August 21, 2017 - headed towards Jasper NP

Just up the road from Lake Louise, Route 1 (Trans Canadian Highway), turns off to Route 93 and heads to Jasper National Park.  Within 100 miles, there is Banff, Jasper, Yoho, and Kootenay National Parks.  We headed up towards Jasper and stopped at the Glacier Discovery Center.  As usual, the parking lot was full.  It is located in the Columbia Icefields.

This picture was taken from across the road at the Glacier Discovery Center.   At one time, 1885, the land where the Discovery Center is, was where the Athabasca Glacier once was.

 This picture was taken from the side of the current glacier.  If you look back you can see the Discovery Center to the right and a little above the middle.  All the land in between was glacier.  It has been studied and believed that the glacier has lost about 60% of its mass since then.

The glacier as it exists today.

The stone in the lower pars is numbered 1982.

Up over the hill and looking back down the other side, still quite a ways from the beginning of the Athabasca Glacier.

The rock under Tom's feer bears the scars of glacier movement.

 About 54 miles above Lake Louise towards Jasper is Peyto Lake.  Of all the lakes we viewed, this one had the richest Aqua coloration.  It was however, the highest up of those we saw.

 A panograph picture of the whole lake.

 The western end where the rock flour as it is called enters the lake.

 The rest of the glacier up the valley still looking west.

As today was the eclipse, it seemed like we were continually driving into clouds, and saw none of the eclipse.  We did get back to Lake Louise and took pictures there, some which were used in the blog for the 22nd. 

This day was spent well above the mile high altitude and called for warmer weather.

Thanks for keeping an eye out for Grammie