Making more Memories: Road Trip to Western Canada

 After five hours of research and planning with maps, routes and hotel reviews,

We decided to set out on a road trip. This one only through Canada.

Total distance approximately 10,200 kilometres.

We are hoping to see wildlife, do some hiking, and experience this great country. 

No plan to visit any of the famous tourist spots since we have already done that in previous trips!

And we are driving a 2024 Toyota Land cruiser J250 with stock wheels and tires.
  

Start of the trip (19,725 km reading)

Thunder Bay, view of the mountain at sunrise  

Pancake Bay.

If you've heard Gordon Lightfoot's "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald",  

The ship sank about 24 kilometres NorthWest of Pancake Bay, 

About 27 kilometres from Whitefish Bay.

 

 

 

 

On the way to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan

 

 

 

 

After the cheetah, the Pronghorn is the fastest land animal, and it is known for its endurance

 

Driving in the prairies is extremely relaxing and peaceful.

 

Fields of Canola flowers

 

 

In the badlands of east central Alberta, is the dinosaur capital of the world, Drumheller. 

This is where dinosaurs once roamed.

 

More Canola

It started raining in the Canadian Rockies, so we decided to go a bit off the paved road

 

 

Headed towards Spray Lakes, Alberta

 

 

 

 Mountain Goat

 The wet rocks are not slippery for the mountain goat

 

 

 

 

Driving to Sicamous via Revelstoke

 

 

Meadows in the Sky Parkway with lots of Indian Paintbrush flowers on both sides of the road

 

View of Revelstoke from Meadows in the Sky Parkway

 

 

 

We did a short hike presumably through grizzly country to get to the summit.

Enjoying the view of multiple mountain peaks from the summit 

 

 

 Indian Paintbrush is also known as Prairie-fire

 

Driving to Bastion Mountain Lookout in beautiful British Columbia, Canada

This is an active logging road, rough and unmaintained with dangerous cliff edges, and stunning views of the lake below, thankfully it was not wet today. 

We didn't see anyone else the entire drive!

Didn't try eating these berries, but I'm sure the bears love it :-) 

This drive was my favourite part of the trip!

 

Got to try out many of the off-road capabilities of the Land Cruiser 

 

 

Steep decline in L4

Our Ferry to Victoria, BC

 

 

 

View of Mount Baker from the ferry back to Vancouver

 

 

 

Sunset, at English Bay Beach, Vancouver 

 

 

Gas Town Steam clock 

 Today we walked approximately 24 kilometres!

Kitsilano beach

We walked on the Burrard Street bridge

Love the dedicated lanes for walking and cycling. 

Why can't we have this in Ontario??

Stanley Park is a 1000 acre park with some of the tallest and oldest trees

 

 

Girl in a wetsuit 

Everyone's getting ready for the Honda Celebration of Light fireworks show tonight. 

They're expecting over 200,000 people on the beach

 

 

 For several square kilometres, all streets leading to the beach are closed to traffic.

The crowd is pouring in ...

 

 

 

Driving back home via Squamish, Kamloops, Valemount, and Jasper on Hwy 93 and Hwy 11.

 

 

 

Mount Robson 

 

 

  

 

 

We are almost 4,000 kilometres away from home

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filling up windshield washer fluid

 

 

Sunset in Kamloops 

 

 

Love the places where you can drive to the edge of the water, and rest a bit 

 

 

So peaceful 

 

 

And so beautiful !! 

Elk at Jasper

Sad to see all the burnt trees and forests from the wildfires 

We've seen these forests before the fires! 

 

Medicine Lake

As we were driving, I noticed the air pressure in the left rear tire was low.

So I pulled over to inflate the tire.

 

And while inflating, I see this large screw in the tire which we may have picked up on one of those stretches with road construction work.

I removed the screw, and the tire got completely deflated. 

Interesting feeling when you are in the middle of nowhere. 

Fixed the tire with the kit I was carrying. 

We needed to swap wheels with the spare and we called roadside assistance 

who guided us to Toyota in Medicine Hat Alberta, 20 minutes away.

 

The folks at Toyota, Medicine Hat, Alberta took us in within 20 minutes of us calling them. 

(No appointment) and they showed me where to place the jack underneath the car, 

They also showed me how to lower the spare wheel. 

They swapped the wheel and we were back on the road in less than 20 minutes.

Excellent service from Toyota.

Thank you! 

Back on the road!

 

 

 

These photos were taken from almost a kilometre away 

I used a whole bottle of Windex to clean the windshield on this drive

Abraham Lake on Hwy 11. Haven't seen a more beautiful place!

The Athabasca Glacier is so vast and huge, it reminds me

Of how small and insignificant I am on this planet 

 

The glacier is approximately 6 kilometres long and around 900 feet thick

 

 

 

Too many tourists there now

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next two days have long stretches of driving 

 

 

 

 

 

From start to finish 

  

 

 

That's 10,112 kilometres

 

 

 

I turned 59 today, 

And driving is one way I enjoy spending my birthday :-) 

 

 

For taking us safely through different time zones, over 10,000 kilometres in this beautiful country,

I'm truly grateful to GOD for all the provision and protection, 

And thankful to Toyota for an extremely capable and comfortable 4x4.

 

Stay safe, whatever you drive, and wherever you go!