Back in the Rockies

I only have half an hour until the Jasper Public Library closes, so I'm posting a bunch of photos to Flickr and will give a quick update here. (I know - life is so busy!).

Let's see, where did I post last? Ah yes, Grande Cache, Alberta, home of the Canadian Death Race. We did a lovely hike there, to the meeting of two big rivers, and the next morning set out early for Jasper National Park. It's a holiday weekend in Canada (and speaking of which, why don't we have a long weekend in August in the US?). So the park is very, very, VERY full. But we secured a decent campground with a little crick running through the back.

We're all happy to be back in the mountains. The dogs are happy. Yesterday an elk wandered right by, I mean like five or six feet away. I stood with Nelly, murmuring calming things to her, and her whole body thrummed with a kind of hum, but she didn't bark or growl. She might just have enough sense to know that a 600 pound animal deserves some respect. Toby, on the other hand, yowled and barked and pulled. Those of you who know him know he's more of bark-first-think-later kind of guy. The elk turned her big, dark eyes at us, and went on grazing. We had a similar encounter with mountain goats today.

It's very hot here, hitting 30 each day, so keeping the dogs cool is a big part of our routine. We try to get up in the morning and do a 2-3 hour hike early to beat the heat and the crowds. Then we picnic somewhere nice. We run a couple errands in town - which almost always includes ice - and then retreat back to the campsite for a group siesta. In the late afternoon, there is another outing focused on getting the dogs a swim. Jasper park runs along the Athabasca River valley, so there are lots of places to swim. Lots of nice lakes as well. Then it's a leisurely dinner and early bedtime.

We're here until Monday, and then we'll wind our way down the Rockies along the Icefields Parkway and through Yoho National Park again; then home by Saturday as planned.