After having an extended break from adventures (except for the forceful and unfortunately timed inhalation that brought a gnat through my nostril to be lost in my sinuses for an hour before I coughed and spit it out), I decided it was time to bust out the camping gear again. Dad and I have embarked in an international journey, just the two of us! So far, we’ve survived customs, given a vote on poutine (fair to middling), navigated the town of Banff and the picturesque Bow River, and taken early bedtimes on day 1.

Day 2 started with an impressive hotel breakfast spread, before a drive on the inspirational and breathtaking Icefields Parkway through Banff and Jasper National Parks. Clouds have rarely parted since we got here, but we’ve stayed mostly dry and been afforded big views of beautiful Canadian Rockies: HUGE, rugged cliffs, rising steeply from deep valleys gushing with glacial rivers. We took in sights like Lake Louise, Sunwapta Falls, Athabasca glacier and Falls, and the Jasper SkyTram with a hike to the summit of Whistler Mountain – including sightings of black bear with two cubs, a marmot chomping alpine grass, and Jessica-identified anthracite rocks and flying pipersqueaks (don’t bother looking ’em up, I positively identified them and Dad couldn’t refute, so I’m confident).

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We’ve been on the hunt for moose along the road, with only three sighted: one on a lake that looked just like a person in a kayak, one in a river that looked a lot like a stump, and one on the roadside that was really smooshed and looked very similar to asphalt repair. Didn’t get any photos, so can’t share that with you; so sorry.

Now, after a 6 am alarm by the local train blast (which brought me back 9 years to 6:45a prep band warmups at Maxwell Academy), we need to cover a few more kilometers to central BC where we’ll start the “real” adventure: Canoeing 100km through the Bowron Lakes circuit! We’re smiling!