Icefields Parkway and Canada Day

After almost a week in Golden, we headed northeast to Edmonton, the capital of the province of Alberta. The route initially passes through Yoho National Park before turning left onto the Icefields Parkway. This is the link between Canada's two most famous national parks, Banff and Jasper. You pass several lakes, all naturally turquoise, mountains and forests, and - as the name of the road suggests - a variety of glaciers. Unfortunately, we didn't have any sun that day, so the photos are a bit bland and colorless. I've selected some photos from 2015 when we drove the entire route and had sunshine. The difference is clearly visible 😄. However, the landscape is still impressively beautiful without the sun.

We quickly got stuck in typical Canadian traffic. The reason for this: two black bears right on the road. They were two young bears, probably siblings in their first year without a mother. They walked along the road the whole time in search of food.

At Bow Lake, we took a break and had tomato soup and bison chili. We had planned to visit Peyto Lake afterwards, but somehow we missed the exit. It was the fault of the two black bears, who had moved on and whom we had caught up with again. Of course, we had to join the line of vehicles again 😊. And because we were so excited to be able to observe these fascinating animals in the wild, we must have driven past the lake. But it doesn't matter, we saw it in great weather in 2015, so I've added the photo.

We then left the Icefields Parkway at about the halfway point and continued east. The landscape changes quickly, with a lot of agriculture and green fields and large barns. In addition, oil drilling is happening everywhere. We heard that Edmonton itself doesn't have much to offer. But because of its oil resources, it is a boomtown. Construction is happening everywhere, both in the city and in the metropolitan area.

On Canada Day, the national holiday, we went into the city. Canadians love their country and especially show it on this day. Flags are flying everywhere, and most people wear hats, t-shirts, or other accessories in red and white with maple leaf designs. Especially in a big city like Edmonton, you can see the different cultures that live here and that make up the country of Canada. And everyone celebrates this day together. There were stages and food stalls set up around the Alberta Legislature Building. Families spent the day in the park, and children played in the fountain in front of the building. Behind the parliament building, we found a smaller stage for the indigenous population. So we got to admire the clothing and different dances once again. The highlight of the day is a huge fireworks display, but we didn't watch it.