Canada 2025

Monday15September

First wake up at the Wapiti campground in Jasper, the night was humid, which is not very annoying, except for breakfast. But no worries, there are "kitchen shelters" where tables under a roof are available. wink.gif

The sanitary facilities. The showers are still elsewhere and not always with hot water. sorry.gif

Heading to Jasper to do some shopping. The town is bordered by the railway where long freight trains follow one another throughout the day.

Since the entire Jasper area has been devastated since the July 2024 fires, the usual hiking spots are either closed or marked, and sometimes in the middle of what remains of the forests. Here that is the case, the trail passes through the woods, burned a little over a year ago.

This block with a chaotic appearance is a rare sedimentary breccia formed during the Ediacaran, about 608 million years ago. The angular fragments of light limestone, trapped in a matrix of dark mudstone, tell the story of a violent underwater landslide. In that distant era, layers of carbonate mud rolled down the oceanic slopes before freezing for eternity, then pushed towards the summits by plate tectonics... glasses.gif

Vegetation is reclaiming its rights. Slowly but surely...

The intense black appearance of these trunks results from a rapid carbonization process during the passage of the flame front. Under the effect of extreme heat, the outer bark is incompletely consumed, transforming cellulose and lignin into a layer of charcoal. This carbon mantle will eventually enrich the soil with essential minerals during its slow decomposition.

This geometric texture, evoking reptile skin, results from the rapid shrinkage of the woody material under the effect of extreme heat. During the fire, the moisture contained in the bark and sapwood evaporates abruptly, causing the fragmentation of the charcoal layer into polygonal plates.

Life is reclaiming its rights and not just plants! The trails are also frequented by mammals obviously, elk, moose, bighorn sheep, bears... surprised.gif ? sorry.gif

The young shoots of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides) seem to be in great shape to ensure the regeneration of the forest. yes.gif

These asters also benefit from the completely clear sky of the treetops.

We are in the valley of the five lakes, the devastated panorama is impressive. The forest was composed for the vast majority of trembling aspens.

Blanket flowers (Gaillardia aristata).

Ah, a red chair nearby is indicated. doubt.gif

And indeed, here are the red Adirondack chairs which are not placed there by chance. Iconic of sites managed by Parks Canada, these chairs signal the location of the most beautiful panoramas in the country, inviting visitors to slow down to soak up the places. yes.gif  

A grasshopper of the genus Melanoplus next to a rock colonized by crustose lichens, pioneer organisms capable of surviving the extreme thermal variations of this region of Alberta.

The Jasper Skytram station stands out in silhouette at the summit of Mount Whistlers. Perched at an altitude of 2,263 meters, this infrastructure is the highest aerial tramway in Canada. We will be there in two days!

The milky waters of the Athabasca River meander between thousands of charred trunks.

A little further on, the blue Beauvert Lake and the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge estate.

Zoom on the town of Jasper.

The mountain range bordering Jasper, including Pyramid Mountain, here hidden by clouds.

Mount Dromore.

At the top of Old Fort Point hill, the RégénÀL'œil citizen science program invites hikers to document the recovery of vegetation after the fires. Using a fixed mount, visitors capture the evolution of the landscape, allowing researchers to compare the current state of the forest with historical photos from 1915. Here is my contribution!

From the Columbia Icefield, the source of rivers that flow into three oceans, the glacial waters of the Athabasca flow toward the Arctic. Passing through the Rockies on their journey across Jasper National Park, they travel over vast gravel beds, rush through rapids, and tumble down Athabasca Falls. David Thompson followed this waterway to the Whirlpool River in 1811, opening the first fur trade route in the Rockies. Today, the Athabasca offers the thrill of whitewater rafting among snow-capped peaks and abundant wildlife. It is for these remarkable characteristics that the Athabasca, in Jasper National Park, has been designated a Canadian Heritage River.

We are now at the entrance to the Maligne Canyon site. This time, access is completely blocked; the trails are closed to allow for restoration work and to ensure visitor safety against the risk of falling charred trees.  

That's all we will see of the canyon.  

Back to Jasper for a picnic in the available green spaces.

For this afternoon, on the trails open to hikers, we choose Pyramid Lake.

These small green bags stapled to the bark are a silent weapon against one of the greatest scourges of Western forests: the mountain pine beetle larva... They release repellent pheromones that mimic the chemical signal of a tree already saturated with insects, thus encouraging new arrivals to move on. Used in a targeted manner in Jasper National Park, this technique helps save trees of high ecological or landscape value without resorting to massive insecticide use.  

The Canadian dogwood, or Cornus canadensis, displays its clusters of red berries in the center of a rosette of characteristic leaves. Nearby, the rose hips of the wild rose, the floral emblem of the province of Alberta, are ripening on their thorny stems, providing a vital food source for local wildlife before the first snows.

Pyramid Lake.

This is what a forest spared by the flames looks like...  

A grasshopper of the Acrididae family.

In the distance, Annette Lake at the foot of Mount Tekarra.

Huh? Did a moose pass by here? Or maybe a bear???   désolé.gif But as the sign says, let's share the trails with the bears!  

There is no shortage of trails, in any case.  

Close-up of a polypore mushroom and the phenomenon of guttation. Excess water and metabolites are exuded as crystalline droplets along the growth margin of the sporophore. This wood-decay fungus accelerates the decomposition of dead wood and the recycling of nutrients.  

On the fissured bark of this conifer flows resin that acts as an antiseptic bandage against physical wounds or attacks by wood-boring insects.

A small pond near the large Pyramid Lake.

We have completed the loop, we are approaching the lake lodges.

And here we are back on the shores of Pyramid Lake.

A small wooden bridge to access the small island of Pyramid Island.

Facing us, Pyramid Mountain.

Um, yes, yes... A bear and a wolf?   Canadians go to great lengths for a proper bachelor party.  

Back to Wapiti Campground. But not at the same spot...   Indeed, we will have to change spots every day because when we booked two months ago, there was no space left for the same spot for 4 days! So we will have to move the tent every time but, fortunately, it moves without needing to be folded!  

We don't lose good habits with the evening barbecue. Vegetables and chicken for today.

And for dessert, marshmallows with telescopic skewers!    

And an astrophotography evening, starting with the North Star and the Big Dipper.

Then, I switch to the smartphone which has an astrophoto mode. On the left, the star Arcturus in Boötes with the Northern Crown. On the right, the Milky Way crossing the Summer Triangle formed by Vega, Deneb, and Altair.

Auriga, Perseus, and Cassiopeia on the left. And Aquila crossed by the Milky Way on the right...