En Route to the Canadian Rockies
Fishing our way across BC The rockies have always seemed so far away from Vancouver. Maybe because our first few years here we drove the bus (and couldn't seem to get more than a few km out of town before it died), maybe because we always have so many fun things going on in Vancouver that it’s tough to pull away for more than a few days at a time… But we finally got a chance to go visit our dear friend Bailey (who now lives far, far away in Calgary) and experience the rockies with friends and there was no way we weren’t making this trip happen.
We headed out of town early Wednesday, hoping to secure a campsite for the guys, who weren't able to depart until after their workday. The extra time gave us a chance to pull off the road at a few stops we've been looking to hit for a while…most notably the quick hike into bridal veil falls…which didn't disappoint for only a short trail run in.
We meandered our way east, assuming we would have plenty of daylight left and had to of beaten most of the traffic out of the city, but as we passed salmon arm and our roughly planned stop for the night, every campsite we pulled into was packed. As we continued in and out of campground after campground we felt really bad that we were letting the guys down. It seems all summer every campsite we've experienced in BC has been epic and we knew they were hoping for a riverfront spot and some fishing from camp. Sadly, as the sun started to fall we still hadn't found anything and were running out of campgrounds and parks to try, so we grabbed to only remaining spot we found north of revelstoke.
The guys showed up a few hours later, we enjoyed the fire for a few hours and then crashed. In the morning we headed out in search of a place to drop a fishing line and stumbled upon the perfect spot. Wide open frontage on the river and only a few RVs within shouting distance. Jen and I went back to grab the remainder of our gear while the guys settled in and started fishing. Our next day and a half looked pretty much the same. Fishing, BBQing and sitting by the fire. A great start to our long weekend.
We finally packed up our homestead and headed east for Banff stopping at several side roads and rivers along the way to cast a line. Not much in the way of fish or bites, but didn't stop the effort, and while jen and I aren't huge fishermen it was a fun way to see the province and pass the time during the drive. We eventually realized how late it was getting and aimed straight for Canmore (a perfect launching point for exploring Banff, just a few minutes outside the park and much quieter than staying in Banff proper).
The vista and viewpoints along the drive as we got closer to the pass and entered the parks were simply jaw-dropping. First before even entering the parks, than in Yoho and even more so in Banff…we got more excited every mile we drove along the way. Pulled in late afternoon and checked into the AirBnB our friends rented for the weekend while we Jen and I setup our not-very-stealth camp in the vacant/abandoned lot across the street.
A few hours later Bailie and Dave pulled in with the gals in tow and our amazing, fun filled weekend finally got underway with the whole team complete. We tossed some hugs, walked a few minutes behind the complex to cast a few more lines, I caught another fish while watching the sunset over the river and we all headed back to catchup over a late happy hour.
