Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 7 (End of Adventure) - 2009-03-29

Sandy says:

Well, I am sitting on the couch drinking a beer at home. That was a great trip - we had a lot of fun. Today's highlight was a helicopter tour from Canmore out to Mount Assiniboine - pictures are here.

Last night, we had another great meal - we went to the Sukiyaki House - Kate had sushi, and I had sukiyaki. We both really enjoyed the meal.

So, what a great trip - we skied, we dog sledded, we did some sightseeing, and we wrapped up with a helicopter ride! I can not wait for the next trip west!

Kate says: (a day or two latter from back in Cold Lake)

Heyo,

The trip was a huge success, just an amazing time! I am home in Cold Lake now, having stayed in Calgary on Saturday night with a friend. I drove home on Sunday, under mostly sunny skies. Calgary has a snow storm Sat night, but it was all melting on Sunday. Total mileage on the trip was 2040.2 km!!

My favourite mountain is Lake Louise, it was by far the most fun and had the best conditions. Norquay wasn't great but that was likely because of the fresh wet snow that was dragging us down. Sunshine was cool, but it has too many long traverses to really be a board-friendly mountain.

The dog sledding was really cool, that's something I'll be doing again at some point for sure! We did a lot of sightseeing, which is unlike me, but I really enjoyed it. We soaked in the hot springs regularly to ease stiff muscles. I got to see some very cool geology mixed in with the gorgeous Rockies' scenery. We ate like royalty every night. The food was soooo goooood. Pricey, but delicious. And we topped it off with a helicopter tour in the Canmore area mountains and got right up close to a glacier. That was wicked!

Here are the best of my pictures.
Note that as I was the one taking them, there aren't many of me. Most are of Dad! The opposite goes for Dad's pics heheh.

Here are some links to videos of:
-Me boarding/checking out the mountains
-Dad skiing
-The mountains/Dad describing our day
-The helicopter tour, near the glacier

Overall, I had an awesome time with Dad, skiing, sightseeing and eating amazing food!
We'll have to make the next trip with the whole family because I know Kim and Rick would love it!


Cheers
Kate

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 6 - 2009-03-27

Sandy says:

We had a lazy morning, then headed downtown to book a helicopter ride. We were about to head to Camrose for the ride, but I called ahead as instructed, and found out it had to cancel because of higher wind than allowed for the tour. So, we re-booked for tomorrow. This left us with some time to drive around and see some more of the beautifull country.

We started with a drive down Tunnel Mountain Drive and Tunnel Mountain Road. Some great views of the Bow River, as well as theBanff Springs Hotel, and Mount Rundle. We also saw a bunch of elk back on Banff Avenue, near the Trans Canada.

Next, we went for a little drive up to Two Jack Lake and Lake Minnewanka. That is a really pretty place - well worth the short drive out of Banff.

Last, we drove over to the Cave & Basin Historic Site for a look at the old bath house, and a walk by the hot spring.

Somewhere in the middle of that, we stopped in town and had a great lunch at the Elk & Oarsman Pub. Another good meal! Gee, I am starting to think that there is a lot of good food in this town! I recalled it as mostly "pub grub" - OK but nothing special.

Todays pictures start here.

Kate Says:

It's a shame the heli flight was cancelled, and I really hope we have good weather tomorrow morning for it. We sort of explored around Banff today. We haven't really seen much wild life, except for a large herd of elf that like to hang out in a field beside the highwas just outside of Banff.

We wandered into a few more stores today, including a neat old trading post that had a lot of the trappers original taxidermy still displayed. I think every animal in the Rockies was there! There was a grizzly bear posed standing, and my first thoughts were "biiiig" and "coooool". My second thoughts, quickly following, were "I hope to hell I never meet one while I'm working... because I might pee myself and that would probably be the least unpleasant part of the meeting." We also stopped at a fur shop, and I tried on some really beautiful hats. The leather and grey fox fur one that I liked best was obscenely priced.... so no fox hat for me. Of course, the one in the pictures from a few days ago is my favorite still!

Nerd Alert- Continue reading at own risk!

I got to see some of the rock formations close up, and liked that. I observed some quartizites and limestones whose deposition setting ranged from shallow beach flow to deep ocean, illustrating sea level changes way back when. I also saw some fossil shells in the deep sediments, some fossil tree roots (I think) in the shallow sediments, and several bands where iron is causing the rock to rust. In the valleys there are these yellow colored till sediments left by glaciations, which are really thick! I haven't been able to see this stuff up close though. The glacial landforms are really neat, because we can see where the ice carved out the rock on a huge scale.

Cheers!

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 5 - 2009-03-26

Sandy says:

We were tired last night, so the day 5 report is coming out a little late!

After we sent the day 4 report, we went out to the Sushi House Banff for dinner and had another great meal. I have to say, we have had some great food on this trip - have had a bunch of great meals so far.

On Day 5, we headed back to Lake Louise and spent the day there again. We did a couple of runs on Larch, but it was not skiing well, so we spent the day on all of the great blue and green runs which are on Front Side - and had another great day on the snow.

I have to point out that Kate took an extra long lunch - she stopped about 45 minutes before I did for lunch! So, her old fat Dad skied her butt off! When we got back to town, we were both really tired. So, we headed over to the hot springs for a soak, and did that ever feel great! Then, we headed to a place called Giorgio's Trattoria for a great Italian dinner. Some of the online reviews are only so-so, but I gotta tell you, we had a super experience. The decor was really nice, the service was excellent, and we both had a really nice meal. The price for a nice Italian dinner with wine was just about $130 including a good tip for great service, so fairly good value as well as just being great food and service.

Kate wanted to wonder around some more after dinner, but I declined because my back was exhausted! We have not yet decided on plans for today, so stay tunned, we will let you know latter!

Pictures from Day 5 start here.

Kate says:

The sushi bar on day 4 was amazing, and quite possibly my favorite meal so far. I had 2 little bowls of green tea ice cream to finish it off.. heheh. Then came back to the room and washed a big pile of socks, 2 shirts and my jeans in the bathtub.

Lake Louise was in perfect condition yesterday. The weather was totally clear, warm (when we weren't in the wind) and gorgeous. The mountain was riding really well, it was the best ski day so far! Yes, I took a long lunch. My shins and right ankle were giving me limited options: 1) Keep going but prepare for muscle fatigue to cause an accident or 2) Quit for a bit and get some more good runs in later. So, I had a hot chocolate with Bailey's and took it easy for a bit.

Italian dinner last night was wicked, I loved it. After dinner we couldn't find the coffee shop (which turned out to be just 4 doors down) so I made a quick stop at the sushi bar to pick up some more green tea ice cream and ate it back here at the room with chop sticks. heheh :)

Cheers!

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 4 - 2009-03-25

Sandy says:

We had a really nice time last night. Went to the hot springs again for another soak, and then ended up at the Maple Leaf Grill & Lounge for dinner. We had a truly amazing dinner for not a bad price. It was expensive, but when you compare $12 for a hot dog and a glass of juice, to $150 for an amazing dinner for two, it is pretty obvious that the value for a meal in Banff is on the top end - not on the bottom end!

This morning, we took it easy, had a nice breakfast, and then headed to Lake Louise Ski Resort which is I think the best of the 3 mountains in Banff. On previous trips, Dave and I have really enjoyed Sunshine, but I think everyone, including Kate and I, agrees that lake Louise is the best of the three mountains. The snow stopped, the sun came out, and the front side of the mountain was skiing just perfect we spent the majority of the the day on the Front Side skiing the blues off of the Glacier Express and the Top of the World chairs. I think that this was by far the best skiing so far of the trip. Kate was not sure she could handle riding the Platter to the top, so we did not get a change to ski that blue off the front, or that nice blue of of the Platter into the Back Bowls.

We did ski both of the greens on the Back Side - Saddleback off of the Top of the World Chair, and Pika to Old Ptarmigan over off of the Ptarmigan Chair. But, neither of us was in the mood to try any of the crazy black n the those bowls, so we moved over to the Larch Area, and did a couple of runs over there. On previous trips, I have had some really good skiing over there, but it was cold, windy, and a bit icy, so we headed back to the front where we had a blast. We did ride the new Grizzly Express Gondola a couple of times, and there was some good tracks to be had on that part of Front Side as well.

So, another great day! We are headed out for dinner, and will drop another note tomorrow!

Todays pictures start at http://picasaweb.google.ca/sandy.alexcameron/2009SpringBanff#5317287729252218770

Kate says:

This was the best ski day so far! Lake Louise is the best mountain we have been to. I loved it. It was really cold in the high winds at the peak so I tossed an extra fleece on at lunch. It is a loooong run from top to bottom, but just awesome terrain. Dad pretty much said it all, and all I can really add is I Agree!! I was ready to quit when the chairs closed at 4, my muscles were big time tired and I didnt want to have an accident.

We;re off to dinner now, night!

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 3 - 2009-03-24

Sandy says:

After we sent yesterday's email, we went up to Banff Hot Springs and had a soak. That felt great! Really made a difference for my knee. Then, we wondered around town a little, and ended up grabbing a really excellent Korean BBQ dinner - for sure the best meal so far of the trip, and maybe the best meal I have ever had in Banff. Banff is one of those places where the food is always good, but not often great. This was great. Back to the room, for a couple of beers, and to bed early.

We took it easy this morning, and then headed for Sunshine Village for a half day ski - timed it to get there for noon! We had a blast! We both really enjoyed it. The snow was nice and crispy, and we both skied far better than we did in the mushy fresh snow we had encountered at Norquay. It was a real relief to me - I was really wondering if I had lost it after a fairly rough first day at Norquay. But, skied well, and really enjoyed the half day. I found that I had to really be careful with my weight transfer - so that I had minimum torque on the right knee when it was uphill on a right turn - once I got the feel for it, I skied well. We stayed on the blues and greens, and skied all three mountains. I think anyone who has been there will agree that the two best blues are off the Continental Divide chair on Lookout Mountain - both the South Divide and the World Cup Downhill were a lot of fun. Over on Standish, all the blue stuff off of the WaWa Chair was a blast as well. We made one trip up Goats Eye, and cruised down Sunshine Coast, which is a really fun blue, except for boarders - their is one long traverse which can be a bit long.

Speaking of traverses and boarders, Sunshine can be a tough spot. When moving from place to place on the mountain, you can end up in some flat places. In fact, you can end up in places where every direction is uphill, so you better have a head of steam, or you are gonna have to take the board off!

For sure, a great day! I am going to finish beer #2, then we are headed to the Hot Springs for a soak, followed by dinner! Hmmm, might be time to try out some Alberta Beef!

Todays pictures start here. This is my favorite.

Kate says:

It was an awesome day. The snow was just right, and I felt like I was getting my form back. The conditions were way better than at Norquay, and we had sun peaking out about half the day. The runs were awesome, and when the clouds lifted a bit the view was incredible!! My only beef against Sunshine Village is how many flat runs there are when you move between the mountains. Snowboards just aren't made to operate well without substantial gravitational pull - too much friction on the large board surface. It's so tiring trying to skate a snowboard!! And for looong flats with just a bit of slope, it's all about maintaining as smooth a line as possible on just one edge. Makes the toes really sore. I'm really looking forward to Lake Louise tomorrow.

Last night's dinner was really good, Korean isn't something I eat often. We did a bit of shopping, and I bought a tiny piece of iron meteorite on a necklace. Banff is really nice, as far as tourist fleecing operations go. heheh.

I'm feeling a bit stiff and sore tonight, but not too bad. Definitely not as bad as after Norquay. We're a few beers in and headed for the hot springs shortly. Cheers!!

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 2 - 2009-03-23

Sandy says:

Well, after I sent yesterday's news report, we went and wandered around downtown. By then it was obvious that my knee was sore enough that I was not going to be skiing today. So, we got tickets for a dog sled ride. Then, we wondered around and Kate did some shopping, and we had a really nice dinner at a Greek restaurant. Back to the hotel early, and early to bed. This morning, we went and got a nice breakfast, then met the tour organizationat, and drove back to Canmore, and drove up the Spray Lakes Road to the top of the reservoir, where we hoped on the dog sleds about here . We had a great ride on the sleds - it was really a lot of fun. Because my knee was sore, I sat in the sled the entire time, and Kate drove. The company is called Snowy Owl Dog Sled Tours - and I really recommend these people to anybody who wants to try this. I am told that none of the other companies let the customers drive, and Kate really enjoyed that part.

So, we had another really good day. The knee still feels really iffy, so I am not sure we are going to be able to ski tomorrow. We shall wait and see!

Pictures from today start here .

Kate says:

IWANNAHUSKYDOG!! Ok, that's out of my system... Dog sledding was amazing!! The day started out cloudy and kind of iffy, but cleared up by the time we got out to the start point. The view was incredible. The dogs were awesome. The sun was warm. What else can I say? Driving the sled was a ton of fun, I had a blast!

We're headed for dinner shortly, and also to the hot springs for a dip. I might try to talk Dad into video taping while I learn to ice climb, if we don't ski tomorrow. We'll see, I'm not sure I have the guts to ice climb in such warm weather. heheh

Cheers! Kate.

Kate and Sandy's Excellent Adventure - Day 1 -2009-03-22

Sandy says:

Yesterday was a travel day, so I figure it was day 0, so today is day 1! We took our time getting started this morning, and then headed over to Norquay, which is the smallest of the 3 Banff ski destinations, and a great place to get started.

You can have a look at the map for the mountain at http://www.banffnorquay.com/onmountain/trailmap.html

We took our time getting going, then drove around town looking for a greasy spoon that Dave and I always got breakfast at. I could not find it. I thought that was in Banff - I don't know, at my age, it could have been some other town and I have it remembered wrong! So, we ended up at McD's for breakfast, and got on the mountain around 10AM. We had about 3" - 3 /12" of fairly heavy new snow last night. It did not feel that wet to the touch, but it sure felt wet and heavy when we went to ski it! So, we had a pretty good morning, skiing both the Mystic and Spirit chair. I decided not to tell Kate about Dave's son having broken his collar bone here - and I think that was a good idea, because we both found this to be a big challenging hill! LOL - and all we skied was the blue runs.

Just before lunch, I toke a dump and gave my right knee a pretty good torque. We made a couple of runs, and decided it was lunch time - I think about 1PM. Had a nice small bowl of soup and a bottle of OJ - for $8! Yup - $8!

After lunch, we did a couple more green runs on the Cascade chair, but we were both tired, and my knee was really hurting so , we called it a day!

Todays pictures: http://picasaweb.google.ca/sandy.alexcameron/2009SpringBanff#

Kate says:

Duuuuudeee... sweeeeeet. So we got a dump of snow and I think it was wet stuff. I sure felt wet on my when I took that face plant.... moving along... I'm new to this whole fresh power concept, as skiing Ontario is pretty standard groomed stuff. It was a challenge to carve it, it takes a lot more hip and knee motion to control. That said, it was a great day and I'm excited to see the other mountains! It was mostly cloudy with a few peaks of sun every so often, so we didn't catch a whole lot of the view.

Heheh, I just read about Dave's son in Dad's notes above, oy! Well, we had our helmets and we're sticking together.

It was a long drive down here from Cold Lake but totally worth it! Im hoping to talk Dad into trying dog sledding while we;re out here. I told him he could have the comfy seat under the blankets and I will steer heheh.

We both have some minor aches this evening, but we have already begun liquid medication and expect to be fine as long as the beer supply holds out! Oh, one more thing... Friends dont let friend eat McDonalds and ski. FYI.

Love you all!

Kate