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Day 4 The breakfast buffet is impressive, offering all the fixings for a full western-style breakfast including sausage, bacon and eggs and a whole lot more, and an assortment of continental-style breakfast items like waffles, bakery goods and lots of fresh fruit. It all looks so good!<\/p>\n Travel Plans Gone Sideways A few minutes later, she returns smiling. Their travel agent has worked things out. Karen and Jefferey may even have time to ride all the way into Canmore before having to be at the airport. They\u2019ll decide once they get to Banff.<\/p>\n The Bow Valley Parkway Bow Valley Parkway is one of the best places to see wildlife in Banff National Park. Moose, elk, big horn sheep and bears are all a possibility. It would be nice to see some sheep.<\/p>\n But we don\u2019t see any sheep. A spunky but confused chipmunk runs in front of Randy\u2019s bike, gets halfway across the road, then changes its mind and scampers back the same way it had come.<\/p>\n Later, we come upon a gorgeous big elk with enormous velvet-covered antlers. Randy tells us the elk shed their antlers in January and begin growing new ones in spring. The velvet carries blood to the developing boney tissue and protects the antlers as they grow. Come fall, the elk will rub against trees to remove the drying velvet and display his shiny, hardened antlers.<\/p>\n We stop at the World War I Internment site which marks the place where a prison camp held more than six hundred men between 1915 and 1917. The memorial plaque tells us the embarrassing truth about why some men were made prisoners here: \u201cThe majority were non-combatants, unemployed civilians \u2013 victims of the 1913 depression, racial prejudice and wartime hysteria.\u201d<\/p>\n Life was very hard in the camp. The men worked for eight hours a day, sometimes with an additional five hours of walking to and from the work sites. Their back-breaking labour contributed to the construction of the Banff Springs golf course, part of the Bow Valley Parkway, and other national parks roads and bridges. The monument of an interned Ukrainian man with his hand extended in a questioning gesture is a fitting tribute to the shameful and perplexing history of this place. I wheel away from the spot with mixed feelings of remorse and gratitude for those who were wrongly treated in this beautiful wilderness location.<\/p>\n At Castle Junction, we peel off some clothing layers \u2013 it\u2019s getting hot! We top up our water bottles and have a snack while Ben shares some news. Turns out that\u00a0six kilometres beyond Castle Junction, the road was closed\u00a0because crews were still clearing trees that blocked the road after Friday night\u2019s storm. I find out later from a Parks Canada report that more than 100 trees had been blown down. We\u2019re thankful for finding out, but we\u2019re sad to have to leave the beautiful Bow Valley Parkway.<\/p>\n Vermillion Lakes and the Legacy Trail The air is fragrant with the heady scent of blossoming silver willow and balsam poplar as we follow the road into Banff and the end of our tour at the Banff railway station. We stop at the edge of town and position ourselves on and around the new Banff sign \u2013 a playful typographic letter-sculpture.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>It\u2019s chilly as we head for breakfast at Lake Louise Inn\u2019s Legends Restaurant<\/a> (one of four on-site dining spots at the resort), but the sky is clear, promising sunshine and warm temperatures.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Back at the table, Ben\u2019s not eating. Karen\u2019s got a phone to her ear. Jefferey\u2019s hurrying back to their room for his laptop. They\u2019ve learned just this morning that the airline canceled their flight. Their itinerary is full and there\u2019s not much wiggle room. The atmosphere is tense. Their travel agent is scrambling to re-arrange the couple\u2019s flights to get them to their next destination on time. They\u2019re heading for Whitehorse then on to their Alaskan small ship cruise. Ben will skip breakfast if he has to, to get them to the Calgary airport if they need to catch a last-minute flight out. Karen gets up and hurries away, the phone still at her ear.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>In Ben\u2019s pre-ride brief he tells us we\u2019ll be getting on the Bow Valley Parkway<\/a> for our ride into Banff. The Bow Valley Parkway is a scenic 51 km route that parallels the Trans Canada Highway. The traffic is minimal and the shoulder is wide. The mountain peaks soar above the spruce forest that fringes the roadway. It\u2019s a treat to ride.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Ben reroutes our group onto the Trans Canada Highway. It\u2019s busy and noisy but the shoulder is wide and there are no hills to climb. We travel single-file for about 40 minutes before exiting onto the Vermillion Lakes<\/a> Road. This quiet stretch of road is a popular drive from nearby Banff. Benches invite visitors to take in the scenery. Sun bathers bask on one of several docks. Three kayaks ply the shallow waters at a leisurely pace, breaking up the reflections of nearby Mount Rundle and Sulphur Mountain.<\/p>\n