Day 8 - Thursday 9/21/2017 - Hike and Explore the Jasper Area
We slept in and made it down stairs for breakfast by 8:45. We packed our packs and was on the road for the hour drive to Jasper by 9:30. The roads were clear, but the clouds were low and we couldn’t appreciate the views on the drive to Jasper. We saw an elk herd just outside of Jasper and a bunch of cars were pulled over to watch it. We parked and hit a few shops in Jasper. I checked out more Canadian National Railroad stuff including a pretty 4-8-4 mountain type, CN 6015, on display and a nice station. We had an early lunch at the Jasper Brewing Company and got some coffee at Tim Hortons (the Starbucks of Canada).
Since the weather was overcast but good with the clouds slowly rising, we headed just south of Jasper after lunch and did the Valley of the Five Lakes hike. The trail was sloshy with snow and pretty slick in parts but the lakes were very beautiful. It took about two hours to make the loop due to the slick trails. The views where amazing! This was a backup hike since the weather made the bigger / higher elevation hikes in the area impossible and it didn't disappoint.
Since the weather was overcast but good with the clouds slowly rising, we headed just south of Jasper after lunch and did the Valley of the Five Lakes hike. The trail was sloshy with snow and pretty slick in parts but the lakes were very beautiful. It took about two hours to make the loop due to the slick trails. The views where amazing! This was a backup hike since the weather made the bigger / higher elevation hikes in the area impossible and it didn't disappoint.
We then headed just east of Jasper with the goal of doing some of the other sights in the area. Our first stop was Maligne Canyon. We hiked down to the 2nd, 3rd, and 1st bridges. The trail was really sloshy and slick so we didn't do the entire trail. The canyon was pretty neat to see!
We then went north of Jasper to Pyramid Island which offered great but cold views of Pyramid Mountain and the ranges of mountains around Jasper. The island being in the middle of a lake didn't give many wind blocks, but the views were worth it! We had another elk sighting on the drive back to Jasper from Pyramid Island.
We then went north of Jasper to Pyramid Island which offered great but cold views of Pyramid Mountain and the ranges of mountains around Jasper. The island being in the middle of a lake didn't give many wind blocks, but the views were worth it! We had another elk sighting on the drive back to Jasper from Pyramid Island.
We made it to dinner at Downstream in Jasper at about 6:00 PM. Scott and I had Bison short ribs and Emily had an elk tenderloin; upping our dinner game was a nice treat at this point in the trip. After dinner, we stopped next door for fudge. As we drove back to Hinton, the clouds had really lifted in the evening and we got to see all of the mountains we missed on previous drives to and from Hinton. Back in Hinton, we got gas and got to the hotel just before 9:00 PM. While Emily showered, Scott and I hit the Holiday Inn’s indoor pool that had a sweet water slide that was easily two stories tall! We got some nice speed on it! We did it a few times and then hit the hot tub for a few minutes to rest our sore legs.
Valley of the Five Lakes Hike - 2.8 Miles round trip; 410 ft elevation gain
Safe Travels,
B&E
Valley of the Five Lakes Hike - 2.8 Miles round trip; 410 ft elevation gain
Safe Travels,
B&E