In my previous post, Canada at 40 Below, I alluded to a fate that awaited my wife and I the morning we were going to leave Nordegg to go to Jasper. The origins of this actually occurred just after the first day’s sunset shoot. On the ride back to the motel, the unthinkable happened. Unthinkable, that is, for a photographer on an exotic tour. My wife suddenly started feeling very chilled.
I got her into the motel room, but she still felt chilled and had no appetite. I brought her back some soup from dinner, but she would only eat a little bit. I thought it must have something to do with the very cold temperatures we experienced on the lake.
The next morning, she did not even want to get out of bed and was complaining about a splitting headache. I left her in the room and went for the sunrise shoot with the others. When I got back to the motel for breakfast, I checked on my wife. She was still feeling awful and still didn’t want anything to eat. She could only drink a little coffee and some water.
The motel attendant told us there was a fire house across the street with emergency services. I took her over to have her checked out. Try as we might, we could not find an open door or anyone to answer our knocks. It seemed emergency services weren’t available that day. Only crazy people, like us, would want to be out in that part of Canada at this time of year.
By the second afternoon shoot, it was becoming clear that my wife wasn’t just reacting to the cold temperatures but had actually come down with an illness. I discussed the situation with the group. It was decided that one of the guides would drive me down to Red Deer, a 2-hour drive in the opposite direction, where I would rent another vehicle for me and my wife. That way, we could stay with the group without getting everyone else sick as well.
Red Deer
During the night, my wife’s condition deteriorated. So, I decided to have her come with us to get the rental car so I could get her to a clinic to be checked out. In the early morning of the coldest day, -38 °C (-37 °F), we got up to go to Red Deer. Off we went for the 2-hour drive. (It would be a 4-hour detour for our guide.)
Along the way, I saw 3 Moose and a Wolf. Too bad there was no time to stop for photographs. We got to the car rental place around 9 AM. It was still so cold in the rental car and even colder outside, -28 °C (-18 °F). The wind made it feel much colder. By this point, I was starting to feel a tickle in my throat, was beginning to cough, and was feeling a little achy. Uh, oh! I was coming down with the illness also.
With our rental car secured, we needed to find a clinic. This was easier said than done, and even harder in the intense cold, having to pay for parking everywhere, and making multiple stops because the clinics all seem to have moved recently. But instead of sharing all the gory details, let’s just say a couple hours later we were able to see a doctor.
The good news was that it was just the common flu and nothing worse. The doctor we saw, was also one of the nicest I have seen. But at this point, my headache was turning quite severe. So, after seeing the doctor, we went to breakfast and then to a hotel to check into a room for a couple nights.
We slept for a couple days! Finally, both of us were feeling a little better. More importantly, my wife was able to start eating again. That morning, we decided to drive out to rejoin the group.
Return to the Group
The group was heading to Lake Louise today. So, we made plans to meet them in the evening at the next hotel near Lake Louise. To get there, we planned to go the long, scenic way through Nordegg, into the national park, then down the Icefield Parkway to the hotel.
A short way past the bubble lake, we came across a couple of wild horses along the side of the road. We stopped to get some pictures. Although they don’t seem to be owned by anyone, they do seem to be comfortable around people, so we were able to get some nice shots.
Although I could get them looking into the camera for the two shots above, most of the time they just kept their heads down eating the straw on the side of the road. They look to be in good shape, but still, they must be very hungry, especially during the winter. The photo below shows the tan one eating. What a gorgeous mane on this horse.
The rest of the drive going to the Icefield Parkway was very scenic. Below are some quick shots taken along the way.
Finally, we arrived at the entrance station where the road intersects with the Icefield Parkway. There is no one to take the entrance fee at the entrance station during the middle of winter. But there was a Raven. And not just any Raven, a trained Raven. He is trained to ask for Fig Newtons.
Well, I didn’t know that at the time, but I learned later that one of the people in my group had given him Fig Newtons a couple days ago when they drove through. (Don’t they know not to feed the wildlife?) Now he was expecting the same from us. When I got out of the car to take the first picture below, this Raven was walking around the front of the car towards me.
When I got back to the car, I found he had jumped up onto the hood of the car and was staring at my wife, waiting. Too bad. We know not to feed the wildlife.
Down the Icefield Parkway
From the station, we slowly made our way down the Icefield Parkway. Below is a set of pictures I took along the parkway.
Lake Louise Inn
A couple hours later, we arrived at our hotel, the Lake Louise Inn. The group wasn’t going to arrive until after 6 pm, but it was only 4 pm. After a couple hour wait, we were starving and couldn’t wait any longer. Inside the hotel lobby was a really inviting looking restaurant called the Timberwolf Pizza and Pasta Cafe.
At this cafe, we had the best dinner of the whole trip, chicken parmesan with the freshest and tastiest vegetables ever! Best of all, it was up in a loft type area and therefore very warm inside. We actually needed to take our down jackets off!
Finally, the group arrived, we got checked into the room, and we were ready for the next morning! My next post, coming soon, will cover the remainder of this photo tour!
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