Jasper in July

July 8-10

Pyramid Lake

A latte to go from Second Cup was my final purchase before heading out onto the highway. I was on my way to Jasper for a couple of days camping before meeting up with the rest of the crew on Thursday to hike the Berg Lake Trail.

The drive was pretty much uneventful save for the sighting of a couple of magnificent-looking elk beside the road.

Elk

By 3:00 pm I had secured a campsite at Whistlers campground, a few km south of Jasper townsite. Once my tent was pitched I drove into Jasper to purchase some supplies. Back at the campsite I relaxed with a book and a Fullers London Pride until it was time to make supper.

After supper I drove to Pyramid Lake to get some sunset photos. Sunset was OK but not terribly remarkable.

Sunset at Pyramid Lake

Sunrise at Pyramid Lake

The alarm rang the next morning at 4:30 signalling it was time to get up for a sunrise photo shoot. I returned to Pyramid Lake to see if sunrise would be any more spectacular than sunset had been. It turned out to be marginally better.

Mt. Edith Cavell at sunrise

Pyramid Lake at dawn

Top of Whistlers Mountain

A little later in the morning I caught the Jasper Skytram for some spectacular views of the area. From the station at the top I hiked the remaining 1.5 km to the summit of Whistlers Mountain. It was a little hazy but the view was amazing. The mountain is named after one of it’s common inhabitants, the Hoary Marmot also known as a Whistler. While I didn’t see any marmots I did see a busy little ground squirrel.

View from top of Whistlers Mountain

Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel

Black Bear

For some sunset shots I drove up to Maligne Lake. On the way up I passed two pairs of black bears alongside the road. At sunset the light on the mountains was definitely better than last night.

Sunset at Maligne Lake

Elk sniffing my towel

This morning I slept in … a bit. I awoke to the sound of munching just outside of the tent. The only camera I had in the tent was my iPhone, my other cameras being in the car. I zipped open the flap of the tent a bit and stuck my phone out and managed to get several shots of the two elk that were grazing a few feet away. After a couple of minutes they had moved along.

Mount Robson Visitor Centre

By 9:00 I had packed up my tent and was on my way into Jasper for breakfast. Late in the morning I struck out for the Mt. Robson where I would be meeting up with the rest of the group with whom I will be hiking the Berg Lake Trail. Over the years, most times when I have driven past Mt. Robson it has been capped in cloud so I wasn’t too surprised to see it in this state as I drove up. I arrived at the Visitor Center a bit early so took a quick drive up to the Berg Lake Trailhead, about 2 km away. On the way I saw a black bear munching right beside the road.