TGAGT in Banff - Day 5 - Going out for Ice!

Another early start! Board the bus at 7:30, leave at 7:45.  Morning ablutions, breakfast, bag lunch pick-up, all before that.  But, it was a mild, partly sunny morning that held a lot of promise.  Our ultimate destination was the Athabasca Glacier, one of sever emenating from the Columbia Ice Field in Jasper National Park, 60+ miles north of Banff.  Again, we headed west, but only for a short distance until reaching the Columbia Icefield Parkway.  Then, miles of break-taking scenery through some of the most rugged mountain terrain in Canada.  Truly towering peaks loomed on every side.

Roadside scenery on the Columbia Icefield Parkway

Our first stop was at Bow Lake, the very source of the ever present Bow River that flows through Banff and parallels the stretch of the Trans Canada Highway that we have traversed many times on this trip.  It is a beautiful lake, glacier fed, as almost all the lakes we have visited are, with cold, pristine water in a gorgeous setting.  But appearances are deceiving.  Our Guide warned us that the water in the lake is polluted with industrial toxins, air-born from Asia years ago, that precipitate out in the cold air and settle on Bow glacier, then into the lake, and then into the area food chain, affecting most severely the bird population.  There is no remedy since glaciers melt at their own pace ..... which is glacial!  The explanation of why this lake and not others seems to be that the distance from the glacier to the lake is very short, not allowing sufficient time to "purify' the run-off.  Still, it looks beautiful!

Bow Lake and Bow Glacier, Banff National Park

Less than half an hour later, we were at another spectacular lake and glacier.  This time it was Peyto Lake with it's stunning color, again produced by the mysterious rock flower which the glaciers produce.  We were told, yesterday, that rock flour looks and feels like wheat flour and can be used in the ways that other flour is used, but it tastes bad and functions as a strong laxative.  I'm curious to know who and when made that discovery!  Visit after visit to these mountain lakes and glaciers, we are told how far the glaciers have retreated from their extent even fifty years ago, often measured in miles.  So far, no one has blamed "climate change or global warming ......... however" is always an addendum to each explanation.  The lake is situated at Bow Summit, at around 7,000 feet, and marks the location of the continental divide, in this case, divided three ways. From this point, water flows to the east, the west or the north.  The only such location in North America.

Peyto Lake, Bow Summit, Jasper National Park

Our pace was slowed somewhat by highway maintenance and repairs along the way.  But, we were brought to a complete stop by some avalanche prevention that was going on atop one of the sheer rock walls adjacent to the road.  Apparently this is a regular occurrence on the Columbia Icefield Parkway.  Having cut through mountains in order to construct highways, the newly exposed rock is prone to dislodge itself and crash down on the roadway.  Highway repellers were looking for future problems in hopes of reducing future rock cascades.

After a half hour delay, we were again underway to the Columbia Ice Fields.  Along the way, on every side, more beautiful scenery as we rose and fell through numerous heights and lows along the way.  Occasional waterfalls could be seen as the snow from only a few weeks ago, continues to melt and streams speed down into the valleys.  Rapidly flowing water is everywhere.  It only makes sense that some of it will result in elegant waterfalls down sharp cliffs.

We stopped at one particular scenic vista to eat our lunch in the bus.  Our appointed time at the glacier was 12:30, and upon arriving, it was clear why timing was so important.  This is a destination which, I'm sure, rivals Lake Louise for popularity.  We were loaded onto a shuttle bus to take us on a four minute trip to the glacier staging area.  There we transferred to one of the several glacier vehicles and taken to a specific area on the Athabasca Glacier, itself.

Specially built vehicle for glacier transport at Alhabasca Glacier

Our allotted time on the glacier was 15 minutes.  We were very fortunate that the weather was good and the temperature and wind were quite moderate.  Having spent a good part of my life in northern latitudes, walking on ice was not particularly novel.  However, walking on mile deep ice provided a unique and memorable experience.

In the 1960's, the glacier came down to the road.  This picture captures the amount of loss that has occurred in the intervening time.  Predictions are that in less than one hundred years, it will be entirely gone and only a lake will be left.

Alhabasca Glacier, 2018, Jasper National Park

Rush Hour on Alhabasca Glacier, Jasper National Park

Alhabasca Glacier in only one of eight glaciers emanating from the Columbia Ice Field, but it is the one which has been most successfully developed to accommodate the tourists lust for safe adventures in exotic places.  The Canadians seem to have done an excellent job of this, judging by the popularity of the sites we have visited, as they have with so many other contemporary challenges and opportunities.

Our trip back to Banff was, of course, another visual feast on the landscape on Jasper and Banff National Parks.  We arrived back in by 5:30 with plenty of time for a dinner of German fare and a quiet night to rest and recuperate.