Friday, August, 19, 2005 –

This morning we toured the town of Jasper. We particularly enjoyed seeing the railroad museum with its vintage trains like the Canadian National 6015 locomotive. After looking around town, we headed back into Jasper National Park, the largest national park in the Canadian Rockies.

We focused on seeing Maligne Lake, famed for the color of its water, the surrounding peaks, the three glaciers visible from the lake and Spirit Island. Maligne means ‘wicked’ in French, but it seemed rather heavenly to me. Located about 30 miles south of the town of Jasper, it is one of the most photographed places in Canada. We took a motorized boat tour down the 14-mile long lake to Spirit Island. It was almost a spiritual experience seeing Samson Peak, Mount Paul and Mounts Charlton towering over the magnificent blue surface of the water.

Jeff at Maligne Lake

After lunch at a cafeteria near the lake, we decided to drive out on the Yellowhead Highway (Highway 16) into nearby British Columbia on the road towards Prince George. I had been skiing before in Whistler, but Jeff had never been to the province. It was a pretty drive and we at the “Welcome to BC – Best Place on Earth” sign for photos. Then we drove by Moose Lake until we arrived at the Mount Robson British Columbia Visitor Centre. Mount Robson the highest point in the Canadian Rockies at almost 13,000 feet.

Never turn your back on wild animals … even goats

After enjoying the views of Mount Robson from the deck and meadow behind the visitor center, we drove back towards Jasper. We had to go to bed early tonight because we had a long drive on Saturday.