Alberta

Think I'll go out to Alberta, weather's good there in the fall
I got some friends that I could go to working for…

Ian Tyson "Four Strong Winds", 1962

Mount Edith Cavell, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After driving right through without shooting in August, it was fun to spend some time in Jasper and Banff after the crowds had thinned a bit. It was still very busy but we didn’t have any trouble getting a campsite.

Bull Elk

Hoary Marmots

We met up with Adrien Veczan and Julia Wong for hiking and photography. We really enjoyed our time with them in Jasper.

We also met up with Aidan Ramos in Banff where he is working for the summer. Aidan shared some of his photography from his time in Banff. It was great to visit with him as well.

Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, AB

We ended our time in Alberta at our friend Bruce Whaley’s place. Bruce displayed his paintings at the Strathearn Art Walk. We helped him set up and spent the day in Edmonton. It gave us a different perspective of the city. We enjoyed our time with Bruce and his family.

Edmonton, Alberta

Loved to Death

I drove through one of the most beautiful places in the world and did not take one photograph. After leaving Kananaskis, We drove north through Banff to Lake Louise. It was jammed packed. They had people in the intersections directing traffic. We looked for a campsite and everything was full. I had wanted to stay and get a few new images of Moraine Lake since I have had quite a few images of this lake published in the past.

Moraine Lake, Banff

The above image is the cover of the Backcountry Maps of Southern Alberta book. We will hopefully come back this way on our way home. It should be less busy in September. Lori and I continued up the Icefields Parkway to Jasper. All of the campsites were also full there so we got a cabin. I was hoping to shoot some new landscapes of Mount Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park. Again there were just too many people.

Mount Edith Cavell, Jasper

The main campgrounds in many national parks are now “reservation only”. We don’t like to book much on our trips. That way we can stay flexible regarding weather and shooting time. We may have to rethink this for areas like the Rocky Mountains. Hopefully September will be better.

We headed to Hinton for an oil change and to do laundry and now are on our way north.

Fun in the Rockies!

We left the prairies behind and headed for the hills. Lori and I have had good luck with weather and have had some great light for photography.

Mount Chephren and Waterfowl Lake - Click for larger

We started in Waterton National Park and then made our way north to Banff and then on to Jasper where we met up with our friends from Ontario - Robert and Olga McCaw and Scott Fairbairn. It was fun to do a bit of visiting and photography together.

Mount Edith Cavell - Click for larger

We have hiked a few trails and had lots to see and photograph. I prefer Jasper to all of the other Rocky Mountain National Parks.

Mount Edith Cavell - Click for larger

Hiking the Cavell Meadows trail on Mount Edith Cavell we found many Hoary Marmots and Pikas willing to pose.

Hoary Marmot - Click for larger

Hoary Marmot - Click for larger

American Pika - Click for larger

American Pika - Click for larger

Lori heard a noise outside one evening and went to investigate. It was a Great Horned Owl right beside our cabin! I grabbed a camera and it stayed long enough for me to get this shot.

Great Horned Owl - Click for larger

We will head north from here to the Yukon and Alaska.