Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Girls Trip: Kananaskis and Johnston Canyon

When traveling through Southern Alberta, the mountains also call with their majestic peaks, snow caps and trees. Tempted, off we went and wended our way to Kananaskis Country. Being in the National Parks can get very expensive, so by staying in Kananaskis Country, you have access to hiking, wildlife, meadows and waterfalls. The scenery is lovely and better yet, it is the road less traveled.

Staying in the village, it was interesting to see the impact of the 2013 flooding. The golf course is still recovering and you can see how the river has changed course. The sun shines down on the village and the bears are plentiful in their sightings. We saw ours on the drive into the park.

The other nice thing about Kananaskis is that you are still within striking distance of Banff National Park and Canmore. On the first day, we drove the parkway to Johnston Canyon and the Ink Pots. This is about a 5 hour trek round trip for inexperienced hikers. It is fabulous as it follows the course of the river and it has magnificent waterfalls. There is enough spray to cool you on a hot day. For the more adventurous, you can proceed further to the Ink Pots. It is a steady uphill all the way, but so long as you have enough water with you, the pots are very worth the walk. We spent time on the benches to rest before heading back down.  Watching the springs bubble and move the sand does really look like ink floating in the water.

From here, it isn’t much further to Lake Louise. This was an evening stop for us, and while thinking about supper, we didn’t venture to stay long when the menu had hamburgers for $26. That seemed a bit crazy. Lake Lousie is worth seeing and walking about. There is even hiking and boating but for the price? Back to Banff for supper.
Grizzly Bear
Mountain Sheep



Johnston Canyon
























My favorite place to eat is the St. James Pub. It was lovely and just as friendly as I remember. I love the soup and stew in the bread bowl so would totally recommend it. From there, it is a short trek up the hill to the hot springs but since it was late, we drove back to the hotel instead.

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