We’re here at the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, and it was the second day in a row that we were buzzed by a balloon! (Although they don’t have engines so instead of buzzing, is it hissing from the gas and flame?) .
We came it Balloon Fiesta last year, and were just amazed by the magic of the event. So one week after it ended, I made reservations to stay on site this year. It’s been a long year to wait but we’re finally here and surrounded by the action! As I log in to work in the morning, I look out my windows to see balloons flying all around us. And we had five land in our parking lot just this morning! Really excited to be able to spend the upcoming weekend out on the field, experiencing everything, from the mass ascension to the glow. If you’ve ever been to Balloon Fiesta, I’d love to hear your favorite events or moments!
Our final hike in the Canadian National Parks was a random trail we found, as a last attempt to take in as much of the park as possible. We left Jasper and had six hours of driving ahead. I really didn’t want to spend the last day of vacation just driving, so after pulling up the AllTrails app, I chose a short hike along our route.
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As we approached Parker Ridge the parking lot was full. We circled a few times but nothing opened up. There was a line of cars perpendicular to the rest, making up their own spots. Lucky for us, the front of the line was just big enough. We pulled in, backed up, and stole the last remaining space. There’s one big benefit of a small RV!
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The trail was steep, as the switchbacks took you up the side of a ridge. I thought we were headed to the top for mountain views. Boy was I surprised when we saw this!! Not only were we surrounded by incredible mountains, but we were looking down on a huge glacier and valley. I was just awestruck. It’s hard to find words to describe what an amazing view. Jasper and I hung out on the ridge for literally two hours just relaxing and taking in the sights. Thank you Banff for sending us off with such a finale!!
For a majority of our trip, we camped in parking lots. Usually that’s not too glamorous, but these ones were quite different! The Lake Louise Overflow Parking was only a 15 minute drive to the lake and trailheads. It was filled with travelers of all types, from car camping, to school bus conversions, to vans, to huge RVs. It had such an amazing feeling of togetherness and there were so many interesting people to talk to. Then the Columbia Icefield parking lot provided 180 degree views of mountains and glaciers outside the RV windows. But when we finally checked into a regular campsite at Wabasso Campground, Jasper went CRAZY for the grass. Needless to say.... he spent all evening laying and rolling around outside 🤣.
After spending some time in the town of Jasper eating poutine and enjoying the local lakes, we had to drive 45 minutes back to our campground. There was this snow covered mountain in the distance and since Jasper loves snow, I wanted to see if we could get there. It ended up being Mount Edith Cavell, with more glaciers!
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We parked at the trailhead and walked to the overlook. You are able to hike down to the glacier lake or over to the waterfalls, but dogs aren’t allowed. Which worked out well as other hikers had just seen a grizzly on the trail about 10 minutes before. So Jasper and I just stayed at the overlook and enjoyed the view for a long time. The couple who took our picture asked what the dog’s name was so they could call him to look at the camera. When I said Jasper, everyone at the overlook smiled and tried saying hi to him. Funny part was Jasper became a mini celebrity as the next day we were hiking up to a ridge and a couple pointed down the trail at us and said “Hey Jasper!”
