Whistler’s Campground, Jasper, Alberta,
Happy Bastille Day to our French friends and Francophiles worldwide!
Today was going to be just as hot as the previous two days. We discovered that the heat really sucks away any intent to hike or be outdoors, so we looked for the coolest place to be. Luckily,
This mountain is 30 minutes drive from our campground, up a steep and narrow road. When we turned in to the road we didn’t notice the sign limiting the vehicle length to 7 meters (we are 8.5m). And good thing we drove on, because at the end of the road a beautiful sight awaited us. And the drive up was not problematic at all.
The mountain is named after an English Nurse who stayed behind with wounded soldiers in
The short 1km trail from the parking lot leads to a tiny lake or pond created by the glacier on the Edith Clavel mountain. Because of the proximity to the glacier, it has pieces of ice floating in it. And of course the temperature at this height and surroundings was much more temperate than what we had left behind in Jasper and hour earlier. We lazed around the pond, snacking on fruits, playing near the water, tasting glacier ice (probably the purest water in the world) and just staying cool. There was one giant piece of glacier at the pond edge that looked like a horse, so I got on top and Paola took a picture of the ice cowboy.
As we walked the trail back to the RV, Orr and Shir fell asleep. I found a nice picnic table on a tiny island in a stream flowing from the pond, while Ron helped Paola prepare lunch in the RV. Just as Orr woke up, Paola and Ron arrived with the food. We had a tasty lunch in the sun, with the glaciers and snowcapped mountains as our backdrop. After eating we played around the stream, walking in the cold water, traversing a fallen tree across and the family favorite, rock throwing.
As I was walking with Ron down the stream we heard a giant thunder. Looking back at the mountain we saw an avalanche of gigantic proportions. It poured huge amounts of snow down to the valley near where we hiked for over a minute. What an amazing sight. Paola was able to get a few shots with the camera.
When we got down to Jasper, it was hot and sticky. Near the campground we saw two coyotes crossing the road. We drove around for a while in Japser town and then we found a nice playground in the shade. I took the kids out to play while Paola rested a bit in the RV. When Paola came out, I brought the laptop out and thanked whoever lives across the street for the free wi-fi connection. Thus I updated a week’s worth of information onto our blog.
In the evening it started to cool off and even rained. It is still raining now. Good night,
-Hemi