DAY TRIP TO BANFF ROCKY MOUNTAINS

(click on first picture to get a full sized slide show without the commentary)

We decided to get out of town for the day and Banff is so close that it was our getaway choice. Some of these pictures are a bit blurred as I was taking them through the windshield of a moving car.

This structure is a pass over the highway to protect animals when they want to move to the other side. All along the highways there are tall chain link fences to prevent them from coming out onto the roads and risk being hit by vehicles. There are also underpasses through huge culverts. Unfortunately animals are still able to get onto the train tracks and that is a major cause of death for bears in particular as they scrounge for  spilled grain.

This is Castle Mountain, a favorite for tourists to stop and photograph. We didn't stop, it's a picture on the fly.

The day of our trip there was a Chinook and this is the first time I've ever been directly
under one. It's quite impressive, full of angry looking swirls and colors but we love those clouds as they bring warm weather to our city. Temperatures can go from 20 below to 20 above within an hour once these warm winds get blowing.

We decided to skip walking around the town and shoppes as we've done that numerous times and instead take the gondola to the top of Sulphur Mountain. Last time we did that was forty years ago, but not much has changed. It's still beautiful but quite expensive so you only really do it every forty years or so lol. There are a lot of healthy, fit people that save their money and walk all the way up and down. More power to them but that would probably kill us. 

 It was so windy up on top of the mountain with the Chinook blowing full force that it was hard to get pictures that weren't blurred but manged to get a few. This is looking down on the east side with the town of Banff  below and Lake Minnewanka way in the background. You can just make out the Banff Springs hotel at the bottom of the picture.

This is the view looking west towards British Columbia.

This is another view to the east showing the Banff Springs Hotel. I posted some interior shots of it on an earlier blog. 

I zoomed in here for a better shot of it. You can see the falls in the background. The hotel apparently has two ghosts (friendly). One is a bellhop from the early days and the other is of a bride who fell from the top of the staircase and tragically died. 

This is the lookout tower from the top of Sulphur mountain. Some early brave soul lived up here  year round. It has all the "comforts" of home inside but you would certainly have to be comfortable with isolation to stay there.

This bright eyed and very noisy bird is a Whiskey Jack. I'm sure there's a more authentic name but that's what I've always known them by. They are very brave and excellent beggars.

A partial view of  downtown  Banff. I couldn't get a better shot from where I was without getting run over  but it gives an idea of the setting of the famous town. In the summer it is wall to wall people and they dress it up with amazing flower baskets.

This momma was giving me the stink eye as she was crossing the street to let me know that I should stay away from her babies. Deer and elk can be quite a problem in the town as they'll attack everyone without warning and love to stomp on dogs. There are no predators in town  so they have no fear. A few years ago they got some dogs in to help chase them away and that has helped some but eventually they wander back into town.

 We had lots of time after we came down Sulphur mountain so decided to go further up the highway to Lake Louise. This is the lake with the glacier at the end.

A zoomed in shot of the glacier shows how rotten the ice is. I think the first time I saw it the ice came right down to the water so like all glaciers world wide it is rapidly disappearing. 

An even closer zoom.

At the hotel at Lake Louise, the hanging flower  baskets were amazing! They were over six feet tall and so well done.

The ball room inside the hotel.

The view from the dining room.

A true "picture" window. Every window had an amazing view.

The Lake Louise hotel isn't as nice as the Banff Springs but has some interesting decor. These chandeliers baffled us but I guess it is a bit of a Bavarian theme. Each one  is different.

Here is the largest chandelier with a grouping of maidens. 














That's the end of our day trip as it was back to Banff for a soak in the hot springs pool, then a light dinner and then home. Hope you enjoyed the pictures.

FIREWORKS

Click on the first picture for a slideshow without the commentary if preferred.

Who doesn't love fireworks? Well, besides most animals. I have tried with my previous cameras to take pictures of them but have never been successful. I 'semi-achieved' it this time. Most of them are blurred but part of the problem with that was that I took them through the windshield of the car. When I tried to take them outside the mosquitoes were on me and I was jumping around so much they would never have turned out. As it is I really only got one good, crisp shot but maybe next year I'll have mastered the technique and they will all be perfect.


We had a great spot overlooking the site where they were set off, this is the first one and I didn't have my zoom working so it's a bit small.

A bit closer but no color. These always remind me of milkweed seed heads.

A bit more color but still blurry. I had a high ISO but needed more speed. Will have to get critiques from my photo friends for future adjustments. I like the strange lights that look like backward question marks, you never notice those things with the naked eye.

Quite blurry here but they are really moving! They look like jelly fish to me, perhaps aliens?

This is one of my favorites. The brightly lit shapes look like paper cut-out figures climbing up into the air. What I see in the pictures is almost more fun than watching the actual fireworks, kind of like the kids pastime of seeing pictures in the clouds. I loved doing that.

This and the next one are from the big action near the end of the display when they let off lots at a time. I like the 'streamers' on the one at the bottom.

Back to colorless again. These remind me of the frost we get on our windows in wintertime.

The only really colorful one I got and I think it's a doozie lol. When you look closely at them it's amazing what is going on to create these displays. Thanks for checking it out.

Hatley Castle in Victoria BC. This was once a private residence situated on approximately 700 plus acres of land. It was owned by one of the relatives of the man who built Craigdorough castle in Victoria proper. This beauty had 22 bedrooms but only four members of the family lived there. The Royal Roads University is on the other side of this building and most of the upper floors of the castle have been converted to administration offices and therefore I don't really recommend the tour as it is only the main floor that is original.

  Most of the finishes are in various types of oak, a sign of wealth at the time, but too dark for my taste. The pool room however, is made of a wood imported from Australia and creates the most exotic smell in the room if the door has been kept closed.








The upstairs hallway.














Below is the view from one of the grand rooms looking out over the expansive lawns to the lagoon which was created by a natural barrier between the ocean and the inner waters.

Royal Roads University is across the yard from the castle entrance.

The root of the vine that covers the three story building from bottom to top.

 There are numerous gardens to be explored on the property. We only had time to go through the Japanese garden but if it is an indication of the rest of them then it is worth it to see them all. I think summer would be a good time for a visit as all the plants would be in full leaf. Spring time visits are lovely to see  the tulips and rododendrems .

There is an admission fee for a combined escorted tour of the castle and gardens, an escorted tour of just castle or garden or you can do a self tour of the gardens alone. All castle tours are guided. There is also a fee for parking. If you plan to do the full tour you will need the eight hour parking pass.

 One of numerous lanterns.









 There are little treasures like this along the way through the garden.

 Water falls,
still waters and water wheels. It is all here for our visual pleasure.

  It wouldn't be a Japanese garden without a curved bridge and a gazebo/pavilion. The reflections make  such a pretty picture.                                              

Not sure if everyone knows why Asian bridges are curved. Those in the know believe that "spirits" can only travel in straight lines so if they are following you over a bridge, they will continue in an upward path as they come to the top of the curve allowing you to continue without them following your every step. Very important if it is an evil spirit I'm sure.

 

 Signs of spring. A fern's fiddle head above.




                                                The heart of a tulip.

Promising buds.

                                                            


                                 A tulip near the end of it's bloom.

Two of the statues representing the four different seasons. They are located in a garden beside the castle. I'm not sure which two these are but the eyes on the one below freak me right out. Not my favorite statue.