...Banff National Park
Alberta, Canada
Mount Cascade towers over the east end of the picturesque town of Banff within Alberta's Banff National Park.
Banff's city park
Banff National Park, in the heart of the Canadian Rockies, is a wonderland of rugged snow-capped mountain peaks, many even in the late summer, and lakes of every shade of blue and green you can imagine. Turquoise, aqua, emerald, jade, each glacier-fed lake his its own deep hue and each seems to outdo the previous one. You think you've seen the most stunning until you encounter the next.
Banff, the town of some 8000 people, not counting the tourists who flock there year round, lies in the heart of the Banff National Park.
Tourists, yes. But they know a good thing when they see it. Surrounded by Mount Cascade, Mount Sulpher and the towering Mount Rundle, words that describe the beauty of this portion of God's creation escape me.
Go in any direction, both in town or on any of the park's endless number of hiking trails and you, too, will be left speechless.
The turquoise waters of the Bow River flow gracefully through the town of Banff, crosses under the town's bridge, then drops over the Bow Falls (below) only to continue its remarkable journey through the countryside.
Nestled in the trees on the outskirts of Banff, the town, is the Fairmont-owned Banff Springs Hotel. Pictures of its interior rooms and its stunning flower-decked tterrace are below.
This picture and the next several were taken in Johnston Canyon, just west of the town of Banff. An easy catwalk takes you most of the way to the Lower Falls, then a shorter uphill climb takes you to views of the Upper Falls.
There are seven waterfalls within the Johnston Canyon. The first and last are the Upper and Lower Falls; to my knowledge, only one of the ones in between is named. Below is a picture of Stella Falls.
The Upper Falls of Johnston Canyon
Sometimes the overgrowth of moss in the deep canyons of Banff NP takes on some pretty eerie-looking shapes. Another angle of the same boogy-man is below.
The Sawback Mtns can be seen from the Highway 1A leading west out of Banff toward Lake Louise.
A view of Banff and the Bow River from the Norquay Mountain Overlook
After a few warm days, Mount Rundle, which can be seen from many various areas around the town of Banff, lost what little snow it had. Below is a picture of it before the meltdown.
The Vermillion Lakes of Banff are a prime spot for bird-watching as well as Mount Rundle viewing. Some of the best views of the massive rock that shoots upward to the heavens are from the road along these twin lakes.
This young, sweet-faced big horn sheep was found wandering by itself on the side of Norquay Mountain outside Banff.
If you've been to Bryce Canyon in Utah, you won't find these hoodoos in Banff so impressive. But the town is proud of them just the same, and the easy hiking trail leading to them is outstanding. From there you also get views of the Bow River, the Bow River Valley, the surrounding mountains and, in the distance, the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
Above and Right: the Vermillion Lakes outside Banff
Mule deer (above) and elk (below) were often seen just outside the Banff town limits at dusk.
The road below travels along the Vermillion Lakes, and the one above is the Highway 1A leading into Banff.
Don't miss pictures of Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, Johnson Lake and Lake Minnewanka. Click here to view Page 2 of Banff NP.
Or, return to the Canada home page to view pictures of Jasper Natl Park and other locations in the Canadian Rockies.
Being a Texan, I found interesting that the Canadians call their cattle guards "Texas gates."
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