. 

Even though the weather wasn’t what we expected, we continued to explore the great country of Canada. We spent our time in the Provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. As the rain fell, we explored the town of Banff, perusing shops, getting hot drinks, and catching up on emails. Even though Grant was bummed out about the weather, I was secretly thrilled for the rain because it allowed me to sport my new Xtratuf rain boots. 

One morning, we hiked 3.8 km to the Tea House above Lake Louise where we enjoyed warm drinks overlooking the forest. Unfortunately for Lhotse, they didn’t have puppuccinos and he had to settle for lake water.  Even though the peaks were covered by the clouds, the turquoise lakes were magnificent. 

We continued north on the Icefield Parkway spending the night in a lush forest. When the rain cleared up, Grant took me on a walk to view the glacier fed Peyto Lake. As we approached the top of the hill, I was blown away by one of the most gorgeous turquoise lakes I have ever seen. We spent the next hour soaking up the sun and the views. Lhotse was Mr. Popular with the tourists, even fetching personal request of just photos of him and the lake. It may have gone straight to his head. 

As we continued towards Alaska, we spent the night at a free campground with a beautiful view of a remote lake in British Columbia. As the morning approached, we were greeted with blue sky and warm temperatures perfect for paddle boarding. Grant flew his drone and Lhotse and I enjoyed a nice paddle among the lily pads. 

Our final push in Canada was to Prince Rupert to catch the ferry to Petersburg Alaska. With a 4:15 am departure, we checked in at 1:00 am. With little sleep, we parked the van on the ferry, left Lhotse in the van (per their rules). We found some seats to curl up on to catch some zzz’s before our adventure in Alaska began. Next thing we would know... Alaska!