← PreviousHikes and gorgeous beaches on Manitoulin IslandFor Cassandre's 30th birthday, we rent two bikes and go pedalling along the superb paved road through the Bow River valley, which is closed to cars all summer. Canada hasn't got us used to thinking about cyclists, and we savour this opportunity with undisguised pleasure. We stop at the many viewpoints and make the most of having signal to call our families. First we want to thank them for the messages Cass received, but also to show them the fabulous panorama before us. In the end we climb and descend over 25 kilometres before parking our bikes at the finish: the start of the day's walk along Johnston Canyon. Words are starting to repeat themselves and no longer really convey the immense beauty of this majestic place. We're storing up memories for years, and in the evening we want to celebrate Cassandre's 30th at a restaurant in Banff. As luck would have it, they all close very early, and the ones still open warn of a long wait, as the town is packed this mid-August weekend. Never mind: we go to the supermarket, buy a bottle and a few treats and celebrate on the patio of our B&B, eyes on the mountains. Despite the disappointment of not going to a restaurant, we have an excellent, slightly tipsy evening full of laughter.
We splashed out by booking three nights in a hotel, but Cass's thirtieth was well worth the little luxury. However, with rooms at 150 dollars minimum, we can't afford to spend our whole stay in the Rockies that way, and we're getting ready to rough it for ten days or so. That's why we linger in bed this morning before leaving the inn at 11, and as we say goodbye to our host we know we're also leaving comfort behind for quite a while. After the two fairly tiring days we've just had, we're planning a more "relaxed" programme today: about three hours' walk there and back to the top of Sulphur Mountain, just five minutes' drive away, then lazing in the sun.
Dressed in our seasoned-hiker gear, we tackle an hour and a half of climbing with lovely views of the valley, only to end up at… the cable-car station. It's a bit frustrating to reach a summit sweating after the effort when the gondolas spit out tourists in flip-flops every five minutes.
This summit is a complete aberration, because the gondola building hides a huge complex with restaurants and a Starbucks. Canadians have a very capitalist approach to nature and don't hesitate to cash in on it whenever they can. So the return trip to the top costs 60 dollars for those who can afford it and are too lazy to walk up. All the trees on the ridge have been felled to build a perfectly smooth wooden boardwalk so people can reach the summit a little further on in ten minutes. The place looks a bit like Disneyland, and we don't feel we belong among all these tourists in sandals, Starbucks coffee in hand, taking photos at every turn. We don't stay long, fairly disgusted by this ecological massacre, and walk back down. We pass a few walkers, but not many compared with the number arriving by gondola.
To wash, we consider going to the lake, but all the car parks are full and the park administration strictly forbids parking at the roadside. So if you want to go somewhere and the car park is full, you have no choice but to turn back. We then spot a little river of crystal-clear water with a strip of land nearby. We park there and go down to the bank through the tall grass. The sun is beating down, which is lucky, because the water coming straight off the glacier a little higher up is below ten degrees. So it's in this freezing water that we wash, not without difficulty. The spot is pleasant and out of sight, and we spend a few hours there before going back into town. We book a table as soon as the restaurant we want to try opens, and this time we can really celebrate Cassandre's birthday. On a pretty outdoor terrace, we savour a few skilfully cooked dishes before finding a hidden spot in town to spend the night.
We're in no hurry this morning, as the hike we're planning isn't popular with tourists. Away from town, the Healy Pass trail is too hard for the city folk who haunt Banff, and we get there by 9:30. At 17 kilometres, the trail offers an interesting climb of almost 1,000 metres. We set off with, as usual, music in the background to warn the bears of our presence. The first six kilometres climb through the woods, but we eventually come out onto mountain meadows full of flowers, each more colourful than the last. The trail continues to its end at a pass that looks out over the Rockies and lakes as far as the eye can see. It seems like the perfect habitat for marmots, and sure enough we spot a few while we eat lunch.
We obviously come down faster and even find it long. It's hotter than in the morning and the insects have come out of their lairs, making the walk less pleasant. We finally reach the car park, surprised to see wild goats not far from the car. Nature has spoiled us today with the classic squirrels and the marmots, but we're not at the end of our surprises. On the mountain road back to the Trans-Canada, we come face to face with a bear! It calmly crosses the road just a few metres from our car. As we stop to watch it, it goes down onto the verge, where it has spotted wild berries, and starts eating, all less than five metres from us. We watch it in wonder for long minutes, without making a sound so as not to scare it. Our Canada experience is really becoming complete!
We go back to Banff to do some shopping, still buzzing with excitement. We need supplies for a few days, as we're not sure we'll find affordable supermarkets. Once that's done, we drive for an hour to reach Lake Louise. This little village (or rather string of tourist hotels) has one of the most beautiful lakes in the world, and we fully intend to be there first thing tomorrow morning, as we've heard the huge car parks next to it are already full by 8. We park in one of the rare side streets we can find and get some well-earned rest.