Bicycle Adventuring in Glacier, Banff, & Jasper National Parks

Immediately after returning from A Roadtrip Through California and Oregon in mid-July, I guided two trips for Bicycle Adventures.

The first trip was an 8-day ride from Glacier National Park (in Montana) to Banff and Jasper National Parks (in Alberta). The second trip was a 6-day ride through just Banff and Jasper National Parks. Both trips rode along The Icefields Parkway, a route I have wanted to bike for a number of years. There were two guides on the trips -- me and Laura (the head guide). We took turns every other day driving the van and riding alongside the guests.

Below are some photos from the trip:

Binoculars at Lake Louise.
This was my favorite photo from the trip.
I later saw this same image hanging in a hotel room where we stayed.
I guess I have an eye for a good photo!

Each day, the guests were greeted with a whiteboard
summarizing important information for the day.
Here's the whiteboard I created for the first day's ride.

And here are the marvelous guests from the 8-day Glacier-Banff-Jasper trip.
Back row (l to r): Mark, Marla, Paul, Pat, Chuck, Jena, and Rich.
Front row (l to r): Barbara, Dave, Patti, Stephanie, and Dianna.

The view from St. Mary, on the east side of Glacier National Park.
(Photo credit: Paul Scanaliato)

Somewhere between St. Mary and Waterton,
I stopped on the side of the road to remove my rain jacket.
These two doggies ran up to me and wouldn't leave my side.
After giving my new furry friends lots of ear and chin scratches,
I eventually said "goodbye" and pedalled away.

The crew waits patiently at the Chief Mountain border crossing into Canada.
I'm on the far left, in the gray shirt.

Our lunch spot in Banff, at Cascade Ponds.
I love the simple bridge.

In Banff, we took a short spin around Lake Minnewanka,
where we ran into this herd of big horned sheep.
(Photo credit: Jeff Glaser)

Me, at Lake Louise.

The whole gang, on our hike to the Plain of Six Glaciers.
Lake Louise is in the distance.

The canoes at Moraine Lake Lodge.

Here's a photo of the same lake and canoes -- from a different perspective.
I've included both photos because they are both beautiful in their own ways.

Me, above Peyto Lake, in Banff National Park.
Though the lake's colors are muted by the overcast sky,
Peyto Lake is known as the bluest lake in all of the Canadian Rockies.

Our lunch spot at Silverhorn Creek Campground.
We made a fire to help ward of the slight chill in the air.

Our lunch stop at the Icefields Visitor Center, in Jasper National Park.
(I'm in the blue jacket on the right, busily prepping lunch.)
You can see the Athabasca Glacier, one of the principal toes of the Columbia Icefield,
 in the back, left corner of the photo.
The glacier has been receding at a rate of about 16 ft per year.
The glacier has lost half of its volume within the last 125 years.

Raven and Laura took a tricycle for a spin at Saskatchewan Crossing.
Laura was the head guide on my two trips.
Raven was head guiding another Bicycle Adventures trip
that paralleled our trip.

I loved these colorful wildflowers along The Icefields Parkway.

And I loved this rainbow, proudly shining in the mist from the Athabasca Falls.