back to reality

Three days of driving, sight-seeing, hiking, lazing about and picnicking along the Icefields Parkway was an incredible escape!  It's a land like no other filled with mountains, lakes and waterfalls.  Around every twist and turn is an eye-opening sight. I did not drive the entire Parkway, nor did I see everything there is to see.  What I did do and see was fulfilling in every sense of the word! Here you can see what Monday and Tuesday looked like.

It was in this spot where a piece of my heart got left behind

at Wilcox Pass in Jasper National Park!

I woke on Wednesday to another spectacular sight to savour my coffee by! 

I left my home away from home very early to begin the drive home. 

I wanted a slower drive without the traffic and to stop to see sights.   

golden glow on  Waterfowl Lake

another visit to the shore of Bow Lake

receding Crowfoot Glacier

Herbert Lake

After visiting Herbert Lake, it was a short drive to the exit of the Icefields Parkway and.....  

.....the next day it was back to reality!

Reality is sweet these days if you look for it and are open to seeing it! I made my way to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary to witness the reality of life there.  In this photo, I put an orange star just below that tiny circle opening, that's where the Inglewood Bald Eagle's nest is.  When I went with full on zoom....

.....this is what I saw!  The Eaglet is "branching"! During a prior visit, I saw it "wingercising". 

It is not very often at all that photos I take of wildlife are without some level of zoom. With my eyes peeled looking for movement, I can find sweet sights. In this case, the young Buck was obvious yet I still needed my zoom to get the clear image showing how one of his antlers is growing down. He is well known to everyone that frequents The Sanctuary.

This photo of the young coyote is full on zoom.  It is across the lagoon. I was told there was a coyote in the area so I watched for it.  I saw something light brown moving through the bushes and then it popped out and walked along this log  

It was a Yellow Warbler that flew in and then out that caught my eye.  With my camera on full zoom through many many branches, I focused on this nest.  I believe that is a young Yellow Warbler from looking at the shape of its beak.  

A few Downy Woodpeckers were flitting about so I focused on the area and stayed patient.  

Once again, full zoom was needed. 

This is a Mom Downy Woodpecker feeding her baby boy.

I believe this is a young Black-capped Chickadee by the shape of its beak. Also it stayed in one place and at times continuously flapped its wings.  I have full zoom on focused on this one Chickadee while lots of Chickadee activity was going on around it. 

With full zoom, I was able to capture the turquoise colour of the Double-crested Cormorants eye.

This Cedar Waxwing is either still building a nest 

or adding more support and comfort to the eggs or babies in the nest. 

With my camera on full zoom, I got this close up photograph of the head of a Cedar Waxwing.  It is not very often I am able to get such a crisp clear close up.  I took many close up shots of various parts of the Waxwing.  WOW, Mother Nature does incredible work!

Icefields Parkway June 23, 2026

No matter what, I was going to be somewhere special today, make the most of the day and be extra grateful.  I knew a year ago today when I came out of surgery, that I had a tough journey ahead if I wanted to get back to feeling “on top of the world”!  Today was a celebration!

coffee time view from my deck

a new day is dawning 

the alpenglow show

view as I drove northwest along the Icefields Parkway 

This Pine Sisken was not my only greeter at the Wilcox Pass Trailhead parking lot.  It was a cold and frosty morning as you can see the frost buildup. My other greeter was a bobcat!  I was not quick enough to capture a photograph.  It walked out of the trail, passed about twenty feet in front of me and headed into the bushes.  It looked at me, it did not stop, it just slowly sauntered along.  I geared up and hit the trail making loads of noise.  I was the first in the parking lot so knew I was first on the tail.

first open view across to Athabasca Glacier

first snack break at the Red Chairs

Townsend’s Solitaire 

Hermit Thrush

Ground Squirrel 

There was still lots of snow and water to find a way around or over or through.

perfect place to be on a hot day

I have been here during mid summer when I was eye level with that sign.

I went as far as Wilcox Pass, I did not venture up to the Ridge. This is my feeling “on top of the world” shot! After taking care of my summit shot, I settle on the rock for close to an hour just to take it all in, be one with where I was physically and mentally. Living life like this is so healthy for the heart and so soothing for the soul. 

play time

a slice of ice

three inches in size

looking across at Athabasca Glacier

panorama shot 

not even a breeze

I took one last look back before heading into the trees! By now I had already met so many people hiking up. I was thankful to have ascended while it was cold.  Lots of huffing, puffing, complaining, coming from those going up,

I had a second, very late lunch back at my home away from home. 

Icefields Parkway June 22, 2026

 

The forecast looked promising plus I was able to secure accommodations equals time for a road trip along the Icefields Parkway.  Ahhh that’s the life, having the freedom to go at the spur of the moment. It did sprinkle as I loaded up the vehicle then it poured as I hit the highway.  By the time I began driving the Parkway, it began to clear, yet it was moody!  That’s O.K. I was up for moody!  

My first stop was at Bow Lake.  This is my kind of moody! I had a quick snack then laced up my hiking boots for a hike along the Bow Glacier Falls Trail.  I knew I would not be going the whole way, the trail is still closed near the junction due to the horrific accident at the Bow Glacier Falls on June 20th of last year.

Moody can be spirited and happy, that was my mood!

lots of water running from the snow melt

panorama with Crowfoot Mountain in the middle 

and the trail I followed on the right 

I went this far, where I could see the staircase in the middle across the moraine, the trail is closed shortly thereafter. The Bow Glacier Falls are on the right.  I believe the lighter rock colour to the right of the falls is where the rockfall happened.  Before heading back, I took a few minutes to think about those that lost their lives and also of those whose lives were changed in an instant.  

view walking back along the creek

the water really is that colour 

Crowfoot Mountain 

I arrived back at my vehicle, had lunch on my lawn chair in the grass, then got back on the Icefields Parkway.  At Saskatchewan River Crossing, I veered off onto the David Thompson Highway, exited Banff National Park then drove to the Kootenay Plains Ecological Reserve for another hike.  The blue in the sky came and went yet the shade of blue of the water remained the same.

Yes, the water is that colour!

a few views from along the trail 

It was time to head back to the Icefields Parkway and check into my home away from home.

an ice cold Big Rock Honey Brown paired perfectly with the view from my deck