Disclaimer: this is quite a detailed journal of the trip, means a lot to me, but may bore the hell out of someone who was not there. While the memory of a memorable trip is still fresh in my mind let me try to reminisce an amazing journey through the Canadian rockies,

Day 1: Flew into Calgary and drove down to Banff in the afternoon, settled down and had a nice lunch in the bedrock of some amazing of glacier capped mountains.

Calgary Airport Immigration Lines

Sulphur Mountain View

Started the trek up Sulphur Mountain with wifey, took 2 hours to get up there but the view was well worth it, even though there was a gondola going up there. This was the start of the hike everyday phase. Pretty neat that wifey could take the toll of it, more to come later. Came down and pretty much headed into downtown Banff a neat town with great cuisine and wonderful people. Had a wonderfully satiating dinner at a fondue place, don't miss this fondue place in Banff(Grizzly House), the meats on the hot rock were the highlight.

Priya Sulphur Mountain

Both of Us

Spectacular Lake Louise

Day 2: Checked out of the hostel with shared bathrooms thankfully with no issues, and headed on to the heralded Lake Louise and it was pretty spectacular, with the the Victoria glacier that feeds it hence the name, (Louise was Victoria's daughter) and the peaks surrounding it like Mount LeFroy and Mt. Farview.

 We did the Lake Agnes trail. After seeing the sights of Mirror Lake and Lake Agnes, I left Priya behind and began my ascent up to the Big Beehive.

On the way up the Big Beehive

Pretty much the same view with the both of us

The views of Lake Louise from the Big Beehive were just mind-blowingly spectacular. Its a very steep but short climb to the top. I then headed down to the plains where we met up again and headed onto Lake Moraine.

Valley of the Ten Peaks, hike that I will come to back to, amazing site

Another glacier fed lake surrounded by spectacular mountains, with beautiful azure (blue green) waters.

Mirror Lake on the Beehive Trail

 Near the teahouse at the end of the Beehive trail

Pretty much the same spectacular view at the end of the Beehive Trail

We then moved into our abode for the night the Lake Louise youth hostel and amid the rains headed out on Bow Valley Parkway(1A) to see the sights and sounds.

Moraine Lake, what a site to behold

We got lucky with the weather again and finally decided the Johnston Canyon hike up to the Upper Waterfalls. While the lower waterfalls lookout takes your breath away, the upper waterfalls are a spectacular sight too. Also the eroding of the canyon as the water runs through it is a amazing geological phenomenon.

That's me on top of  Lake Louise, wonderful feeling

View from the top of the Big Beehive

Crowfoot Glacier

Walking on the glacier

Both of us on Athabasca 

Day 3: The day we hit the the Icefields Parkway(93) to get to Jasper. Amid the glacier capped mountains, we first stopped at the Crowfoot glacier. Then after numerous stops due to the breathtaking scenery headed towards our Icewalk on the Athabasca glacier. It was a novel and surreal experience walking on the glacier, seeing the mill wells and crevasses. The Columbia Icefields staring at us straight ahead. An extremely pleasurable cant miss experience, we were blessed with good weather too.

Views from the Tramway

Maligne Lake

Bear and it's cubs

After this decided to head straight to Jasper since we were running low on gas and check into our B&B. On the way there we finally saw a bear, Priya almost jumped out of her seat, a beautiful black bear with her 2 cubs was grazing peacefully alongside the highway. It was quite beautiful amid the chaos of the people in their cars straining to take pictures of it, admittedly I was one of them. Reached Jasper with some beautiful memories of the Parkway and its sights and sounds and got some gas finally. After this headed out to Gertrude's B&B, where we were gonna stay for the next 2 days.

Bear at the trek

After taking tips from here regarding things to do, decided to do Old Fort Point and then Pyramid Lake. Took the loop trail to Old Fort Point and were meandering along the trail without the faintest clue that this could be bear country. Suddenly when a family of people were returning from the trail, one of them told me there was a bear on the trail and hence they headed back. We went ahead with extreme trepidation and after 100 mts met another dude who was quite shaken up and told us he saw the grizzly 50 feet from where we were. We decided to think about this but then we met 2 other people who were not convinced to go ahead either, finally when 2 more showed up we went ahead with a little more gusto. True enough we saw the bear 200 ft down, what a sight a beautiful brown coat and much bigger than a black bear. We stayed away from it, it was peacefully grazing and went on to enjoy the view from Old Fort point. After this adrenaline fueled trek we then headed towards Pyramid lake and after lazing there called it a night. On the way back from the lake saw a family of about 20-30 elk in full view, it is quite a sight to see wild animals.

View from the Top of Opal Hills

Day 4: Greeted by rain on this morning put our plans in a binder but we decided to try and stick to the hike we had planned, Opal Hills on top of Maligne lake, it was extremely steep as is characteristic of a lot of trails in the Canadian rockies, braved some rain, to be rewarded with the best view I have seen on top of a mountain.  It was awesome, I decided to head on ahead of our co-hikers to climb the next mountain ahead but decided to come back after it got too cold and lonely after climbing it. There was another peak to be conquered but it was freezing.

After this we headed to Maligne lake, another lake with all the characteristics of a rockies lake, spectacular, azure, glacier fed and nestling in the valleys of glacier covered peaks, and had lunch. Onwards to Maligne Canyon where the river had carved some spectacular limestone ridges. The first bridge was particularly rewarding where there was a very pretty waterfall. We started at bridge 5 and went up to bridge 1, as the trail guide had recommended and upon reflection concluded that they knew what they were talking about.

Day 5: Headed out back on 93 back north amid plans to visit all the spots I had missed on the way there due to gas running on empty and the glacier walk.

Magnificent Edith Cavell

Started with the tramway upto Whistler's mountain. It was expensive to take the tram and they bunched up atleast 25 people in there, but when we got up there it was very nice. Trek up to the top of Whistlers and you could see beautiful alpine wildflowers and also a view of Jasper City and all the lakes surrounding and also Edith Cavell and a lot of other peaks. The cloudy day did not help picture taking but the hike was well worth it.

Cavell Pond

We then headed to magnificent Edith Cavell, even though the Cavell Meadows trail was closed, a glimpse of this statuesque picture perfect mountain sends shivers down your spine. We did a short hike to Cavell pond which should be renamed "imagine paradise" pond, it was a brilliant light green in color and had little floating icebergs in it fallen down from the so aptly named Angel Glacier that graces this so beautiful of mountain peaks. It just felt that this was the perfect moment for time to stand still. 

Then we moved on to another short hike Valley of the Five Lakes, the lakes were pretty but this is one trek that can definitely be avoided. Then moved on to the Athabasca Falls, an extremely powerful and breathtaking falls. After being wowed by it saw the Sunwapta falls which were pretty neat but paled in comparison even though the gorge it fell into was nice. Then went to see Peyto Lake, what a sight to behold. Blue, beautiful and brilliant, just like the picture I had imagined. Now we had other concerns find acco for the night, we found a nice hotel in Yoho NP where the price was not through the roof and turned in after a nice warm meal.

View from the top of the tram at Jasper

Day 6: Got up bright and early to try and get on the Lake O'Hara bus, made 2 unsuccessful attempts to get on the bus one at 8:30 and the other at 10:30 amid visiting Takkakaw falls, which is quite stately and awing. Then headed off to see Emerald Lake and Natural Bridges. The bridge is very novel in that the water and the rock consorted in such a way that the bridge was formed. At Emerald Lake we canoed for an hour in the green waters and it was peaceful and serene with all the peaks and trees reflecting on the still and calm waters.

Natural bridges

Takkakaw Falls

Peyto Lake

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Emerald Lake kayak

Priya on the Lake

Emerald Lake

This was how the trip ended and we headed back to Calgary to fly out the same day, a nice and serene way to finish a truly inspiring, relaxing and awing sojourn through the heart of the Rockies.