Day 4. Banff. Monday 23rd December

Andrew and the kids managed a 12+ hour sleep while Christine was awake for a few hours in the middle of the night still due to jetlag. Chelsea woke up unwell and spent the whole day in bed sleeping with a high temperature, sore throat, head ache and vomiting. The sun doesn't rise until after 8:45am here with sunset at 4:30pm so there is plenty of darkness. Christine had the first tumble on the ice and not only bruised her pride but also her elbow and backside. After breakfast we caught the shuttle bus into town to spend a couple of hours wandering along the quaint main street. It was filled with endless souvenir and gift shops with the odd bakery, clothes shop and restaurant/pub We were mainly looking for Christmas wrapping paper but couldn't find any anywhere. We finally found a Dollar Shop but wouldn't you know it a customer was paying for the last roll they had. However, with the temperature getting up to a balmy 3 degrees, at midday, and not dropping below -2 till after 3pm it was a nice day for a walk. Occasionally there would be a very light snowfall which Jacob and Cameron would get very excited about. We headed back to Hidden Ridge and did a pile of washing. After a late lunch we stripped off to our bathers and went for a soak in the 40 degree outdoor hot pool amongst the snow and  mountain views. The chilly air made for an invigorating dash in and out of the pool. We finished the day with a bowl of spaghetti and watched Christmas movies on 'cable tv'.

Banff avenue.

Another pool with a view

Brrrrrrr

Alone at last