The next morning began our first full day in the Canadian Rockies and the first of many adventures that we would have during our two-week stay there.  We were so excited to get going that we were up early, around 6:00 a.m., and eager to go hiking.

Our plan for the day was to hike into Johnston Canyon, the trailhead for which was behind the restaurant at the Inn.  In other words, we were already there; all we had to do was walk a few hundred feet to the restaurant to begin our hike.  That gave us an advantage, too; it meant that we could start our hike early and be done long before the tour buses showed up.  Apparently, Johnston Canyon is a very popular hike among the tourists; the best time to see it was early in the morning, before the crowds arrived.

It was cool and crisp when we left our cabin that morning to begin our three-mile roundtrip hike. We stepped off onto the paved path behind the restaurant around 7:00 a.m. and followed that into the canyon.  Below the trail was Johnston Creek, which gushed through the gorge with a dangerous velocity.  Along the way, we pointed out to Mary how the force of that water carved that canyon over a period of thousands of year and that it was still carving the rocks.  Who knows what that canyon will look like in another thousand years!

After about a quarter of a mile, the paved trail ended, and we began walking on the boardwalk through the narrows of the canyon.  This part of the hike was incredible; hiking just twenty feet above the rushing water, on a catwalk that in and of itself was an engineering marvel.  At times, John was more fascinated with the structure than with the roaring creek below us.

At 0.7 miles, we arrived at the Lower Falls of Johnston Canyon; we took the spur to an overlook for a better look.  In the early morning light, the falls looked almost ethereal, like fine, white silk as they tumbled down into the glacial-green pool below.  From our vantage point on the overlook, we could feel the cool mist from the falls; it was a little too cool for that hour of the morning, but I could imagine how wonderful it would be to sit there during the heat of the day.

Nearby, John discovered that there was a cave that led to another overlook.  It was a little slippery getting into the cave, but once inside, we had a stunning view of the falls.  In fact, we were right up next to the falls.  The air was filled with the cold mist; it was so cold there that we didn't dare linger too long - just long enough to take a picture, then we were on our way again.

We later learned that that cave, which had offered us such a unique view of the falls, was not man-made.  It had been created by the creek hundreds of years ago; the water had blasted through the rock, creating a hole that now serves as an overlook.

As we left the Lower Falls, the trail began to climb towards the Upper Falls, which were about 0.8 miles away.  Part of that trail was along a dirt path, which turned away from the creek and entered the forest.  Along the way, we found the old trail as well, which wound through the trees, high above the current trail.  John, of course, was curious to see what was along that trail...but he stayed on the path with us...for now.

We soon arrived at the Upper Falls, where there were two overlooks.  The first one took us to the bottom of the Upper Falls; it wasn't a great viewpoint, but it did give us a good look at the travertine wall, which seemed to ooze water.  There is a special kind of algae that lives off of the water that seeps from the rock wall; deposits from the algae actually help form the travertine stone found on that wall. 

We then hiked up to the second overlook, where we had a much better view of the Upper Falls, this time from the top.  It was there that the Johnston Canyon Trail ended and looped back on itself - and it was there that we had to make a decision: do we hike further, to the Ink Pots, or do we turn back now and spend the rest of the day doing tourist activities?

Though we would have loved to see the Ink Pots, we decided to call it there.  The hike to the Ink Pots would have only added another two miles to our day, and we didn't want to overdo it on day one.  We also wanted to do some of the "touristy" things, like ride the Banff Gondola and sightsee. 

So, with that, we left the Upper Falls and started back down the trail, to the Inn.  And just in time, too, because halfway down the trail, we began seeing the tour-bus crowds as they flocked down the trail.  Now, I won't speak ill of anyone who participates in a tour such as that - I mean, for some people, it is the best way to travel and see the world.  Not everyone can be as adventurous as John and me.  However, some of these folks from the tour buses were just plain rude.  Some of the ladies walked three abreast along the boardwalk - which was barely big enough for three people - and they refused to step aside to let others pass.  Some wore very strong perfume that just reeked.  It kind of took away from the outdoor experience, so it was a good thing that we were leaving as they were coming in.

On the way back to the Inn, John decided to avoid part of the crowds by taking one of the old trails, just to see where it went.  He discovered that it pretty much paralleled the current trail, about twenty feet above it.  At one point, he could see is down on the trail below, and he called out to us. 

We finished our day hike around 9:00 a.m. - two hours after we began.  As soon as we stepped off of the trail, another tour bus arrived in the parking lot; we were glad to be off the trail!

We returned to our cabin to drop off our Camelbaks and to discuss what to do with the rest of the day.  We had all day to burn, and there was so much for us to do that it was hard to decide.  In the end, we decided to go into Banff to eat lunch; then, we would spend the day riding the Banff Gondola, to the top of Sulphur Mountain.  After that, we would look into taking a dinner cruise on Minnewanka Lake, as long as the price was reasonable.

Although we could have easily eaten lunch in town at one of the many fine restaurants along Banff Avenue, John though it would be fun to check out the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel - one of the three main five-star resorts in the Canadian Rockies.  Built in 1888 during the early days of the Canadian-Pacific Railroad, the Banff Springs Resort once served as railway hotel but soon catered to wealthy tourists who came to the Canadian Rockies to stay for several months at a time.  It is now run by Fairmont, a company that manages a number of luxury hotels and resorts across the world - for example, the Princess in Scottsdale. 

The Banff Springs Hotel is an impressive place; it has the appeal of a grand European château in the Alps.  Inside the hotel, visitors will find the utmost in luxury, with grand staircases, fine crystal chandeliers, and great stone fireplaces.  There are boutiques, salons, spas, and recreational centers to meet the needs of all of their guests; in addition, there are a number of restaurants, from casual to elegant dining.

Obviously, we weren't dressed nicely enough to enjoy an elegant lunch, so we decided to go with the Bow Valley Grill, one of the casual restaurants located on the second floor.  The restaurant, however, was packed that afternoon, so we were directed to the Terrace, where there was plenty of seating available.  And we were so glad that it worked out that way, because the Terrace was perfect in so many ways.  For one thing, the view was exquisite; from our table, we had a grand view of a lake, Rundle Peak (with hikers on top!), and all of the surrounding mountain ranges.  We were also treated to a wonderful performance by the Canadian Army's bagpipe and drum corps, which was the perfect complement to that gorgeous scenery.  We stayed there for two hours, enjoying the beautiful view, the warm sunshine, and the delicious lunch and beverages.  It was like being in paradise.

When we left the Banff Springs Hotel that afternoon, we were perfectly relaxed and ready to move onto the next adventure: the Banff Gondola, to the top of Sulphur Mountain.  For a nominal fee of $72 Canadian for the three of us, we had the chance to ride in a gondola 2,200 feet to the summit, which stands at an elevation of 7,486 feet. 

There was a long line for the Banff Gondola; but unlike Disneyland, this line moved very fast - again, all part of that efficiency that we were enjoying in Canada.  In less than ten minutes, we were helped into one of the gondolas and sent on our way up the mountain.  Along the way, we had some amazing views.  Behind us, we could see the Banff Springs Hotel; in front of us, we could see hikers switchbacking up the trail to the Sulphur Mountain summit. 

The gondola ride ended at a round building on top of Sulphur Mountain, where we found some of the most breathtaking views of the Canadian Rockies.  We also found the Banff Skywalk - a boardwalk trail that leads to the Cosmic Ray National Historic Site and Sanson's Peak Meteorological Station.  The Banff Skywalk was two kilometers (roughly 1.2 miles) roundtrip - in other words, short and sweet and definitely worth our time. 

Walking along the Banff Skywalk proved to be a lot of fun.  Mary, I think, had the most fun.  Our child, who normally melts down around that time of day, was running - yes, running - ahead of us, anxious to get to the top of the trail. 

John, on the other hand, found an opportunity to do some exploring.  Prior to leaving on our trip, he had indicated to me that he had every intention of going off on his own to do some hikes.  He knew that Mary wasn't going to be capable of doing some of those hikes, but he still wanted to do them.  While walking along the boardwalk, he saw one of these opportunities, along Cosmic Ray Road.  He was seriously considering it and continued to hem and haw about it as we continued up the skywalk to Sanson's Peak.

At the top of Sanson's Peak, we found the old meteorological station, inside of an old shack; we also discovered that we had the most incredible three-hundred-sixty degree view of the Canadian Rockies of Banff National Park.  We took picture after picture of the scenery before it, trying to capture as much of the beauty as possible, so that we would always remember it.

As we made our way back down from the peak, John announced that he was going to do Cosmic Ray Road after all.  According to the map at the trail junction, Cosmic Ray Road would take him to the Cave and Basin National Historic Site, which was located on the other side of the town of Banff; I would be able to find it on the Banff map.  Since the hike was about eight kilometers long (roughly five miles), John insisted that we give him a good head start - at least thirty minutes - before taking the gondola back down the mountain.  Then, at four o'clock, I would take my phone off of airplane mode so that we could contact each other.  (We would just have to eat the international roaming charges.)

With our plan set, we said goodbye to John and went our separate ways.  He started down Cosmic Ray Road, and Mary and I continued along the skywalk until we were back at the gondola station.  Along the way, Mary counted all of the steps, which I didn't mind at all because at least it kept her from complaining.  By the time we were done, she had counted 291 steps total - a trivia fact that she later shared with the gondola operator.

While waiting to give John a head start, Mary and I enjoyed a cool treat - ice cream bars - at the gondola station; we also bought some souvenirs at the gift shop. Then, after thirty minutes had passed, we got into line to ride the gondola back down the mountain.

As soon as we finished our ride, Mary and I got into the car and drove to Cave and Basin National Historic Site, where we were supposed to meet John at the end of his hike.  John, of course, wasn't there yet, so Mary and I took advantage of the time that we had and went inside the Visitor's Center, to check out the sulphur hot springs.  For a fee of two dollars Canadian, we were able to go inside of the cave and see the pool, which used to be a health spa for tourists in Banff.  We also ended up in a restricted area, where we saw a beautiful outdoor pool.

By the time we finished our tour, John was still nowhere to be found.  Now, we had no clue where the trail was going to end - or, if we were even in the right place - so we asked the ranger at the Visitor's Center if she knew where the trail ended.  That was when she indicated that we were in the wrong place.  "That trail ends at the Upper Hot Springs,"  she said.  The Upper Hot Springs were back at the Banff Gondola, near the Banff Hot Springs pools.

"But the map said that the trail ended here!" I said.  Nonetheless, since we weren't sure, we returned to the car and prepared to drive back to the Banff Gondola to wait for John there.

It was a good thing that John called us before we pulled out of the parking lot.  He had just arrived at Cave and Basin and was looking for us there.  What a relief to hear that we were in the right place after all!

When we finally met up with John, he told us all about his hike down Cosmic Ray Road - which proved to be a more difficult hike than he had anticipated.  Though he knew that the trail was going to descend about 2,000 feet, he didn't expect it to happen within the first two miles of the hike.  As a result, he ended up with some painful boot-jam. On top of that, it was hot outside - unseasonably hot - and he didn't have a lot of water with him. 

Although the hike was difficult, John did have solitude; Cosmic Ray Road didn't have the tourist appeal that Johnston Canyon had.  As a result, he saw very few people: a couple of joggers, a couple of canoeists, and that was it.  He didn't see much wildlife either, except for some Canadian Geese swimming on one of the lakes.  He did startle something in the brush as he hiked down the trail; he never saw what it was, but based on the rustling, he knew that it was something very large.

Now that we were reunited with each other, we left Cave and Basin and took a drive to Minnewanka Lake.  We had already priced the dinner cruise and had decided to skip it, but we did at least want to see the lake, as it was supposed to be very scenic.  When we arrived, we found that the lake was much too crowded to get a good look at it, so we didn't bother to stop.  We did drive around the lake, though; and along the way, we found our first sighting of a big horn sheep!  There were two of them, grazing along the side of the road, on the embankment overlooking the lake.  About five minutes up the road, we found two more, at a scenic overlook.  Naturally, we stopped at each sighting and snapped a bunch of pictures.

As we left Minnewanka Lake to return to Johnston Canyon, we passed by a beautiful meadow that was completely covered with white daisies.  John stopped there and said, "I'll bet that we can find a pink flower in the middle of all of those white ones!"

At first, I thought that it was a rather odd thing for him to say; but as he led Mary into the field and told her to sit down, it made more sense.  After all, she was wearing pink...

Unfortunately, Mary sat down on an anthill and soon had several ants crawling on her legs and in her underwear.  She didn't get bit, but it did freak her out.  She literally had ants in her pants!

After we were done taking pictures, John suggested that we head back towards Johnston Canyon; it was getting late in the day, and he was absolutely exhausted from his hike - he was even too tired to eat dinner out that night.

Once back at the cabin, we started cooking dinner; and that was when we discovered our limitations.  We didn't have any oil with which to cook our chicken breasts, and the only spices we had were the ones that we had in our backcountry spice wheel.  Despite those setbacks, we were still able to cook a good meal!

That evening, after dinner, Mary and I took turns enjoying a wonderful, relaxing bath in the slipper tub; I even brought along my iPhone so that I could listen to some tunes as I soaked in the warm water.  Later, I sat on the front porch in my pajamas and enjoyed the cool evening while sipping a cold Rickard's.  It was a fine way to end a perfect day...

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