This year, Canada is celebrating 150 years, and is offering free admission to all of it's national parks. We helped celebrate this by visiting Banff National Park and Waterton Lakes National Park.
We stayed at the Townsite campground at the edge of the lake on our first evening after arriving in Waterton. For the first time on our trip through Banff and Waterton, we arrived at our campsite before dark. It was wonderful to not have to set up camp in the dark and worry about waking up other campers! We put up the tent (always a bonding experience for all) and walked into town for dinner at a taco restaurant. On our way back to the campsite we got caught in a total downpour! But luckily, as soon as we gave up standing under the eaves of a storefront and decided to make a run for it, the rain miraculously stopped and we didn't have to rush as quickly for the tent.
(Note to future campers: although this campground has limited privacy, it really is one of my top campgrounds I've visited in the Canadian Rockies; it has nice, clean bathroom facilities, and the campground itself was pretty quiet. It has surrounding trails, and waterfront access).
After a good night's sleep, we woke up early, and I made good ol' peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the big day ahead. When I'm traveling I do like to see what gluten free products are available elsewhere, especially in other countries. I didn't find any Canadian gluten free bread I liked BUT we absolutely love Badoit sparkling water! We found it on our last trip and haven't forgotten it. It's a French mineral water, and not yet available in the USA (as far as I could tell, for any reasonable price). One of our favorite things to do was stop at the gas station, fill up, buy a couple of Badoit sparkling waters and sip them as the equivalent of cocoa while driving around viewing Christmas lights...except, in our case, the holiday lights were sun-kissed, glimmering glacial lakes and rocky mountain peaks.
That morning, we boarded a small ferry boat from the marina in Waterton with about 30 other hikers bound for the trailhead of the Crypt Lake hike (pictured on the left side of the lake in the picture at the top of this post).
The ferry ride was a short 15 minutes or so, and the captain was full of jokes and facts about Waterton and the Crypt Lake hike. He had a tough crowd at 8:30 in the morning but we were all starting to wake up as we pulled into the dock at the trailhead.
Since we all arrived to the trailhead at the same time, it was sort of an awkward mad dash up the mountain and it seemed like it was to see who exactly was the fittest. Just when I was really starting to feel like the fat kid on the block, or the weak link in the chain, people started pulling off to let others pass, and I thought "phew! I'm not the only one!" We had to remind ourselves that we weren't there to sprint through the hike only to get back to town the fastest, we were there to enjoy the scenery. It was easy to get caught up in needing to match the whirlwind speed of some of the hikers out for a 'rest-day' hike on their day off from being a park ranger...yeesh.
The Crypt Lake hike was voted as one of National Geographic's "most thrilling" hikes. Let me tell you, I was absolutely thrilled to make it home again after this day. It is a 5.4 mile hike to Crypt Lake, gaining about 2300 feet of elevation. Every direction you turn is something beautiful to photograph or take in, including waterfalls, mountains and wildlife.
After hiking for what felt like an eternity, we arrived at a tunnel. This tunnel is reportedly not man-made, but was made by a river at some point in time and is about 60 feet in length. It's not tall enough to stand up in and is just short enough for you to see 'the light at the end of the tunnel'. Hah. All hikers have to traverse a ledge that's about a foot wide to get to the tunnel, and there's no way around going through the tunnel to hike to Crypt Lake, as far as we know.
After you emerge from the tunnel, you are met with a cable that's drilled into the side of the cliff. I clung to this cable for dear life, as the "trail" is really just a narrow, uneven, rocky ledge heading diagonally up the cliff-side. Needless to say, I was not thrilled at this point.
It took us about 3 hours to hike to Crypt Lake and we arrived around noon, just in time for lunch. Since we were required to purchase our return ferry trip and commit to a return time that morning before starting the hike, we realized we didn't have much time to eat and make it back to the trailhead, where we had to meet our ferry. It's important to remember that the tunnel and cable sections of the trail are essentially a 'one-lane' path, and hikers must take turns going up/down in these areas. Because of this, these sections of the trail can experience some congestion. On our way down we spent some time waiting for a woman who was absolutely terrified of heights make her ascent up to the tunnel, across the 12 inch-wide ledge. This courageous woman was just absolutely crushing her worst fears!
Even though we were slightly concerned we wouldn't make it back to the trailhead in time for our ferry, we made it, just in the nick of time to watch some kids jumping and diving off the dock into the lake. Most everyone was happy to have reached a body of water to stick our barking dogs in!
I think I speak for us all when I say that we were all extra grateful for the captain for returning to pick us up as promised. Wade and I were happy that we had a shower in our near futures! We had been planning for a while, and looking forward to checking in for a night in the historic Prince of Wales Hotel in Waterton. This hotel is arguably the face of Waterton and it can't be missed by visitors as it stands proudly over the lake.
The Prince of Wales Hotel was built by the Great Northern Railway between 1926 and 1927 to draw Montana workers building railroads into Canada to drink since this was during the Prohibition era in the US. The construction of the hotel was no easy feat as Waterton is located miles from other major towns and the closest station for materials to arrive by rail was 35 miles away in Cardston. From there, materials had to be brought by truck, horse & wagon to the site. The design of the chalet hotel was modified multiple times by it's designer during construction as the location in the upper Waterton valley requires that the building withstand immense winds and weather, almost causing it to be blown over multiple times! It was completed and opened to the public in July of 1927.
When it opened it was said to be true luxury because of the steam-heated rooms, elevator, hot and cold running water, electricity, and dining room. After the Prohibition ended, that Great Northern Railway closed the hotel during the years of the Great Depression and WWII as it was then more of a financial burden as Americans did not have to travel to Canada to legally drink anymore. The hotel was sold to Glacier Park in 1960 and much of the needed renovations and maintenance on the hotel was delayed until the 1980s.
Today, great attempts are made to preserve the rich history of the hotel and many renovations that today would be considered standard have not been completed as it would involve major changes to the hotel's construction. For example, the hotel is not insulated! I was shocked when I heard this. Owners of the hotel have decided that the historic quality of the hotel outweighs their desire to have a fully operating hotel year-round. This means that, yes, the hotel is only open from May through October each year. At the end of each season the windows are boarded up, and the building's staff begins preparations for the harsh winter that Waterton experiences. It is so harsh, in fact, that there are actually only 50 permanent residents of the town of Waterton!
Wade and I ate dinner in the main lobby of the Prince of Wales Hotel that evening following our big hike to Crypt Lake and boy were we hungry!
Some of the highlights of having dinner here were THIS VIEW, some Canadian wine, and listening to one of the hotel staff members give the routine history of the Prince of Wales hotel in the lobby while we ate our dessert.
The one historical fact I was concerned about were the ghosts that are said to be present at the hotel. One was said to have been murdered on the 5th floor....RIGHT WHERE WE WERE STAYING. Don't worry, I was sure to confirm that it was not our room!
The next morning, we woke with a purpose, as we knew it was our last day in Waterton. It had been several years since our last trip to Waterton and we had since vowed to complete the Bear's Hump hike. This short, but steep hike was a great morning hike just to get the blood pumping and a good healthy burn in the thighs to start the day.
We spent some time soaking in the view before returning to the hotel for breakfast.
Again, this was our second trip to the town of Waterton, and we remembered fondly the restaurant Wieners of Waterton. It's listed as one of the few gluten-free friendly restaurants and if you spend some time in this town, you find it is also one of the more popular restaurants. They had expanded their menu since our last visit and they have a wide array of sauces/condiments and sides to go with their wieners and fries. I never thought a hot dog could be good without a bun, but their fresh lettuce, pickled veggies, and slaw take the basic hot dog to the next level.
At this point, Wade is jabbing me in the shoulder to mention the to-die-for waffle sundae he bought from the storefront next to Wieners of Waterton. The shop is called Waffleton, and since it's right next to Wiener's of Waterton, why would you ever leave this block?? I think Wade was probably scheming the whole time he was eating that sundae, if and how he could get second sundae across the border that afternoon.
Waterton National Park effortlessly stole our hearts the first time we visited several years ago, and we have been talking about it ever since, day-dreaming about the day we'd get to go back. It felt even more magical this time since we were here to celebrate Canada's 150...and it helps that the park passes were free, because isn't every good thing just a little bit better when you find out it's free? :)
August 2017.