A trip to Canada had been on my bucket list for quite sometime so last summer I decided it was finally time to make it happen. The plan was to fly into Vancouver for a brief stay, rent a car, and then drive the Sea to Sky Highway to Whistler. From there we would continue on, making stops in Kamloops, Golden, Lake Louise, Banff, and finally ending the trip in Calgary for our return flight home. Due to wildfire smoke conditions, we had to make a few modifications to the plan but the trip exceeded our expectations nonetheless.
Day 1: Vancouver. Upon our arrival in Vancouver, we first enjoyed a City and Harbor tour by jet boat. This was really fun and my teens loved it but it is not for the faint of heart! The ride is fast and bumpy so be prepared. Departing from Granville Island, the tour took us through the Inner Harbour to English Bay and Burrard Inlet for views of Stanley Park, Lion’s Gate Bridge, and the Vancouver skyline and waterfront. Following dinner at Tap & Barrel-Bridges, we enjoyed a Lost Souls of Gastown tour, learning all about the origins of Vancouver, the small pox epidemic of the 1780s (that wiped out 75-80% of some indigenous communities), and the Great Fire of 1886 (that burned all of Vancouver in 45 minutes). We also stopped to see the Gastown Steam Clock, which shoots off steam and whistles its version of the Westminister Chime on the hour every hour. I definitely recommend a nighttime visit to Gastown and the Steam Clock.
Day 2: Vancouver to Whistler. Before leaving Vancouver, we enjoyed a food tour of the Granville Island Public Market. Our tour guide took us through the market and treated us to many deletable bites including Benton Brothers Cheese, bread from A Bread Affair, Hobbs Pickles, Oyama meats, Longliner Seafoods smoked salmon, Zesty Buttery Lemon Squares, Bon Macaron Patisserie macarons, Lee’s Donuts, and more. We were stuffed following the tour but we all agreed it is a must-do when in Vancouver. Next we explored the Capilano Suspension Bridge Park, and stopped for a quick hike to Brandywine Falls before continuing on to Whistler. The drive from Vancouver to Whistler is breathtakingly beautiful. The pictures do not do it justice. After checking into our room at the Four Seasons, we had a fabulous seafood dinner at Wild Blue Restaurant and Bar and then walked around Whistler Village.
Day 3: Whistler. Our day began with a hike of Train Wreck Trail, the site of a 1956 train derailment featuring graffiti train cars and spectacular views of the Cheakamus River. It was pretty cool! The kids thought the train cars were pretty cool and enjoyed climbing in and on them.
Afterwards we headed up Blackcomb Mountain Gondola and transferred to the Peak 2 Peak Gondola for travel over to Whistler Mountain. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola is the highest tri-cable lift of its kind with an elevation of 436 meters and travels a distance of 2.7 miles between the two mountains. I’m not going to lie, I had a few moments of uncomfortable panic as we dangled between the mountains.
Once we reached Whistler Mountain we checked in for our next adventure…the Sky Walk. This was a guided hike that required us to wear harnesses clipped onto a cable so we could walk along the cliff edge and across the bridges and other features. It was an arduous climb up the mountain to the course and the course definitely isn’t for anyone with a fear of heights but we’re all pretty adventurous and the views were extraordinary. This was definitely another highlight so far.
After the two hour adventure, we traveled back down the Peak 2 Peak Gondola, down the Blackcomb Mountain Gondola, and then walked into Whistler Village for a stop at Lululemon (a Canadian owned brand) and Starbucks followed by dinner at the hotel and bed. We were all exhausted, even more so because there was a heat advisory and it was an unseasonably hot 97 degrees!
Day 4: Whistler to Kamloops. Upon departing from Whistler, we first stopped for breakfast at the infamous Blackbird Bakery in Pemberton for delicious baked goods and then backtracked a bit to hike to Nairn Falls, an easy 1.5km hike, with a lookout point that gets you impressively close to the rushing power of the waterfall. Next we took in the view at Duffey Lake Lookout, stopped for sandwiches at A-Bun-Dance Artisan Bakery in Lillooet (so good!), and then continued onward to Kamloops. The mountain terrain and views from Pemberton to Lillooet are incredible and reminded me of Glacier National Park, MT. In Lillooet, the climate is much dryer and the mountains less rugged and tree lined, which reminded me of southern MT. It was another HOT day with the high temp exceeding 100 degrees. Once in Kamloops, we checked into our hotel, explored Riverside Park, ate yet another delicious dinner at Moxie’s Grill & Bar, and ended the day with a sunset hike in Kenna Cartwright Park.
Canada Road Trip Day 5: Kamloops to Lake Louise. In an unexpected turn of events we arrived in Lake Louise one day earlier than initially planned. The initial plan was to leave Kamloops and stay in Revelstoke for a night but when we awoke on our last morning in Kamloops the air was heavy with smoke from the many fires throughout Canada. Visibility was low and worsened as we proceeded east. In Salmon Arm, there was even ash falling from the sky. In checking the air quality reports, it was pretty clear that Revelstoke was worse than Lake Louise so we decided to skip that stop and push onward.
I’m sad we missed out on some of the activities and hikes we had planned between Revelstoke and Lake Louise. We lucked out though and, after a late lunch stop in Golden, we were able to use our tickets for the Golden Skybridge park a day earlier. The suspension bridges were WAY scarier than the one at Capilano and the mountain rollercoaster was very fun.
We finally arrived at one of my longtime bucket list destinations, the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, around 7:30pm, checked in, and then hiked the Lake Shore trail. This place is otherworldly and I could have stayed here for a really long time.
I forgot to mention that before leaving Kamloops this morning we did a quick drive by the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, once the largest residential school in Canada, which operated from 1890 to 1978. Its enrollment peaked at 500 students in the 1950s and the stated aim of the school was the acculturation and forced assimilation of Indigenous children.
In May 2021, the remains of 215 children were found on the grounds, former students of the school. Children were forcibly removed from their homes once attendance became mandatory by law in the 1920s. The children were not allowed to speak their native language nor practice their own spirituality. It was a pretty horrific time in history. The school building and museum are closed indefinitely.
Lo+Mo 
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