Phew I finally caught up writing! Currently it’s 10:08pm of Day 3 of our trip and we’re waiting for the sun to set (not till 10:17pm!) and the stars to surface. Jasper National Park is the world’s second largest Dark Sky Preserve per the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. That status basically means the park meets light pollution standards and educates people about light pollution. So while I wait another hour or so after sunset for the sky to be truly dark, here’s a recap of today’s activities!

---

Day 3: Shape of Water

Today was a full day in Jasper National Park. First up, the Athabasca glacier. It was chilly so we got our hearts pumping with a jog up to the glacier. Towards the top, the path was steep with loose gravel so I bear-crawled on all fours. Dad found the smart route up, but I like to think my route was the exciting one.

Today’s theme is “Shape of Water” because of the various landscapes we visited that were carved by the persistence of water. The swirling sediments in the water are likened to a diamond drill that can slice deep canyons and scoop out pot holes. Sunwapta Falls was our first illustration of where water won over stone.

Next we visited Athabasca Falls. Here there was a combination of areas still dominated by water and others where the stone eventually became champion.

Lunch in Japser town consisted of not-so-simple subs from Patricia’s Deli. I opted for ham with pesto mayo, sweet chili sauce, beets, peppers, carrots, lettuce, tomato, and two-year cheddar on a crispy multigrain bun.

After skipping the chance to go boating during our tale of three lakes, we seized the opportunity at Maligne Lake. To fit all four of us, we chose the row boat. Row boats are tough work! Crystal and I displayed an embarrassing level of twin incoordination at first but eventually got the hang of rowing together. When Dad suggested we compete for who could row harder was when we rowed the straightest.

On our drive back from Maligne Lake, we also caught a view of Medicine Lake with looming rain clouds overhead.

The storm breeze gusted towards us over the lake, so back in the car we went and on towards Maligne Canyon. Fortuitously for us, the rain cleared by the time we arrived. We traversed four of the six bridges. Bridge #2 overlooked the deepest part of the canyon at 51 meters.

For dinner, we embraced Canadian fast food with A&W cod sandwiches, a double mozza, the teen, poutine, and root beer.

Update: it’s now 11:18 am of Day 4 on our drive back to home base in Calgary. Unfortunately, layers of clouds hid the stars last night. Better luck next time!