We decided to do breakfast in the same restaurant as dinner last night. Once again the cavernous room was sparsely populated. Still took ages to get any food though. Once it came though it was very nice, we both had continental type breakfast and I had to save some of mine for later.
Then we checked out and loaded up the Jeep and set off for Banff. The weather was a bit rainy and overcast, but the views of the huge mountains as we drove along were still amazing. The trip took only about an hour and we were soon driving down the main road of the town.
So, Cam. Our new friend is actually the very camp voice of an App I have on my phone that gives you a tour of certain areas of the Rockies, one of them being Banff and surrounding area. He directs you and gives you bits of info along the way. So we set him going and he was brilliant. First he took us to look at the Banff Springs hotel, then Bow falls.
That's when we saw this
Next he took us on a little road round the golf course where he promised us wildlife, and delivered with a group of elk.
A trip up to the gondola followed, but it was teaming with rain so we didn't ride it. He took us to the town hall so we could get The Seminal Banff photo.
A bit cloudy on the big mountain at the end of the road I'm afraid.
Next were the hoodoos. Peaks of rock above the bow river with amazing views from the walkway.
In the second photo you can see the Banff Springs in the distance.
It was here that the highlight of the day occurred. A guy on the path with binoculars reported seeing a couple of bald eagles, yes we could see them too, nice but not amazing. But while viewing them he also spotted something across the river, a wolf! Wow, a wolf in the wild, over the river where it can't eat you! Ian got a photo with his big lens where you can just make it out. Thanks Cam.
The tour continued with a beautiful drive to a series of lakes.
Jackson lake where Banffians like to swim
Two Jacks lake where they like to picnic, and these little fellows live
Ground squirrels says Ian.
Lake Minnewanka the largest lake in the area.
Cam wanted to take us on to a viewpoint up a mountain next, but the visibility was poor due to low cloud so we decided to call it a day and find the hotel.
The Caribou Lodge is on Banffs main drag and the small lobby was brimming with people, it also had a lovely log fire going. We checked in and found our room, thank goodness it had two beds, we need one for the cases.
We bathed and decided to stay at the hotel as the rain was still pouring down, didn't fancy the 15min walk to town. The restaurant, a steakhouse, was really nice, very cosy and full to the rafters. Always a good sign. Our waiter, Ryan, was from Nottingham. Although he had a very Australian accent. They also had hundreds of workers in there. People to lead you to your table, waiters, people to clear the tables and reset, people wandering around with notebooks just looking and writing. The wages bill must be enormous. Anyway we enjoyed the ambiance. Then it was time for bed. Cam is taking us to lake Louise tomorrow.
Food watch
We both had steaks, medium rare. I had twice baked potato.
Ian - 7/10. Nice steak, boring chips
Jackie - 8/10. One of my favourites so far Steak was cooked to perfection.
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