Moraine Lake - Canadian Rockies - Continental Divide
July 8, 2007
We are staying in the Tunnel
Mountain National Park Campground in Banff, Alberta. Tunnel
Mountain Campground offers no hookups, electricity only and full hookups.
We are in one of the $29.70 electricity only sites. I do not know
what FHU or no hookups cost but they are all in the same area. All
sites are paved.
Vistas on the road from Lake Louise to Moraine Lake
After visiting Lake Louise we stopped by Moraine Lake less than 10
miles away. It may only be 10 miles but the ride is spectacular. The
light available for these picture doesn't do justice to the landscape.
As you can tell the sky is ominous looking.
Canadian Rockies avalanche chutes and talus
slopes
By now you can tell that these are Main Range mountains because of
their elevation and because of the horizontal layers of sedimentary
rock.
The lighter colored rubble at the bottom is called talus.
Canadian Rockies avalanche chute and talus
slope
An avalanche chute is visible on the far mountain. This avalanche
chute looks like it just might be a permanent glacier.
That rubble at the bottom of the avalanche chute is called talus.
Glacier carved valley with talus
slopes
This is a classic view of a glacier carved mountain. During the ice
age huge glaciers covered the entire valley and carved out these U
shaped valleys. Rivers carve V shaped valleys while glaciers carve
U shaped valleys comprised of almost vertical walls.
The rubble at the bottom of these sheer cliffs is talus.
Glacier carved valley with talus
slopes
This is more evidence of where a large glacier filled this valley
with ice as it carved the sides of these mountains.
The rubble at the bottom of these avalanche chutes is called talus.
Canadian Rockies Continental Divide
These mountains are running down the Continental Divide.
Canadian Rockies between Lake Louise & Moraine Lake
Canadian Rockies looking west toward Continental
Divide
This view was totally awesome even though the lighting wasn't conducive
to good photography.
Canadian Rocky Mountains & talus
slopes
This is a classic example of a Main Range Mountain, with brown sedimentary
rocks laid in flat layers with almost perpendicular sides.
The talus
slopes along the side of this mountain were created in a variety
of ways. Some of them were caused by rock falling from the cliffs
above, while others were deposited when the rock fell on a moving
glacier and transported to this spot, when the glacier melted thousands
of years later the rocks ended up here. Geologist can tell when this
happens by the composition of the rocks. Many times they can even
tell where the rocks were transported from.
Talus
slopes along shores of Moraine Lake
Talus
slopes dot the shoreline of Moraine
Lake.
Moraine Lake and Continental Divide in Canadian Rockies
This is a combination glacier and avalanche slope located on the
Continental
Divide.
Note the talus
located at the bottom of these mountains.
The sedimentary rock found in these mountains is porous. Rain water
and melting snow percolate down through the sandstone and limestone
and along the separating sheets of shale.
This moisture trickles into cracks, freezes and expands, splitting
even the hardest rock. Loosened by repeated freezing and thawing,
frostbroken fragments bounce down the cliffs and collect in these
cone-shaped piles called talus
or scree slopes.
Moraine Lake in the Canadian Rockies
The emerald/turquoise color of Moraine Lake is visible in this picture.
Too bad we could not capture that color at Lake Louise.
Note the talus
slope at the bottom of those avalanche chutes.
Moraine Lake Lodge
Yes, there is a Lodge
at Moraine Lake but we did not get a good picture of it. We
promise to do better next time.
Mike & Joyce Hendrix
Mike
& Joyce Hendrix who we are
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