Gratitude Monday --Mountain Feasts Edition

Jasper and Banff National Parks are a short, easy drive from my home in Rocky Mountain House.

Highway 11, a.k.a. The David Thompson Highway, passes through Rocky on its way to join Highway 93, a.k.a. the Columbia Icefields Parkway.
The parkway is the portion of Highway 93 through the two parks beginning at Jasper townsite and ending at the Trans-Canada near Lake Louise.
It's about a two hour drive west from my house to Saskatchewan Crossing. That's where #11 meets #93.
The mountains begin about an hour west of Rocky.
It's fairly easy to go out for a hike, or a drive.  I am so grateful I get to live here and that we have enough sense to get out and enjoy the mountains as we can.
This year we've been picnicking, too.
They are simple affairs: gluten free bread or crackers, cheese, sausage, water, Coca-Cola, but with the sight of the mountains and the spicing of the fresh air, they are feasts.

This photo taken by Mike on Saturday is at a scenic stop just south of Saskatchewan Crossing in Banff National Park.

Gratitude Monday -- Big Out Day

I am so happy and grateful to have gotten out for a long drive on the weekend.
This is for a variety of reasons, chief among them I was able to sit for long periods of time.
It's been difficult since the operation as I can feel my tailbone is not quite right. Certain sitting positions remain out of the question, but at least I can sit.

We went west out to the Icefields Parkway and then south to about five minutes shy of the Trans-Canada Highway and perhaps 10 minutes from Lake Louise. Much as I enjoy Lake Louise I won't go on a long weekend unless I have to.
 I am grateful my strength and stamina are returning and that I did all the outbound driving. It was about three hours behind the wheel, but we stopped here and there.

I got to see the ravages of a fire near that is still burning the Banff Park Boundary with Clearwater County (Rocky Mountain House is in said county)  the new growth in a controlled burn across the road from the aforementioned fire,  I got to see the mountains up close again, and I got to get out of the house and extend my world.
I am grateful for all of it.

New growth in the controlled burn. Notice the fireweed.

Photo-Finish Friday -- Cloudy Mountain

Along the Columbia Icefields Parkway on the September long weekend.