Living in Calgary means being close to one of the icons of travel, Lake Louise and of course, the classic picture of one standing on the edge with the majestic view behind you. We have now been there many times with guests and have taken the picture on multiple occasions. So, without much fanfare, I have compiled the Lake Louise Post of Fame. I will add to this on each opportunity (or as I find old pictures). I also encourage our friends and relatives to contribute their own photos to the cause and I will update the Post of Fame.
The newest photo.
Janice and Kirk – July 2012My post, we get to be firstJason & TeraJeff & CharmaineLori & EthelLauren – The Ice Princess
I don’t know how your week went, but mine was pretty good, with a bit of not so good. Where to start, where to start. I know, how about with some of the good stuff.
Lori and I have embarked on some hardline retirement planning. Yep we are getting up there and it (retirement) is getting to be much more of a focus. We have some ideas, which, if they work out will make life very interesting.
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The second great thing this week was being named the winner of El Guapo’s world-famous Friday Foolishness poll. I was surprised that no one else picked Bob, I mean it is a natural for a roller-coaster name.
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The next great thing was becoming a character in HE Ellis “Hellis in Bloggerland” extravaganza. Apparently I love my iPod and we Canucks love salt water moose. Poetic license is forgiven. The cool thing here is that Lori and I had these cross in front of us on the highway between Saskatoon and Calgary a couple of weekends ago. Coincidence, I think not!
And if this wasn’t enough to make a great week, I had my first trivia winner, Lizziecracked, and I was named as a recipient of 2 awards. Sightsnbytes hit me up with the One Lovely Blog Award, and Lifeinthedrivethru gave me a Sunshine Award. Both of these blogs are great. I have followed Sightsnbytes for some time now, and we were both in the above mentioned HE Ellis epic. Lifeinthedrivethru is a recent discovery for me and i love the humor in this blog. I will be doing a full acceptance post on both as they are firsts for me. Thanks.
The only downside, for the second week in a row, our sailing lessons were cancelled. The reservoir is extremely low as the City of Calgary wants to control the flow of water downstream as the record snow pack in the mountains melts and the massive rain this spring runs off. Maybe next weekend.
Have a great Fathers Day to all you fathers, I’m going to. I also hope to have a superb week again next week.
Why don’t you ever see the headline “Psychic Wins Lottery”?
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Our follow the sun tour started out in Banff, Alberta. We stayed at the Banff International Hotel. Do Not Stay Here. Run down and noisy. After much discussion, we decided our first stop would be Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. We booked a room on-line at the Coeur d’Alene Resort and took off. We headed south and hit the USA border early in the afternoon. It really has a border look here, something I never noticed crossing over on the prairies. There is actually a line carved into the terrain. Check out the picture. That line is cleared bush up the side of a mountain.
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Leaving the border (yes, they let us in), we made our way towards our destination. The highway was great, with lots of scenery, and, it was glorious day, sun shining and warm. Exactly what we were looking for. As we continued south, we realized we must be close to our destination. Lori went crazy all of a sudden as Kohl’s came into view. My worst nightmare, a shopping trip. I managed to feint left and duck right and got away. We arrived at our hotel, The Coeur d’Alene Resort. Very impressive. We checked in and at the same time booked an extra night. It seemed like a great place to spend a few days and there was lots to do. We headed up to our room and discovered a great view. Nothing adds to a stay somewhere than looking out your room’s window and seeing something spectacular.
What a view
After settling in, we headed out for a bite to eat. We decided to try out a place called Tito Macaroni’s, an Italian place on the main street downtown. Bad choice. The food started out okay, but as you dug deeper it became very greasy. Tip to the restaurant, cut back on the oil. The best part was Pinot Noir that we tried. Very good.
Nice Pinot
From Tito’s, (we needed to leave) we headed for a place I had spied that advertised live music. Right up our alley as it was called “The Wine Cellar“, meaning it covered off two ticks right away. music and wine. We headed in. We were immediately seated and we were served by a terrific young woman named Cammie. We were discussing our upcoming trip to Portugal and she noted that her background was half Portuguese. we ordered some Port (we are in training) and settled in to listen to the band. It was a great evening. I only wish I had recorded more but, we were busy socializing in a very friendly establishment. The performer was Max Daniels and his band. Loads of fun. Here is a sample.
At The Wine Cellar
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The evening ended and we headed back to our room, looking forward to exploring the countryside.
Aurora at Banff, Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
We have a week off work and no idea what to do. We were thinking south, BUT, as we have no kids, didn’t even think of spring break. Sooo that’s out. Sitting here feeling trapped, a decision has been made. A night in Banff tonight, with a great supper and some honest discussion on what we do next. The options are drive south from Banff to Idaho and Eastern Washington, maybe even Utah and a bit of Wyoming, OR, keep going west to Victoria, south to Seattle and Portland, then across to Montana and north home, OR go north from Banff through the Columbia Ice-fields and on to Jasper. I am thinking straight south as the north is to wintery, the west is to far (lots of driving) and the south keeps us in control of the time space continuum. Should be fun, we got tonight booked so far.
We went for a skate the other day at Bowness Park in Calgary. Unfortunately we couldn’t skate through the forest as that portion of the creek was closed due to thin ice. We did skate on the lake for a while though. Lots of fun. Took the movie with my iPhone.
We have been spending the summer fairly close to home this year. That may sound unlike someone who likes to travel and wonders “Is It Possible To See It All”, but one must remember that we live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, a veritable smorgasbord of things to see and do, all within hours of our home. On this journey, we travelled about an hour west to K-Country (Kananaskis Provincial Park) and visited Elbow Falls, and continued west to Cobble Flats where we lunched prior to returning home. We were entertaining some guests from Winnipeg on this run and as we had never been here, we decided it was the place to go.
First stop, Elbow Falls. The video doesn’t do justice.
The area is very tourist friendly with a paved path along the river, protected by guard rails. There is a large picnic area, but one has to arrive very early to get a spot. A nice peaceful area to spend a day though.
Roger and Wendy
As the picnic area was full, we left and headed a bit further west, ending up at Cobble Flats. A beautiful spot for a nice lunch. A beautiful creek with a picnic area along the creek. we grabbed a spot and had a great time enjoying the surroundings and company.
The area is surrounded by beauty in every direction. It is great to live in this part of the world.
Glenmore reservoir Image by elliottzone via Flickr
One of Calgary‘s major attractions is one of the biggest outdoor museums in the world, Heritage Park. It is basically a town from the early 20th century set along the Glenmore Reservoir. A beautiful setting for an outstanding piece of history. The buildings on site are historical and have been donated or purchased and moved to the park. Once here they have been restored and turned into exhibits.
When one enters the park, the first exhibit is Gasoline Alley, a museum of restored vehicles and pieces from early gas stations.
Gasoline Alley
From Gasoline Alley, it is off to the town site itself. There is everything from fully staffed general stores, candy shops and bakeries to a pool hall and post office. Each is staffed with well informed park personnel who are willing to answer questions and point out the features and history of each building.
Main Street - Heritage Park
The video below is taken in the Blacksmith shop and is indicative of what happens here to teach people about our history.
Then there are the vistas where one can sit and watch sailboats and the bustle on the reservoir.
Glenmore Reservoir
All in all, Heritage Park is a great way to spend a quiet day in the middle of a large city, without knowing you are in a big city. There is something for everybody, whether it is history, antique cars or old trains. If you are in Calgary, make it a point to visit this terrific exhibit.
Living in Calgary means being close to one of the icons of travel, Lake Louise and of course, the classic picture of one standing on the edge with the majestic view behind you. We have now been there many times with guests and have taken the picture on multiple occasions. So, without much fanfare, I have compiled the Lake Louise Post of Fame. I will add to this on each opportunity (or as I find old pictures). I also encourage our friends and relatives to contribute their own photos to the cause and I will update the Post of Fame.
My post, we get to be firstJason & TeraJeff & CharmaineLori & EthelLauren - The Ice Princess
My brother Jeff and his wife Charmaine stopped by for a quick visit here in Calgary and decided to bring along some extra water that had been lying around in Manitoba. It was a deluge from the time they got here to the time they left.
We did as much as we could with the cards we had been dealt and managed to squeeze in Lake Louise and Banff before they left to go south.
Lake Louise May 24, 2011
From Lake Louise, we headed down to Banff and checked out the Banff Springs Hotel. A very impressive building. The photo is taken with my iPhone using the Hipstamatic application. Very cool effects.
Jeff and Charmaine at the Banff Springs Hotel
We finished off with a quick stop at Bow Falls in Banff and then headed home. It was great to see them and hope we have better weather next time around. I apologize for the video quality, but, hey, it was raining.
Lori and I went for dinner tonight at Bookers BBQ Grill & Crab Shack here in Calgary with some friends, Bill and Betts. We had never eaten here before but had heard lots of good things, and Bill recommended as they had live music on Friday and Saturdays. On their website they were advertising duelling pianos, which is fun.
I had the catfish creole, very good. Food is a step up from pub fare, yet not quite fine dining. Atmosphere is great as was the service. We finished up and the band came on. Imagine our surprise when it was not duelling pianos, but renowned blues artist Sonny Rhodes. Even better, we are in the front row. He was playing an unadvertised evening at Bookers. Absolutely incredible, and unbelievable luck.
