Tag Archives: Rocky Mountains

nature, Photography

From Muncho Lake to Fort St John

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The next leg of our trip took us from Muncho Lake to Fort St. John, a six-and-a-half hour journey that we broke up by stopping to take walks and also to admire the magnificent scenery along this route (highway 97 or also called the Alcan or Alaska Highway).

Because there are so many beautiful natural sights, you will need to stop often to really do them justice …

… but I have learned over the years how to take pictures from a moving vehicle, too (not while driving, though!).

That said, stopping is best, both to stretch your legs as well as to see all these stunning natural wonders.

A beautifully glacial green reflection isn’t to be missed.
The light green of new leaves provide a strong contrast to the dark conifer trees.
A rugged ravine points to the changing nature of the area.
Undulating low mountains with the Northern Rockies in the distance exemplify this land’s remoteness and expansiveness.

The next day found us arriving at one of Canada’s gems, Jasper National Park, so there are more posts coming about that beautiful part of the world. That said, any visit to Jasper also includes a look at the terrible destruction caused by the forest fires that started there in late July, 2024.

Commentary, nature, Photography

Muncho Lake

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After we enjoyed the hot springs at Liard River, we stopped at Muncho Lake Lodge for the night. We had a great dinner and more fantastic views.

Amazingly crystal clear, Muncho Lake is a feast for the eyes. Can you tell if this photo is upside down or not?

Actually, it’s right side up; you can see some irregularities in the reflection if you look carefully. Nevertheless, that’s a fantastic mirror image of some of the Northern Rocky Mountains, isn’t it?

Muncho Lake, like many of the Rockies’ lakes, is green. Caused by glacial sediment, some lakes can also be various shades of cobalt blue interspersed with green. That green shade isn’t evident in the first picture because of the light’s angle refracting from the lake’s surface.

No photoshopping; no dye! It’s just green.
A float plane parked at Muncho Lake Lodge; a fine piece of Canadiana.

The next day we stopped in Fort St. John, after having travelled much of the stunningly beautiful highway 97 (Alcan or Alaska Highway), so there is another post coming about the fantastic sights we were able to experience during that fantastic drive.

Commentary, nature, Photography

Liard River

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The Liard River is one of the more major rivers in northern British Columbia.

As we left Yukon and began to drive south on highway 97 (also known as the Alcan Highway or Alaska Highway), we paralleled it for some time before it made its way east.

Before that, however, we stopped at the Liard River hot springs for a dip. I was glad that we didn’t have far to go afterward because following that appealing break we were very, very relaxed!

On our way into the hot springs we saw loads of lovely wild violets.

Rugged and swift, the Liard River is a part of highway 97’s extremely scenic landscape and with the added bonus of lovely natural hot springs, our first day’s drive on this route was wonderful.

Northern Rocky Mountains

There’s more to come from this spectacularly gorgeous drive. I thought that the Stewart-Cassiar highway was at the top of the heap for beautiful drives, but highway 97 is right there, too!

Photography

Reblog: A Real Gem of a Walk

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All photos taken on October 18, 2024. We have many fond memories of Emerald Lake near Field B.C. We stayed in Emerald Lake Lodge three times, when …

A Real Gem of a Walk

Beautiful photos of one of our Rocky Mountain treasures, Emerald Lake, courtesy of Allan at Picture This. Please click the link above to see the entire set. Thanks for sharing your pictures of this gorgeous spot with us, Allan.

nature, Photography

A Mountain View

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We recently drove through the Rocky Mountains of Banff and Lake Louise on a beautifully sunny day.

You can see that there’s still snow on the peaks and this being the mountains, the breeze was brisk, but the sun shining on our backs as we took a short walk to stretch our legs was beautifully warm.

Greetings from the gorgeous spring Rocky Mountains of British Columbia and Alberta.

nature, Photography

Canmore

We recently stopped in Canmore, Alberta to visit a dear friend. Canmore is a winter and summer sports community adjacent to the Rocky Mountains and has marvellous, breathtaking views of them.

Our friend’s house has a rooftop deck from where the mountain vistas are truly amazing.

Still lots of snow on those peaks.
Three Sisters peaks.

It was great to see our friend again after almost a year. He certainly lives in a beautiful community and gets to see these views every day.

Happy Monday.

nature, Photography

Hello Rockies; Hello Home

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As we returned to British Columbia from our holiday, we had beautiful weather over the Rocky Mountains before arriving in the Okanagan Valley. It’s not often that such clear weather occurs in December over the mountains, so I felt lucky to see this fantastic sight.

Approaching the Rocky Mountains from Calgary.
Viewing in quiet appreciation …
… of this truly spectacular sight …
… an amazing wonder of our beautiful world.

Happy Thursday.

nature, Photography

Rocky Mountains – Kicking Horse Pass

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I am on my way back to British Columbia from the Northwest Territories, this time via a more southerly route than the one I usually take.

Entering the Rocky Mountains through smoky skies.

Because of this extremely dry, early spring, there are ferocious wildfires in northern Alberta right now. The smoke from these fires is blanketing much of North America.

As we travelled west, the smoke over the Rockies began to decrease.

As we left the Territories, there were many evacuations and our drive through northern Alberta became rather tense when we encountered a long stretch of very dark, orange-hued, smoke-filled skies.

Although these views appear to be very smoky, this is an improvement over what we experienced in northern Alberta.
Entering the Kicking Horse Pass.

Long, gentle, soaking rains would be an excellent thing right now. Let’s hope we get some.