Just The Highlights, Ma’am

My daughter assures me that this was the best part of the trip across Canada:

She was also impressed with the ground squirrels, Richardson and otherwise:

To sum up, the best thing about Canada is apparently the abundance of small furry animals. She also was highly focused on playgrounds and opportunities for swimming.

These were the best parts according to my son. (Each of these is getting it’s own page/post/chapter as I work through the writing of the trip.)

I liked being outdoors for weeks on end, much to my surprise.

I’m not entirely sure which glacier this is, but we were hiking from the Illecillewaet campground. I claim in my notes that it is Walsh Glacier, and was named after some of the original explorers of the area, but I got that from the guide’s discussion while I was taking the picture, so I may have the details a little mixed up. It was, however, quiet and isolated. the river was glacial melt-water and too cold to touch, too fast to swim or canoe in, but beautiful to sit beside and listen to. There was a sing-along campfire the first night and a guided hike the next afternoon. I would go here for a whole week to rest and hike.

We went kayaking in Clayoquot sound, and I spent the next two days weeks trying to figure out how to move to Tofino.

My third pick is The Trees. Oh, the trees! (This photo is also from the trip to Tofino. Sorry about the light quality. I’m thinking a better camera might be a good idea.)

And the stuffies liked the top of Tunnel Mountain. Here they are having a good look at Banff:

Banff:

But what about Niagara Falls? Lake Superior? Kicking Horse Pass? Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg? The free performance of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet? I think I’m going to have to keep working on this.

Hey, did you know that Canada is really big?