Canada 2025

Tuesday9September

Hiking day for this fifth Canadian day. The first one starts in front of the Vermilion Lakes.

Mountains + bodies of water = pretty reflections.   Another opportunity to fill my camera's SD card...      

On the left, Mount Rundle. On the right, Sanson Peak.

Not a cloud in sight, and a bright sun. Everything is set for a feast for the eyes.  

In the water, water-milfoil (Myriophyllum) colonizes the sedimentary bottoms of the Vermilion Lakes. This perennial aquatic plant helps oxygenate the waters of the Bow Valley. Its branched stems rise toward the surface to capture sunlight.

Well, that's not all, but let's leave these reflections and ducks to their lake, we have a little walk to do! And oops, watch out! The bear is still around! But it's okay, we invested in "bear spray"! If we find ourselves face to face with him, we can spray pepper gas in his snout, at least if we have time...  

We are not really on a hiking trail. We are on the Banff Legacy Trail which crosses the dense forest massifs of Alberta and connects the town of Banff to Canmore. This route is therefore more dedicated to bicycles, but we will do a little bit of it on foot!  

The part theoretically forbidden to animals. If they can read, of course...  

This road is the Trans-Canada Highway! Decided in 1948 and inaugurated in 1962, the Trans-Canada Highway connects the Pacific to the Atlantic over a record distance of 7,821 kilometers. It is the longest national route in the world.  

Prickly roses (Rosa acicularis) and their fleshy red fruits. These rose hips, the floral emblems of Alberta, are a valuable food source for birds and small mammals in the Rockies.

Red clover (Trifolium pratense) and smooth aster (Symphyotrichum laeve).

The common daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) blooms before its feathery seeds disperse in the wind.  

A hoverfly on a hawkweed (Hieracium).

Canada buffaloberry (Shepherdia canadensis), a shrub whose orange berries are essential for wildlife nutrition before winter. These fruits, known as soapberries, are particularly prized by Alberta's bears before their hibernation period.

White spruce needles (Picea glauca).

Back to the animals... Then we follow the trail of the cycloped mammals.  

Fireweed (Chamaenerion angustifolium) and the berries of the limber honeysuckle (Lonicera dioica).

After lunch, we head to the Banff Gondola where the cable cars allow access to Sulphur Mountain.

A small view from the cable car of Banff and the Fairmont Springs Hotel.

The terminal where we arrive with the cable cars. We are at an altitude of about 2240 meters.

A trail runs along the ridge to the top of Sulphur Mountain.

Superb viewpoint over the Bow Valley.

On the left, Banff in front of Cascade Mountain (3006 meters). On the right, the Bow River and its milky blue color winding around little Tunnel Mountain.

Zoom on Banff  

Subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa).

We arrive at the end of the trail.

A plaque commemorates the former cosmic ray study station, recognized as a National Historic Site of Canada. Erected in 1956 for the International Geophysical Year, this high-altitude facility played a leading scientific role before its decommissioning in 1981.

The Banff Gondola station seems very far away now. We have to go back so we don't miss the last cable cars!

Mount Louis and the incredibly thin mineral chimney that runs along its summit...    

On the way, some photos of the pioneers of the region are visible.

Bill Peyto, a legendary figure of the Rockies, was one of the most iconic guides and wardens of Banff National Park starting in 1887. His indomitable temperament left its mark on Alberta's history.

And hop, that's it for the cable car and the return down!

In Banff, a quick stop on the Nancy Pauw bridge to enjoy the usual reflections.  

At the campground, the barbecue is started. For tonight, it will be hamburgers.