Today was much slower with stops at just a couple of places but there was also a lot more time sitting on the coach as we travelled from Jasper to Sun Peaks. Another time change today having to shift our watches back an hour. Our first stop today was at Maligne Canyon. Our tour guide, Mary, walked us the short distance to two separate viewing platforms that look down into this incredibly deep canyon with its tumbling waterfall. Photos don't do it justice at all. It is so deep and extremely narrow. Philip made the comment that if the early settlers stumbled upon it they could well have fallen to their death as it would hardly be seen before it was too late. It is just a few metres wide. Mary tells us that the waterfall freezes in winter and it is hard to believe that this rapidly flowing waterfall could do that. How spectacular would it look when it is frozen!
Our next stop is at Mt Robson where we purchase our take-away lunch. Mt Robson is the highest mountain in the Canadian Rockies and soars almost 4000 metres. It is incredibly photo worthy and we are very fortunate that we have another lovely sunny day so that we can see this mountain in all it beauty.
The lunch stop is at a picnic area on the shores of a small lake with its bluest of blue water. It is cold and windy with a temperature of just 11 degrees but we all try to find a sheltered sunny spot to enjoy our picnic lunch. We watch young kids dive into the freezing cold water and another person lying on the sandy shoreline in a bikini. Quite obviously locals who do not feel the cold.....
We arrive into Sun Peaks around 4pm and we take our carry-on bag to our room at the Sun Peaks Grand Hotel and immediately go back outside to walk the streets of this lovely town. Only one night at Sun Peaks as there is not much in the way of summer activities. It is very much a winter ski town and all the ski slopes - that are now green and lush - can be clearly seen on the surrounding hills. We notice numerous ski lifts. We are told that most hotels are "ski-out" that means you put your skis on at the hotel and ski straight to the ski fields. Mary points out some houses, high on the hill, that fetch around the 4-5 million dollars, that have heated driveways to save the inconvenience of having to remove the snow!
Sun Peaks is truly a beautiful place with its Swiss chalet feel and I would love to see it when it is covered in snow in winter, but then again -40 degrees would be way to cold for me!
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