Windtower Lodge & Suites Canmore

... us up (hopefully) and then my parents will arrive the next day. Our plan is to spend the first few days in HCMC and then leave my parents for a few weeks to get reacquainted with family while we head north to Hanoi and then to Cat Ba Island in Ha Long Bay to go climbing. We are super excited to see in person all the beautiful karst limestone islands and crank. I'm sure the two of us will be itchy to get on rock after being airplane/train bound for days.

... along there to get to the sundance canyon trail. It was still very cold but the sun was out making it more comfortable than the previous day when it was wet and dull. We got great views of the mountains and walked along the Bow river which is very blue due to the glaciers (rock flour). We got chatting about christmas on the way back from the canyon (which wasnt much of a canyon but still lovely with all the snow) so I got ...

... tickets for the "first flight" on the tramway, well done team! We were delayed while they sent the first tram up loaded with supplies for the food centre up on the mountain. At last we load up on the tram and off we go on a cable with a breaking strain of around 250 ton, we figure we are safe even though this was built in 1964. It was interesting to float through the cloud and head on up this cliff face to the world of mountain climbers. (we are still wondering at ...

... it was on to Lake Moraine. The water level appeared to be low, but the water was a beautiful blue and the sky seemed to be getting even brighter. As we started back the sun actually made an appearance, reflecting off the snow capped mountains. We were not far along the road, when we noticed a number of cars stopped along the side. There must be an animal. Sure enough, an elk was ...

... Alicia and Chris there to help me out, so I still had a good time. But I spent so much time on my **** or my face in the snow, it was hilarious. My knee is still a bit sore, so I will have to assess what happens from here! We had some pretty cold weather here again the other day...more -20something with wind chill...brr...However, the past couple of days have been 0 to -4ish, so has felt relatively mild - a nice change. I have been finding it a little ...

... close. We walked from one end of the Lake to the other, about 2km. There are all sorts of hikes available to do around Lake Louise. But its really for the experienced and well equipped hiker. So we, in our jeans and woolly hats turned around and went back. Smart move I think. The next day we, sadly, had to leave Banff. We got quite accustomed to being surrounded by the Rockies day in day out. We really enjoyed our time here, and definitely plan to return. Maybe get some skiing in next time.

... while we wait to head off, likes to headbutt the other horses, eat on the trail when he's not supposed to, and bite the other horses and then get kicked for it. Awesome. I was already freakin nervous being around them all then I got "Crow". I was freaking out the first half ride. I swore I hated horses, I was never doing this again, I didn't want to die blah blah blah. Halfway along the trip we stopped for a nice yummy BBQ dinner, and then continued on the last half of the trail along ...

... below, before jumping-in off a 10ft drop. The explosion of snow was awesome. Here is a picture I caught of him mid-flight: Johnny 5 followed down the left of the chute with his dog Sammy close behind: Louis followed and I took the next chute across which was just full of waist deep powder.... Hero snow. It's hard to go wrong in this stuff because even the most awkward fall just lands you in a big, soft, fluffy pile of snow. Adrenalin surging ...

... Bob was stopped at a rest stop to adjust his radio station he made contact with a bear, just a little guy. He was pretty busy emptying out the garbage cans looking for some easy food. They both stared at each other but the bear made the first move and darted into the brush. The weather was still good as Bob stopped in Sudbury for a late lunch. Clouds were really moving in now, and making it pretty black. By the time he got to North Bay ...