August 26 2023 ~ Columbia Icefields and on our way to Jasper

Group breakfast again and a full day touring.  We did sightseeing all around the Columbia Icefields towards Jasper.  These Icefields are one of the largest accumulations of ice south of the Arctic Circle as well as being the most accessible in North America. In 1843 the glacier was 8 km long and 450 deep.  Now it’s 2023 and 4 km long but still same depth. We rode a unique Ice Explorer onto the Athabasca Glacier.  It was a giant 6-Wheel Ice Explorer.  Think of it like a “monster-truck meets glacier.

This was a incredible experience as we traveled on a massive Ice Explorer all-terrain vehicle to the Athabasca Glacier, a 10,000-year-old sheet of ice, where you can walk on, feel and drink from the glacier. From there we head to the glass-floored Skywalk for a jaw-dropping walk at the cliff’s edge.  Yes I was a bit scared to walk out on it but we both did it. 

Glacier Skywalk consists of a 1640 feet interpretive boardwalk and a glass floor observation platform extending 98 feet out over the Sunwapta Valley.  This Skywalk takes spectacular scenery and a view of nature to unbelievable heights. What a full day.  We had a buffet lunch and traveled to our hotel Forest Park Hotel.  We got all tucked into our hotel in Jasper National Park.  Wow what a day

Hector Lake reflections