My family and I are spending spring break in the Rockies! Our kids are 10 and 7 years old and are very used to being on foot, self-propelled, active, on their holidays.We make the outings fun by being flexible; it’s about time exploring outdoors on the trail, pathway, or sidewalk, not simply the destination.
An important part of self-propelled activity for our family is having lots of tasty food along and many rest breaks to enjoy the sights and the snacks! Yesterday our lunch consisted of leftover rice, salmon sandwiches,turkey sandwiches, peanut butter and honey sandwiches, ketchup chips, ruffle chips, lots of really good dark and light chocolate, homemade monster cookies, oranges, apples, carrots and tea. Phew! I didn’t realize how much food we took until I wrote it down. No wonder my backpack is always so large and heavy!
We left Calgary and headed west for 45 minutes to the Mount Yamnuska trailhead on Hwy. 1A, just east of Canmore. Yam is a wonderful early season hike but yesterday it was still a bit snowy and icy. I recommend that you carry some icers to attach to your boots if you head out on the Yam hike anytime soon. We spent a few hours on the trail, trying to stay upright, and then headed to Banff. Ahh, a hotel with a pool! Swimming was followed by a fantastic meal at Nourish Bistro. This vegetarian restaurant has such variety in flavours, and beautiful presentation. And the music they play is so interesting and varied. One of the chefs is a DJ and creates the soundtrack. The bohemian feel and their attention to detail in this hole in wall spot is a welcome respite in touristy Banff.
A buffet breakie fuelled us up for a few hours of xc skiing in Lake Louise today. Spring conditions made it a fast ski and I was down to a t-shirt for most of the day. We did the Fairview- Moraine Lake Road loop near the Lake at Lake Louise.
The snow is falling now and we are gearing up for a steakhouse meal at Melissa’s at the request of my kids. Vegetarian is okay for one night, the kids say, but now a burger and fries are in order. It’s all about balance. Bring on the Alberta beef!
p.s Melissa’s has the best burgers in Banff! What a wonderful spot for families.
