4:00am. For me and Laura that usually means a flight to somewhere for the weekend. In Canada however, it means we're getting up to see the sun rise. Bleary-eyed we jumped into the Jeep with the Fam and made our way up into Banff National Park towards the famed Moraine Lake. It wasn't hard to convince everyone to get up that early, by the time we moved on at 8am the carparks were full, so 4am start was justified!
We arrived at the lake just shy of 6:30am, when the sun, having just rose, was kissing the tops of the a ten peaks. We raced up to the top of the moraine for the view and I set up the camera with a trigger-happy, Nat Geo enthusiasm.
It was stunning. The water was milky blue with lime stone particulate, the trees in dark green shadow, the opposite peaks a contrasting bight orange from the fresh sunlight.
The cold air clear air made it feel as if the whole vista was panted only metres away. Only the keen tourists were out this early and we all played a game of 'can you take my photo' - 'yeah sure, and mine too'. Dad made friends with a happy Japanese man.
Whilst the sunrise glow was still present we raced back down the scree to the canoes parked on the jetty by the lake. The classic, some would say cliché, shot - but it had to be done. It really is that stunning. Having happily filled our retinas with excess beauty we headed to Lake Louise, ten minutes down the road, and still early enough to get into the first car park. Our second timing win of the day. 10 points!
Getting there:
Moraine Lake is super easy to get to. Just head along Trans Canadian Highway 1 until you reach the turn off for Lake Louise. Carry on up the road until you hit the Moraine Lake turn off.
Go. Early. That is all I can say, if you want to see it with as few other tourists as possible then it's worth getting up early for. You won't be disappointed.
It's about an hour and ten from Canmore so check the sunrise times and get an early night...
On the way admire the animal crossings on the Banff Highway. The park fences follow the road and then break at these large overpasses that let wildlife cross the road without even knowing theyre doing so. Here is a really interesting video all about the awesome structures.
Labels: Canada 2017
