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This could be your next vacation

Jumping out of an aircraft is not at the top of everyone’s vacation activity list. But this summer in the Canadian Rockies a tandem or a solo jump is a surefire way to see the Rockies from above.

Leaving Banff National Park, the Canadian Rockies give way to the plains lying east. It is here where skydivers literally jump for joy, because a flat expanse equals perfect terrain for a dive. North of Calgary, there are various companies that will organize a day out skydiving.

Or directly from Banff, tour operator Banff Adventures Unlimited can set visitors up with professional skydivers. If you are lucky, they might set you up with Alberta Skydivers, located some 70km north of Calgary in the town of Beiseker.

Here, future skydivers can choose between a tandem jump or a solo jump. The latter takes up the better part of a day because divers must first prepare themselves both mentally and psychologically. The tandem jump involves a 30 second freefall and parachute float to the ground from 9,500ft.

Skydiving in the Canadian Rockies is the activity of 2009

The other skydiving choice for visitors to Banff and the Canadian Rockies is Skydive Bigsky, located an hour north of Calgary in the town of Innisfail. They also offer tandem and solo jumps for beginner skydivers.

“Our drop zone has a breathtaking view of the mountains to the west. The facility has classrooms set-up for briefings, indoor packing, running water and showers,” the company says.

Any way you jump out of the plane, expect to pay some $200 for a solo jump and course instruction and $285 for the tandem jump.

For more information, check the following links:

www.banffadventures.com

www.albertaskydivers.com

www.skydivebigsky.ca

Calgary is the home of the Stampede

While the Canadian Rockies and Banff National Park offer a plethora of outdoor activities, there is no one event that rivals the Calgary Stampede in terms of getting to know local culture. Each year, millions of visitors from around the world flock to Alberta’s capital to be a part of the Canadian Rockies’ own cowboy culture, rodeo and parade.

The first Stampede took place in 1912 back when founder and Stampede guru Guy Weadick envisioned a Wild West Extravaganza. The inaugural stampede was a “”roaring success”. The Stampede then combined its old west vaudeville spirit with the Calgary Exhibition in 1923, added chuckwagon races and eventually became the mega-event it is today.

Since 1912, the event has grown its attendance to over 1mn people and reserved its rodeo for only the top bullriders in North America gunning for prizes worth up to US$1.5mn.

This year, the event kicks off July 3^rd with a cowboy parade through downtown Calgary. Then, for the next 10 days, the public enters a cowboy world full of barbeques, blacksmiths, amusement park rides, rodeo events, and native American culture.

Every day at 1:30pm the rodeo launches a new event. While bullriding is always a crowd favorite, saddle bronc and bareback riding are thrilling as well. Just like any other rodeo in North America, spectators enjoy the moves of the intrepid rodeo clowns as well as other types of horse racing. For family fun, crowds head to the Stampede Midway, AKA: the amusement park.

Local Albertan, Andrew Krentz, calls this event the “biggest event of the year for most Calgarians.” Krentz is a local skier and mountain enthusiast, but admits to being interested in the Stampede. “I love the chuckwagon races. It just doesn’t get any better,” he explains.

The Canadian Rockies have always provided a beautiful backdrop for cowboys and cowboy culture. The filming of the movie Brokeback Mountain made the area’s scenery famous and also popular among cowboys and cowgirls.

“Texas Light,” Krentz says. “People  here are like Texans, but not as over-the-top.” However you want to look at it, heavy or light, the Stampede gives Alberta visitors a chance to see a unique face of Canadian culture and a charming component to the Canadian Rockies’ beauty.

THE HEART OF THE WEST

Calgary's famous tower, and one-time Olympic torch.

Calgary, considered the ‘Heart of the New West’, is located in south western Alberta, in a region of foothills and high plains. It is the third largest city in Canada and shines with optimism and possibilities for the future. It has many things to offer those who love the city life, as well as the great outdoors, with the Canadian Rockies only an hour away.

Calgary is a cosmopolitan financial centre with first class shopping, theatre, galleries, restaurants, ballet, concerts, dazzling nightlife, jazz festivals and professional hockey. Calgary has been called the showcase city for Canada. The shopping in Calgary is a shopper’s wonderland, as Alberta is the only province in Canada without a provincial sales tax.

The Canadian Rockies will make you forget about your swing.

Greens in the Canadian Rockies all have one thing in common: you can count on the putt breaking towards the valley.  Rocky Mountain golf abounds during the short five-month season. In the colder months, Canadians can’t imagine walking up and down a grassy runway, which is why they have hockey.

Between May and October, Alberta’s Rocky Mountains make a spectacular backdrop for driving balls into the rugged horizon. From Banff to Canmore to Kananaskis, golfers can find numerous courses on all levels.

Silvertip golf resort is located in Canmore in the majestic Bow Valley at the entrance to Banff National Park. The course is considered one of the area’s premier 18-hole course. Green fees are over $100 and Kelly Frey is the in-house golf pro.

On the flanks of Mount Lady MacDonald, the par-72 course has 600 feet of elevation change and mind-boggling championship tees with a slope rating of 153. However, with course length between 5,100 to 7,200 yards depending on tee placement, it’s a course that allows both scratch golfers and recreational players to enjoy the course and hone their skills.

“Golfers don’t complain about the greens, but you hear them talk about how challenging they are,” Golf Shop Associate Derek Kesseler, explains. In addition, Silvertip has a fleet of GPS-equipped golf carts to provide golfers a sense of security while golfing the Canadian Rockies.

The course is famous among Canada’s celebrities as well. Pittsburgh Penguin hockey player, Jordan Staal, plays the course regularly, Kesseler says. It appears that golf has become the perfect off-season sport for hockey players.

The Rockies make for a spectacular backdrop.

Other golf courses in the area include:

Stewart Creek Golf Club: 18-hole up to 7200 yards with spectacular panoramas dominated by the Three Sisters Mountain.  Green fees with cart: $125-$195.

Kananaskis Country Golf Course: 36-hole course with water on 20 holes and 142 sand traps. The course is situated in the Kananaskis Valley below 10,000ft peaks Mount Lorette and Mount Kidd. Green fees: $70-$90.

Take a helicopter to the top

When dreaming of the Canadian Rockies many people see snow-capped peaks giving way to craggy cliffs dropping into an alpine paradise. In places like Banff National Park, mirror lakes abound, and high altitude game such as big horn sheep and moose walk around like they own the place.  Getting to these places however becomes an obstacle considering the 20 plus kilometers over rocky trails, up and down steep hillsides.

For travelers unaccustomed to trekking through the mountains, heli-hiking becomes the perfect solution for maximum benefit!

Whether you want to explore the areas of Banff or Jasper, plenty of tour operators in Alberta offer heli-hiking services into the Rockies. A typical heli-hiking outing will take visitors up to high altitudes (8,000-10,000ft) where within less than an hour, hikers can visit rarely nature panoramas different from those seen from scenic highways and byways.

Heli-hiking got its start back in the 70’s when heli-ski operators tried to invent a summer activity to use their machines and backcountry lodges. While the Canadian Rockies are world famous for heli-skiing, hiking off a helicopter has just recently caught on in Alberta.

“The idea is to target people who can’t access the alpine environment with such ease. It takes a lot to climb a mountain from the side of a road,” Trevor Lescard, a guide for Jasper-based Overlander Trekking and Tours, explains.

“So with a helicopter you get rid of the long approach to get yourself into the alpine environment above the trees. You’re getting the best possible bang for your buck as far as time spent in the mountains,” Lescard says.

Go places nobody else has gone.

Because helicopters are not allowed to fly into the national parks, Overlander and other operators literally have to take hikers to never-before explored areas of the Rockies.  “Some people want to land on a high ridge and scramble to the top of a mountain. Some people just want to stroll through an alpine meadow, talk about geology and look at flowers,” Lescard describes.

If visitors can afford the $575 per person day trip, there should be nothing standing in the way. Unless, you are one of those hikers who likes the idea of working and sweating in order to reach the goal. (There is something sweet about hiking six hours to reach a high alpine lake, taking a drink and relaxing under the summer sun)

The wildflowers are waiting for you this summer.

On the other hand, there are the national parks replete with crowded day-hikes… a helicopter can change all of that.

“With nobody else around, you gain access to remote terrain so easily, and the guide has the option of so many spots. Some days weather moves in, so he just chooses to go to another spot. It’s that easy,” Lescard maintains.

If you can’t get eth helicopter off the ground, Overlander’s most popular day hike takes visitors through Jasper National Park through the Mount Edith Cavell Meadows. The six hour experience brings glacial lakes, moraine fields and the 3,000ft face of Mt. Edith Cavell into focus.

Canadian Rockies lakes make for a perfect cruise

For tourists looking for an alternative way to travel through Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies, the Minnewanka Lake Cruise is an excellent option and a great way to experience the Rockies in the summer.

The largest lake in Banff National park –some 27 km long and an average 1km wide—  Minnewanka Lake provides summer recreation for both locals and tourists.  Recreational boaters as well as fisherman flock to the lake in the summer to dip their rods in its icy waters. If you don’t have your own boat, the Minnewanka Lake Cruise provides visitors with an interpretive tour.

Minnewanka is an old Nakota name meaning Spirits of the Lakes, named so because indigenous peoples in the area believed the lakes to be the vessels and portals to the spirit world. The explanation is that when harsh winds sweep across the surface, the lake erupts in violent waves. Natives believed these to be the manifestations of spirits on the other side.

“If you look at rocks around the lake, you can see faces in the rocks and natives believed these were the faces of the beings in the spirit world,” Michelle de Camp,guest services manager for local tour operator Brewster, explains.

Enjoy the beauty of Banff National Park.

De Camp has been in Banff for over twenty years and has created a very intimate relationship with Lake Minnewanka. Along the tour, she points out a giant chasm in the rocks on the lakeside that was believed to be a portal to the afterlife. “It’s a very spiritual lake,” she says.

The tour lasts 1.5 hours and costs adults $45 per person. Brewster has a total of three boats, each with capacity for over 50 people, centralized heating and an inside seating area. Because Lake Minnewanka is the only lake in Banff National Park that allows motorized boats, the tour is a unique experience.

Embarking from the dam itself, guides explain to tourists that although the hydroelectric dam was built in the 40’s to support the war effort, the energy source continues to serve the communities of Banff, Canmore, Lake Louise and the area ski resorts. The tour continues along the north shore with panoramic views of the Palliser mountain range, located in the southeast corner of Banff National Park.

Spotting wildlife from the boat cruise is a crowd favorite

“Currently there are two nesting pairs of bald eagles on the lake, we often see bears and bighorn sheep,” she explains.

For the more intrepid visitors, there are three dive sites in the lake, where divers can swim through underwater ghost towns. These towns were covered by 30 meters of water when the dam was built.

MAY 2009: AN ICY START

The cruise usually runs from mid-May to mid-October, weather permitting. This year however, a later than usual freeze kept Brewster’s boats from traversing the lake until May 18^th.

The company generally receives two types of tourists: tour groups and independent travelers. While the former has increased compared to last year, independent visitor numbers are lower than average. De Camp expects this to change in July, the season’s busiest month. The rest of the year, the lake is frozen over with 2-4 feet of ice and recreationalists take to the ice with skates and sleds.

De Camp’s company, Brewster, also offers chartered fishing tours, that range from half-day to full-day trips. The experience includes a snack, guide and is almost guaranteed to bring home a trophy. Almost every time, she reminds me.

The town of Banff is nestled into the impressive Canadian Rockies.

Back in 1883, when European explorers discovered the curative qualities of the hot springs located around Banff, they decided it would be a fine spot to rest and let the waters do their magic. Located amidst the Canadian Rockies, Today’s Banff still retains that sensation of being a wealthy European spa crossbred with outdoor adventure and mountain culture.

People come to Banff with a clear objective of what they are going to do, but for those just drifting through, there are plenty of activities and sites to fill the day. Travelers usually come to Banff to soak in the natural jacuzzis and dine on fine gourmet but end up discovering a unique heritage and wilderness unlike anywhere else in the world.

The Banff Springs Hotel opened its doors 1888 and Europeans were already venturing into the wilds of the Canadian Rockies to relax for months at a time. Designed in the Scottish baronial style, in a nod to the town’s namesake Banffshire, Scotland, the hotel was designated a National Historic Site in 1992. Once the Canadian Pacific Rail train finished its transcontinental railway, tourism in Banff and the area bloomed. Today, the railway continues to be used and the sound of a train echoing through Bow Valley is as common as a moose horn.

For more colonial heritage, go to the Banff Park Museum, built in 1903, and considered the oldest natural history museum in western Canada. It was rededicated in 1985 and is now a national historic site. There, visitors find an assortment of wildlife, minerals, and other artifacts from the area. A variety of contemporary literature will help you learn more about Banff’s natural and cultural heritage

Banff is a perfect place for all seasons

If visitors still have not had enough of museums and the area’s history, the Whyte Museum contains four art galleries, a heritage gallery dedicated to the human history of this area, and an archives research library. In addition, the four acre wooded grounds surrounding the Museum includes two historic log homes and four log cabins.

One of the most important experiences while traveling through this part of the Canadian Rockies is to visit Banff National Park. But, before going anywhere else, it is recommended catching the eight-minute gondola ride to the top of nearby Sulphur Mountain appreciate Banff and all its surroundings. Here potential adventurists get a bird’s eye view of the rugged beauty surrounding Banff.

GETTING INTO THE WILD

Located 130 km (80 mi.) west of Calgary, Banff National Park currently occupies 6,641 square km (4117 square mi.) of mountain wilderness within the breathtaking Canadian Rockies. One of the best places to start is with a visit to Sunshine Meadows, known to many as the most stunning alpine setting in the Canadian Rockies. Situated at about 2220m (7,300′), the meadows straddle the Continental Divide and the boundary between Alberta and British Columbia.

The Vermillion Lakes, outside of Banff

At Sunshine Meadows, hikers can see some of the Canadian Rockies’ highest peaks including Mt. Assiniboine, Banff National Park’s highest peak, known as “the Matterhorn of the Canadian Rockies.” Sunshine Meadows is a great place for hikers to get in a day-hike.

According to local operator, White Mountain Adventures, Sunshine Meadows trails are currently 80-90% snow-free. “There is one large patch of snow to cross enroute to Rock Isle Lake. Flowers in bloom include Glacier Lilies, Buttercups, and Western Anemone,” the company says.

Natural wonders abound, from the Hoodoos (giant freestanding pillars several metres tall that are made of silt, gravel and rocks cemented together by dissolved limestone), to the Vermillion Lakes (Three area lakes Canadian geese breed in the marshlands and tundra swans stop by during each spring and fall migration).

But no visit would be wild enough without a trip to Lake Louise. Known as the Canada’s mountaineering birthplace, stunning peaks surround the aqua-colored waters of the lake. Indigenous groups referred to it as “Ho-Run-Num-Nay” meaning Lake of Little Fish. Colonial mountain man, Tom Wilson, however, is credited with the lake’s discovery back in 1882.

Nicholas J Parkinson
Staff Writer

Caving is a popular way to see the inside of the Canadian Rockies

To some, a hike through a quiet meadow in Banff National Park seems barely “extreme” enough for their tastes. As summertime temperatures start rising in the Canadian Rockies, excursions into the underworld of caverns provide a sometimes needed change in scenery and a great way to see the “other side” of the Rockies.

If tramping through the mud, sliding through small rock portals and wiggling your body through pitch-black chasms sounds like a vacation highlight, the Canmore Caverns, some 20km from Banff, are just a day trip away. While there are various caves in the area, the majority are isolated and inaccessible to tourists.

After donning a pair of overalls, gloves, kneepads, helmet, and headlamp, tourists are ready to explore the underworld of Canmore Caverns. The cave temperatures never rise over 5°C which makes it “unique” according to the owner of Wild Cave Tours, Pamela Young. “Regardless of the weather outside, it’s always the same in the cave, all year long.”

After a 30 minute approach on foot, the tour goes underground at the mouth of the Rat’s Nest Cave, part of the Canmore Cavern system. After future spelunkers rappel down a 60ft airy abyss, they arrive at the first chamber. “Here, guides interpret the natural history of the cave, covering geology as well as all the creatures habiting in the cave,” according to Young.

After this, explorers descend further into the cave’s viscera, through the Grand Gallery and finally the mini-grotto, known as the Laundry Chute, at the bottom of the cave, where a sump blocks dry passage to the rest of the caverns.

“The tour is aimed at people who are physically active and in fairly good shape. Not for your busloads of tourists that want to shuffle around. You get muddy, you wiggle, so people either really love it or it’s not for them,” Young explains.

The Adventure Tour lasts 6 hours and costs around US$130 Canadian Dollars. The less adventurous version is the Explorer Tour, in which cavers scramble down the cave as opposed to rappelling.

There are two sides to every mountain in the Canadian Rockies.

When caving in the Canadian Rockies, always remember to wear plenty of clothing, carry a headlamp and know the way out. An excellent source of information and advice on caving can be found at the Alberta Speological Society. Contact them to find out about current cave conditions and to learn about the rules and requirements for safe caving. If an independent excursion into the pits of the Canadian Rockies doesn’t strike you as a good idea, you might want to call Wild Cave Tours.

Probably one of the most daunting of all the caves in the area is Castleguard Cave, located in an isolated region of Banff National Park. The caverns cover some 20km of explored passages. Besides being enormous, explorers must first hike 20km to reach the cave’s mouth. From there, it’s an adventure just to get in since the entrance is regularly flooded and closed to the public.

“The Castleguard cave is extremely remote and not open to general public at all, there are no tours, because it is a serious undertaking to go into the cave,” she said.

Guided tours can show hikers some of the best views in the Canadian Rockies.

For the intrepid, a hike into Banff National Park or Jasper National Park means a chance to wander through virgin wilderness in search of peace and tranquility. For the many others, who lack courage to face the Canadian Rockies alone, hiring a local guide is primordial for the perfect outback vacation.

The Canadian Rockies were first explored and “conquered” by Europeans in the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century. Back then, many trained alpine guides were imported from the European Alps to take tourists and adventure seekers into the backcountry.

This tradition still exists today, though guides in the Canadian Rockies come from all over the planet, including a variety of homegrown guides who know the Rockies better than anyone else.

“Hiring out a guide maximizes the tourist’s experience enabling them to see the best places and learn much more than they would if they were on their own,” according to Gordan Stermann, owner and founder of White Mountain Adventures.

When a tourist in Banff or Jasper has only one free day and wants to do a day-hike, many have no idea where to turn. Municipal promoted day hikes may leave adventurists unfulfilled, thus it’s safest to spend the extra money for a guide to get the best possible hike.

Canadian Rockies' guides are certified in flora and fauna as well as first aid.

Hiking with a guide is on the rise, according to Stermann. “There are more and more people who want more out of their trip, including an older, more mature population. Also, among the people who have a fear of the wilderness, it has become acceptable to hire out a guide,” he explains.

Companies like White Mountain Adventures decide with the tourist what he or she is looking for and the best place to find it. The company’s most popular hikes tend to be half-day interpretive walks through Banff National Park and the Sunshine Meadows.

“Sunshine Meadows in Banff is the number one place that people should visit for a first time. It involves incredible hiking, high alpine, easy to moderate trails… it has everything,” he says. For a more off-the-beaten path experience, White Mountain Adventures offers day hikes into Waterton Lakes National Park, which abuts Glacier National Park across Canada’s border.

Waterton Lakes National Park is often overlooked by hikers.

Tourists can find solace in the fact that all guided tours into Canada’s national parks require a certification, in both safety as well as local knowledge.  Guides leading short, interpretive walks, must be trained in both flora and fauna in the area as well as wilderness first aid and group management skills.

Still, for Stermann, a guide’s virtue lies in his or her ability to communicate with tourists from a variety of places. “The most important thing in decision to hire a new guide is his or her communication skills and how he or she is with people. A lot of the other stuff, such as first aid, can be learned, but a guide’s character is our prime motivation for employing a guide,” he explains.

Finding a guide is not reserved just for hiking and backcountry trails through the mountains. Taking guided tours along the Icefields Parkway can also be rewarding, and is a wonderful way to relax without worrying about the driving.

“There are so many places to see, so let a guide show you where to go rather than driving it on your own. The little known places to stop definitely make it worthwhile to go with a guide,” according to former Icefields Parkway guide and employee at Sun Dog Tours, Paul Hardy.

Nicholas J Parkinson
Staff Writer

Snocoach in front of the Columbia Icefields, Jasper National Park, Canadian Rockies

Located on the boundary of Banff and Jasper National parks, adventure seekers in the Canadian Rockies find the Athabasca Glacier on the Columbia Icefields. For many travelers, walking on a glacier is somewhere near the top of life’s to do list, somewhere between skydiving and scuba diving.

The Columbia Icefields are part of the Icefields Parkway: the scenic route that takes travelers  over 230km from Banff to Jasper along the shoulder of the Great Divide, passing alpine lakes such as Lake Louise and affording amazing views of Victoria Glacier, Athabasca Falls, Lake Peyto, Crowfoot Glacier as well as other natural wonders. On the road, attentive photographers can catch bears, deer, elk, mountain sheep and moose. The day trip leads travelers by nine glaciers, two national parks and three eco-regions.

“The Icefields Parkway is one of the most spectacular stretches of highway in the world and it is often referred to as the Wonder Trail” according to former Icefields Parkway guide and employee at Sun Dog Tours, Paul Hardy. “It’s a totally unique experience, and something everybody should do when visiting the Rockies.”

Hardy works for Sun Dog Tours, which is based out of Banff and Jasper, and offers the Columbia Icefields tour from either direction. The tour’s biggest highlight, of course, is the Athabasca Glacier, when tourists are given a chance to first explore the interpretive glacier center and then walk on the ice. The summer tour, gives tourists a chance to learn a little about glaciology as well as taste and retrieve some of the purest water in the world.

During the Columbia Icefields tour, Sun Dog Tours offers a 90min Snocoach excursion over the Athabasca Glacier. This is a special bus that takes them over the Athabasca glacier, covering but a fraction of the 150 square mile ice cap. The Columbia Icefields are considered one of the largest accumulations of ice and snow south of the Arctic Circle, and can reach depths of 2,000 feet. The Columbia Icefields feed all three, Arctic, Pacific and Atlantic oceans, making it a primordial source of water for the northern hemisphere’s ecosystem.

“It’s without a doubt the most popular attraction in the Rockies,” he says. Still for Hardy, who has been running tours in the Canadian Rockies for over 14 years, it’s not the Athacasca Glacier that sends a shiver down his spine. Rather, it is the viewpoint at Bow Summit (6,785ft) when tourists are privy to a 360 degree aerial view of the Rockies from the highest point on the Icefields Parkway.

“The viewpoint of Peyto Lake from Bow Summit is one of the most spectacular sites in all of the Rockies,” he says, reminiscing on his days as a tour guide. Sharing the beauty of the Rockies with out-of-towners is just one of the virtues of being a tour guide.

Outlook of Peyto Lake along the Icefields Parkway, Alberta, Canadian Rockies

Over a million tourists drive the Icefields Parkway each year, and while many do it themselves, Hardy recommends a guided tour for those who want to view the majesty of the Rockies in a peaceful environment. “There are so many places to see, so let a guide show you where to go rather than driving it on your own. The little known places to stop definitely make it worthwhile to go with a guide,” he says.

The day tour, which takes some 5-6 hours of the day, runs at US$130 per person, including the 90 minute Snocoach tour over the Athabasca Glacier. Tourists can pick up on the tour from either Banff or Jasper. “People do not need a car in either Banff or Jasper,” Hardy explains.