Peyto Lake & Glaciers

The first time I saw a photo of Peyto Lake, I was amazed. The color of the water and beautiful mountainous surroundings left me aching to go there. It was one of those places you have to go if you are in the area. The day was cloudy, and rainy, and sunny. Kind of a nice combination. If what you wanted to shoot was in direct sunlight you could wait a bit and a cloud would come by and diffuse the harsh light a bit. Conversely when something was shrouded in clouds, just by waiting a bit some sunlight would peek out and illuminate a portion of the scene. We began the day by driving north on the old frontage road to the Trans-Canadian Highway. We thought it was the most scenic route and it didn't dissapoint. There was an elk grazing on the side of the road, and some people getting dangerously close. Eventually we had to get onto the major highway, and stopped at all the pull outs to look at the glaciers. Another big reason we decided to visit Banff, was because of the quickly dissappearing glaciers. Call it what you will, global warming, climate change, Bush's fault, or whatever, the glaciers are quickly becoming extinct. There is no better place than Banff to see the effects. Peyto Lake has a large interprative sign with photos of the glacier. Now, cameras have been around only as long as a blink in geologic time. Within that time we, or the climate, have managed to melt them into oblivion. I wanted to be able to say that I've seen a Glacier in my life time. I don't have any kids or grandkids, so I'm not sure who I'll say those words to. At least I'll have had the pleasure of seeing them.

The parking lot there was divided between passenger cars and tour busses. Being on our own we parked in the lower lot and took the nature walk pathway. It offered intrepretive signs and plant life IDs. At the view point there is a huge wooden deck provided to take the typical snap shot of the lake. There are more intrepretive signs describing how the lake gets it's wild blue color. The glacial silt gets more and more pulverized to the point of the consistancy of flour. The combination of the emulsified silt and reflection of light gives it the light aqua color. Just as we approached the viewing platform a tour bus of young students arrived and it became an instant mob scene. I got a bit frustrated and wanted badly to get away from the people so I could have a little personal time with the view and compose a shot that was more than the typical platform view. Fortunately there was a trail that went down and to the left, eventually reaching the headwaters of the lake. We walked down the trail and detoured a couple of times to grab some views. There my blood pressure began to return to normal. We got to see a pika up close. Pikas are little mouse looking mammals that live in the rocks of high altitudes. They are so aclimated to the cold, that temperatures above the high 70s could cause them to die. They are usually very shy creatures, so hearing one peep is much more prevalant than seeing one. The image of the lake I was most happy with was taken after our little hike and off the main trail. I wanted the rocky foreground, but also wanted some sunlight dappling on the mountain and lake. I took many images, and finally the clouds broke a bit giving me the light I was looking for.

Lake Louise and the Tea Houses

Only about 4 days prior in Waterton the temperature was 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The morning we wanted to hike around Lake Louise it snowed. We were a bit trepidatious to what we would find when we got there, but it turned out to be a beautiful day. The trail started off at the hotel and we decided to take the route that headed up toward the Beehive and onward to the Lake Agnes Tea house. There was about an inch of snow on the ground when we started and as the day wore on it quickly melted off, leaving a bit of mud in selected places. We had a couple of false starts, having to deal with bathroom breaks, and cleaning up after our dogs. The trail proceeded up immediately and into the fir forest. We took a short detour to see Mirror Lake, which was little more than a pond, and circled around the base of The Beehive, which was a small peak that resembled the beehive you see on those Utah highway sign posts. Soon enough we arrived at a stair case that ascended to the first tea house at Lake Agnes. You don't get a feeling of how beautiful it is right until the top where you reach the tea house.

As you come around the corner you see Lake Agnes and the reflections of the peaks surrounding it. The tea house overlooks the lake on one side and Bow Valley on the other. Then there is the beautiful cascading water fall that flows out of Lake Agnes. It was a bit too early to grab some food at the tea house, so I decided to get a closer look at the water fall and try to get a good composition. I found one, and soon other people saw where I had gone and actually lined up on the precarious cliff edge to take their shot. Continuing on the trail we encountered another long stair way back down a bit. The trail then traversed the mountain, again through thick and green fir forests. At the trail curves around, you grab wonderful views high up on the Lake Louise valley. Slowly the trail gains altitude and heads toward the Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House. Set below (and safely away) from the glaciers that feed Lake Louise, the tea house offers sandwiches, soups, and cake all hand made from scratch. They receive supplies either by horse back, or by a beginning of the season air drop. All their trash is taken down by hand or horse. There is no running water or trash cans, you have to pack your own in and out here. The two story log cabin was built sometime in the 20s. Just as we arrived a bit of snow began to fall, so we had to put our raincoats on to cut the chill. It was quite busy up there, and we were quite lucky to get a table. Fortunately for us they took American currency, we didn't think to go to the bank before we headed out for the hike. Warm soup really hit the spot.

We would have liked to linger longer, but felt we needed to relinquish our table for the line of incoming guests. The hike down treated us to long valley views of the lake and hotel. The trail soon levels out to a flat easy stroll along Lake Louise. As we approached the hotel foot traffic elevated to super-highway style crowds. We passed some people rock climbing on the left, and stopped to watch for a bit. The hike took almost all day, and we didn't want it to end. I kept taking pictures and saw an opportunity to snap some pics of the red canoes that were for rent. We kept looking up the valley to the Six Glaciers, with a dreamy sparkle in our eyes.

Oak Creek Blackberries

It was Sunday and I thought I would take the day off and do nothing. Really, I thought I would do nothing. Oh, and sleep in. I slept in to 8 o'clock, and by 10, was completely bored out of my mind. I found myself pacing. I guess it wasn't that I really didn't want to do anything, it was just that I hadn't planned on anything to do. Okay, I said to Kristi, lets go have a picnic up in the Aspens. It sounded fun. I then looked out the window to see the mountain covered in clouds. Then began the thunder and lightning. Nevermind. How about Oak Creek? Okay, it is lower in a canyon and probably won't get rain like in the higher elevations. Sure. We packed a picnic lunch, loaded up the car with our packs, wrangled the dog into the back and we were off. I brought my camera and tripod, after all, I didn't want to find myself pacing once we got there. We literally pulled off the first wide spot in the road and parked. Heading toward the sound of water we slipped down the steep slope to the large boulder like cobble stones that lined the creek bed. I stopped at the first cascade I saw and broke out the camera and tripod. Kristi, began exploring with the dog. At one point she stepped into the frame just as I tripped the shutter. She continued up the creek while I made a few more images. As soon as I was packed up again and moving up the creek I heard her say "Blackberries."

Just then I saw them. All luscious and shiny hanging there on the vine. A few more steps and there were whole bushes. We began shoveling them into our mouths. The dog even got in on the act. We finally had a plan for the day. Pick a few berries, make a few images, have a nice picnic by the creek, then go home and make cobbler. I dug through my pack, and she hers to come up with some bags to put the berries in. I then found a nice little intimate waterfall with berries hanging over it. I had to take a shot. Unfortunately I left my polarizer at home. I had to shoot at f22 to get the right shutter speed to smooth out the water a little bit. I'm not sure but if I did use the polarizer I wouldn't have had the catch-light reflecting off each of the berries. Wearing shorts and water sandals we gingerly waded through the bushes collecting all the ripe berries within easy reach. We sat down for our picnic, and slowly ate our lunch supplemented by fresh berries. The dog was begging for his portion, and we obliged. Our bellies happy, we laid back and looked up at the clouds floating by, and lazily held each other. The babbling creek, the trees in every shade of green, the berries, and the one I love all on a warm summer day. We were in heaven. Even the dog was content to dig a little bed and get a cat nap in. I guess sometimes the best laid plans are no plans at all. When we got home I went to work on processing the shots from the day, and Kristi went to work on the blackberry cobbler. We even ate the berries in the shot. Yum!

Banff National Park

 Banff National Park is a beautiful place in the Canadian Rockies, and the last stop on this epic photographic adventure. I'm writing this a year later, and the details have already begun to fade.

As you may or may not recall, the trip started out with Kristi. She had gotten her pink slip (or reduction in force - RIF notice) at the high school the 8th year in a row. And after 5 years of continuous home renovations, she was ready to split. She packed up the '76 VW bus and was headed to Canada, with or with out me. Now our relationship was entering the 11th year together, and we were fairly stable. She was experienced and street smart, so I wasn't worried at all. Just jealous that she could pick up and leave for 2 months. I wanted in on all the fun. We agreed to meet in Jackson, Wyoming and take two weeks to drive through 3 national parks and into Canada for Banff. I would then fly out of Calgary and back home. She took our two dogs, Max and Robin, and I would have a friend take care of our littlest dog Jester. The timing turned out to be perfect, as Max has just recently passed away. There is no way we could have known that he would be gone in less than a year. It goes to show you there is no time like the present.

  Trying to make the most out of our time we decided to set up camp at a campground between Banff and Lake Louise. We thought that it would make the driving faster with whatever we decided to do each day. A couple of things that surprised me about Banff was that the Trans-Canadian highway and railway went right through the middle of the park. The train horn could be heard echoing off the mountains. It immediately made me think of home, Flagstaff. It kind of put me off at first, but the trains didn't blow their horns at night, so sleeping wasn't an issue.

 I was just used to the wilderness feel that some national parks in the US have. It was a weird juxtaposition seeing beautiful mountain glaciers, and a freeway lined with light poles. A lot of my mountain shots were taken carefully, to avoid the ever present sign of man and progress.

I really didn't do much research on Banff, and we were at a bit of a loss on what we should do. Whenever we get to a new destination we find it helpful to stop at the visitor's center. There we learned about a dance at the center for performing arts. We also found the best pizza in Canada. Oh, don't forget the hot spring pool!

 The landscape photos I have seen of Banff were of the dominant peak Mount Rundle. I assumed it was miles away, but it was darn close to town. Something I like to do to get the 'lay of the land' photography wise is to look at the post cards in the gift shops. It tells you not only about the touristy photographic attractions, but what has been photographed and how. Storm Mountain was a popular subject, and one I have not seen. It so happened that we camped just below Storm Mountain and had easy access to photograph it.

 Banff is a neat town, much like other resort style towns. Gift shops, restaurants, hotels and art galleries all neatly lined the streets. The magic of Banff lies not in the town itself but in the beautiful surroundings. The Vermillion Lakes, Bow River, Mount Rundle and Sulphur Mountain are all within rock throwing distance. Moraine Lake, Lake Louise, Peyto Lake and the Ice Fields are within easy driving distance from town. I've already written about Moraine Lake, and soon I'll be writing about the others.

Moraine Lake

There are a few spots on this earth that really resonate with me as a landscape photographer, and Moraine Lake rarely dissapoints. It is one of those places that have been photographed time and again, and it even appeared on the Canadian $20 bill. I've seen pictures before and after I visited, and they're all beautiful. Very few have photographed the lake in heavy clouds, and even fewer have been lucky enough to get them with patches of sunlight. We awoke through out the night to heavy rain on the roof of the van, and were glad we were warm and cozy. I peered out through the foggy window at some tent campers next to us trying to set some soggy wood on fire with no kindling. The young man was becoming increasingly frustrated, and the wife shivering in her sleeping bag sitting next to the fire ring. I felt sorry for them and went over there with my hatchet and split them some kindling. A few matches later thier fire was going. The young man grumbled something, not even close to a word of gratitude. People. During a breakkfast of eggs and ham, Kristi and I discussed what we had planned for the day. Moraine Lake and Lake Louise were on the menu, but it was still raining. We decided to quit moping around camp.

It was a nice change since it had been so hot, but once we were on the road we could see some snow on Storm Mountain, just a few hundred feet above. I guess in Banff, you never know what you're going to get. We decided to go to Moraine Lake first, to get there early. We found a place to park with ease and upon approaching the lake I was expecting a hoard of photographers lined up along the shore line. I was pleasantly suprised to find no photographers except the occasional point and shooter. What I did find was a group of painters with thier easels. It was really cool to share the shore with them and thier instructor. He was moving back and forth giving tips, and helping mix colors. To see the palette with the raw colors found in the view was pretty special. Then the clouds broke a little and some sunlight shined light on the mountain. I heard the instructor say "Now this is the light photographers want." Just then I pressed the shutter.

 Satisfied, I began to make my way to the overlook. Then the tour bus showed up with about 150 tourists. Oh, well I thought, I had my moment. Fortunately you don't have to get up too early to beat the tour busses, they're in a hurry, and rarely venture farther than the paved walkways. We did return a couple of days later for a final walk along the trail. Again there were very little people there. We heard a peice of glacier crack and fall off, but happened too fast to take a photo. Moraine Lake is one of those idyllic glacial lakes that with the color of the water and snowy mountains stirs the soul and brings the joy of photography home.

Home Away from Home

"Where's Papa?" Little Somana asked her mother. "He's gone to the river for water." She responds without looking up from repairing a basket. "When will he be back?" "I told you already, tomorrow. He and your uncle Hakataya went to the river with the large pots to fill." She responded still focused on her basket. "Maybe they'll bring back some rabbit to eat too. I'm getting tired of these dried beans." "Me too." Somana agreed. "Me too." Somana's little brother Moqui parroted. Somana and Moqui are the children of their Anasazi parents Lummis and Alisal. They are on a long trip from Chaco to Oraibi. "I miss him. He said he would fix my dolly." Somana held up her unraveling doll made from agave strands. "He will, he needs some pine pitch to repair it. I miss him too, honey." Lummis and his family started their trip just before the spring Equinox. The weather was still quite chilly when they left. Snow clung to the north side of the rocks, and it was still too early in the season to plant any crops. They were citizens of Chaco in what was one of the largest communities in the southwest. "I'm thirsty." Somana said. "Me too." Moqui squeaked. "We're almost out of water. We'll have to hike up the hill to see if there are any potholes with water left in them. We'll need some with dinner anyway." "Okay mama." "Bring that fabric swatch here and a bit of cornmeal." Somana took the fabric, cornmeal and her dolly. With Moqui in hand, Alisal began the difficult climb on the narrow path through large red sandstone scree. Huffing and puffing little Moqui tried keeping up. "Mama, carry me!" He cried. "Okay, baby." But you have to walk back I can't carry you and a pot of water. The ascent was steep. At the top of the canyon, the valley started opening up and the beaten trail leveled out a bit on to slick rock. Skirting the dry water fall they followed the wash up to the top and through the deep sand. After about a half an hour of walking through the dry juniper and scrub oak they returned to slick rock again. "Looks pretty dry up here." Alisal said while scanning the terrain dotted with small basins carved out of the rock over time.

 "Caw Caw." The raven standing over a small puddle drew Alisal's attention. "There! Thank you mister raven." She said. "Caw Gak." The raven replied, a little put off for being disturbed. He hopped a couple of times and retreated to a nearby boulder. "Tanks Mista Raben." Mimicked Moqui. Alisal put Moqui down and grabbed the peice of cloth from Somana. She dipped the cloth into the pothole and began wringing it out into the pot. She repeated this until the pot was full. "There. Now Somana and Moki, what do we do to say thank you?" "We give offering of cornmeal!" Samana declared. "That's right." Alisal took a pinch of meal and flung some into the water, and some toward the raven "And here's for you Mister Raven." "Caw." "Did I tell you the story of the Coyote and Raven?" "No
mama." "I'll tell you over dinner tonight."

The family began their decent back down to the round stone habitation snug in the arched cave high on the canyon wall. The light began to create long shadows on the surrounding cliffs. A few small puffy clouds hung low close to the distant spires. The harsh light slowly began softening. Alisal began to start a small fire, and put the small pot of water on it. "You hungry kids?" "Yeah." They said in unison. Alisal reached in to the cist and pulled out some beans. She then began to grind some corn meal on the metate. She put the dried beans in the pot, and with some ground pulp of prickly pear, thickened the corn meal into little patties, then cooked them on a slab of rock hanging over the fire. She served the beans on the little tortillas. "Now tell us the story of the Raven and the Coyote mama." "Okay, but then right to bed." The sunlight succumbed to dusk, and a cool breeze blew some sand and ash from the fire into a little dust devil. The fire light danced long shadows on the burnt sienna cave walls. "Many sunsets ago, at the edge of a canyon there was a large juniper tree. Under that tree there was much sand. It stood out in the open twisted and sunburned. One day a Coyote came by and heard a couple of Ravens singing and dancing under the tree. Each Raven had on his back a large black bag. He came up to them to watch and became interested. "Raven friends, what are you doing?" "Caw Caw, we are dancing with our mothers." "That's pretty, can I dance too?"

"Yes, but you have to go home and put your mother in a bag and come back to the dance." The coyote went running home and found his old mother sleeping by the fireplace. The young dumb coyote picked up a large stick and struck his mother in the head, and put her into a bag. He hurried back to the dance with her on his back. The Ravens were dancing happily singing: "Mama, mama I am shaking, shaking." The Coyote joined the dance and began singing along. Just then the Ravens began to laugh. "What did you bring in the bag you dumb Coyote?" The Ravens jabbed. "My Mother, just as you told me." The Coyote showed them. The Ravens emptied their bags full of nothing but sand, then flew high up into the tree laughing. The Coyote finally saw they had played a trick on him. He hurried home and returned his mother to rest next to the fireplace. "Mama mama, why wont you wake up?" The coyote cried. She could not, for she was dead from the blow to the head. When he realized she would not wake up ever again he vowed to follow the Ravens the rest of his life, and eat them all. From that day forward he will always be hunting them and always be at war." Moqui began to cry. "That's horrible mama. I will never put you in a bag." Somana said holding back her tears. "This is why you must not trust the Raven. They will play tricks on you and laugh at you high on the tree limb." Alisal warned. "Yeah but that raven showed us where the water was today." "I know, but he didn't want to share the water." She quipped. "The story tells not only why the coyote and the raven are enemies, but that how easily mean people can take advantage of the innocent. This is why we had to leave our home. The elders and elite have tricked us. They lead us to believe that if we gave up more of our crops and built more buildings for them, the gods would look favorably upon us. The Shaman's prayers and offerings have been made in vein. We did everything they asked of us, and yet the rains have not come. We gave all we had to the elders, and have not received anything they promised. Our crops yielded less and less, yet the elders asked for more and more. They sit in their houses, and stock pile food and goods. When it comes time for them to share, they don't distribute their wealth, but rather ask for more. When they don't get as much as they want, they just take it. They fooled us every time with promises they never keep. They don't understand it is unsustainable, because people like us will just leave. They will find out when everybody is gone."

"I miss home." Moqui squeaked, still teary eyed. "I do too, but your aunt and uncle will take us in. It will be our new home, with new kids to play with. It will be a place where everybody works to support their neighbour, and no one will come and take what we all worked hard for. Now go to bed." Alisal said while rolling out their small mats. "Cover up, it will be a cold night tonight." She said as she tucked them in. Soon they were fast asleep, Somana clutching her tattered doll.

Waterton and Water

 Waterton National Park, in Alberta Canada is part of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, a union of the Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada and the Glacier National Park in the United States, their union is a World Heritage Site, achieved through the efforts of Rotary International members from Alberta and Montana, on June 18, 1932. No doubt the park name was coined from a nice abundance of water. Landscape photography is always better with water, and Waterton does not disappoint.

We rolled in to the park rather in late afternoon from what was an entire day's driving from Glacier. Having done little research on the park we went to the visitor's center right away and asked what was available for camping. Being from the states we were accustomed to dispersed camping around the perimeter of the national parks. Canada was surprisingly a lot different. The don't have national forests, just provincial parks, and national parks. The surrounding property in Canada is privately owned, so free camping is not on the menu. The fees were a bit steep too. $25/day will get you a week in our national park, but only a day in theirs. It didn't take long to figure out that when entering a Canadian National park you pay for a day and stay a week. If you wanted to say longer, and pay for it you would have to leave the park and enter again to pay. There was little enforcement, and no easy way to pay for longer stays with out going through the entrance station again.

 The visitor center was accommodating, and helped us find a campground with empty spots by calling them directly for us. Tired from driving we retired to our campground; pamphlets and research material in hand. Pulling up to the kiosk, the teller was sweating profusely and complaining about the heatwave. We notice a flier on the bulletin board announcing a native indian dance presentation they were having at the campground that evening. The native Canadian tribes are referred to as "First Nation" people.

 They share similar cultural practices as their Native American counterparts. They even get a monthly stipend from the Government. The early elders negotiated a stately sum of $5 a month per person in return for their land. In the day it may have been nice, but the contract didn't make provisions for inflation. They still get their $5, but have to wait in line all day to get it, and as you know, can only get you a nice cup of coffee. Tres bien.

 The next day the weather returned to normal temperatures, and finally some clouds made their appearance. Our day was full of bear sightings and waterfall hikes. We caught a bear swimming in Waterton creek, another bear dining on a kill, and a mother with two little cubs. The great thing about Canada's parks; you can hike with your dogs. We took them up Lineham Creek to the main falls, and leisurely back down again, acutely aware of the extreme bear activity.

 We made as much noise as possible as we passed trees with deep claw marks, and took care not to step in large droppings. Our running joke was "Does a bear shit in the woods...." as we side-stepped large mounds. "No." They shit on the trail. We wrapped up the day in Waterton townsite, visiting the cute shops and coffee houses. Ducking the occasional cloudburst, we stocked up on provisions getting ready for our next foray to Banff.