This was the coldest night yet and Buster is not feeling too well. We were up a couple of times in the night for him to get rid of whatever from both ends. The poor little guy. It put a bit of a damper on my day I have to say cuz I was worried about him. The morning was so cold we were getting snow mixed in with the rain.
We quickly got ourselves together and hit the road (no shower at this campground) though it would have been really beautiful if I wasn’t so cold. There was a rushing creek alongside the small campground with trails leading off into the bush in all directions. Maybe another time …
Highway 93 to Jasper is spectacular. There are viewpoints to pull off and check out all along the route. The mountains and their glaciers are breathtaking as are the green lakes they feed. The clouds were thick in the beginning of the drive but the sun was fighting to shine and eventually it won. Slowly the temperatures began to rise. I had started the day wearing a lot of clothes topped off by my rain pants and rain coat. By the end of the day I had stripped back down to a single layer.
We saw the Saskatchewan glacier which feeds the North Saskatchewan River which itself flows ultimately into Lake Winnipeg – feeding all those wheat fields along the way. It was a favourite route of the fur traders.
We checked out the Athabaska Falls – a very popular and beautiful spot. It was chock full of visitors. Of course this is Saturday. There was a raven atop a post by a walkway that didn’t fly off as people walked by. He kept making a weird noise and stretching out his neck which had an odd bulge to it. Later, back on the highway, I got thinking that maybe he had swallowed something and was struggling because it was caught in his throat. I wish I had paid closer attention and talked to one of the park rangers about him. And Buster was still not well which also worried me.
We passed a number of runners on the road. There must have been a marathon or something. They were spread out for quite a distance so I crawled past them. Those poor guys were dealing with snow then hot sun then rain all while running uphill. Not for me!
We eventually got to Jasper where I was finally able to get gas – I was almost on empty. I picked up some rice and a jug of water at the local grocery (Jasper is a resort town – much like Banff) and headed off to a park where I set up my WhisperLite on a picnic table and cooked up the rice for Bus. Hopefully that will help settle his gut problems.
Even the cheapest hotel in Jasper was well beyond my means so we didn’t stay. We headed west on Highway 16 towards Valemount. Along the way we crossed the BC border and gained another hour. We followed the Yellowhead Pass – a well-used indigenous trail which was adopted by the fur-traders and much later recommended by Selkirk as the best pass for the new railway.
We checked out beautiful Mount Robson where Bus seemed to perk up a bit, and then on to the Super 8 at Valemount. We were warmly welcomed by the staff. Valemount is very tiny and very picturesque. It was a relief to have a shower, do some laundry and pamper Bus. I think he is a bit better. We’ll see how he does tonight.
