Banff National Park – Crawford Family Sabbatical

July 29, 2013

Yoho National Park – Emerald Lake

Our last day in Banff, we decided to go to Emerald Lake. It is located in Yoho National Park that bumps up to Banff NP. It was about 40 minutes from our campground. Emerald Lake was gorgeous! The blue of the water is caused by the glacial till. It makes you think the water has to be warm like the Caribbean. Unfortunately, just the opposite-it is freezing! It was a cloudy, gloomy day. We got rained on halfway around the lake, but were thrilled to try out our rain gear we brought. The kids and Scott were really excited to rent a canoe, so we did. I was a little stressed out about what happens if the canoe tips in the middle of the lake(the water is freezing-can the kids make it to the side of the lake?). Well, it all worked out and we did not tip over, thankfully! It was pretty cool being out in the lake with a slight rain coming down. Kids loved it!!

Emerald Lake - can you tell kids are wound up? — Emerald Lake – can you tell kids are wound up?

Kane got a hole in his water bottle, so he is sharing his water with Kat.

July 28, 2013

Our longest hike yet at Banff NP!

The kids thought Lake Louise looked far away-it did!

Kids were excited to have to cross water!

Heading to the hiking trail by Lake Louise

Kids were excited to hike to the Plain of Six Glaciers at Lake Louise even with it being 7 miles round trip. Want to know why? There was a Teahouse at the top. Nothing like a little tea and cookies for motivation! 🙂 We were really proud of them. They did not complain at all. I truly was shocked. The first mile was pretty flat, the second was a slow incline and third told us we were climbing a mountain. The views were spectacular!

July 27, 2013

Banff National Park – Lake Louise Campground

Banff! Were we excited? Absolutely! Scott asked me as we were driving into Banff National Park, if I was tired of the mountains yet. No way! The scenery soothes my soul!

We stayed at Lake Louise campground in Banff NP. We had electricity, but no water hookups. Lots of biking paths and unlimited hiking possibilities. I was a little worried about our campground, because some of the reviews I had read were not good. People had complained about 2 campers right next to each other and it being really tight. It was totally fine for us! Campground was wooded with creek and biking trail nearby. We got set up and headed to Lake Louise Visitor Center. Kat was not in the mood for biking, so we drove and the boys biked. After dinner, we drove up to Lake Louise. I have to say, I was pretty excited to see it, especially after I watched the episode of The Bachelor in January that took place here. 🙂

Scott and Kane biked to Lake Louise Visitor Center.