We drove back into Te Anau to get a weather update for the area, which was looking better as the days passed. From Te Anau we took the Milford Road north and once again took in the amazing views, from meadows and lupin lined roads, glacier formed valley’s to the mirror lake and mountains forming around us.

 We did a half day hike to Lake Marian which was a tough 3 hour return hike signposted around 7 km from Gunns Camp. We passed over a swing-bridge which led us through forest and to a pretty immense series of waterfalls. The track was steep with a few scrambles up trees and rock fall but the effort was well worth it, and chatting to a few locals they had been informed by a guide that this was perhaps the best half day hike in South Island, New Zealand. A statement!!

Lake Marian is in a hanging valley formed by glacial action, reflecting the Darran Mountains surrounding it. We waited for the low cloud to lift and a few blue spots of sky joined us too. It was pretty amazing and we worked up a good sweat along the way. Heading back was much quicker and less of an effort but we still had to be careful as parts of the path was slippery and steep.

When we left the parking area we drove down to Gunns Camp which had been recommended to us by friends Vic and Dave. It’s a quirky place with a lot of history and a free museum for guests which is well worth a peek. We learned a little about the legend of Davey Gunn aswell as taking some time to photograph the campground with it’s cabins and funny oddities lying around the place. It cost £12 each to stay in our van and they have good cooking facilities and a spacious common room. We enjoyed cooking a pretty fabulous dahl which was taken from the Wholemeal Cookbook purchased in Takaka. We know it was good because our American friends tried it and were raving on about it too! ha ha!

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

We were at the skydive office in Franz Josef nice and early only to receive the information that we wouldn’t be skydiving that morning!! We thought as much because the cloud was low! Instead of committing to a dive that day we said we would be in touch if we felt the weather was changing enough for us to warrant spending the $399 it would cost for the skydive. They also have a strict cancellation policy with 50% of the cost of a dive lost if you cancel the same day. We didn’t want to commit to that!

So we explored the glaciers at both Franz Josef and Fox Glacier Village. The Franz Josef Glacier is perhaps the more visually appealing as we had good views unto the top of the glacier area, even through broken cloud we got a good perspective on the scale of the glacier. The walk takes about 45 minutes from the carpark and we hung around at the viewing area waiting for some more clear sky so the sun could shine through. This didn’t happen so we made a move back to the van and onwards to Fox Glacier. As a village this is perhaps the prettier of the two alpine resorts, we felt it has a more relaxed pace and enjoyed our afternoon working on the blog at the Hobnail Cafe.

Later on we drove to Gillespies Beach having decided to hold off on the skydive. It’s quite a drive along a gravel track heading towards the beach from Lake Matheson, there is a DOC camping area at the end of the track very close to the pebble beach. When we got there we were one of around 5-6 campers already parked for the night and by the evening the parking area was full and more tents popped up. This is a free campground so that explains it’s popularity but it is in a very beautiful location.

Before long Uta and Oliver arrived and we shared a lovely evening meal together, this was followed with a walk out onto the pebble beach which in itself is wild and wonderful. The sunset was captivating and after a while the clouds lifted and we could see the mountain ranges ahead. It was truly wonderful! We fought off the hoards of sandflies and lit a fire alongside the ocean. Pretty poetic!

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

Our journey from Jasper to Banff was pretty spectacular to say the least. We took the Icefields Parkway which has been voted time and time again by the National Geographic as one of the world’s best drives! Eric stopped a good few times along the route, our first stop being the Maligne Canyon, a unique river system which provided us with good light spectrums across the water. Moving on from there we continued along the Parkway and stopped for a few photos at Mushroom Peak and surrounding mountains swell as a pretty cool 2 van group shot!

Our next stop was the Athabasca Glacier where most of the group had been booked onto a glacier hike. We decided to save our pennies and took a walk to the base of the glacier noticing that most people were walking to a certain point so we walked up the glacier a good few hundred meters and took in the breathtaking views.

When we were back in the van we thought we’d made the right decision in not taking the tour as most people were annoyed with the tour guide as well as just wanting to get on the glacier and see it! When we left the area we spotted a few more bears and got a little aggrieved with stupid tourists getting out of their cars and getting as close as possible to them in order to get a snapshot. THIS IS NOT GOOD!!!

The journey overall was pretty long and we arrived in Banff just in time to grab some pizza from Ardvarks downtown before getting to the campsite to set up the tents. The evening ended in the Rose & Crown in Banff centre with beers, live music in the form of a hillbilly/folk and reggae act (we think they were called Drunk ‘n’ Dissorderly!). With a little influence from Shaggy we were all bopping on the dance floor, something much needed for us both!

On the 4th we had a day to ourselves, this started with a visit to the Visitor’s Information in town followed by a trip to another laundrette. We took it pretty easy and after some food, a walk around a very busy labour weekend fuelled town we went for a walk unto the Sally Borden Centre and had a refreshing swim. No tourists in sight (other than us) it was bliss! And they have some great photography exhibits there too. Helen ended the day with some yoga at the Rocky Mountain Yoga centre whilst the rest of the group shopped for more food.

The next morning we were up early ready for a drive over to Lake Louise via a coffee house in town. Along with Marian the 3 of us decided on a big hike for the day which accumulated in around 17km taking in tea houses, mountains, glaciers, woodland and meadows. This was a brilliant walk mixing in steep ascents with excellent views across the valley. Lake Louise is best viewed from above at one of the many vantage points, you’ll really see the true colour of the lake from above, most people tend to linger around the bottom and sit outside the not so French Chateaux. We really enjoyed the loop and got back to the van after a good 6 hours of hiking.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

On the 31st were up early once again with a longish drive to Jasper on the itinerary. We stopped off along the way at various sites such as Mount Robson, the tallest peak in the Rockies, and walked a 2 hour hike to the glacier lake which provided us with stunning views and reflections. When we arrived in Jasper our first stop was Robsons supermarket where we stocked up once again on a few goods from our group kitty. The kitty per week cost 70 CAD each and Helen paid 50 for a vegetarian inclusion.

Our campsite ‘Whistlers’ is located around 4km from Jasper town and we were welcomed with a good size campsite next to the shower block! Our first night in Jasper was spent around the campfire and our cooks were Leigh, Marie and Rhainnon who cooked up a fab bolognaise with cookies for pud!

The following day was a “free day” so Eric drove us into town to the visitors centre and where he would be pick up later at 5.30pm if a bus ride to the camp site was required. Most people, including us, headed straight for the laundrette. After much spinning and a little time on the internet we collected our items, deposited them in the van and hired some great mountain bikes. 24 CAD from Freewheel Cycle for three hours was a worthy investment as the two of us and Marian headed into the woods. There are lots of bike trails in this area that stretch for many miles, easy, moderate and difficult. We accidentally took a difficult trail up hill which was a killer, but we all loved all 25k of it. No Bears were spotted but we did see Elk on the trail and in the river.

It was our turn to cook dinner, so we headed back to camp early and cooked up a Vegi Thai curry, marinated chicken thighs and legs with rice. What better way to end a strenuous day than with a soak in a natural hot spring. 6.50 CAD is a bargain price and with two hot pools and two cold, it was a soothing end to a great day in Jasper.

Early starts are never pleasant after a nights sleep in a tent and at 6.30am quite difficult for some! The early start was needed to get us to the Edith Cavell Glacier before the hordes of fellow tourists arrive. First to arrive we headed on the short walk to the glacier and lake which we spectacular in the morning sun. Hiking onwards we walked through alpine forests, lush meadows, sleet, snow and strong winds to a high point where we could look over the valley. This was a great 12k hike; a real highlight so far on our Canada tour!

Lunch back at the campsite consisted of left overs from the night before and then a trip out to Lake Maligne where along the way we spotted our first Black Bears on the road side, a mother a two cubs. Other people did not seem to appreciate the dangers or the risks to the welfare of these animals and got far too close. We photographed from the van! After a walk around the lake and a hot chocolate to finish we headed back to camp for a BBQ. An early night after our long day. Tomorrow Banff.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)