Canada and Alaska Dream -- Canada and Alaska Dream

Hello Eastern Canada - Quebec to Toronto

Today we regretfully left Quebec behind and headed for Toronto. We had all loved our time in Quebec and I wished it had been longer. We flew from Quebec to Toronto - landing at Billy Bishop Airport which is on a little island off mainland Toronto. A tunnel has been built underwater from Billy Bishop over to Toronto proper and is a very short, less than 10 minute walk, even lugging luggage (again - that must be how it got its name).

Posted by Ellen on Sun, Sep 13, 2015

Hello Eastern Canada - Montreal to Quebec

Caught the train from Montreal to Quebec. Three hour trip but Liz and I occupied ourselves by studying the back of our eyelids and left Mark to read in peace. After arriving in Quebec, we got a cab and went to the address given by our Air BnB host. I could tell by the driver’s surprise that he was not used to taking people from the railway station to an address in that area and he asked if we were going to stay with family.

Posted by Ellen on Sat, Sep 12, 2015

Hello Eastern Canada - Montreal (Day 2)

Getting an early start on these holidays has been perhaps the hardest thing to do, so we were quite excited to be able to leave the accommodation early - well for us. With Mark leading the way, we caught a train to the hop on, hop off bus and made our first stop down near the wharf and close to Old Montreal. We walked around the streets for a while, really enjoying the architecture of past decades/centuries.

Posted by Ellen on Sat, Sep 12, 2015

Hello Eastern Canada - Montreal (Day 1)

We made it to Montreal and following instructions from our Air BnB host, we got a taxi to the accommodation. It was in a huge complex of apartments - mostly stayed in by students. There was a pool on the roof top and the apartment was quite nice. A bedroom each and very comfy beds. Ken, the owner’s son, was very nice but could have maybe been a bit more helpful about getting around.

Posted by Ellen on Sat, Sep 12, 2015

Hello Canada (Goodby West Canada) - Banff to Calgary

Today, we would leave Banff, go to Calgary and take a plane to the eastern side of Canada to visit Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, Thousand Islands and Niagara Falls. After a much earlier start than we liked or were very familiar with while on this trip, we said goodbye to the travelling 7 and became the travelling 4 and travelling 3. It was sad to say goodbye to our companions and it was with heavy hearts that we pulled out of the Canmore Worldmark accommodation for our trip to Calgary Airport.

Posted by Ellen on Mon, Sep 7, 2015

Hello Canada Again (Jasper - Maligne Canyon)

After a lot of work done by Mark in planning out prospective sights to see and places to go, we decided to use the 7-seater Dodge Caravan and all travel together for the day. We went to Maligne Canyon (apparently pronounced Maleen). What a fantastic place - full of waterfalls, dramatic canyon walls, running water, rapids and a number of “bridges” for you to walk to. Swirling, churning water has worn the canyon, only two metres across at some points, to a depth of more than 50 metres There are four bridges across the gorge, each with its own special view.

Posted by Ellen on Thu, Sep 3, 2015

Hello Canada Again (Kamloops to Jasper)

After a night resting and recovering from our journey the previous day, we had a fairly late start to our journey to Jasper, which is in Alberta. Our trip from Vancouver to Kamloops had been done through British Columbia. British Columbia’s scenery had been amazing, so Alberta had a lot to live up to. On the way, we decided to go through Clearwater and visit the Spahats Falls. There are a lot of waterfalls in Canada, and believe me, visiting them NEVER gets old.

Posted by Ellen on Thu, Sep 3, 2015

Vancouver to Kamloops (Part 2)

After our quick, but exhilarating trip to Hell’s Gate, we piled back into the car, content that we had done all we wanted to, and continued to Kamloops. I don’t think I mentioned in the Part 1 blog that once we had left Vancouver proper and gotten clear of its outlying suburbs, the scenery was amazing. Canada is so beautiful. It has not disappointed at all. Nearly every bend or turn in the road brought another breathtaking vista of snow-capped mountains, trees, trees and more trees (I love trees, I have discovered - especially the ones over here) - Douglas Fir trees, Silver Birch, evergreens - Christmas tree heaven!

Posted by Ellen on Thu, Sep 3, 2015

Hello Canada Again (Vancouver - Kamloops) Part 1

After a night’s sleep in Vancouver, it was time to hit the open road in our rented cars to head to Kamloops - the first stop on our Rockies journey. The plane flight from Anchorage to Vancouver the previous night had been delayed and delayed. Apparently they were waiting for the cabin crew to arrive from Spokane. Eventually they advised that the plane from Spokane containing our crew had arrived but they couldn’t taxi into their parking spot because there was another plane in that spot waiting for THEIR crew.

Posted by Ellen on Tue, Sep 1, 2015

Hello Alaska (Talkeetna - Anchorage)

Unfortunately today we had to leave Talkeetna. We were returning to Anchorage by bus and our lovely new friend, Alicia, ferried us in two loads up to the Alaskan Lodge where the bus would leave from. The bus ride back was uneventful, but beautiful scenery. Liz enjoyed the bus ride much more than the train. Maybe it was because those women couldn’t play cards on the bus and keep her awake?

Posted by Ellen on Fri, Aug 28, 2015