6/23/22

The Icefields Parkway is a 138 mile two land scenic drive that connects Banff with Jasper. It is rated as one of the most beautiful drive in the entire world as you drive by more than 100 glaciers with the Columbia Icefield being the star of the drive. You'll also see beautiful lakes and lush pine forests along with the local wildlife of caribou, bears, mountain rams and moose. This road is one of the highlights of the trip.

It was cold that morning leaving Radium. I had to make the two hour drive back to Lake Louise to pick up 93 up to the parkway and then to Jasper. There was rain all previous day in Jasper and looked that way this morning as well. I tracked the radar all day and saw a break in the rain at 1pm. I decided to head up during that window despite a warning from the visitor center of snow and ice on the ground.

I rode up 93 and reached the entry booth, paid my $10.50 and asked if the road was clear. The lady inside the booth said "as far as she know from this morning." Let's hope for the best.

The beginning of the parkway wasn't much to write home about - trees on both sides but not too long into the ride I noticed a line of cars parked to the side. At this point I know that's a sure side of an animal on the road that all the drivers are recording. Sure enough, there was a black bear doing its thing. No photos but I should have a helmet video of him.

I started the ride with the temperature around low 40s, which is manageable with my base layer, rain coat acting as a windbreaker, and heated grips. But as I ride deeper into the parkway, the temperature kept dropping - 40, 38, 36, 34. I had my winter gloves on so they helped with the cold but I could barely feel the warmth of the heated grips. I kept watching the temperature gauge on the bike hope it won't dip below 32 which could mean black ice on the road. 34 went to 33. I kept riding. My boots aren't waterproof but that meant my feet and toes were damp from the mist in the air. After a while, my toes were pretty cold.

I saw a motel, gas station, restaurant stop and pulled in. I went inside and got a cup of coffee to warm up and to let my feet thaw out. I saw two riders come in also seeking respite. One was from Winnipeg and the other from Ontario. They were headed to Hinton for the night, a town another 50 miles northeast from Jasper. They have a long day ahead of them.

After my toes were back to room temperature, I got back on the road. Despite being on one of the best roads in the world, I'm afraid to say I couldn't enjoy it as much as I hoped. I was mostly concerned with ice on the road and to keep myself warm and to make it into Jasper. I certainly saw a lot of glaciers and beautiful mountains but I could not appreciate them as much as I'd like. Around the midpoint of the parkway, I descend from the mountains into this huge curve to the right revealing another mountain that I would climb. Everything opened up, surrounded by mountains, a gleaming blue pond in the middle.

I climb up this new mountain and continue on. Eventually, I see THE glacier, the Columbia Icefield. This is an actual destination where you can book a seat on these giant buses that will drive you out to the glacier and you can walk on it and drink from the glacier water. Unfortunately, I was so cold that I didn't want to stop so I just kept going although a bighorn sheep seemed determined to be in the middle of the road gawking at traffic.

Eventually, I arrived at the end of the parkway and entered the town of Jasper. It's another exorbitant mountain vacation town. I did not have it in me to keep going to Hinton where the motels are half priced. So I ended up paying $230 for a decent hotel room on the edge of town but still walkable to the center of Jasper.

Not many photos of the parkway since it was too cold but I did see this elk along the way:

I also recorded video. Will update with videos later.

Here are a few shots of Jasper itself:

The next morning I rode out to Medicine Lake and it worth the early cold of getting there:

I was the only person there when I arrived which was a nice change after all the crowded in Banff and Jasper. But just a few minutes later a RV pulled out and out came three people. I was a bit annoyed to have this quiet moment ruined but they were friendly and asked where I was from. I answered, "North Carolina" and they said, "Us too!" Turns out they're from outside of Asheville. One of them asked for my number and messaged me their info to stay in touch. Another chance meeting on the road!