Playing in Powder

Again a double whammy for you.  Finally we had some sleep. I would like to think that the jetlag has left us, but I believe that sleep was brought to us by drugs!

Yesterday started out as any other day.  Except while waiting downstairs about to head out the front door of the hotel we spotted a deer just cruising the main street of Banff.  Nature at its best, cars waiting for it to decide what it was doing and bringing traffic to a standstill.  For those who remember the program Northern Exposure we were hoping for a moose but settled for the deer instead.

After our brush with nature we went for a walk around town and bought some souvenirs and just had a bit of  nosy.  Before too long it was time to head back to the hotel to be collected for our snowshoeing adventure.

We were picked up and taken with a small group of people to Kootenay National Park which was about a 45 min drive and just over the border into BC, British Columbia for you folks playing at home.  The area we were hiking in was hit by a wildfire back in 2003 and therefore was not quite as dense with pine trees as some of the surrounding areas were.  This was a good thing so when we got stuck in the powder our guide could find us.  When we arrived at Kootenay we were given some snow shoes to strap to our boots and we were off and racing.  Snow shoeing is one of the fastest growing sports in Canada as it is cheap to get into and all you need is a pair of snow shoes and maybe a pole if wanted. You can get a pair of snow shoes for around $150 and up. Being plastic they were sturdy and lightweight.

Once we started we were walking along a path which was fairly compacted and easy to walk on so that we could get the feel for walking with the snow shoes.  Once we had been doing this for about 20 mins the guide said that we were going off track for some fun in the powder. This is where the fun really began.  We lost Toot multiple times to her own mini avalanche and she fished herself out with bits of tree and all Gordo could do to help was laugh.

After we got to the top the guide had hot chocolate and made some maple taffy for us to try.  It was delicious and just what was needed after multiple stacks in the powder.  Toot still has all her metal work in her ankle and everything stayed in one piece, thankfully.

Once it was time to head back down we decided to change who was wearing the GoPro.  It was soon discovered that the person not wearing it, was prone to stacks.  There were multiple stacks from Gordo on the way down and not so many from Toot this time.  The finale on the way down was the butt toboggan down the last slope.  We decided for safety reasons that we would give the bag with the big camera to the guide so as not to get damaged.  We thought we were so smart.  Gordo toboggans down, Toot sends second backpack down with a slight thud, Toot toboggans down and we make it back to the bus.  It was at this moment that we realised that the camera was indeed in the bag that tobogganed with a thud and not the one that we gave to the guide for safe keeping. Doh!!!  All good though and no damage to either us or the camera.  Phew! Once we completed this it was time to head back to town.

Once back in town we changed and Troy and Lisa picked us up for dinner. We compared our days and it was safe to say that ours was better than theirs.  Long story but all ok.  We headed to the pub for dinner and then Troy and Lisa drove us around a little to see some of the sights at night. Just to add insult to injury for Troy and Jnr's day some of these attractions were closed, what do they think it is, winter? After this we went to see if we could get a Beaver Tail for dessert, this was shut also.  The universe was telling us it was time to go back and try to sleep. Sleep was elusive for Gordo though, jet lag, what a bitch!

Today we packed up and had our last breakfast at the Fox.  Did we mention this place had a make your own waffle station.  Best thing ever, man we will miss this place.  We then headed back into town, no deer today, and walked to the bridge to see the Bow River.  This was beautiful as it wall frozen over and covered in snow.

After our river adventure we started to head back towards the hotel and Gordo finally got her chance to try the Beaver Tail, she couldn't wait for Whistler with Jnr! A Beaver Tail is fried dough pastry stretched into the shape of a beaver tail and then topped with delicious goodies.  Gordos was topped with nutella and rieces pieces, delicious! On completion of Beaver Tail we went back to the hotel and ate lunch in the restaurant there (Chilis) before we were picked up for our journey to Jasper.  We are here for one night so that we can catch the train tomorrow after we go for a walk in the frozen canyon.  Not much to see in Jasper itself but the journey here was worth making for the scenery along the drive alone.  Again we got to see some amazing sights that have to be seen to be believed , words can not do them justice.

We went for a walk tonight to get some supplies for tomorrow nights train journey and get some pizza for dinner.

Next time you here from us we will be blogging from Vancouver Island! Between now and then we have a 4 hour tour tomorrow morning, a 19 hour train journey and a ferry ride.

Until then punks, stay safe and keep on reading!