Dog Days Are Over

Our fifth day in Banff will be one not to be forgotten!

We were collected from our hotel by Banff Discovery Tours mid morning and drove the scenic Bow Valley Parkway route to Lake Louise. It had been snowing all night and there was no sign of it quitting throughout the morning. The further we ventured towards the lake the more magical the winter wonderland scene become. It also made the drive fairly slow going and I think the kids may have even nodded off for a short nap.

We arrived at the meeting point for Kingmik Dog Sled Tours and were greeted by our guides and 80 or so dogs all eager to get mushing! We split up, Ad and Lioney hopping into one sled while Aubs and I snuggled up into another and away we went. Once we were moving the noise lowered and we could really immerse ourselves in the moment. Gliding along through the forest with snow gently falling we felt like we were living a dream. We traveled as far as the BC border (about 30mins) and then turned back. On the way home Aubrey jumped on the back with our guide and drove us home. We stopped briefly and swapped kids. Lionel wanted to ride with Mum and Aubs quickly jumped on Dads sled to show off her sled driving skills! Dog sledding is a must do activity for families and we highly recommend the team at Kingmik Dog Sledding.

Our tour bus arrived just in time with cookies and hot chocolate to warm us up (Dog sledding is a very chilly exercise) and drove us up to Lake Louise in heated comfort. The lake looks completely different in winter compared to when I last saw it in summer but it’s impossible to say which season is more beautiful. Summer time you can experience the amazing turquoise water in its full glory but winter is a sight to behold with ice skaters and hockey players out on the lake with snow softly falling.

Given that we had a overnight stay scheduled at Lake Louise the following week and we had spent enough time for the day in the cold we decided on a late lunch at the Chateau to take in the view from our table rather than be out amongst it.

Afterwards we bundled up again and had a quick explore of the frozen lake and play in the snow before making our way back to our bus for the ride home.

Feeling tired from our big day and not overly hungry from our late lunch we took advantage of the IGA across the road from our hotel and had a very easy dinner of noodles in our room.