June 5-8, 2024.
I had been looking forward to Jasper National Park as an alternative to the hectic and overcrowded Banff. I’d heard it had wonderful scenery, great campgrounds (with free firewood!) and lots of incredible hiking. But a number of things conspired against me. First, I was still SICK. Second, the weather was not great. Lastly, it was still early season so much of the hiking was locked up in snow. Nevertheless, we had some great moments in this vast National Park. Here are some high- and low-lights.
Columbia Icefield
After a day of work in a day-use parking lot, we drove excitedly to the Columbia Icefield. I knew there was a giant parking lot where you could camp overnight, and while it wouldn’t be enjoyable we’d at least have pretty scenery.
We arrived in on-and-off snow flurries with no view of the icefield. No matter, let’s head inside, I thought. There must be an interpretive area or visitor center. When we opened the door to the main building, it felt like we had entered a crowded mall. People were standing in line at Starbucks, lingering in the hallways in packs and shoving their way into the gift shop full of tchotchkes. Bored attendants stood behind desks where you could book guided walks, bus tours and other curated experiences. We found the bathrooms and then hurriedly returned to the van. This was not it.
The next morning, the skies cleared enough for us to see the glacier. There it is, and we are outta here.
Kerkeslin campground
After some driving, we found some breathing room by way of the first-come, first-served campgrounds. We pulled into Honeymoon Lake and found it half full, so we continued to Kerkeslin. The sites right near the lake were all full, but the remaining sites were practically empty. We picked a spot with enough of a clearing for Starlink and paid for two nights. It felt so good to be back in some quiet.
We walked to the river’s edge just to stretch our legs. I was absolutely floored by all the wildflowers! I eagerly squatted down here and there to get a look at the local flora. I punched all the clues into my Alberta Wildflower Search app (Android or iOS) to try and identify the unfamiliar ones. I found elephant ear lousewort, paintbrush, vetch, butterwort and a few I couldn’t figure out! The sun’s reflection off the water was so strong I had to look away from the gorgeous river and stay focused on the vegetation. We made a little loop through the woods back to our campsite and made preparations for dinner.
Before we settled down, we walked to the huge pile of community firewood that’s available to registered campers. We amassed enough wood to last for the night and Aaron started chopping. I made another fire in the morning. Considering how long we’ve been on the road, we’ve hardly made any campfires. This was a rare treat. The sprinkles chased us back in the van both days, but this is a great resource available at many Canadian government-run campgrounds.
Athabasca Falls
We took one detour from the campground to Athabasca Falls. It was beautiful, but it was too overrun with tourists to really enjoy it. There was a tour bus in the parking lot that had flung all its occupants out onto the short network of trails. They were vying for the same handful of viewpoints, not to look at and appreciate the falls, but to take selfies. I was already grumpy upon arrival but this did not help.
I’d recommend coming here early in the morning, before people are out and about. Several walkways offer various viewpoints of the multi-level waterfall, an old rocky river channel and the turquoise river below.
Town of Jasper
Jasper was far, far, less crowded than Banff and I actually wish we’d chosen to spend more time there. We found an incredible business combo called 3Sheets. There, we shopped for art and stationery supplies while DOING OUR LAUNDRY. The laundromat combos we’ve discovered on this trip are usually on point. This was no exception; they even stayed open late just so we’d have enough time to throw our clothes in. I highly recommend a visit!
Freshly clad in clean clothes, we walked to Syrahs for a nice dinner. On this day, we celebrated Aaron’s last day of work before his one year sabbatical! Truly a cause for celebration. I had an incredible halibut meal and Aaron had a steak. The food was good, service attentive and environment fine. Besides the grocery store (packed, stressful, chaotic) we didn’t really see much else there. It has all the amenities you’d imagine in a tourist basecamp, but for us it was simply a place to do some chores before moving on.
Jasper Sand Dunes
As we high-tailed it north to the Alaska Highway, I positioned the Milepost on my lap. The Milepost is an extremely detailed guide that covers all the major highways to/from Alaska as well as the Alaska highway system itself. Multiple people told me before starting this trip that I must acquire this book. As Aaron drives, I look up to check the milepost (km in Canada) on the road and compare it to where we are in the book. And sometimes I notice things that are worth stopping for.
As I looked a little ahead on our route, I noticed an entry for “Jasper Sand Dunes”. WHOA! Let’s check that out!
We found a small dirt pullout with a pit toilet and enough room for several vehicles to park. We exploded out of the van and wandered along the use trails in the dunes. It felt so weird to be walking in the sand in the middle of this massive mountain range. I poked around at the shrubs and flowers, we took in some views of the forest, dunes and snowy peaks and watched a small herd of bighorn sheep grazing on a grassy dune nearby.
That would be our last stop in Jasper, as we had over 2,000 miles to get to Fairbanks by the end of the month.