Canadian Rockies, PH93 & Kootenay National Park
July 7, 2007.
We are staying in the Tunnel
Mountain National Park Campground in Banff, Alberta. Tunnel
Mountain Campground offers full hookups, no hookups, and electricity
only. 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.
We left Radium
Hot Springs this morning heading to Banff on PH 93 through
Kootenay National Park.
Immediately upon leaving Radium
Hot Springs we entered the National Park then went through
the "springs". From the "hot springs" the road
passes through one of the most awesome roadcuts anywhere. One has
to wonder why a road cut and not a tunnel. About the same time there
is a sign warning about an 11% grade with no indication how long the
grade is going to be. An 11% grade will get your attention especially
if it is going to be 11% for very long. But for now it is back to
negotiating these mind boggling road cuts.
These folks didn't remove any more rock than absolutely necessary.
It does seem to me that they could have removed more around this curve.
I know I cheated on the yellow line since my outside mirror didn't
hit that rock.
Just past the road cut area is this reddish color hill of earth that
I do not recognize. What is it doing here? Has it got something to
do with the thermal activity less than a mile away? I don't guess
I will ever know unless someone is kind enough to provide me with
some information. Any takers?
It probably has something to do with iron since it is very near,
if not part of, Iron Gates Canyon------ do you suppose this is part
of the "iron gate" and the red color has to do with iron
content?
When this road was built a decision had to be made. In the 1920s,
the first road through the Canadian
Rockies, the Banff-Windermere Highway was constructed. By
1964, this section of the road was outdated. In order to save the
Iron Gates Canyon from the destructive impact of the new road, a tunnel
was built.
You might not have noticed even with the information about the tunnel
above but if you look in the top left hand corner of this picture
you will see the tunnel that was constructed to save Iron Gates Canyon.
The early part of this drive,--- the part within 10 or so miles of
Radium
Hot Springs is comprised of these roadcuts. Soon we will pop
out into a series of magnificent valleys.
Slowly we are making our way out of the roadcuts and past that 11%
grade. Thankfully, that grade was a short one, steep but short.
Now you can see some "flat" space along with the steep
roadcuts.
The Canadian
Rocky Mountains in this area are comprised of limestone and
shales deposited on an ancient sea bottom millions of years ago.
We are following a creek at this point but will soon meet the Kootenay
River and will follow it to the Continental Divide not far
from Banff.
Seven percent grades like this were common throughout the journey
on PH 93
from Radium
Hot Springs to Banff.
At times we get a peak at the mountains we are threading our way
through.
PH 93
in this section is a nice modern highway complete with guard rail.
Notice the snow covered mountains we are passing.
Just another 7% grade.
We must have followed this valley for 30 to 40 miles with spectacular
views of snow capped mountains every way we looked on PH93
in Kootenay Natonal
Park.
Joyce is doing a good job taking these pictures out the front window
of our motorhome.
Some of the mountains are more spectacular than others.
Shadows on the mountains along with the deep green of the conifer
forest make every turn exciting.
From here it looks like the mountains have no forest on them.
Some of that snow is actually deep glaciers that will not melt over
the summer.
Scenes like this will take your breath away.
Now we are following the Kootenay
River to its headwaters high on the Continental Divide.
We are going to have to find a pass through those mountains that
form the backbone of the Canadian
Rocky Mountains.
The milky color of the Kootenay
River is from tiny bits of rock called glacial flour. This
is pure glacier run off and the water is saturated with small particles
of rock that have been ground to pieces by the glaciers.
In addition to the deep green of the conifer forest small white flowers
are lining the highway.
We keep getting higher and higher as we continue to follow the Kootenay
River. Note that we are getting much closer to the snow.
The white flowers are so thick along here that they appear to be
snow.
The valley is beginning to narrow and we are getting closer to the
mountain.
By this time I think we are starting to cross the mountain instead
of just following the valley.
Isn't this a magnificient view of the Canadian
Rockies from PH93
in Kootenay National
Park.
It isn't all up hill but most of it sure is. After all we have to
climb to the Continental Divide on PH
93 in the Canadian
Rockies.
We seem to be missing the uphill grade signs. Anyway, PH
93 through Kootenay
National Park in the Canadian
Rockies is a fun drive in our motorhome.
Those are avalanche chutes and we are getting closer to them.
Snow avalanches and rock slides cut swaths through green vegetation.
Many large rocks, some weighing several tons, roll and bounce all
the way to the bottom.
You can clearly see where avalanches and rock slides have created
these distinctive trails through the vegetation.
Remember that this is limestone and shales that have been thrusted
up when two of the earths plates collided.
In this picture you can easily see the layers of sedimentary rock
rising from the Kootenay
River.
Now the glaciers are not much higher than we are. Note the avalanche
chutes.
We are nearing the pass over the Continental Divide.
This is the last picture from British
Columbia. Shortly we cross over the Continental Divide and
enter Alberta, where we will drop down into Banff.
