Claire's Canadian Checklist: Jasper, Banff & Lake Louise, Alberta

After our adventures in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, our next stop was the Canadian Rockies. We spent five days travelling along the Icefields parkway from Lake Louise to Jasper and back again to Banff.

Amazingly, as we drove into Lake Louise on the first day, I spotted a mummy bear and her cub on a grassy hill next to the highway! I think they were grizzly bears, although I didn't manage to get a photo.

Lake Louise is every bit as spectacular as all the pictures I've seen. The calm turquoise water framed by majestic ice-capped mountains is so other-worldly, I had to pinch myself to believe it was real. We followed the trail around to the back of Lake Louise and hiked 5km to the Plain of Six Glaciers, which offered a stunning view of the surrounding mountains. I was surprised to see ice and snow still on the ground in spring, although it probably won't last much longer as it was already melting and trickling down the rocks in mini-waterfalls. A Swiss tea-house at the top of the trail allowed us a brief rest before we made our way back.

The next day we started our drive north on the Icefields parkway to Jasper. Every stop along the way was breathtakingly beautiful. From the mirror-like reflections at Herbert Lake, to the stunning turquoise water at Bow Lake and Peyto Lake, the powerful Sunwapta and Athabasca waterfalls and the many large glaciers attached to the mountaintops, it's incredible to see so many natural wonders in such a short amount of time.

We took the 'Ice Explorer' bus which drives you up onto the Athabasca glacier. It was interesting to hear about the science behind these formations and pretty exciting to walk on top of a real glacier! I filled my water bottle with fresh glacier water to drink, I wonder if it made me look any younger?

After spending one night in Jasper we drove back along the Icefields parkway, stopping to take in the scenery at several points along the way. At the 'Valley of Five Lakes' trail, we had a surprise encounter with a black bear! It was sitting on the path in front of us, so we promptly (and quietly) retreated to safety. Fortunately a group of Dutch tourists (equipped with bear bells and bear spray) let us join them to finish the trail.

Banff itself was much larger than I expected, with a population of about 7500 people. We took the Banff gondola up to the top of Sulphur mountain for an incredible view, getting there just in time to see a beautiful rainbow spread out across the valley. Outside of Banff, we walked the trail around Johnson lake and drove by the Vermillion lakes and Lake Minnewanka.

We learnt that a good way to spot wildlife from the safety of your car is to look out for 'bear jams', which are traffic jams that occur when multiple cars stop to take photos of a bear. We saw two more black bears this way, happily munching away on dandelions by the side of the road. In addition, we also spotted an elk, a deer and several bighorn sheep. Sadly there were no moose, however I made a special visit to Toronto Zoo last week to see one (I think it was a lady moose, as it didn't have any antlers). I did get to see two grizzly bears up close though!

This was an amazing holiday and I feel very lucky to have seen so much of Canada during our two years here. I hope we return to the Rockies one day as the scenery is just so spectacular. One thing's for certain, I'll be sure to carry some bear spray with me next time!