Index
Day 1 - Independence Day
Day 2 - Banff National Park
Day 3 - Night Market
Day 4 - Vancouver Airport
Canada: July 2019
Heard from some other hikers the previous day that Moraine Lake parking lot fills up early... thought about it the night before and figured it was for a good reason!
Since I'd already had one ridiculously early morning, what was a second one? Got up early and made it to Moraine Lake before the parking lot filled up, then hit the trail. It's very similar to Lake Louise, just smaller in scale. Only this morning was a little more forgiving with the sun, and there were several moments of brilliance through the clouds to show off the turqoise water and the mountains. Well worth it, even if the clouds fully moved in before I was able to hike up the rockpile.
Stalled as long as I could justify, hoping the clouds would lift... but then a horde of tour buses moved in and I decided not to wait any longer. The sun was still out at lower elevations such as Johnston Canyon, where the trail is partially bolted to the side of the canyon (!) over Johnston Creek. Pretty awesome, very scenic, and a nice change of pace from a day and change of glacial lakes. The upper falls, especially from the upper viewpoint, were unexpectedly grand-- much more spectacular than the name Johnston Creek lead me to expect!
Had Air Canada been able to manage an on-time departure, my flight might have managed to beat the clouds that drifted over from Banff... unfortunately that was not the case, and thunderstorms temporarily closed Calgary International Airport.
Fortunately, my next stop was Vancouver, specifically Richmond Night Market, and that is open late. Late enough that the lengthy delay in Calgary wasn't a big deal, and arrival was still early enough to catch some daylight for photos.
Skipped the shopping at night market and stuck to eating. Grilled meat skewers at Chef James Xin Jiang Man BBQ were tasty, the sushi tacos at Nori Taco were actually quite good, and the shaved ice at Mango Yummy was ridiculous overkill for one person. Unfortunately, did not try the souffle pancakes, Korean pork belly, pannacotta with Dokjok cookies, tofu pudding, or many other items-- simply not enough stomach space!