It would seem that I can't keep my self in the same valley for a week. As much as this summer has been full of family visits its also been full side trips. The family visits are nearly wrapped up, the nephew is still about but the more exotic visitors are absent. I will be doing my own visiting in a week. Next week I will head to Vancouver to cat sit for my sister who is else where.
Before I head off that way I have to catch up on the things that have happened since the last post. A week ago today I left for a business trip, not my business, mind you. I got invited to be a copilot for a long drive and moral support. This trip took me to several new locals. Valemount, Jasper, The ice fields parkway, and back over Rogers Pass a route I do know.
During this trip I saw some ducks, lots of mountains, a few Glaciers, geology and more geology. I had not traveled through the Rocky mountains, I do find it a silly name for a mountain range. It raises the question, what other then rock would you make a mountain out of on this planet. Or is there something inherently more rocky about the rocks in those mountains. Are the Alps made of wood, is the Grenvillian orogeny made of cheese, were the Trans-Hudsonian mountains made of bakelite plastic. Really I don't get the name.
Aside from my issues with the name they are awesome. That wonderful mix of exposed strata, structure and erosion. Its wonderful how the folds and layers make the mountain building processes transparent. I would like to give a special thanks to the Atlantic Ocean, Thanks for growing for the last 250 Million years, with out your hard work we would not have this view.
A few highlights from the drive. Athabasca Falls, water that will eventually work its way into the arctic ocean.
Athabasca Falls
Icefields including the Athabasca glacier. There is really too much from this trip to fit in one post and I may just have to do a photo dump after I write this. It was impress during the coarse of the trip it was pointed out to me that we passed through the upper reaches of 4 of the largest drainage basins of country. The trip started in Columbia River basin, moved on to the Thompson, which flows into the Fraser. At Valemont we moved back in to the Columbia basin, the town borders on the Kinbasket Basin, controlled by Mica dam. At the Junction from highway 5 to highway 16 we caught up with the upper reaches of the Fraser.
After Jasper we were in the Athabasca basin which joins the MacKenzie system draining an absolutely huge area. And if North america needed any more drained we passed into the Saskatchewan, which drains a hugh area before joining Hudson Bay.
Some Glaciers on the Ice Fields Park way
Now after all this its time for me to try to sort through the photos, now more the 5000, over 300 from this last trip and to find some goodies for this bit of adventure.
Mount Fitzwhatamigig
The Natural Bridge on the Kicking Horse river a nice place but don't go to Emerald Lake its a trap.
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