It got cold
last night and we woke up to frost on the window. It was the perfect beginning for our trip to the Glacier—the final phase of the birthday adventure. And what an adventure it was! From Lake Louise, we drove on the Icefields Parkway, across the “backbone of the continent”—the crest of the Rockies. 
The road traverses through the mountain range, and the drive itself was dramatic, as we saw some of the highest mountains in the Rockies, along with many lakes, valleys, glaciers and icefields. There are more than 22 icefields in the mountains and supposedly you can see more than half of them from the icefields Parkway. We tried to pick them out along the way. We arrived at the Columbia Icefield station, and boarded a bus that took us to the glacier area. We then got on an Ice Explorer—a $1million vehicle with 6 tires, each 5ft tall and 3 ft wide!
The Ice Explorer took us down a narrow road and a steep (32 degree) hill and drove us out on to the Athabasca glacier. This glacier is as thick as the Eiffel Tower is tall! It was pretty unbelievable to think we were walking on a glacier!
This Icefield covers 85 square miles. The guide told us that it takes 100 ft of snow to create 1 ft of glacial ice. That provides perspective on how old this thing is. There were pockets of running water along the edges of the area we were walking in. (The guide also told us that ladies that drink the water become 10 years younger—I took several drinks!) Recent cracks have a bluish tint, due to the light reflecting off compressed molecules, (or something like that.)
We learned more new words…lateral moraines (tall heaps of rock and dirt pushed up by the glaciers during their movement forward); crevasses (deep valleys created by glacial cracks); cirques (deep bowl or dish type areas in the mountains created by glaciers that have disappeared)We also were introduced to SnowDome, which is a triple Divide—wate
r flows to three different oceans from this spot…Arctic, Pacific or Atlantic! (I just might have to become a science teacher when I’m done with this trip!)
We got a picture of the Lundcruiser with the glacier in the background.
It was an unforgettable adventure—thanks kids!
…on a sad note, a dear friend died unexpectedly this morning. He was a wonderful guy, always there with a kind word, a word of encouragement, a smile, a joke or a funny text. We will miss him, and send our love and prayers to his family. It is another reminder to all of us to cherish each day, and spend the time to enjoy life, and savor the time with those you love.
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