Flight of fancy over Vancouver’s water world

The famous DHC-2 Beaver bush plane landing in Ganges Harbour

On the Harbour Air Seaplane from Vancouver

VANCOUVER IS A stunning city, set between the mountains and the sea. Wrapping around Burrard Inlet, and bounded by the Georgia Strait and the Coast Mountains, Vancouver offers sky watchers many spectacular views and vistas. Red streaked sunsets from English Bay beaches, a panorama of skyline and coastline from Grouse Mountain and the thrilling sight of seaplanes taking off and landing in Coal Harbour.

On my first trip to Vancouver, many years ago, my hotel room faced Coal Harbour, which is an inner harbour surrounded on all sides by the urban sprawl of Vancouver. Watching the slender sail boats, whale-like cruise ships and agile seaplanes on the inner harbour delighted me. They spoke of the exotic allure of an ocean seaport and the history of rugged Canadian exploration. When I was in Vancouver this summer, I was thrilled to get a chance to take a flight from Harbour Air Seaplane’s Coal Harbour terminal to Salt Spring Island in the Gulf Islands and back, after a few lazy days on the laid-back island.

Harbour Air Seaplane’s Coal Harbour terminal.

Flying into Ganges, Salt Spring Island

From the moment you arrive at the Harbour Air Seaplane terminal in Coal Harbour, in downtown Vancouver, the adventure begins. Check in at the glass-enclosed terminal building and enjoy free coffee and healthy snacks in the comfortable lounge with stunning harbour views. When it’s time to board, you simply walk out onto the dock and hand your luggage to the attendant, who puts it into a very small cargo hold.

Harbour Air Seaplane landing in Vancouver Harbour

On my flight out, I was one of about seven passengers aboard a DeHavilland Canada DHC-3 Single Turbine Otter. The small plane can hold about 10-14 passengers. It’s a different experience than flying on your average commercial flight. For one thing, you can’t bring any luggage in the cabin. There’s no food or drinks served. And the safety demonstration was a video shown on a tablet computer. Here’s A passengers guide to seaplanes.

View of Vancouver and Coal Harbour from the air.

Once strapped in, we jet-skied across the inner harbour and gently ascended, banking sharply, to fly over the Lion’s Gate Bridge and out towards the open waters of the Georgia Strait towards the Gulf Islands. Views of the city skyline filled the windows on the left and the Coast Mountains filled those on the right. Ahead, the undulating curves of the islands rose out of the shining sea. Flying at speed of about 110-130 miles per hour, and at a low altitude (under 3,000 metres), it takes about 20 minutes to get to Salt Spring Island and the views are non-stop gorgeous.

Gulf Islands from the air.

I was lucky, I flew in both directions on sunny, clear days. But if the weather’s really bad, we would have been grounded. From the Harbour Air Seaplane site: “…our seaplane pilots fly by Visual Flight Rules (VFR), which mean that they have to be able to see where they’re going to fly safely. Unlike larger commercial land-based aircraft, these amazing pilots can’t use complex electronic instruments to see in the dark, the fog, or the clouds, in part because they have to land the aircraft on the water. For this reason, our pilots and ground operations teams have a constant eye on the sky. If the weather conditions are not optimal, it may cause us to cancel or re-route our flights for safety reasons.”

Dolphin shaped island

Arriving by seaplane in Ganges’ picturesque harbour on a sunny Saturday morning in June, just in time for the famous artisan’s and farmer’s market, was the highlight of the trip. Ganges is a village, and the centre of Salt Spring Island. You may be interested to know that Ganges was named after the British naval ship HMS Ganges. The HMS Ganges that visited Salt Spring Island was built in in Bombay, India. Construction was of Malabar teak and she was launched on November 10, 1821.

Arriving in Ganges, Salt Spring Island, BC

A word about the Beaver

On my flight back from Salt Spring Island, I was lucky to fly aboard a DHC-2 Beaver — and in the co-pilot seat. This small-but-mighty bush plane, which only seats 5-6 passengers, is legendary in Canada. Several years ago when I was in Sault Ste. Marie to discover Algoma, Group of Seven territory, I stopped into the Bush Plane Heritage Centre for a tour and learned about the history and significance of the Beaver, which was in production from 1947-1965.

Pilot, Beaver aircraft and Ganges Harbour, Salt Spring Island

From the Bush Plane Heritage Centre site: “A true jack-of-all-trades the Beaver flew with floats, wheels or skis. Amongst its many uses were forest patrol, waterbombing, parachute drops, aerial photography, aerial fish stocking, transportation and cargo delivery.  The name Beaver was consistent with de Havilland’s practice of giving their Canadian designs animal names, and like its animal namesake, the Beaver was a hard bush worker.

The success of the design is well illustrated by the fact that before production ended in 1967, 1,631 standard Beavers had been produced and delivered to 62 countries around the world. In 1978 the Canadian Engineering Centennial Board selected the Beaver as one of Canada’s most outstanding engineering achievements.“

Here’s a fascinating history of bush planes on the CBC site, which says: “The de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver is considered by aviation historians to be the classic Canadian bush plane, a single-engine, short takeoff and landing utility transport aircraft.”

To see the Beaver taking off and landing in Vancouver harbour, check out this video that shows various operators flying, including Harbour Air Seaplanes.

A Canadian Signature Experience

The Harbour Air flight from Vancouver to Salt Spring Island is the company’s Canadian Signature Experience. You can stay for a few days on the island, as I did; or simply go for a tour, there and back. Harbour Air lists their routes and schedules here and some of the tours they offer here. I would say a seaplane tour is a MUST-DO activity when in Vancouver.

And here are some links to help you plan your trip:

• Keep Exploring Canada: Official site of the Canadian Tourism Commission


• Hello BC: Official site for British Columbia Tourism


• Vancouver Tourism site


• Harbour Air Seaplanes


• Salt Spring Island Tourism

In the harbour at Ganges, Salt Spring Island

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Avoiding the sacred cows in travel writing

Photo of Pushkar by Nick Kenrick.

How to write about your travels in foreign lands without putting your foot in it

I STARTED TRAVEL writing when I travelled in India for six months in 2005 / 2006. I fell in love with the country, the culture and the people, and wrote from my heart. I never attempted to be objective, but to be honest about what I felt and saw, within the bounds of a respectful attitude. Over the years, as I’ve travelled more, honed my skills and brought more conscious thought to my work, I’ve come to realize that travel writing is a tricky business.

I’ve grappled with how to write respectfully, express my truth, tell a good story and stay true to my values — without offending locals. What I’ve learned is that it takes conscious effort and technical know-how to write effective travelogues. In this post, I asked some of the pros to share their tips and their wisdom for avoiding the cringe-worthy cliches and stereotypes that often subconsciously invade travel writing.

Sometimes you have to challenge your beliefs to get beyond the stereotypes

In Travel is an experience in perception, I tried to grasp this idea that we see the world through our own window, our own set of assumptions, ideas about reality, biases, etc. There’s nothing wrong with this — it’s just about recognizing that your truth is YOUR truth and may not be THE truth.

My photography teacher Tony Makepeace, who regularly visits Nepal and takes portraits of the people he meets there, said, “It’s worthwhile to think about your intentions, reflect on your role as an outsider, and recognize the difference in privilege and empowerment between you and your subjects.”

These first five tips are about how to dig in while travelling and challenge yourself while writing.

Tip 1. Blend in.

“Merge with the place,” Anuradha Goyal recommends. “It helps on two levels. One, with regards to safety and security issues, it helps protect you as you do not stand out. Two, it helps local people feel comfortable with you, and they open up more easily when they see you are making an effort to be one with them.” Anuradha Goyal is a travel blogger & writer, the author of The Mouse Charmers – Digital Pioneers of India (published by Random House) and a voracious reader. She writes a series of Travel Stories on her blog that she says, “would not have happened if I had not connected well by not standing out.”

I completely agree with Anuradha on this one. From my first days in India, I tried my best to adopt the dress and the social etiquette of the culture. When in Rajasthan, do as the Rajasthanis do, was my motto. I found it helped win me respect and trust, and opened up the culture to me.

Tip 2. Talk to locals.

Dan Noll and Audrey Scott of Uncornered Market have been travelling the world for many years, and sharing their stories and photos on their blog. They are driven by a desire “to humanize the places we visit, drawing our readers in through photographs and stories, so they connect with people and places they might otherwise never hear about or actively disregard.” Dan and Audrey’s work exemplifies a respectful attitude, and they have inspired me more than any other travel bloggers.

I asked Audrey to share advice and tips. “I think the main way to write without offending the locals is to expose yourself to a diversity of experiences and people so that you can get a better understanding of a place and breakdown the assumptions that you may make from first impressions.” She offers these writing tips:

• Talk to several people about a topic (or about the culture/history/politics of that country) so that you get different perspectives from a variety of people (e.g., different backgrounds, ages, genders). This allows you to understand better the diversity of opinions (if there is one) and prevents you from taking one person’s viewpoint and making it sound like it is representing the whole country. Use accurate quotes and avoid generalizations.


• Imagine that your best friend was of that culture. What would he or she think — were you being fair (note: not always pollyanna positive) and that you were respectful in your writing.

You know you are on the right track when you get comments like this one, in response to Bangladesh: Frequently Asked Questions: “I’m a Canadian-American Bengali currently visiting Bangladesh and the way you handled these questions with class really made me happy. It brought a tear to my eye to see how open and nonjudgmental you guys were to the average Bengali. Many people see Bangladesh as a dirty, poor, corrupt, chaotic, dysfunctional mess of a country, fellow Bengalis included.” And here are three more articles from Uncornered Market that reveal their unique, refreshing and respectful approach:

• First impressions of Ethiopia


• The forgotten women of the Dead Sea


• Immigration stories from Central America

Tip 3. Avoid cultural imperialism.

In my opinion, the western mainstream media is almost universally based on the underlying notion that western ideals, standards and ethics are de facto superior. Because I often travel in India — a country in the late stages of a post-colonial hangover — I try very hard to avoid this practise, which I call “cultural imperialism.”

It’s one thing to think, as I do, that, overall, women have more freedom and opportunity in Canada than they do in India, but it’s another to unconsciously believe that everything about the west is “right” and other countries are “wrong.”

It’s also worthwhile to challenge media stereotypes, and not digest them whole. Case in point: India has had a bad rap in the media because of some high-profile rape cases, but in the same period that two foreign female tourists were raped in India, many more were raped in Mexico, Greece, Spain, Turkey and elsewhere. “The number of Britons sexually attacked or raped abroad rose 10% last year from 281 to 310 cases in 2011. Greece Spain and Turkey had the worst records,” from an article in The Mirror.

Tip 4. Write from your own experience.

While the mainstream media struggles to present objectivity and balance in journalism, as a personal narrative (or creative non-fiction) travel writer, you are under no such restrictions. Your experience is your truth and it cannot be argued. If you travelled on an overnight train and saw cockroaches on the wall just inches from your face and you couldn’t sleep; or if a child dressed in rags and selling flowers in the market smiled at you and you melted — these are your experiences. You needn’t make sweeping, judgmental statements about what your experiences mean or draw from them conclusions about the culture. You can simply describe them.

As a matter of fact, I don’t actually believe in objectivity. Everything is subjective, everyone has an agenda. I don’t think objectivity is a worthy goal, either. I think the de-humanizing tendency of the media is part of the problem, and that personal voice and personal experience is much more powerful, real and true. As travel writers, we give people a window through which to see the world, and it is our window, with all of our ideas, biases, experiences, hopes and dreams woven in. It’s okay to have biases and opinions, as long as you are aware of them and honest / transparent about presenting them.

Tip 5. Show interest, respect and humility.

We all walk around with a set of assumptions about the world and an idea of what we think reality is. Travel gives us the opportunity to examine them, and gain a much broader sense of perspective.

Don George is a well-known travel writer, the author of Lonely Planet’s Guide to Travel Writing and a travel writing instructor. Here’s his approach: “Being humble, curious, and respectful of local cultures and peoples — trying to understand and evoke them on their level — is a cornerstone of how I travel and how I write about travel. As a guest in someone else’s house — that is, country and culture — I always try to be mindful of how little I know and what a great opportunity I have to learn!”

In these pieces, Don shows how you can write descriptively about engaging with the local culture without making any assumptions or generalizations. These are all good examples of story-telling in travel writing, too.

• Road lessons around the bend in Bali


• Making roof tiles in Peru


• Building bridges in Mostar

Photographer Jim Kane wrote about taking culturally sensitive photos on Transitions Abroad: “…responsible photography is very much like responsible travel. With a thorough knowledge of the place you’re visiting, a genuine interest in sharing and not just taking, an alert intuition, an open mind, enough time, and a little luck, photography abroad—just like travel itself—can be a vehicle to build bridges. Ultimately, photography is ideally a form of exchange.” Read his eight guidelines here.

Sympathetic interpretation seldom evolves from a predatory attitude. The common term, ‘taking a picture,’ is more than just an idiom; it is a symbol of exploitation. ‘Making a picture’ implies a creative resonance, which is essential to profound expression. – Ansel Adams

And sometimes, it’s just a matter of artist technique to transcend the cliches

The following three tips are about how to use writing techniques to support respectful travel writing.

Tip 6. Tell a story.

And speaking of stories, don’t forget to tell one. I wrote about this after attending a workshop given by Spud Hilton and Stephanie Yoder at TBEX Colorado. In my post, Top 10 Travel Writing Tips, here’s point #1:

Have a point. Without a point (or premise) you are re-hashing your diary. You need to make a bigger point than simply you were there. Spud Hilton gave the example of traveling in wine country and then writing a piece about what ELSE you can do there, aside from wine related activities.

Travel writer and “story consultant” Mike Sowden on his site Fevered Mutterings has lots of resources for travel writers, including a course in story telling for bloggers, a page of story telling resources and an insightful post that explains Why 99% of bloggers give up from which I grabbed this inspiring quote: “As Andrew Evans explains so succinctly in this video, when you’re doing your best to convey what you really see, without the benefit of 20/20-hindsight, and if you do so with a very clear idea about what you want to be writing, unedited reality can be as compelling as a well-crafted story. In fact, it can be a good story. That’s the essence of quality non-fiction.”

Tip 7. Use the tools of fiction writing.

Paul Theroux is one of the great writers of travel literature. Talking about his unique style, he once explained that he wanted to inject dialogue and discomfort into travel writing as he felt these were largely missing. He has a point. Travel writers often skip writing about characters and conversations. Yet this technique, and others from the fiction writers tool kit, can give you a sense of the people, the place and what happened in a very direct and powerful way.

It is worth reading fiction or even taking some courses to learn about character, dialogue, description, plot development, narrative, and other techniques. These will not only add voice and colour to your writing, they will help give you the discipline to stick to the story, and keep you from wandering into the lazy habits that lead to cliched writing.

This piece about Varanasi from David Farley in Afar Magazine includes some of the characters he met in the ancient city.

Tip 8. Throw out your first idea and your second idea when you write; wait for the third idea.

This is a piece of writing advice I heard once, and can’t remember where. Everyone will have thought of the first one, it won’t be original, and it will originate in the “cliche” layer of our engagement with life. The second idea will also be something others may have thought of. But your third idea is likely to be more interesting, unique, fresh and thoughtful.

What do you think? Do you care about avoiding cliches and stereotypes? How do you achieve fair and accurate travel writing?

Photo of cow in India by Nick Kenrick.

Cow in India – Photo Credit: Nick Kenrick . via Compfight cc

If you enjoyed this post, you can….

Get updates and read additional stories on the Breathedreamgo Facebook page. Buy Song of India, a collection of 10 feature stories about my travels in India. E-book version is now only $1.99. Subscribe to the free — and inspiring! — e-newsletter that helps you live your travel dreams.

Thank you for reading. Please visit Breathedreamgo or stop by my Facebook page at Breathedreamgo.

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That time I explored Jasper National Park on a motorcycle

Exploring Jasper National Park by motorcycle

Let me start by saying that I’m terrified of motorcycles. When I’m driving on the highway and a motorcycle rides next to me, I can’t help but think that person must be crazy to be riding so fast with virtually nothing protecting them.

Okay, I’ll also admit that I’ve sometimes thought about what it would be like to ride a motorcycle on a remote mountain road (away from traffic and surrounded by nature), but the effort required to learn is more than I’m willing to commit. I just assumed riding a motorcycle was not in the cards for me, so I never gave it much thought.

Now, I’m fully aware that one can sit on the back of a bike and hold on for dear life, but that type of experience doesn’t interest me. I’d likely spend most of my time with muscles clenched and eyes shut. Yes, I’m a wuss. Don’t judge me.

When I first learned that I was going on a motorcycle tour in Jasper, my fears of falling off the bike and crashing into a ditch began to set in. What the heck did I just sign up for?

I quickly jumped online to research the tour and was pleasantly surprised to learn that I was going to ride in the sidecar – no experience required. My apprehension quickly turned to excitement. It’s not every day you get to experience the natural beauty of a UNESCO World Heritage Site by motorcycle. And not just any motorcycle, a Harley Davidson!

The rain gods were happy that afternoon. The temperature cool, the skies overcast and gloomy.

Foolishly, I did not bring a warm coat on this road trip through Alberta, so I was concerned I might freeze on this tour. Fortunately, the fine people at Jasper Motorcycle Tours provide proper riding gear for their guests.

They give you every thing you need to look the part, including a leather jacket, chaps and a bad-ass bandana. I had to chuckle when I saw myself in the mirror. Who knew the day would come that I’d became a biker chick?

To address the cooler weather conditions, I was fitted with a heat pad that plugged into the sidecar for extra warmth. All I had to do was sit back, relax and soak up my insanely beautiful surroundings.

I had the option to choose a 1, 2, or 3 hour tour around Jasper. You can also do a 6 hour tour up the Icefields Parkway. We had just returned from a boat cruise of Maligne Lake, so I opted for the 1 hour tour.

After speaking with Brian, my tour guide, we decided to drive up the windy mountain road to Marmot Basin, Jasper’s world-class ski resort.

Brian mentioned there had been a number of bear sightings, so I was hopeful we might see one on the tour. Unfortunately we were unlucky that afternoon.

I was surprised I wasn’t scared when we picked up speed on the highway. The sidecar was quite comfortable and I felt quite safe, considering there was very little between me and the fast moving asphalt beneath me.

As we drove up the mountain, I couldn’t help but think that our toddler would love this kind of experience. My initial thought was that he must be too young but Brian mentioned they take kids as young as 2 years old – they even have little chaps for them!

 

Brian was very knowledgeable about Jasper and the surrounding area. He shared stories about his wildlife encounters and the history of their motorcycle tour business. It’s evident that he loves what he does.

I really enjoyed the motorcycle sidecar tour of Jasper National Park. It’s one of those truly unique experiences that will surely leave a lasting impression. There are only a handful of companies around the world that offer sidecar motorcycle tours – so take advantage of this unique experience if you see one.

FYI – the Jasper motorcycle tours are currently ranked as the #2 activity in Jasper on TripAdvisor and, out of 75 reviews, Jasper Motorcycle Tours has a 5 star rating. I’m giving them 5 stars too.

The details

• To learn more, visit Jasper Motorcycle Tours – http://www.jaspermotorcycletours.com/


• Outerwear is provided but you should wear pants and sturdy footwear.


• The 1 hour tour costs $89 per person.


• All ages are welcome. They have taken guests from 2 years old to 90 years young.


• Tours are available from April to October.

More from our road trip through the Canadian Rockies

• When in the Canadian Rockies, you MUST visit THIS place


• Glacier Walking in the Canadian Rockies


• Our favourite photos from our Alberta road trip


• Riding the overnight train to the Canadian Rockies with VIA Rail


• The Beauty of Bow Lake in the Canadian Rockies


• Face to face with a Brown Bear in Banff


• To the Rockies we go! Join us as we #ExploreAlberta


• Is This The Most Beautiful Place On Earth?


• Family road trip to the Canadian Rockies

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Many thanks to the good people at Travel Alberta for providing a complimentary tour with Jasper Motorcycle Tours. As always, expressed opinions are entirely our own.

That time I explored Jasper National Park on a motorcycle is a post from: Traveling Canucks

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Glacier Walking in the Canadian Rockies

Athabasca Glacier, Canadian Rockies, Alberta

Walking on an alpine glacier is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure that many feel is unattainable, an experience reserved for the ultra-fit or wealthy. While that may be true for most glaciers in the Canadian Rockies, the good news is that the Columbia Icefield Glacier Adventure makes it possible for anyone to step on the crunchy surface of the Athabasca Glacier.

The Athabasaca Glacier, one of eight glaciers fed by the massive Columbia Icefield, is the most visited glacier in North America. One of the reasons it receives so many visitors is because of its convenient location near the Icefields Parkway, between the towns of Banff and Jasper.

Another reason is because you can hop on a massive Ice Explorer that transports you directly to the center of the glacier, no crampons or helicopter landings required.

Now, the mountaineer purist will argue that taking an Ice Explorer to the glacier is the lazy man’s way, an observation we will not argue, but we don’t have the time nor the desire to master the art of glacier trekking. We also had our infant and toddler with us, so hiking was not feasible this time.

The 80 minute tour begins at the Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Centre, located on the opposite side of the Icefields Parkway in Jasper National Park.

If you’re a fan of the Amazing Race Canada, you might recognize the Athabasca Glacier as the starting point of Season 2. You can read about it here.

Visitors can also park at the base of the Athabasca Glacier and hike up the ice field instead of taking an Ice Explorer (look at the bottom right of the first photo to see the parking lot in relation to the glacier), but it’s not recommended without a guide and proper equipment. There have been reports of unprepared tourists falling down hidden crevasses, often to their death. Have you watched the movie Touching the Void? Enough said.

After a short bus ride to a transfer station on the mountain, we climbed into the massive Ice Explorer and began our ascent up the glacier. What makes this tour great is that anyone and everyone can experience the glacier, including toddlers and the elderly.

Many of the Brewster’s Ice Explorer fleet have special wheelchair lifts that can comfortably carry up to 4 wheelchairs at a time, in addition to the regular 56 passenger seats.

Prior to reaching the edge of the glacier, the Ice Explorer descends down a steep stone road that feels like a 45 degree angle. If you look at the above photo, you can see the steep drop approaching. That tiny looking vehicle in the distance is a full size snow plow, just to put scale into perspective.

The Ice Explorers intentionally pass through a river before driving on the glacier, removing dust and dirt from the tires and wheel base. This prevents dirt from landing on the glacier, which can impact the speed of the glacial melt.

Once on the Athabasca Glacier, the Ice Explorer travels for another few minutes before it reaches its final destination – a carved out section of the glacier that is monitored and inspected daily to ensure it’s safe for visitors to walk on.

Now, if you’re expecting an intimate experience with the glacier you’ll be disappointed to learn that there will be many bus loads of tourists on the glacier with you.

The glacier adventure is a hot ticket during the summer months, with a new Ice Explorer arriving and departing every few minutes. If you go into the tour with this knowledge, you’ll think nothing of it when you see waves of tourists coming and going.

Regardless, once you step out onto the glacier you’ll be surrounded by gorgeous mountain peaks and glacial vistas.

Braydon was pretty excited to run around on a glacier.

Interesting fact – The Columbia Icefield is the largest sub-polar body of ice in North America. It is one of the reasons why the United Nations declared Canada’s four Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage Sites.

The area designated specifically for tourists is marked with cones. You are not allowed to step outside of the designated area for safety reasons. The glacier is constantly shifting and moving, which creates hidden crevasses that can swallow up tourists. It’s serious business, so don’t mess around.

While walking around the safe zone, keep an eye out for water pockets. Most are marked, but if you’re not paying attention you might get an icy soaker. I watched a man step into one of these water pockets while trying to frame his family into a photo. He didn’t look too happy about it. You’ve been warned.

Travel tip – bring a water bottle with you so that you can drink some cold, crisp glacier water. It’s the most refreshing and delicious water you will ever taste. There is flowing water at the edge of the safe zone, so it’s easy to fill up a water bottle or two.

Interesting facts - Glacier ice is blue because the dense ice of the glacier absorbs every other color except blue – so it’s kind of like an optical illusion.

Glacial ice is very different from the frozen water we get from the freezer. It’s not just layers of frozen compacted snow, it often includes the rocks, dirt and organic material that it collects as it pushes its way down the mountain.

We were told that if we put a piece of glacial ice in a normal sized glass of water, there’s a pretty good chance the glass will break because of all the pressurized air bubbles that are present in glacial ice. Who’s up for a science experiment?

You only get 15 minutes to explore the glacier and snap your photos, so it can feel a bit rushed. It was cloudy and overcast during our visit, so we didn’t get the postcard photos we were hoping for, but we did manage to get a great family portrait, even though Baby Connor refused to look in the direction of the camera.

A lone hiker descends from the Athabasca Glacier

A few things to know before you go…

• Ice Explorers depart every 15 to 30 minutes – weather permitting. Reservations are not required.


• The price for the Glacier Adventure is $49.95 for adults and children aged 6-15 costs $24.95. Children under the age of 5 are free.


• You can watch a promotional video about the experience here.


• Dress in warm layers and make sure to wear closed-toe shoes with sturdy soles. Hiking boots or running shoes are best. Expect the temperature to be about 15 degrees Celsius cooler on the ice than at the Columbia Icefield Glacier Discovery Centre.


• Visit this website to learn more about the tour.

More from our road trip through the Canadian Rockies

• When in the Canadian Rockies, you MUST visit THIS place


• Our favourite photos from our Alberta road trip


• Riding the overnight train to the Canadian Rockies with VIA Rail


• The Beauty of Bow Lake in the Canadian Rockies


• Face to face with a Brown Bear in Banff


• To the Rockies we go! Join us as we #ExploreAlberta


• Is This The Most Beautiful Place On Earth?

~~~~~~~~

Many thanks to the fine people at Travel Alberta for providing us complimentary tickets for the Columbia Icefield Glacier Adventure. As always, expressed opinions are entirely our own. We had a great experience and would recommend this tour to friends and family.

Glacier Walking in the Canadian Rockies is a post from: Traveling Canucks

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