Yesterday I fulfilled my dream of visiting Banff National Park. Linda and Bryan Stearnes were kind enough to provide lodging in their lakeside home in British Columbia and chauffered us to the Park. Not only are they funloving, interesting people they are superb tour guides as well. Aside from the fantastic scenery, the highlights of the day were: seeing a gray wolf running along a roadside forest, a bull elk grazing in dowtown Banff, and enjoying a drink while gazing out of the Chateau's large window with a view of Lake Louise. The color of many of the lakes and streams are a Caribbean turquoise blue. Matt and I look forward to hosting them on the east coast soon. After a great visit, we departed for Roger's Pass through Canada's Glacier National Park. Fortunately, the snow was limited to the higher elevations as we drove through the pass, so we didn't have to drag out the chains. We were prepared anyway. We finally descended into a valley with green pastures. Lots of photo stops along the way. Stopped briefly in Revelton, a town that reminded me of No.Conway, NH. Tonight we are calling Kelowna, BC our home base. This trip hasn't been just about sight seeing and visiting friends, I've learned some new skills. I've learned how to use cruise control (yup that's right, Ben), how to use a blackberry for calls and sending emails, and how to navigate a laptop without a mouse! Reading two books along the way: Three Cups of Tea and Mountain Time, A Yellowstone Memoir by a park ranger, Paul Schullery. It's fun reading after having seen Yellowstone. Lots of info about the native plants and animals. On to Vancouver tomorrow! Miss you all. Love, Kare
