Lake Louise, Banff Nat’l Park, June 21, 2011

What a wonderful day we had in this beautiful, scenic country!  We arrived at Lake Louise Campground this morning and visited (or tried to visit) Lake Louise.  There was road construction and tons of people so we turned around in the parking lot and left.  We then visited Lake Moraine.  Very beautiful!  But nothing compares to Lake Louise.  We went there after supper and what a surprise!  A little history: Lake Louise showcases the main range of the Rocky Mountains.  Tom Wilson, a horsepacker for The Canadian Pacific Railroad survey, heard a roar of a distant avalanche.  Edwin Hunter, an Indian, told him it came from “snow mountain above the lake of little fishes”.  The next day, Edwin led Tom to the Lake.  Tom was the first non-native person to see it.  He was so impressed by the color, he called it Emerald lake.  In 1884, the lake became known as Lake Louise  in honor of Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, the 4^th daughter of Queen Victoria.  The color of the lake comes from minerals in the glacier rock which is ground to a fine flour called rock flour.  The color reminds me of our beautiful Florida Keys.  The glaciers surrounding the lake make it one of the most famous photo destinations in the country. 

I know this is just a sample of the beautiful sights we are going to see.  Tomorrow we are going to Jasper, another great park in Canada’s beautiful Nat’l Parks.  See you then!