Day 13 – Tuesday 6th June – Whistler Campground at Jasper

This is a spacious campground amongst the trees and although there must be hundreds of sites it doesn’t seem overcrowded.  For breakfast I am joined by a number of inquisitive gophers.  Their heads pop up and they occasionally stand on their hind legs to observe the scene.  They are not tame but clearly very used to people as this is a shared space between humans and wildlife.  Also at breakfast we see red squirrels and later in the day elk come wandering past.

It is another glorious day and we take just one RV the short distance to the “tramway” base station.  This is not a skiing mountain, the Jasper ski area is further out, but instead the gondola operates for the summer season only.  The “flight” (yes that is what they call it) whisks us quickly to the upper station where we stand awhile and admire the views in all directions.  It is so clear the gondola operator tells us that it is the clearest view of Mount Robson, which we can see on the skyline, that she has every seen.

We continue to climb as the stony trail now heads on up to a higher level with views  beyond Whistler Peak which can be reached by a path through the snowfield and south towards the Athabasca River, the Valley of the Five Lakes, the ski area of Marmot Basin and the mountains beyond.

We are at a significant altitude and although the sun is warming the air temperature remains low.  My breathing is still affected by the cough I have not yet managed to shake off, so we take plenty of rest stops.  At one of these a Japanese gentleman insists on his taking a photo of us in a really cheesy pose!  We comply and have a good laugh at the result, a romantic moment up a mountain it is not!

The views really are wonderful as we reach the plateau where the snowfield begins and we decide to go no further.  During our descent to the gondola we realize just how hungry we are and decide to have a meal there before we head back down.  Simon and Helen have beaten us to it!

At the bottom of the mountain Mary notices a halo around the sun.  This is caused by ice crystals in high cirrus clouds refracting the light and creating a 22 degree ring around the sun.  I don’t think I have ever witnessed one before.

From here we drop Helen and Simon to walk back to the campground and Mary and I drive down the beginning of the Icefields Parkway to walk the Five Lakes Trail.  We have our own map and one provided by the excellent tourist information office.  It is still very warm and sunny as we follow the designated walk and visit each of the lakes on the circuit.  The water varies in colour at each lake and the reflections are lovely in the still water.  We meet other walkers, some of whom are with us on the tour and we also find our first “red chairs”.

 By the end of the walk we are glad to be heading back to have some relaxation.  Supper is followed by what has become a regular glass or two of wine with Simon and Helen, and a game or two of Sequence!  We resolve to buy this on return to add to our range of motorhome games in Marianne.