Calgary Trip 2003

The Calgary Stampede grounds host a HUGE carnival, with rides, games, agricultural exhibits, and shows.
We spent our first day in Calgary experiencing the games and rides. It was a record crowd - over 130,000 people there that day!!!

In the morning, we took in more of the Midway attractions. In the afternoon, we had front-row club seats for the Calgary Stampede Rodeo action.

We spent the first morning of the tour at the famous West Edmonton Mall, enjoying one of their amazing indoor amusement parks. We then drove to Jasper, with a stop in a small town called Edson. The bus broke down, which gave us a little extra time to enjoy Tim Horton's donuts.
We stayed that night at a wonderful lodge in Jasper, the Sawridge Inn.

The next day, we went to Maligne Lake, starting at the Falls, and culminating in a boat ride to much-photographed Spirit Island. Back at the Sawridge, the boys checked out the weight room and pool before we all had a nice dinner.

We had a sight-packed day on Thursday, starting out with a stop at Athabasca Falls, then riding up the Columbia Icefields in a snow coach, and finally visiting Peyto Lake, before stopping for the night at incredible Chateau Lake Louise. While Debbie and the boys hiked to the other side of the lake, Mom, Steve, Frank and I enjoyed cocktails in their turn of the century tea room. After a sumptuous buffet dinner we retired to lake-view rooms!

We woke up to the red sun rising over Lake Louise, and spent a relaxing morning there before heading off to another picturesque Lake, Moraine Lake. The boys climbed on a large rockpile that had been used in a famous Jeep commercial, and we all enjoyed the views.

We were in Bamff for Chris's birthday. We had a relaxing day shopping in town, and John took the chance to go out on a trail bike. We had a birthday dinner that night at a local steakhouse before heading back to the hotel.

We headed back to Calgary on our last day. On the way out of Bamff, we stopped at lovely Bow Falls. Then we went back to the Stampede to enjoy the events of the closing evening. We played more midway games and watched exciting stagecoach races. It was a great end to the trip.

Pretty pictures of some of the wildlife we saw, as well as flowers (mostly from Lake Louise) and the beautiful mountain scenery.