Our route from Glacier to Banff took us through Calgary, where we restocked groceries and refilled the gas tank. Gasoline is $5.00 per gallon here, which is about 25% more than we have been paying in the U.S. so far. Entering Banff National Park we got an even bigger shock; the entrance fee for the national park is almost $10.00 per day per person! Camping fees have gotten expensive as well - $27 per night for a tent site in a campground with flush toilets and showers; electricity is another $5 per night. I guess we have gotten spoiled by the Golden Age pass in the U.S., which gives us free admission and half-price on camping. Oh well, it is our kids inheritance that we are spending, not our money!






We decided to skip the village of Banff  and go straight to the Lake Louise area. On the way we came upon a lot of cars pulled over and people walking up to the fence that separates the highway from the surrounding woods. Stopping to investigate we found this grizzly bear; fortunately, there was a pretty sturdy fence between the bear and us. Several tourists took advantage of that to have their picture taken in front of the bear!







A little further down the highway we spotted this young elk browsing on some vegetation. His antlers are just starting to grow.









The Lake Louise area is so beautiful it was worth spending another day in the area. This is Moraine Lake, which is just a few miles from Lake Louise. It is not as well known as Lake Louise, but more beautiful in my opinion.







The registration area at the Chateau Lake Louise, which is a very classy hotel - sort of an upscale Ahwahnee or Old Faithful Inn. 







We opted for high tea in the lakeside lounge.  It was very nice.







View out our window at the afternoon tea. Since this is much earlier in the season than our other trips here, there is a lot more snow and ice on the mountains.







This harpist provided music during our tea - very nice.

Tomorriw we head further north to explore the area between here and Jasper.