Day 9-10: Lake Louise

Craig and I had planned Lake Louise as the "proper" honeymoon part of our trip. So we paid up for a deluxe room overlooking the lake, where we could spend 2 days just chilling out. The drive up to Lake Louise is really something. There's all this anticipation as you see the snowy mountains close up and all the while, you know you're getting close and closer to the Chateau. And then you see the Chateau, being guarded by its doormen in their green stockings. They kinda looked like leprechauns to me!

Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

We were a little tired by the time we arrived at the Lake since we'd been driving for 4 hours. However, we weren't that tired that we couldn't appreciate the breathtaking view of the lake. The day we arrived, the sun was shining in full strength and there wasn't a cloud in sight. It was so bright, the light was reflecting back of the frozen ice & the mountain's snow! After settling into the room, we went out for an afternoon stroll on the lake.

Unfortunately, we'd kinda arrived at an odd season. Since it was Spring, the melting snow meant that all the trails were closed due to fear of avalanches. And the ice on the lake wasn't solid enough for ice skating or any winter activities. However, we were told to head to Banff the next day (a town 45mins drive from Lake Louise) where there would be more activities and shops on offer. Craig kinda wished the lake wasn't frozen but I figured we'd gotten the best of both worlds. Our drive up had provided us lots of views of glacial rivers & lakes while Lake Louise was providing us the wintry version. We took lots of touristy snaps then headed for dinner at the Glacial Lagoon. Our waiter was a funny Canadian with a huge love of Montreal. He was really entertaining and introduced me to some Cider. Needless to say, Canadian Cider is awesome!

The frozen Lake Louise

The next day, we drove to Banff with the intention of riding a Gondola up into the mountains and take some great photos. First though, we visited lake Minnewanka but Aussies, it is pronounced Mini-Wonka, not Mini-Wanka! The lake was pretty spectacular. While the temperature was still pretty nippy, it didn't stop us from walking around and enjoying the serenity.

Lake Minnewanka

The stone creation is called an Inukshuk

However, as we were about to leave, we could see these ominous clouds rolling in. We took it as a hint and jumped into our car, headed down to Banff. As we drove through the streets of Banff however, it soon became obvious that those clouds was actually bringing a snowstorm. We could see the shoppers shivering in the unexpected winds and decided that today would probably not be the best day to try to ride in a Gondola. And since the storm seemed likely to hang around, we turned back for Lake Louise. As we were driving back, the visibility was pretty poor. We were driving 100km/h and could really only see perhaps 5 metres in front of us. Craig was taking it pretty easy but I was kinda like an excited little kid. It felt like Christmas had come. And the odd thing was, all the green pine trees were now completely blanketed in white. The whole transformation had barely taken minutes!

Back at Lake Louise, I was playing in the snow. Unfortunately, it was hard to get to the fresh snow and it didn't make very good snowballs. But I definitely had fun. I also talked Craig into joining me for High Tea at Lake Louise. Although we'd been eating all day, we somehow found room for all the cakes, tarts & treats. I really spending time with Craig and he even learnt how to make a tea using loose leaves. However, I think he still prefers coffee, hehe.

Anyhow, we're due to meet up with Matt (aka Coco), former Emunite from Craig's work. So we'll tell you how it goes.

Lots of love from Lake Louise,
Demi & Craig.