2 Months to go. Sunday 20th October 2013

Wow, we can't believe that in 2 months today we will be on our way to Canada. In the last couple of weeks we've managed to buy some snow pants and jackets that were on sale. We've already booked the Alcatraz Island night tour in San Francisco, as apparently it sells out weeks in advance. We have also booked for a Dog Sledding tour a couple of days after Christmas in Banff. Looks like great fun. Nearly all of our accommodation for the trip has been booked and paid for as is the 3 different hire cars. Yesterday I read that this winter should bring above average snow falls for the western side of Canada and that mid to late December temperatures will be below average. I think we are in for a big shock. The December averages for the Banff village is 44cm snow fall over the month and max daily temp of -5 degrees celsius and Min of -15! But heaps more snow up on the mountains around.

The 32's with 2 weeks to go! Sunday 8th December

Day 1. Perth to Calgary. Friday 20th December

Finally after years of dreaming and planning we set off on our next BIG holiday. As to be expected, we did have a couple of hiccups. The first being before we left the our own driveway. Our wonderful  Travel Agent friend, Jenny  had organised a nice shiny black limo van for the airport transfer at 9pm. By 9:20 and no sign of the van we got a feeling that the relaxing part of the holiday wasn't going to happen for a while. A couple of text messages later we found out that the limo driver had his days mixed up and wasn't coming till the next night! Deep breaths, it's ok we'll just get a taxi. NO, a taxi big enough for all of us would take at least 30 minutes to arrive. That plus travel time to the airport would get us there after the boarding time. More deep breaths! Luckily our house sitters were there so we jumped in our cars and drove ourselves and then they returned the cars back home. We arrived at the airport boarding gate with 10 minutes to spare. Not even enough time for that relaxing pre-flight red wine. We got to Sydney at 6:30am and used the train to the International Airport where we had breakfast with our Sister in-lawn Rebecca & her kids and Christine's sister Sharon who had come out to see us. It was a lovely quick catch up and the kids loved seeing their cousins again for the hour or so before we needed to go through customs. Chelsea obviously thought it was time for another hiccup, so she vomited on the tarmac while boarding the Fiji bound plane. The ground staff were hesitant about letting her board but there was no way we were going to miss that plane. She perked up and slept much of 4 hour flight. We had a 3 hour stop over in a wet and steamy Fiji. Chelsea was sick again on the Fiji to LA flight but luckily used the paper bag. We had a 4 hour stopover in LA before boarding plane ride number 4 for Calgary. We arrived at 7:30pm to a chilly -14 degrees and snow everywhere. It was very pretty seeing the houses with Christmas lights and snow from the plane. The last hiccup for day 1 was our hotel wasn't going to let us all stay in the one room. After explaining that perhaps that should have been brought up when the room was booked in July and we had a confirmation letter with the details they very kindly gave us a room with a inter-joining suite for the rollaway bed. After a dinner and a much needed wine and a shower we hit the sack. Phew


Sydney Airport Breakfast with Aunties and Cousins

View from our Calgary room

Day 2. Calgary. Saturday 21st December

Our first experience at -15 degree day wasn't too bad. We hit the shops when they opened at 10am to go in search of gloves, beanies, scarves and boots. Our hotel is in Downtown Calgary and therefore it was only a 5 - 10 minute walk to the closest shopping mall. After a wander around it soon became obvious that if we were shopping for designer label clothing, this was the place to come. After explaining to a nice salesman that we are tight Australians didn't want to spend a fortune on gloves and boots, that would only be worn for a week, we hit the icy footpaths and train to seek out bargains. Our first stop was Mountain Equipment Cooperative (like Anaconda) for the gloves and beanies at clearance prices. Bargain number 1! We then ventured, via a 15 minute train ride and a 15 minute walk, where probably not that many tourist tread - Value Village, a Salvation Army style store that sells donated goods. 4 out of  5 of us needed suitable footwear for the below freezing temperatures and sneakers weren't going cut it. Half an hour later 4 pairs of brand new second hand warm waterproof boots walked out the door for less than $20 each. Bargain number 2! We headed back downtown to the hotel for a rest and a warm up before having tea at a nearby Irish pub and finished day 2 with a swim in the hotel pool. The 20 story hotel is very nice with fantastic views from the gym & pool on the 18th floor. After a bit of research we have found out that the adjoining suite  we are using for 1 rollaway bed and our luggage would normally cost $1500 per night( we only paid the standard rate)! Bargain number 3!



Downtown Calgary



A warm hearty Irish dinner

A real life Gingerbread House in the hotel lobby 

Swim with a view

City lights with ice skating rink

Day 3. Calgary to Banff. Sunday 22nd December

Andrew and Christine woke up early, thanks to jetlag, at 1am after only a couple of hours sleep. Both spent some time reading, tossing and turning, reading some more and trying to get to sleep. Thankfully there was a 'domestic' going on right outside our room so that kept us entertained for a little while until we had to call security to come and sort it out. Christine managed to get back to sleep but Andrew struggled a bit. Luckily the hotels free wifi, gym, pool and spa  kept him occupied until everyone else work up at 9am. The Calgary Tower was less than a 5 minute walk away so we decided to fit that in before we had to leave. It was built in 1968 and stands at 190 meters high with an observation deck, revolving restaurant and a continually burning gas torch that can be seen from 15kms away. Thankfully, a thick fog had cleared to a thin fog which helped make the view impressive. One part of the floor was glass that you could walk out on to and get a great view straight down. We headed back to the Hyatt, grabbed some breakfast ,checked out of the room and caught a taxi back to the airport to collect the hire car. Andrew watched the taxi driver like a hawk to try to get an understanding of driving on the 'wrong' side of the road. We are now the proud renters of a large 7 seat Dodge Caravan that has plenty of room for us and our 4 bags. The initial challenge was trying to work out how to open the boot. Turns out it was frozen shut as it was a rather chilly -18 degrees.  Using a borrowed GPS, that directed us to take the shortest route - not the easiest, we drove along main arterial roads, through Calgary suburbs and finally onto the main highway heading to Banff. The driving advice Andrew had received from many well meaning friends and family was "keep the centre line on the left and be careful when turning at an intersection". The extra challenge of driving in Alberta in the winter is the 'kitty litter' all over the roads for grip and therefore the centre line isn't always visible. All passengers were great and kept very quiet until we hit the freeway when Andrew could relax slightly and even turn the radio on (more stressful that driving a fire truck to a fire). The scenery along the way was beautiful with endless fields of snow and huge snow covered mountains. We arrived in Banff early afternoon after the 130km drive and found a supermarket for supplies for the next few day. We are staying at the Hidden Ridge Resort, a couple of kms out of the town centre, in a self contained loft  apartment/lodge with 3 queen beds and a fold out sofa bed. No children have to share a bed this time. Yay! We checked in and found our apartment and had a personal greeting at our front door by an elk. When we entered a Christmas tree was all lit up ready for us to decorate. We have a magnificent view  from the balcony of the surrounding mountains. After unpacking our bags, the kids decorated the Christmas tree, we started the fire, had an early dinner, watched a bit of tv and were all in bed by 7:30.



View from the Calgary Tower



The glass floor in the tower



Some random Calgary suburb.



Plenty of room for a family of 5



The look of a focussed driver



Highway towards Banff



Our home for the week (Upper Left hand side)



Our welcoming party

Christmas tree & Fire Place, now the wait for Santa

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

Day 5. Banff. Tuesday 24th December

Hiccup number 3 - Chelsea has tonsillitis! Christine took her to the local doctor first thing in the morning and after a couple of hours came home with antibiotics and our cash card lighter by $300 . Hopefully our travel insurance will help out with a refund of some sort upon our return home.
Chelsea spent the rest of the day in bed. She normally responds well to antibiotics so hopefully she will start to improve soon and can join us for all the festivities on Christmas Day. Andrew and the boys went and played in the snow, had snowball fights, made snow angels and explored the surrounding 'bush'. Fortunately the bears* are hibernating . Unfortunately the only wildlife spotted was a cute little squirrel. With Canada being 18 or so hours behind NSW & SA we called family to wish them all a Merry Christmas.  After dark we went for a drive along the main street to have a look at the pretty Christmas lights that made it feel like Christmas Eve .  After a light tea of scrambled eggs and toast Christine and Andrew went for another soak in the hot pool and met some Canadians (finally, most people here come from some other country ) who were at the resort overnight for Christmas. They were fascinated that we had travelled all this way to spend Christmas in Banff and then spending another 3&1/2 weeks in the US. We found our way back to the room and settled in for the night watching Indiana Jones with Cameron. Eventually we all fell asleep dreaming of Santa's impending visit.

* Don't miss the hyperlinks


Jake and Cam preparing to fight

Fire at will! (Who's Will?)

Cam's Angel

Banff town centre in the valley. 

Banff Avenue

Day 6. Banff for Christmas. Wednesday 25th December

Finally, after years of planning, the day arrived - a White Christmas! Well, technically, as it didn't snow in Banff on Christmas day, it's not a real 'White Christmas'. But there is snow all around us, so it's close enough. As usual the kids got up early and thankfully Chelsea was feeling much better. Santa had obviously read Cameron's letter and knew where to find him and left some Christmas presents for him. We all got some holiday spending money in cards from family (thank you x). Andrew received a 'go-pro style' sports video camera to get some action shots over the next few weeks and the kids gave him a rebel sports voucher, Christine got an engraved necklace with the kids names on it and the kids gave her season 4 of GLEE! The kids got Lego, dvd's, cd's and a few other bits and pieces. Cameron is looking forward to when he gets home though, because Santa has left him something on his bed! After waffles, with maple syrup and ice cream for breakfast, we headed for the  Banff Gondola that took us up 2281m above sea level to the summit of Sulphur Mountain. The views were breathtaking. Christine and Andrew braved the windy -12 degrees to walk 1 km to an old weather station on the peak of the mountain. Because we were wearing thermals and layers it wasn't too bad, except for the bare skin on our faces and hands when trying to take photos. We re-joined the kids in the café for coffee, hot chocolates,' fries' and poutine (a common Canadian dish, originally from Quebec, of chips, gravy and melted cheese curds). We left after a couple of hours just as some low cloud came over the mountain range and the place became inundated with tourists! Our next Christmas day activity was tobogganing down a slightly smaller hill. After a lengthy line up at the ski hire shop we hit the slopes. It was great fun but proved to be a bit rougher than expected. Perhaps it would be smoother on new fresh snow? The toboggan hill was next to the grand 125 year old Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. We all had a turn and some liked it better than others. Andrew and Jacob certainly got their money's worth. Christine, Chelsea and Cameron were quite happy to watch after they each had a couple of turns. Chelsea and Cameron tried their hand at building a snowman but the snow was too wet and wouldn't stick together well enough to build one. We headed back to the resort and freshened up for Christmas dinner, which would be back at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. We managed to book a couple of months ago for the family Christmas buffet in one of their magnificent dining rooms (the Alberta Room) and we weren't  disappointed. The food was great and plentiful though we did feel slightly underdressed in jeans. With 768 hotel rooms, and all those guests wanting Christmas dinner, we were thankful we took an early booking as the line up to get into our dining room for the 8pm sitting was huge. There also seemed to be a bit of tension in the air from some of the waiting guests so we were lucky we had the earlier booking.  After dinner we spent a bit of time wandering around the hotel marvelling at all the dogs that were guests (yes! they could bring their pets to stay at the hotel - in the rooms) and learning about the history of the hotel and soaking up the atmosphere. The hotel seemed to be never ending and there were countless rooms to explore. Many of the rooms were being used as dining rooms and the type of experience you had depended on what you were willing to pay. We chose the 'Family dining experience' which had entertainment and suited us very well. About 9.15pm we caught the bus back to the resort and turned in for a very well earned rest.

Christmas morning Banff style

On the way up Sulphur Mountain

A cold walk to the weather station on Sulphur Mountain

Sulphur Mountain

Looking down on Banff



The top of the Gondola on Sulphur Mountain



All part of the Rocky Mountains

What a view!

Christine on her way down

Just before we went out to Christmas Dinner

Day 7. Banff. Thursday 26th December

Chelsea was finally feeling better, and wanted to go outside after breakfast and play in the snow followed by a soak in the hot pool. It was good to have her almost back to 100% again. After an early lunch we were picked up by a mini bus and driven 40 minutes away into the hills near Canmore to go Dog Sledding. We booked this some months ago knowing how popular it is and were all really looking forward to it.. The 'tour' started with introductions to the dogs and then a run down on what commands are required to drive the sleds. Christine and Jake teamed up in one sled and Andrew, Chels and Cam in another. There was a total of 16 sleds with tour guides strategically placed between every 2nd or 3rd sled driving people that didn't want to drive themselves. The tour route went through the beautiful countryside along a sometimes bumpy track for a few kms before heading back to the start via an ice lake and more tracks next to a river. Andrew and Christine drove the first half. Each sled had 6 dogs and they were all very, very excited to get going. In fact they were so hard to control for the first couple of minutes that Christine was quite worried she wouldn't be able to handle them. Once we got started though, she found the dogs and the sled very easy to control. At the half way point Christine swapped driving with Jacob and Chelsea joined Andrew as a driver. (Both Chels and Cam were not heavy enough to be solo drivers). After a couple more kms Chelsea and Cameron then swapped over. The funniest most serious part of the day was when Jacob lost control and fell off the back of his sled while trying to negotiate a corner over some bumps. That left a petrified Christine sitting in a driverless sled and she was worried she'd end up in the middle of the ice lake. Luckily the tour guide in front of Andrew saw what had happened and managed to catch the runaway sled. Most of this hilarious commotion (but not the fall itself) was captured on Andrew's new camera that he was wearing attached to his sunglasses. Jacob can be seen walking/jogging back to the sled.  See this YouTube Link for a laugh! (It's only a low resolution video as the high version couldn't be uploaded on the hotel WiFi.)  Jake managed to hold on the rest of the 'ride'. We finished and thanked the dogs for their great work and enjoyed a hot apple cider and a cookie around a fire. It was a great experience and another memory that none of us will forget. We returned back to our accommodation and Andrew and Christine spent some time in the hot pools for a well deserved soak, while the kids caught up with their friends via various social media sites. For dinner Andrew cooked steak on a BBQ in the -3 degree evening. We lit the fire and relaxed in our lodge watching tv until we couldn't keep our eyes open any more.

Chelsea starting her snow angel.

Chelsea and Cameron behind the Hidden Ridge Resort

Andrew driving with Chelsea and Cam, enjoying the Dog Sled ride

Christine in control of Jake

Follow the leader

Dogs having a well deserved rest

BBQ'ing in -3.

Day 8. Banff. Friday 27th December

Andrew got up early to get some nice photos of the sunrise over the mountains and not long after that we headed off for the 60 km drive to Lake Louise. A local had told us that by driving on the Bow River Parkway as opposed to the National Highway we would see some wildlife. The kids were keen to spot a Moose, Elk or Mountain Goat. Andrew was looking for a Cougar (and found one sitting next to him) and Christine a Hugh Jackman (Wolverine). After 90 minutes of driving along another beautiful scenic road we managed to see a total of one Chipmunk! Oh well, the scenery alone was worth the drive. We arrived at Lake Louise to an overcast morning that wasn't too cold (only -3). The gorgeous Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise sits proudly on the banks of the lake and is very popular all year round with canoeing in the summer and ice skating in the winter. It took us a couple of minutes to actually locate the lake but once we did we understood why it was such a popular destination. Christine and Cameron looked around the hotel and dreamed of coming back to stay and Andrew, Chelsea and Jacob went ice skating. In the middle of the rink is a castle sculpted out of ice. The kids and Andrew managed to walk out on the ice to the castle before they went skating but Christine wasn't feeling brave enough, having slipped on the ice a few days ago. After a couple of hours, hot chocolate, latte (which wasn't very nice) and some tea we went on an hour long horse drawn sleigh ride along the bank of the lake to a frozen waterfall. On the return leg the snow began to fall. It was very light to start with and was quite magical and as we pulled into the hotel on the sled it started to get heavier and the temperature seemed to drop. We ate a basic lunch of potato chips and fruit in the car park while we were waiting for the car to heat up. By this stage the snow had started to fall a lot more heavily and didn't stop until we arrived back in Banff late in the afternoon. We drove back to Banff along the highway and soon found out that 'Max 90km/h' actually means 120 km/h+ to the local Canadians. Again the day finished with another soak in the hot pool, this time in the snow.

Sunrise at Hidden Ridge Resort

More sun rising at Hidden Ridge Resort

Spotted on the scenic Bow River Parkway was a Dodge Caravan full of wild Lanes.

Ice Castle on Lake Louise

 Kings and Queens of the ice castle

Christine's future holiday house

Ice skating on the worlds most beautiful outdoor rink

The kids and our sleigh

Us on the sleigh

Frozen waterfall

It's snowing at Lake Louise