Only in Canada....

Today has been quite a day!

Our first destination was Maligne  Canyon, a dramatic limestone gorge with a series of bridges where you can stand and gaze in wonder at the water thundering through impossibly narrow gullies and basins. A most impressive sight and well worth a visit.

We then drove on up the road towards Maligne  Lake. We had been told that this is a good area for wildlife so we were eagerly scanning the verges on either side of the road....but then we saw vehicles in front of us screeching to a halt and people leaping out with cameras. We pulled over and finally got to see BEARS!! And not just any bears but a mother with three little cubs! It was a bit concerning to see people getting out of their vehicles and getting very close to take photos...we kept a safe distance although she seemed very unperturbed by all the attention. Anyway we managed to get a few good shots....no idea how as I was in a right state!

We continued on our way to the stunning Maligne Lake where we got to tick off another item on our wish list....canoeing! (Stop sniggering if you work at Crossdale) We paddled up and down the lake enjoying yet more stunning scenery and taking lots of silly photos of each other.

The drive back to Jasper ( have I mentioned yet how much I LOVE Jasper?!) gave us further wildlife sightings of mountain sheep and a couple of elk.

We had a quick shower and then headed out to town for some dinner. On the way we noticed that the Rocky Mountaineer was in town so wandered down to the railway tracks for a closer look. Luckily for us the Canadian Tourist board had provided a herd of elk grazing on the tracks to set off the view of the train.

After our pizza and beer we decided to pop back down to the railway tracks to see if the elk were still there. They were, and in fact one had wandered across and was happily grazing in one of the municipal flowerbeds across the road. We then enjoyed the entertaining sight of a couple of Parks Canada rangers rounding up the whole herd and chasing them out of town. You could not make this stuff up, it is priceless.