After touring Stanley Park and Granville Island the following day, we departed early the day after to board the Rocky Mountaineer. This iconic train would take us via Canadian rails from Vancouver to Kamloops for an overnight stay and then on to Lake Louise and Banff. The tour bus dropped us off at the main entrance of Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.
I was not prepared for the grandeur and beauty of Lake Louise. In my opinion and from the outside, the hotel did not look as stately as the Empress or Vancouver Fairmonts, but once inside and walking through to the back, I was caught by surprise at the view of the lake and surrounding mountains through the arched window. Was that really a window or a picture?
It was indeed a window. Walking through the hotel and out the rear doors, we were simply in awe of the views that until now, had only been seen in online pictures. It was jaw-droppingly spectacular. When the sun was shining on it, the water was an emerald green from the sun reflecting on glacier particles formed during the melting process. I crouched down to take this picture to capture the brilliant flowers as well.
Standing closer to the waterfront and looking to the left in the boathouse direction was this encompassing view of Fairview Mountain shown below.
From Lake Louise, our tour bus drove a short ways, 30-40 minutes or so, to Lake Moraine, another glacier water beauty. Here you can better see the color of the water that was evident in both lakes. Moraine means the fallen rock debris that occurs naturally during weathering and as evidenced in the large piles at each crevasse base as the lake is aptly named.
The height of the pine trees on this trip through Western Canada impressed me greatly and yet with mountain views in the distance such as shown, they almost seem dwarfed on comparison.
My next post will include more on the Rocky Mountaineer train.
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