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We were up and off early towards the US border. We passed through with no issues and headed towards West Glacier KOA. We quickly set up camp and ran by the post office to retrieve a package that Grandma Susie sent with a new control panel for the water heater (it had been acting up). We then headed off with Dad on the Going-to-the-Sun Road through the park. It was a beautiful drive and we enjoyed all the vistas of waterfalls, Weeping Walls, narrow roads and the Loop switchback. We drove all the way through to East Glacier, bought some snacks, and headed back. We enjoyed a quick hike at Sun Point to a spectacular overlook. Then we stopped at the Logan’s Pass Visitors Center and hiked the Hidden Lake Trail. Mom and Emmerson opted not to go too far. Moms knee was hurting a little and Emmerson’s foot was hurting when he climbed stairs. Dad and Breighton walked the 2,560 foot elevation gain up to the Hidden Lake Overlook. It took them over an hour to go up but only 15-18 minutes to come back down! Mom and Emmerson sat along the rocks and boardwalk and watched a family of 4 mountain goats frolicking in the distance. Emmerson was a popsicle and stole Mom’s sweatshirt to stay warm. E played photographer for the entire time Dad and B were hiking. He got some great photos! E was happy to head back down the trail towards the warm visitors center. B had a great time with Dad hiking the trail with a little furry friend by their side.

 

The next day was a lazy morning. Everyone needed to sleep in while Dad was up early on working. We are going to have a difficult time adjusting to Eastern time when we get back home in a few weeks!

We headed out to a fun program called “Critters in the Creek”. It was a citizen science program on aquatic macro invertebrates. That means water insects. Many insects spend part of their time in their larval state as aquatic bugs. We were tasked with collecting and counting these critters to help determine the pollution tolerance of a river in Glacier NP.

After she instruction from Ranger Steve we were off tromping through icy cold water with buckets and nets in tow. We collected many samples in our allotted collection time.

Then came the hard part. We had to sort and count everything we collected. We found stonefly, caddisfly, mayfly and damselfly larvae. It was a lot of work to identify some as they were very very tiny.

It was a great experience and fun to learn about the research side of entomology.

We stopped at the Alberta visitors center (oddly located in West Glacier, Montana) to get some information for a trip to Waterton Lakes International Peace Park. They had a very interactive exhibit and we played for a while. We loved the bob sled!

In the evening we ventured out to the Lake McDonald Lodge and grabbed a yummy dinner before departing on a one hour boat tour around the lake. We learned about the history of the area and some fun stories. I think he highlight of the boat tour was an amazing vantage point for the Sprague Fire that was started by lightning last week. They are letting the fire burn with minimal interference. It isn’t a threat to people or major historical structures at the time. We watched as flames shot high into the sky on the ridge were the smoke was bellowing from.

The next morning was sans Dad again. We headed into the park and towards Apgar Visitors Center to get signed up for a park program on Wednesday. After that we learned that the nature center and morning hike weren’t for 2 hours! Ooops! We walked down to the village of Apgar and grabbed some hot cocoa. It was 34F outside. The temperatures were rising quickly but we were all in short sleeves and the boys in shorts. Thankfully we had jackets and the cocoa warmed the bodies.

We visited all the little shops in the village and then headed down to the water. We skipped stones in the lake and enjoyed the cool morning air.

At 10am we arrived for the Junior Ranger Guided hike. We learned about the WOW factor of the park. We saw beaver lodges and learned about adaptations. We didn’t know that beavers had two eyelids, one set acts as goggles! We met two families of full timers with kids and enjoyed chatting about our road experiences. The boys loved having kids to chat about video games and travels with. They compared favorite spots we have been and each left with a list of places they wanted to go! We checked out the nature center at the end and then walked back to the visitors center and the boys earned their Junior Ranger badges for Glacier.

We ate lunch in the car on a drive up the Going-to-the-Sun Road. We hiked down to the river of a waterfall. We found “river pools” with aquatic life in them. We found worms, something that looked like a shrimp and even a frog!

Then we headed to fight the traffic at the Trail of the Cedars. We looped a few lots and snagged a great space near the trailhead. We walked the 1 mile loop and learned about cottonwood, Western red cedar and Western hemlock trees. We compared the bark of the trees. We were all equally impressed by the cottonwoods deep craggy bark. There were lots of fallen trees with roots exposed that were throughly explored.

Fun was had by all at the fallen trees hallow stumps. Apparently it was the pit of the beasts or something.

The boys found logs across the stream to a little island. Many people had already crossed over so we joined them for a bit knowing safety in numbers in bear country. Mom had her bear spray on her hip during all of our hikes in grizzly country! We loved climbing the logs and exploring the little island in the stream.

We called it an early day and headed back to camp to get Dad so we could drive to the next town to ship a FedEx package off. We grabbed supplies at Walmart and had Chick-Fil-a for dinner. Boy was that yummy after so many PBJ and pasta meals!

We drove back through the smoke today in Kootenay National Park headed to Radium Hot Springs. Driving through Sinclair Canyon with the motorhome was a tight squeeze. We explored the welcome center and Redstreak Campground after setting up at a private campground called Canyon RV. The boys loved the campground since there was a stream running through the middle they could go down and explore.

We visited the hot springs in the evening. We started in the hot pool and opted to explore the cooler pool for a bit. Grandam, Grandpa, Dad and Breighton went back to the hot pool rather quickly and left Mom and Emmerson in the cool pool. Emmerson was enjoying the slides into the pool. He went one more time before he wanted to go to the hot springs to warm up.

On the way up the slide he stepped on a yellow jacket and it stung the bottom of his foot. He screamed in pain and had pool side medics there quickly with ice and sting stop. Emmerson insisted that culprit be apprehended so Mom went off to look for the wasp. He was found and photographed for scientific purposes. Soon after, we carried Emmerson out and headed back to camp. So the hot springs laster about 15 minutes! After ice and medication his foot felt much better.

The big horn sheep just wander the roads in town. They have the right of way!

In the morning Emmerson was feeling better but not up for long hikes yet. We worked on their XPlorers books and revisited the Hot Springs to do a few activities. We didn’t swim this time! We walked up a hill to a gazebo and then on to more red chairs and a great overlook of the hot springs below. We hiked a short trail at Olive Lake.

The boys spent the evening playing around with their insect collections that are traveling with them. It has been a nice break for Mom and Dad in Canada without insect collections. We are looking forward to the boys collecting again once we get to Montana.

Another day another adventure herein Banff. Today we started out by seeking out a hostel that was once an old train station in the Bankhead Boomtown. It was relocated when the mining town was closed back in the early 1900s. We found the station and read the sign and headed off towards Lake Minniewanka and the Lower and Upper Bankhead trails. We loved our walk learning about the old coal mining town. The walkways were dusted with coal so it brought a historic feeling to the hike. The boys enjoyed all the old machinery (brought in for historical reasons as the originals were all removed when he town was shut down).  We were equally fascinated by the wild rhubarb growing everywhere. We learned it was grown by the Philipino and Japanese workers for food and it gradually is taking over the landscape. The boys loved the old coal trains. This train was from the town of Canmore from their mining operation. The wildflowers and rhubarb made a very breathtaking view in the fields.

Next we drove over the Minnewanka Dam and learned how the lake was naturally raised and below it was a town that was once in existence. Apparently you can dive here and see remains of the old town. The water was so frigid we didn’t imagine many people did this! We pulled off at an overlook to find about 15 big horn sheep and young grazing in the roadside grass. We watched them and the tourists! Some people ran right up to get photos. The boys were secretly hoping to see someone get gored! We moved along after a few photos from far away.

After the lake loop we opted to go see the scenic overlook at Norquay. We heard it was an amazing view. It did not disappoint! The boys discovered more red chairs and more big horn sheep! We relaxed for a while and headed the rest of the way up the tight switchback road. At the top we found a ski resort. We got a good deal on tickets for the chairlift and headed up. Everyone got to ride by themselves! Emmerson loved this opportunity. We watched ground squirrels playing below and kept a keen eye out for other wildlife. This is a corridor for migrating animals and also home to a grizzly mamma and her two cubs and a cinnamon black bear! At the top we learned about the Y2Y (Yellowstone to Yukon) Wildlife corridor and how Canada and the US are working together for wildlife.

In the evening we picked up Dad and wandered downtown and enjoyed some Beaver Tails. Emmerson made it a 4D experience. He was coated with Nutella! Breighton was not as messy but still quite a mess.

Our final day was spent tidying up, doing laundry and relaxing. We grabbed lunch in town and then headed to the Eureka Banff Escape Room for some family fun. We opted for the Warden’s Cabin (the hardest level). We had a blast working through puzzle after puzzle to escape through he cabin to the woods and eventually find the treasure! We successfully managed there room and Mom even are a bag of bacon flavored crickets to buy us a little more time. Dad was an ace at the puzzles and kept everyone working. Mom teamed with Emmerson to solve half of the puzzles and B teamed with Dad. It was a lot of fun and we cant wait to try another room someday.

Our Banff adventure wrapped up nicely and we are off towards Kootenay National Park next to explore the Radium Hot Springs area for only a few nights.