Banff Honeymoon

After a wonderful wedding it seemed hard to follow up with anything else but we had a great time on our honeymoon! Zach and I decided to do a road trip to Canada for a week with our dog, Lucy.

We started out with a night at the Nickums cabin at Fisher Creek near Stanley. The day after the wedding I was EXHAUSTED from all the activities of the wedding and could barely keep my eyes open. Luckily, Zach and Lucy had energy for our drive to Montana and we really enjoyed ourselves on the way.

Our first night camping at Swan Lake near Flathead Lake in Montana is gorgeous! I kept thinking it was just like a smaller Tahoe. The water temperature of Swan lake was unexpectedly warmer then Tahoe though. Then it was off to Glacier National Park via Whitefish, MT the next day. We enjoyed a long hike up Big Mountain, well aware of any grizzly bears that may be snacking on huckleberries or hiding in the lush wildflowers. Driving through Glacier National Park later along the "Going to the Sun" road, we devoured the views of snow covered peaks, high-mountain meadows, and local mountain goats. Amazing views! I think Zach took a picture of every inch of the park and our tour through it. That night camping was a lot more crowded then the previous night but we nestled in and were off the next morning to Canada!

Crossing the continental divide the day before the landscape was noticeably dryer on the road to Calgary. Suddenly our math skills were tested as well when we had to follow speed limit signs in kilometers and not miles...but don't worry mom we figured it out! Turning west from Calgary we headed towards the Canadian Rockies and into Banff National Park. Again the mountain peaks were outstanding and more grand then anything I have seen before. Who knew all this wonder and beauty was so close to home? We checked into our little hotel, the Juniper, which luckily allows dogs so Lucy-Lu could sleep happily next to us. They even provided a doggie bed and treats for Lucy to feel right at home. It was time for more hiking and again we warned constantly on the threat of grizzly bears. We tied jingle bells to Lucy and set out making sure to be as loud as possible so the bears were well aware of our presence. Elk, deer, big horn sheep, and large eagles crossed our paths but no bears. Obviously our bear alarm (Lucy) was effective!

Later Zach and I headed out from the historical Banff Hotel on our mountain bikes and moved along the Bow River. Lightly raining we had a good time (despite my forward roll down one section). We managed to make a short drive North to Lake Louise and visit the gorgeous glacial lakes. The water was such a magnificent Whipple blue I kept taking off my sunglasses to make sure that it wasn't them that were distorting the color. We hiked up to the tea house and enjoyed refreshments before our way back down. We followed up that hike by visiting the Banff Hot Springs that is open to the public and definitely used by many people. It was like sharing a bath tub with 50 of your closest friends. Wasn't sure about that at first but when in Rome....

Heading back from Banff we took an alternative route through British Columbia (again enjoying more lakes, streams, rivers, and mountain peaks). Crossing the border we headed down through Bonners Ferry, Sandpoint, and just before reaching Couer D'Alene we stopped at Farragut State Park and camped near Lake Pend Orielle. This camp spot was anything but quiet but we still managed to enjoy the beautiful lake.

After Lucy and I took a dip in the lake we headed down to Moscow to visit Zach's cousin, Lauren, and catch up over lunch. She filled us in on her new college life and even gave us a tour of the sorority house she lived in. Lucy was a big fan after about 15 girls managed to pet her non-stop. We headed farther south to camp at McCall that evening and enjoy our final night of our honeymoon under the stars.

To see our honeymoon route you can go here to see the map.