Day 31, September 12

Day 31, September 12

Locations: Edith Cavell; Kootenay NP; Castle Junction

Miles driven: 434

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I set the alarm for 6:45, and I thought today was going to be a total bust as a light rain fell during the night at least once. I thought, “Here we go again.” I snoozed the alarm as I saw Cavell was clouded over. It rained as late as 7:15. At 7:30, I looked out the window again and thought I could see some blue. It's always tough to tell exactly what’s going on as the windows get fogged over. I opened the door, and sure enough, there were a couple of patches. I got up and drove just down the road to the pullout that looks back in toward the Tonquin Valley. I took a couple pictures during the only light of the morning. I headed down the road a short ways and it was completely fogged in down there and figured it was going to be a long while before that was to clear off, so I turned back around to the pullout to wait for any other possible light leaks in the clouds and stayed there for a bit. There were still a couple patches of blue sky, but it looked like it was going to take quite awhile before anything would develop out of that. I headed down the road after giving up on the light.

I arrived at Saskatchewan Crossing at 10:50 and went east on Highway 11 as far as the Banff gate just down the road in search for some golden aspen scenes. There were a few colorful stands, but I didn't see any compelling compositions to stop for, so I circled back around and kept looking but went on to Waterfowl Lakes Campground one more time. The sign there that I previously saw indicated that it was going to be closed for the season today, but the sign was gone and the campground was still open. I went ahead and filled up my water supply and brushed my teeth. Some patches of blue were starting to open up, but I didn't end up shooting anything, so I continued south.

I passed by Lake Louise at 12:32 and figured I'd drive through Kootenay for the first time to check it out. I passed by the Overflow Campground lot where I had stayed earlier in the trip and they were now closed for the season. This threw me for a loop as I'm not sure why they would close it other than to force campers to one of the remaining open campgrounds. It’s not like the campgrounds have been anywhere near full up until now anyway. Mosquito Creek Campground ($14/night) was still open, so I thought I might have to stay there.

I went as far as the Kootenay Crossing about midway through the park and pulled in one of the pullouts where I took a nap and sat for a bit. I figured I'd head back towards Banff and see if the sky would develop for sunset. A bald eagle flew overhead at 3:34 just before the Hector Gorge pullout as I was driving back north. I went to Castle Junction and sat in a pullout for a bit waiting for evening. I eventually headed down towards Banff. The sun was shining through in places and it was tough to say if there would be much of a sunset. There were also a couple of patches of blue east of Banff as I was admiring the beautiful mountain ranges. I went into Canmore to fuel up since it was a bit cheaper than Banff.

It was 6:48 and I had entertained thoughts of shooting sunset at Moraine Lake, but basically Lake Louise south was covered with a huge gray cloud, so I went back north. Near the start of the Icefields Parkway, the cloud cover back to the south was blue while the peaks above Lake Louise were getting sun. I shot a series of shots from a pullout with an open view which I really like.

I continued on up to Bow Lake and the cloud cover had enveloped this area as well. If the sun were to get under the clouds at the horizon it would be a real show, but it was still a little early to tell. I really couldn't decide where I wanted to be for sunset and my mind was going in circles. I turned around at Bow Lake after struggling where to be. I'm the worst decision maker ever! There still seemed to be potential for a real nice sunset. The dark blue-gray clouds I shot a short while earlier were now gone and skies were now clear above Lake Louise.

On my way back south a bit past Lake Louise, a big puffy cloud was lit up with a subtle warm yellow hue over Castle Mountain and was definitely catching my eye. I knew it could be a real show if it stayed lit an hour from now. I kept thinking I had all these options for sunset, but didn't really figure I'd be lucky enough to get a light show, and I was sure the clouds would either clear out or turn totally overcast again.

I arrived back at the Castle Mountain bridge and by the time I parked the truck and walked up to the bridge, there was a guy who had just set up his camera and was shooting away. He was right at the spot I would basically need to access the river below, but didn't want to walk in front of him or be in his way down below. There is a fence on either side that is apparently set up to restrict access to the river bank, but there is body-width opening on either side of the bridge to gain access, which I didn’t know at the time as you can’t see the opening while driving by, though I thought I could possibly see one. The light was still nice, though not as intense as it was earlier, and I think by the time I would've gotten the camera set up, it wouldn't have been too special.

I decided to leave here and try back up the highway a bit to one of the pullouts looking over to Castle Mountain, though I couldn't recall exactly how far up they were and I would hopefully try this spot below the bridge on another day. The light was still nice at 7:47, but at this point I was thinking I was going to be shut out altogether by not finding any place to shoot. I passed the large pullout with picnic benches along the highway heading north which is a mile or two miles south of the overflow campground. The light was continuing to fade away and I regret the decision to not stop as that would've been my best option, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be tonight. I did end up taking a couple driver point-of-view snaps.

I headed back to Mosquito Creek Campground to check it out and hoped I would be arriving late enough where hopefully there wouldn't be any camp hosts to check on my arrival. Shortly before coming to the first Hector Lake pullout, I noted another possible camp spot that is on a well hidden road spur that leads from a grassy pullout. I happened to see a guy walking and caught a glimpse of the roof of his vehicle while passing by. I even had problems finding this spot on subsequent pass-bys, so I figured this would be another good option. I stopped in at the Mosquito Creek Campground, but there was a lot of activity at the entrance, so I decided I'd head further north up the road searching for a place to camp. I hoped I would find something—anything at all. Well, not too much further is the Crowfoot Glacier Viewpoint at the end of Bow Lake. And, directly across the road on the other side is the driveway to the Helen Lake/Lake Katherine/Dolomite Pass trailhead. I didn't even see the driveway until now for some reason, but I figure any trailhead is a safe bet for camping.

I cooked some tortellini at the Crowfoot Glacier Viewpoint so I could dump my pot of water away from camp. When finished, I headed to the adjacent lot at 9:28. I would try for Moraine Lake for sunrise if it's cloudy, otherwise I'd head to Lake Louise if it is to be clear. I stayed awake for a bit just thinking about stuff. It was all clear around 11:45 and a half-hour or hour later, I couldn't see the stars any longer and figured I'd be in for another one of those days tomorrow.

7:48 AM — Sunrise from the pullout below the Tonquin Valley Trailhead