From Sunny Hikes to Frigid Glaciers: My Trip to Canada!

Wow, what an amazing 30th birthday I had. Honestly, I end up traveling for my birthday every year lately but this was by far the most amazing place I have ever been to thus far. My husband surprised me with this trip just one week before we were set to leave. I got to researching immediately because when I travel I like to have a clear plan to make the most of each day. Our trip began with a flight from New Jersey to Chicago, followed by another flight to Calgary.

Our first day we spent exploring Calgary a little. We visited a local Mexican restaurant because Mexican is my absolute favorite food! We walked around downtown Calgary and visited the shops and saw all of the awesome artwork. Bright and early the next morning, we headed out for the 2 hour drive to Banff National Park. The drive is spent almost in complete solitude on the long winding countryside roads. Be prepared to see many farms with grazing cows and other wildlife, it is truly stunning!

Upon arriving to Lake Louise, the most beautiful piece of nature I have ever seen, I was in awe. How could something like this exist naturally? It was something out of a painting, something out of a dream! Lake Louise is absolutely humongous. The only things you can see in the lake when looking from the shore are little red dots that are people canoeing in their red boats. The lake itself away from the shoreline is so serene and quiet. You can hear the echo of the wildlife flying over above. I wish I could have just posted up a hammock and spent the entire day there, but there was much more to see at Lake Louise 🙂

During our hike up the Agnes Trail, there were tall lush green trees that would act as the curtains to the ice covered mountains in the distance. Every once in a while we would stop and sit to take in the views of the turquoise water from the Lake below with the ice topped mountains as the backdrop. The trails are not very busy so there is time to sit and take everything in in peace and quiet, which I loved!

Hiking the Agnes Trail brings you to a small waterfall, another lake, Mirror Lake, and at the very top, the Tea House. The Tea House is something that attracts hikers all day long. Everyone considers it their reward for hiking the over 2 mile trail that is a steep incline. Once you reach the Tea House, you are completely burnt out and in need of sustenance which is exactly what we did! Here there is also another small lake that people sit around to eat their food and drink.

Downtown Banff reminds me a lot of what I imagine Switzerland to be like. The buildings, the shops, the tree lined streets with the mountains in the background really makes it feel like you are in a pretend town. Everything is so perfectly laid out and everywhere you look, and I mean everywhere, there are photo opportunities. We dined here twice and found that the food was wonderful both times. The people in Banff are from all over the world, both workers and visitors. I found that a lot of the servers we had were in Banff for summer jobs from their native countries which I thought was so cool!

We returned to downtown Banff the following day as well (I know, tons of driving!), to catch the gondola to the top of Sulphur Mountain. Here we walked along the mountain side, saw various wildlife and got the best views by being at the highest point in Banff! The gondola ride is smooth and picturesque as well, and if you’re lucky, you can even spot a mountain goat or bear below!

Our last day in Canada was spent tracking it to this beautiful glacier. When I was finally there, I couldn’t believe that just yesterday I was in a tank top in near 80 degree weather. After just a two hour ride north of Banff, we reached Jasper National Park, where this Athabasca Glacier is located, and also where temperatures dropped immensely! Riding in a one of a kind glacier truck was an experience in itself. Once there, I was amazed at how the glacier had formed and that I was indeed standing on it! I was sure to fill my water bottle with the purest water that was flowing out of the side of the glacier.

My trip to Canada is one that I will never forget, and hands down the best trip I have taken to date. I loved the mix of city and nature that I got to experience. I feel as though Banff and Jasper National Parks were the purest form of nature I have ever seen. While driving we saw some baby black bears munching on some wildflowers on the side of the road, the beauty of nature is everywhere! I can definitely check this off of my bucket list, thanks to my wonderful husband 🙂

Travel Information:

• We chose to stay at an Airbnb in Calgary to get the chance to explore the city and save some $. We found this awesome apartment that we highly recommend, here: http://bit.ly/2xjhi0Z Join Airbnb here: http://bit.ly/2xz2dYw
• Renting a car in Canada is way more expensive than I thought! Book early and be sure to search sites like Coupon Cabin or Retail Me Not for discount codes!
• Get to Lake Louise by 9am if possible to avoid the massive crowds and limited parking. If you want to canoe on the lake there is a small hut that rents canoes just to the left of the shoreline. The rates are per canoe, $105 plus tax per hour and $95 plus tax per half hour.
• Lake Agnes trail to the Tea House is completely worth it! Saddle up with your water bottle, comfortable hiking shoes and be prepared for an uphill battle the entire 3.4 Km. I wanted to give up many times but got the motivation when I saw an elderly person pass me…am I that out of shape?! haha
• Bring cash for the Tea House as they do NOT accept credit or debit cards. Once there I recommend that Rose Tea and the Mountain Bar.
• Dining shown: Añejo Mexican Restaurant: http://anejo.ca , Sidewalk Citizen Bakery: http://sidewalkcitizenbakery.com/ , Phil & Sebastian Coffee : https://www.philsebastian.com , Tooloulou’s : http://www.tooloulous.ca/ , Cow’s Ice Cream: http://cows.ca , Lake Agnes Tea House: http://www.lakeagnesteahouse.com/
• My luggage of choice always for its easy maneuverability and sleekness: 25″ Samsonite Spinner. This can be packed to the brim and still be under the weight limits of most airline carriers! In fact, my husband and I often use just this for both of us for shorter trips! Save some $ on these pieces here: Spend $100+ Get 25% Off; Spend $150+ Get 30% Off; Spend $200+ Get 35% Off + Free Shipping over $99 Use code: SAVEMORE

 

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