Lake Louise to Kamloops

Trip Start Jun 04, 2010

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of Canada Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada
Friday, June 11, 2010

Headed west over the Continental Divide through Kicking Horse Pass and into Yoho National Park. We were lucky enough to be able to watch a train travel through the Spiral Tunnels, constructed in 1909 for rail safety. By spiraling through the mountain, two tunnels increased the length of the climb, thereby decreasing the original rail slope from 4.4% to 2.2%. With the train beating us into Field, we could not get across the tracks into this mountain town built for the purpose of providing a roundhouse for the extra locomotives used to help the early trains over the pass. While we found the access road to Kakakkaw Falls still closed for the winter, we enjoyed exploring the area of Natural Bridge, over the emerald green waters of Kicking Horse River.

After lunch in Golden, we headed west toward Glacier National Park and were passed by a motorcycle speeding along 'like there was no tomorrow.' Just as we passed over the Mountain/Pacific time zone, we lost the hour we had gained by sitting in stalled highway traffic waiting for the arrival of a medivac helicopter to life flight a motorcyclist who had lost control coming down a steep grade into Glacier National Park's eastern gate

Canadian Pacific Spiral Tunnels in Yoho

. Don't know if he lived to see another tomorrow... it was haunting.

Drove under the avalanche tunnels and over Rodger's Pass in the center of Glacier National Park. Walked along the interpretive boardwalk that winds through a rain forest of ancient Western Hemlocks. Passed through Albert Canyon and into Mount Revelstoke National Park. Experienced the wetlands on a thirty minute 'Skunk Cabbage Boardwalk' trail. West of Revelstoke we traveled forty miles along the shores of Shuswap Lake and its arms, surrounded by the Monashee Mountains and spent the night in Kamloops.

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Spiral Tunnels Viewpoint	Entrance into the mountain	Exit from the mountain	Model of the Spiral Tunnels
Kicking Horse River outside Field	Mountain village of Field	Natural Bridge over the Kicking Horse	Natural Bridge
Close-up at Natural Bridge	Outside Golden	Waiting for the medivac helicopter	Glacier National Park
Avalanche Tunnel in Roger's Pass	Hemlock Grove	Glacier National Park	Skunk Cabbage Trail
Shuswap Lake	Outside Kamloops	Outside Kamloops