minimalist lifestyle and travel
Location: Around an hour’s drive from Calgary, Alberta, in the Canmore area just outside Banff National Park.
Elevation: 2481 metres
Round-trip time: 3-4 hours
Difficulty: Easy (a great scramble for those who are nervous about heights!)
Height gain: 816 metres
Round-trip distance: 7.6 km
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Location: One hour away from Calgary, Alberta, in Kananaskis Country just outside Banff National Park.
Elevation: 2193 metres
Round-trip time: 4-6 hours
Difficulty: Moderate (due to the crux, which is about 2/3rds of the way to the peak and is avoidable)
Height gain: 788 metres
Round-trip distance: 5 km
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When I moved out west, the mountains were a big factor in the decision. Knowing that you can escape for a weekend to a place of sandstone and shale, snow caps and glaciers, expanses of evergreen, bears and deer, is enough to cure any working-day doldrums (that’s the first time I’ve ever used that word, I don’t know how I feel about it).
This past week, my parents came to visit me. It was my first time seeing them in over a year, and their first time in Alberta. When you come here, you have to head to the Rocky Mountains, so that’s what we did.
Banff and Jasper are huge parks with plenty to see. In order to cram in as much as possible, we spent a lottt of time driving. Fortunately, it’s not a dull drive.
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