Back to Canada: Consolation Lakes and a Driving Tour

Joan and I left Moraine Lake on July 28th, but only after we hiked to the Consolation Lakes.

The trail goes as far as the lower lake.

The kicking-off point was the Rockpile Trail,

but the route to the lakes soon split off to the left. After gradually climbing through the woods, we broke into the open, and the lower lake began to present itself.

Being a close destination compared to others at Moraine Lake, multiple groups of hikers were already there. (Click on the image to enlarge.)

The panoramic view invited us to sit and gaze.

A closeup of the glaciers at the head of the valley.

This was the view downstream, where the lake gradually transformed into Babel Creek.

We two-legged creatures were not alone. Who's this?

A young marmot!

Who was not too concerned about us.

Then it was time to snack, return to the lodge, and check out. Then Joan and I faced an extra day, baked into our schedule because when we made our reservations, the US still required a negative COVID test to enter the country by air. Therefore, we had added a day to take the test. But then, the requirement was dropped a week or so before our departure. We had open time -- the latter part of the 28th, and the 29th.

 

We drove to Cochrane, a good two hours away, and marveled at the explosion of development there. Subdivisions are being built so fast that the mapmakers can't keep up! We checked into our hotel, drove into "old" Cochrane, and had a fabulous dinner at the Jaipur restaurant. We consider it one of the best Indian meals we've ever had. Here's a StreetView screenshot:

On the 29th, we took a driving tour. From Cochrane we headed south through Bragg Creek to Diamond Valley (formerly Black Diamond). At Diamond Valley there are clues to this area's petrochemical past: the Oilfields High School, "Home of the Drillers," and the Turner Valley Gas Plant. Joan and I continued south to Longview, then headed west to Route 40 and north to Highwood Pass, the highest paved pass in Canada at 2,206 meters or 7,328', closed from December to mid-June.

There we stopped for a leg-stretch.

There are several informative signs along the boardwalk.

We were not alone, within sight of many humans taking in the sunshine, and of animal life.

On the other side of the highway, there's Ptarmigan Cirque, a popular hiking destination that we've done before, but not today.

We continued north on Highway 40, and made a brief stop at the Mount Lorette Ponds. There's a surprisingly scenic stroll around these remnants -- they were an oxbow on the Kananaskis River but were cut off when Highway 40 was upgraded.

A view down the length of the ponds. They're fed by freshwater springs.

Next Joan and I stopped at the Kananaskis Visitors Center to donate our bear spray, and drove into Canmore to buy chocolate bars and confections at Le Chocolatier, as much as we had room to take home in our carry-on luggage. With a final drive to Calgary, clotted with traffic due to construction, we reached the airport hotel and flew home the following day.

We'll return in 2023 and, in addition to some of our favorites, bag the hikes requiring more training than we had this year.