addicted

Addicted to landscapes                                            16 September 2012

Wintery morning

Wintery morning                                                                       30 June 2012

The Gate

The gate                                                                         7 September 2012

Peace in the afternoon

Peace in the afternoon                                                                 1 September 2012

Sweeping sunset

Sweeping sunset                                                                   14 August 2012

Morning Panorama                                                                                     26 July 2012

rural panorama

rural panorama                          Coalbank                         20 July 2012

Boats for hire

Boats for Hire                                                Emerald Lake, Canada 2009

 Emerald Lake boats & kayaks for hire.

Emerald Lake

Emerald Lake                                                            Yoho National Park.  AB. Canada. 2009

Like Peyto Lake, Emerald Lake is a glacier fed lake, the stunning colours in the water are due to glacial sediment which reflects the light.  It's quite amazing how the surface is like a mirror.  The mountains in the background just add to the spectacular scenery.

Banff River

Banff River                                     Banff, AB, Canada.  2009

Banff River.  The water in this river was amazing.  Kayakers and rafters seemed to have an amazing time on this river; we just didn't get time.

Sulfur Mountain Vistas

Banff from Sulfur Mountain                                                            Banff, AB, Canada. 2009

Feeling overly enthusiastic & energetic one day while travelling with one of my best mates, we hiked Sulfur Mountain at Banff.  It's a trail of switchbacks that regularly pass under the gondola that most (normal) people take up the mountain.  The sign at the bottom warns hikers that this hike takes between 2 and 5 hours depending on conditions.  We hiked for about 3 hours and finally reached the sumit (2451m), of which we'd climbed over 600m, and some amazing vistas.  The gondola ride down was a well deserved rest.

I took this shot from the top, overlooking the Fairmont hotel (Banff), Banff golf club and Banff river.  On a clear day you can see over 145km from the sumit.  The temperature drops by 3degrees with every 1000 foot rise in elevation.

Sulfur Mountain Gondola.  2009

Othello Tunnels

Othello Tunnels path                     Coquihalla Canyon, AB, Canada, 2009

Othello Tunnels are converted train tunnels running through mountains and winding along the pristine river.  The tunnels were a part of a line connecting Kootenay with the British Columbian coast.  The line was built across three mountain ranges.  The Coquihalla Gorge river was at the bottom of 300 feet of solid granite.  The engineer, Andrew McCullough, a straight line of tunnels crossing this gorge and named stations after Shakspearean characters as he was an avid reader of Shakespearean literature.

Kickinghorse River

Kickinghorse River                                                         Yoho National Park, AB, Canada, 2009 

This is the mighty Kickinghorse River in Yoho National Park (I think).  It's clarity and colour is amazing, the blue is entirely natural, created from suspended particles from glacial flow.  This region is surrounded by enormous peaks, roads cutting through them to form a path for tourists and Canadians alike.

Clarity

Clarity                                                                 Johnson Canyon, Banff, AB, Canada, 2009

Johnson Canyon was one spectacular place.  It was rainforesty, there was a stream running the entire length of the wooden boardwalk.  The boardwalk was at times 20m above the ground level, bolted precariously to the edge of a cliff, sometimes under a shelf so you had to duck as you passed.  It is somewhere that could not be properly explored in the time we spent there, I would say it would be an all day job, at the least.

Edith Cavill Stream

Edith Cavill Stream                 Jasper National Park, Alberta, Canada, 2009

The road back from Mount Edith Cavill & Angel Glacier, along the Athabasca river, was peppered with wildflowers.  When we found an area to pull over safely I decamped to grab some shots of them and noticed this stream.  The water was crystal clear and the rocks had amazing colour.

Mt Edith Cavill was named after Edith Cavill, an English nurse who was captured and executed by the Nazis for assisting allied soldiers in their escape from occupied Belgium.  There was a placard with information and details of her heroics.  While we were standing, awestruck, there was a massive rumble from the mountain, we for a second thought we were going to witness an avalanche on Angel Glacier.  Alas we did not.

Peyto Lake

Peyto Lake                                Banff, Alberta, Canada, 2009

Peyto Lake is a glacial fed lake in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada.  Access to the lake is from the Icefield Parkway which is a nature reserve dotted with glaciers, glacial lakes, massive mountains and wildlife.  One of my favourite places, and I'm glad I got to share this sight with my sister.