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Glacial Sightseeing on Alberta’s Columbia Icefield Parkway

Posted by The Mountain Man, Monday, July 6th, 2009 at 1:55 pm

Escaping the Summer Heat on the Columbia Icefields

The Snocoach poised and ready to embark on the Columbia Icefields.

The Snocoach poised and ready to embark on the Columbia Icefields.

JASPER, Alberta – My life as a mountain man in the Canadian Rockies has taught me to expect the unexpected. Here’s a prime example; it’s a beautiful warm sunny summer day and you are standing on the Athabasca Glacier. Two opposite and pristine worlds collide on the Columbia Icefields, somewhere between a prehistoric ice world and the pleasant summer weather.

I love visiting the Columbia Icefields on the edge of both Jasper and Banff in the summertime. As most of you know, I’m an awful driver, so I like to leave the heavy lifting up to Sundog Tours. They always deliver me safe and sound to the Columbia Icefields Visitor Center where I have the option of taking the Snocoach Tour across the glacial fields. The Snocoach is a modern marvel, somewhere between a bus and a tank, it is built for scrambling on the glaciers so you can get up close and personal.

The trip to the Columbia Icefields is also a great chance to see some native Canadian Rockies wildlife. Jasper National Park is home to big horn sheep, caribou, moose and even the famed grizzly bear. I snapped some great pictures of those rugged little guys running up and down the slopes last time I visited. So if you are looking for something to cool you off on a summer day, I would definitely recommend taking a tour on the Athabasca Glacier.

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    One Response to “Glacial Sightseeing on Alberta’s Columbia Icefield Parkway”

    • Icefield Parkway in the Canadian Rockies – Canadian Rockies – Banff National Park – Rockies.com () on September 27, 2009 at 4:41 am said :

      [...] This is a favorite ice climbing area for winter adventurers.  Take some time to visit the Columbia Icefield and to take a SnoCoach tour on the Althabasca Glacier.  While on the highway, you can easily see [...]

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