On the Way to Spirit Lake

Posted on December 17, 2023 by Grace Lessageing

Before driving to Spirit Lake we need to refuel the campervan. We’ve done this once, en route from Calgary to Banff, when we’d stopped at the service station where we should have turned off to go to MaCleans campsite on our first van day. I’d forgotten that to put fuel in your vehicle [here, as in the USA] you must first go to the counter and pay for it. This confuses me. Here in the UK, we pay for fuel after putting it in, otherwise, how are you supposed to know how much you want? On this previous occasion, when faced with the question, I’d said ‘I don’t know’, to which the checkout lady had suggested $100, much to my relief.

We noticed a couple of gas stations from the bus when we came into Jasper yesterday. We pull into one. This time we’d like to fill the van without having to say how much we are buying, but the self-service machine doesn’t explain how to do it. Lucky for us, the man at the pump in front is only too pleased to help us out. This is another occasion when we’ve been assisted by kindly Canadians- who we’ve found to be amenable and friendly wherever we go.

Then we’re off through Jasper, turning off and across a beautiful, rustic bridge and on to a winding road into the wilds. En route we round vast lakes and through majestic forests, but sometimes we’re confronted by huge swathes of burnt forest and land. It’s an upsetting sight and a sobering reminder of the devastation the summer wildfires have wrought.

We’re motoring along through a wooded area when something wonderful happens. We’re flagged down by a ranger’s vehicle a couple of cars ahead because a moose is standing in the middle of the road with her calf. We are all halted and have a ringside seat as the moose poses, unconcerned next to the ranger’s car and her calf scampers backwards and forwards across the road. Here, where we live in the UK, next to the New Forest national park we are used to waiting for the wild ponies to shift from their middle-of-the-road positions and often think they do it deliberately, so perhaps this moose is the same: ‘This is my home and you can wait!’ We are delighted to wait as long as she wishes.

After a while the calf runs off up the steep side of the road and the cow saunters slowly after. Then they are gone.Eureka! Now I believe there are moose here. But I still think the bears are a marketing ploy and that none live here at all- except perhaps in zoos. And we were convinced to buy a ‘bear spray’ by the lady in the tourist office, too! What a con!

Having lunched in a roadside pull-off by a lake, we arrive to our destination. There are several car parks but it’s busy and we need to go to the furthest to find a space, before walking down to the lakeside where there are shops, cafes and queues for boats. The early morning frost has given way to bright blue skies and sunshine, which bodes well for photos. The first look at Spirit Lake is a reminder of why it’s so often used in travel and holiday marketing brochures. It is simply beautiful…

To find novels by Jane Deans, Grace’s alter ego, search Amazon, Waterstones, Goodreads and other book sites. The Year of Familiar Strangers and The Conways at Earthsend are widely available. Visit my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063988575981

On to Calgary

Posted on November 12, 2023 by Grace Lessageing

We’ve had two nights in Banff and we must now go and fetch our vehicle for the next ten days, which means a trip to Calgary, a couple of hours away. In order to do this we need to pack up and get to Banff bus station, where we’ll be getting ‘Brewsters Shuttle’. The bus station is smallish but it’s clear which bay we’ll need to wait at. When the bus pulls in we meet our driver, ‘Pat’ who is both jocular and informative. We’re armed with lunch from the town deli, which we’re intending to eat en route, since the journey will be over lunchtime.

The bus exits Banff and sets off along Highway 1. This is a major route, the ‘trans-Canada highway’ across all of Canada from West to East, 651 miles. Pat, the driver knows a lot about many subjects, especially geology and seems to be an expert on the local mountains. Something that astonishes me is that once we’re away from the mountains- which doesn’t take all that long, the terrain is all prairie right up to the lakes on the other side of the country. But we’re not going that far, and before long we’re entering the outskirts of Calgary, with the winter Olympic ski jump tower visible on the right. This is to prove helpful in our efforts to navigate to and from Calgary!

As we get towards the centre, Pat begins dropping passengers off at various points, mostly hotels, but he is not able to drop us at ours, the ‘Fairfield Inn’, owing to the fact that there is no access for the bus under the railway line. We get off at the Fairmont, [another Fairmont!] and must find out way to the Fairfield- which feels confusing, but after asking and using my phone we set off in the direction of the Fairfield Inn. Central Calgary looks unremarkable at this point- high rise architecture but without the pizzazz and style of Vancouver.

Trundling our cases, we trudge to the hotel, which is supposed to be part of the Marriott chain, although I’d have expected something a little more upmarket, since it’s on a side street and decidedly lacklustre. Our room is clean but not large. The fixtures and fittings are cheap and nasty and the coffee cups are plastic single-use. It is adequate, though not as good as a Premier Inn in the UK, which is bog standard for hotels. Ho Hum.

But there is internet, which is vital for us this evening, because we must reserve a camping pitch for tomorrow night and we don’t have any resources except Google to find one, whcih must not be too far to reach in an afternoon. We won’t be able to collect the van until then.

We settle to the task, then it begins to become clear that we’d overestimated the simplicity of it. We can find sites, but they are seriously busy! Not at all the ‘low season’ empty state we’d been led to believe. Most are full. It’s a blow. What on Earth are we going to do?

I search and search, then find a site- ‘Macleans’ somewhere between Calgary and Banff, which we’d been planning to return to. There are pitches, albeit without electricity, and it’s vast, but I’m not able to reserve until I’ve set up an account, which proves impossible. In desperation I phone up- and beg the woman on the end of the line to stay with me until i’ve set up an account…and…phew! I get a pitch! Now for the next hurdle… and things become trickier than ever…

Grace is the alter ego of novelist and short story writer, Jane Deans. To date I have two published novels to my name: The Conways at Earthsend [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Conways-at-Earthsend-Jane-Deans-ebook/dp/B08VNQT5YC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2ZHXO7687MYXE&keywords=the+conways+at+earthsend&qid=1673350649&sprefix=the+conways+at+earthsend%2Caps%2C79&sr=8-1 and The Year of Familiar Strangers [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Year-Familiar-Strangers-Jane-Deans-ebook/dp/B00EWNXIFA/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2EQHJGCF8DSSL&keywords=The+year+of+familiar+strangers&qid=1673350789&sprefix=the+year+of+familiar+strangers%2Caps%2C82&sr=8-1 Visit my writer Facebook page [https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=jane%20deans%2C%20novellist%2C%20short%20fiction%20and%20blog or my website: https://www.janedeans.com/

Long Train Running On and On

Posted on October 22, 2023 by Grace Lessageing

The Rocky Mountaineer is the only passenger train to run on this route- into the Canadian Rocky Mountains, but it is a very well rolled route for goods trains- and they are incredible. Sometimes we rumble past one coming the opposite way, sometimes we must pause for one to pass and, on occasions when the line splits into opposite sides of a valley, we see one from a distance, snaking along on the other track, These trains are huge chains of containers- up to 30 and can be 3700 metres long, taking many minutes to pass by. They are interspersed with two or three engines as they ascend and descend in a slow and stately manner. I wonder what they are carrying? Once or twice we pass one with open trucks full of coal- a slightly depressing sight!

Having breakfasted, we return to our upstairs seats and it’s not long before the top deck stewards are coming round to take drinks orders. Basically, you can have anything you like. The two British couples in front odf us, who have hooked up now are making the most of the largesse and digging in by working their way through the cocktail menu.

The landscape has become progressively wilder, although not yet mountainous. There are huge, tumbling rivers, hillsides coated with conifers, deep gorges- sometimes spanned by a spindly bridge. The waters are a deep, greenish blue and often churning with sediment. Sometimes, when the Rocky mountaineer rounds the bend in a cliff we get to see the front of it- an impressive view.

I’m up on my feet for some of the time, attempting photos, although I’ve discovered that photography is not easy on a train. At times I descend to the footplate at the rear of our carriage, which we are permitted to do, with warnings not to stick any part of ourselves out! But it’s no easier to snap views from here-

It’s early afternoon before we’re called to lunch, which is, again a culinary masterpiece. You have to be impressed by the quality of the meals being served from such a tiny kitchen.

The remainder of the afternoon passes with views, anecdotes from the staff, drinks and snacks and dodging about to try and photograph things. After a long day of clear skies, sunshine and great landscapes, as the sun begins to sink in the sky I remember that we’ve had a very early start and in spite of sitting around most of the time we’re feeling weary.

We roll into Kamloops. It’s getting dark- and late as we clamber off on to the tarmac at Kamloops Station and on to buses. We’re not going to be seeing anything of the town due to the late hour. We’re bussed up and around into an area where there are some hotels then the coaches begin to pull in and disgorge passengers. We arrive to ours. One of the great things about the Rocky Mountaineer is that your luggage arrives independently [by road] and is placed in your room, ready for your arrival. There is no checking in, so we can get our key and go directly there. This is easier said than done, though, as finding the way there is tricky in our [by now] addled state.

In spite of not eating an evening meal I’m too tired to eat, wanting only to shower and sleep, but Husband goes down to the bar in search of some sustenance while I shower. I’m not altogether thrilled with the hotel, since when I return to the bathroom before turning out the light there’s a huge lake in there, meaning I must use every available towel to clean it up. Then the sheets on the bed don’t feel crisp and nice as they should.

All this adds up to a sleep impoverished night- a night which will end at 5am in order for us to assemble in the lobby at 6am. Horrors!

Long Train Running

Posted on October 15, 2023 by Grace Lessageing

Our bus pulls into Vancouver station, along with the rest of the coach convoy. But there’s no platform. We’re facing the tracks, upon which sits a magnificent, gleaming, golden train, its tall carriages stretching both ways as far as the eye can see. In spite of the early hour and my tiredness I feel a frisson of excitement to see it, this iconic train: The Rocky Mountaineer. This is to be our conveyance for two whole days.

On leaving the bus, we must locate our carriage- marked on our boarding cards. Outside each, tall, double-decker carriage there are two stewards waiting to welcome us by the footplate and we must clamber up the iron steps to enter the ground floor. Inside, looking along the carriage, there is a panelled ante room lined with sofas and beyond, a dining compartment where window tables are set for four with pristine white tablecloths and gleaming cutlery. It’s a heartening sight!

There’s a semi-spiral set of stairs up to the seating area, reminding me of the double decker buses of my childhood. We locate our seats, which are large and comfortable. Before the train sets off we’re given information and instructions. There are four stewards in the carriage- two up and two down in the dining car. In addition to this there are kitchen staff in the tiny galley area, producing breakfasts and lunches. Each carriage is self-contained in this way- it’s a massive operation!

We move off, a slow rumble through the outskirts of Vancouver, past sidings and rolling stock, here and there passing elevated railway tracks, warehouses and retail parks, It’s not long before the first diners are summoned- and we must wait- except that while we are waiting, coffee and warm, delicious cherry cake is served to us, which revives me, although I’m hoping it doesn’t spoil the appetite for what is to be a very posh breakfast.

After a while we’re in the countryside, crossing a bridge over a wide river, a ‘skytrain’ winding above us, or following alongside the river. The travel is punctuated by snippets of information from the upstairs stewards, who regail us with stories and facts from time to time. There’s also an upstairs kitchen area from where drinks and snacks are dispensed, served to us in our seats whenever we like, however I’m not inclined to embark on cocktail consumption at this hour of the morning.

The passengers in our carriage consist of many British with a smattering of other non-Canadians; near us are an Australian couple, a German couple and a pair from a village a few miles away from us in the UK.

When we’re called down to the dining area we filter along to fill up tables. Besides the tables for four there are two odd tables for two, either side of the aisle. The German couple slide into one booth and we sit in the other. This becomes the pattern for the remainder of our meals. I’m a little disappointed not to be able to socialise so much, although Husband points out that the chatting couples are so interested in their conversations they’re missing the scenery and the sights- which is correct.

Breakfast consists of a fruit and yoghurt starter and a choice of main course, all immaculately presented and accompanied by tea or coffee and fruit juices. It is all delicious. Outside, the rolling countryside slides past…

Anecdotage

Views from the Descent

Tag Archives: The Rockies

On the Way to Spirit Lake

On to Calgary

Long Train Running On and On

Long Train Running