Yoho National Park

Along the TransCanada Highway #1, past Banff and before Golden is Yoho National Park.  We spent one day going thru the main stops at that park. It was one of the places I'd wanted to go to for a long time, as it's astoundingly gorgeous and seriously, who doesn't want to hit up as many National Parks as possible on Canada's birthday year! 
Yoho is unlike Banff in that it is not nearly as touristy and it does not have copious campgrounds or places to stop - there is a little place called "Field" but other than that, no place to get gas, groceries or even a coffee.  Yoho, along with Glacier Glacier National Park are very rugged and wild, undeveloped. It's bear territory, so I was slightly on edge ;)  There are some well known and well marked stopping points - waterfalls and such - but not days and days worth of stuff to do unless you do back country hiking or hiking which is not suitable for small children.  But we had a very enjoyable day seeing the highlights of the park. First up was the Natural Bridge.

We had to hang on to all the kids here as we felt a little nervous about the water!

Beautiful views!

Our big van was put to the travel test and it passed with shining colours! We took four seats out and had tons of room in the back for all our gear. 

Next stop was further down the road, Emerald Lake, which is kind of like an... emerald coloured lake and is the largest of Yoho's lakes.   There was a trail that went all the way around but since it was difficult to take the stroller (for some reason we had decided to take the stroller instead of the backpack carriers) on parts of it I turned around with Abby, Rowan and Marla while Andy continued around it with Seth and Tristan.
There is a tiny holiday village at the base of the lake and it is so cute I'd like to stay there someday:) 

We like to read all the signs and pull over at the viewpoints to learn as much as possible about the area so here we pulled over at a viewpoint for the spiral railway tunnel.  It was difficult to see, but thankfully Seth had his trusty telescope along.
Spiral tunnels are a little hard to discribe but are essentially a tunnel built into a mountain which is circular to overcome a steep incline. They are quite remarkable (called an engineering marvel!) and were built in 1907 copying Swiss designs.  It's in the Kicking Horse Pass which is the most impoertant Pass in the Canadian Rockies.

The final stop and stroll for the day was the Takakkaw Falls, which are about 900 ft. of gushing water. "Takakkaw" loosely translated from Cree means "It is magnificent" and it was a magnificient, we could hear it thundering from the parking lot already which was a good km away.
Parks Canada had set up red adirondak chairs through out Canada for the 150th birthday celebrations and encouraged people to take pictures and share with the hashtag #sharethechair.  Andy and I got right in on the fun and posed at as many chairs as we could find.  😁  It looks so calm and peaceful but don't be fooled... the kids were having a hoot and half behind us and we were saying between smiles "Quick! Are you done yet Tristan??"  |Photo credit to Tristan.

Same chairs. Different persepective/direction. 

White Water Rafting - Kicking Horse River

So in typical style, the boys had everything researched and events planned out before we even left so
high on the list was White Water Rafting.  Turns out the Glacier Rafting Company was only open for two more days due to the sinking levels of water on the Kicking Horse River (which happens every fall) so it was high on the priority list and was accomplished on Wednesday.  What a neat experience and alot of fun for them!  It was a six hour trip, including the bus rides and practicing, a bbq lunch and the trip itself. There were two trips that could be done, one was more family oriented and this is the one Seth and Tristan were allowed to do.  There were two class 3 rapids.  The distance was 12 kilometers. 

 

Cutest rafters of the day 💗

I think Tristan was a bit nervous to go and Seth also had a bit of apprehension, but they couldn't stop talking about it and were beaming from ear to ear when they came home.  They can't wait to go again!

At the end of the trip there was a bbq lunch.

Kicking Horse Resort

September brought our family vacation!  It was something we had looked forward to for a very long time.  We hadn't been away from the farm for an extended amount of time since we had gone to Ontario in April of 2015.  And there is something so refreshing, mind cleaning and eye opening about going away and recharging, it's reinvigorating!  Before we left we were a little anxious about leaving it all behind - the barns were full of chicks, but we had hired help - another first for us.  We knew we needed to go though as Andy and I were feeling uptight and exhausted about everything. In short, we couldn't wait for a change of scenery. 
I'm not writing the above to say to anyone that we aren't/weren't happy.  But we came home after 11 days thoroughly refreshed and with new vision, new goals and seeing the bigger picture once more.  It was so nice to get some space from the little area we call home and to enjoy what God has given.  Its so easy to get caught up in bills and the mundane of everyday, chores and yet more chores, and so when we were fed one Sunday by a faithful pastor from the book of Ecclesiasties on enjoying what God gives as he gives it to be enjoyed it was another good reminder to find time to bathe in sunlight, relax, laugh and slow down and really enjoy what He has given - without guilt! - including take-out coffee and road tripping in this beautiful world. 

First stop in Claresholm!

Five hours of driving and we made it to the BC border - thru Banff and Lake Louise. 

Our destination was Golden BC. Just a tiny town along the Trans Canada highway past Yoho National Park, before Glacier National Park.  Golden has a beautiful ski resort (Kicking Horse Resort) 14 km up into the mountain side and that's where we found a beautiful condo.  The location was perfect for day trips in all directions and the condo was luxurious and big enough for days at home.  We got a good deal since it was "off-season" and it was a lovely way to roll into school, which we did accomplish some of.

Stay tuned for our adventures....
:)

Bylsma Wedding

Yes, Bylsma with a "Y".  Andy's cousin Dianne (who grew up where we now live) married Adam and we were invitied to the wedding which was fun for us as basically it was a date. I even had to get a babysitter for the oldest four kids for an afternoon and evening (which we literally never do) and it was such a beautiful occasion :). It was an elegent, yet simple, summer wedding. Blessings on your marriage Adam and Dianne, thanks for letting us be part of your special day!

Marla was our sweet companion, in her newly made dress and headband. Our little princess!

Dianne looked radiant!

Andy's Aunt Binne and Uncle John Stegenga from Ontario were in Alberta for the wedding. They also came for a coffee to our place. It was good to see them.  💓

Crowsnest Mountain

{Post from Andy}

The Crowsnest mountain can be seen while driving through the Crowsnest pass along Highway #3  For travelers who are coming from BC towards Alberta this mountain seems to stand all alone like the Lonely mountain in the Hobbits tale. The mountain was originally named by the Cree Indians due to the ravens that nest in the area.
Ever since I saw it for the first time I imagined the beautiful views you will behold from its lofty peak. After having looked into the matter it was clear that it could be scaled without too much difficulty. One of my friends from church (Ewoud) who also has a love for mountains and hiking agreed to come along and together we decided we would scale this landmark.

Since there were no signs we had to do some route finding. At a higher elevation we could follow the cairns. A cairn is a human made pile of rocks that are put along the trail to guide you.

On our way up we had a view of the seven sisters, its northerly neighbor.

There was an easier piece about three quarters of the way up and here we are looking down on the sisters.

 The top of the mountain has a commanding 360 degree view.

One of the rock bands we had to climb through was secured with a fixed chain to aid hikers.

Once back at the car we had a good cup of coffee and could cross this mountain off our bucket list. Mission accomplished.  Thanks Ewoud, can't wait for the next hike!  

Family Photos 2017

"This is the day that the LORD has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."  Psalm 118:24

Wishing you all a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Picture Credit; Ashley M Photography - Taber Ab.