Left Burns Lake on our new schedule of 8:30AM departures (dreaming, I know). We arrived at Mount Robson info center and took in the cloud shrouded hills in the background. This is the entry point to the Jasper area, still 100km up the road but with Robson on the left (4000+ m) and Mount Terry Fox on the right it forms an entry gate towards the east. Mount Robson is obscured more than 75% of the time but we did get a few glimpses and they suggested awesomeness awaited. We arrived in Jasper at 4:30PM (now on mountain time) so driving was on mostly good roads.

We headed to the info center in this cute little town and spoke with a park employee. He gave us all the info we needed, formal and informal as well as where to eat and drink. He also filled us in on the losses of park jobs under Harper, over 20%, and found that although he was able to keep his job he would be laid off in November each year, to return the following April. Still a fun job but hard to make a living like this. He was an interesting character and provided some very good advice on what to see and what to do. By now, the good weather from the south had pushed into the area and we were treated to near perfect skies in all directions. We headed to Pyramid Lake for a short hike then to the park at Whistlers. A line up scared us a little but we managed to get in, just. We sat at our new site and immediately called the Canada Parks reservation line to get a spot for the following night, a Friday!

Pyramid Lake, Jasper

We then headed for dinner at Papa Georgios, named after one of the earliest European folks in Jasper. I had escargot and a wild game burger, Carla has Elk vol-au-vent and a beet and strawberry salad to start. Yummm.

As already mentioned, Jasper is to Banff as Sonoma was to Napa… less formal, laid back, people having fun and doing outdoorsy things and just fun. Very informal and nice…