Hungover; Blake, James, Ovie and I pile into James' Hyundai Tiburon like sardines into a tin. This morning we're headed towards a mountain once again. But this time, instead of snaking our way around it huge base- we're going to climb it.
We slept well our first night in banff- By this time, two consecutive nights of rich food and drink coupled with less-than-ample sleep had left us a little sluggish. I woke up a few hours early to write "Mountains n’ Stuff". Shortly after it was done I could hear Ovie shout from beneath his bedspread,
"Milne, bud, open up those blinds and let’s get a look at those mountains!”
So I dramatically fling open the huge curtains and the sun pours in. Ovie pops up like a jack-in-the-box (“Oh fuck ya!”) and James and Blake aren’t far behind. We’re raring to go- the Canadian wilderness awaits.
We got dressed and ate a hearty breakfast, complete with with a nice OJ and Champagne because, well, why not? Bryan glanced at the sports section and we took our time- the huge valley bookended by two postcard-perfect snow-capped mountains. Not a bad view for breakfast.
Halfway through our second cups of coffee our server Melissa asked what we had planned for the day.
“Nothing” we all said at once. Queue laughter. Then:
“Whats good? What should we do?”
“You could climb Sulphur Mountain!”
Done. We would climb the mountain after breakfast. Back to the room for a quick additional layers and into town for some provisions. I bought some chocolate (can’t go mountaineering without chocolate) and a piece of liquorice root (different).
We got to the base of the mountain and before long we were ascending up the give-or-take 2,600 foot climb. The average time was 2.5 hours but we managed to make it to the summit in just under 2 hours.
Our conversation jumped around- sometimes lively talk of our ambitions and values, and sometimes perfect silence save for our huffs and puffs from the thin air- our quiet determination taking us further and further up. Those silent moments were my favourite- it was just us and our human camaraderie, the shadow of the mountain keeping us in constant suspense.
The hardest part was right before the summit, but as was expected, it was all worth it:
We slept well our first night in banff- By this time, two consecutive nights of rich food and drink coupled with less-than-ample sleep had left us a little sluggish. I woke up a few hours early to write "Mountains n’ Stuff". Shortly after it was done I could hear Ovie shout from beneath his bedspread,
"Milne, bud, open up those blinds and let’s get a look at those mountains!”
So I dramatically fling open the huge curtains and the sun pours in. Ovie pops up like a jack-in-the-box (“Oh fuck ya!”) and James and Blake aren’t far behind. We’re raring to go- the Canadian wilderness awaits.
We got dressed and ate a hearty breakfast, complete with with a nice OJ and Champagne because, well, why not? Bryan glanced at the sports section and we took our time- the huge valley bookended by two postcard-perfect snow-capped mountains. Not a bad view for breakfast.
Halfway through our second cups of coffee our server Melissa asked what we had planned for the day.
“Nothing” we all said at once. Queue laughter. Then:
“Whats good? What should we do?”
“You could climb Sulphur Mountain!”
Done. We would climb the mountain after breakfast. Back to the room for a quick additional layers and into town for some provisions. I bought some chocolate (can’t go mountaineering without chocolate) and a piece of liquorice root (different).
We got to the base of the mountain and before long we were ascending up the give-or-take 2,600 foot climb. The average time was 2.5 hours but we managed to make it to the summit in just under 2 hours.
Our conversation jumped around- sometimes lively talk of our ambitions and values, and sometimes perfect silence save for our huffs and puffs from the thin air- our quiet determination taking us further and further up. Those silent moments were my favourite- it was just us and our human camaraderie, the shadow of the mountain keeping us in constant suspense.
The hardest part was right before the summit, but as was expected, it was all worth it:
We took the time to read all the geographic information on the trees, the chinooks, and the general flora and fauna of the mountain. This world will never cease to be incredible.
As we took the whole grand scene in we passed around a flask of whisky, smoked a bit and snacked on chocolate. We took pride in hiking up that mountain. We never saw another soul the whole way.
Later we returned to our usual habit of eating and drinking like royalty. Some hearty food in the lounge: wild boar flatbreads, cheddar and bacon soup, braised pork in cream sauce with potatoes, and dark ales.
We ate hungrily, each bite slowly warming our cold-weathered bodies.
After a quick swim in the hot pool we were feeling pretty fresh- we wandered (pretty aimlessly) around the castle before we found ourselves at a wine bar- sharing some vino and a few cheeses and meats and shared some old stories and anecdotes.
We found our way into the town of Banff which unfortunately is pretty quiet on tuesdays in the off-season- but we got to go to the banff brew pub to have ‘ninja poison’ a deadly, triple-vodka cocktail that tastes like juice. The curve ball is that you must “ninja-race.” That is, drink the drink as fast as you can through a straw.
We raced. James won. We were all pretty sociable after that. Once back at the hotel there were numerous times I found myself rolling with laughter- our short journey had already created so many laughable, sharable moments.
The next day, again we were pretty sore: in body and mind. We spent the morning shaking off gender roles- we headed to the spa to enjoy the process called “taking to the waters” an ancient practice of royalty where one baths in a mineral pool, followed by a hot waterfall, a warm waterfall, a frigid waterfall and then the mineral pool once more. The whole process takes about 40 minutes and leaves you all sorts of clean and refreshed. Apparently one should take to the waters every day for 15-20 consecutive days, four times a year.
If only.
After the spa we headed to Lake Louise for one last hurrah. Before dinner we headed for some casual recreation- billiards and chess. It was an perfect moment, we didn’t need to speak much- I think we knew the sun was setting on our trip. But we were all in such a healthy place.
As we took the whole grand scene in we passed around a flask of whisky, smoked a bit and snacked on chocolate. We took pride in hiking up that mountain. We never saw another soul the whole way.
Later we returned to our usual habit of eating and drinking like royalty. Some hearty food in the lounge: wild boar flatbreads, cheddar and bacon soup, braised pork in cream sauce with potatoes, and dark ales.
We ate hungrily, each bite slowly warming our cold-weathered bodies.
After a quick swim in the hot pool we were feeling pretty fresh- we wandered (pretty aimlessly) around the castle before we found ourselves at a wine bar- sharing some vino and a few cheeses and meats and shared some old stories and anecdotes.
We found our way into the town of Banff which unfortunately is pretty quiet on tuesdays in the off-season- but we got to go to the banff brew pub to have ‘ninja poison’ a deadly, triple-vodka cocktail that tastes like juice. The curve ball is that you must “ninja-race.” That is, drink the drink as fast as you can through a straw.
We raced. James won. We were all pretty sociable after that. Once back at the hotel there were numerous times I found myself rolling with laughter- our short journey had already created so many laughable, sharable moments.
The next day, again we were pretty sore: in body and mind. We spent the morning shaking off gender roles- we headed to the spa to enjoy the process called “taking to the waters” an ancient practice of royalty where one baths in a mineral pool, followed by a hot waterfall, a warm waterfall, a frigid waterfall and then the mineral pool once more. The whole process takes about 40 minutes and leaves you all sorts of clean and refreshed. Apparently one should take to the waters every day for 15-20 consecutive days, four times a year.
If only.
After the spa we headed to Lake Louise for one last hurrah. Before dinner we headed for some casual recreation- billiards and chess. It was an perfect moment, we didn’t need to speak much- I think we knew the sun was setting on our trip. But we were all in such a healthy place.
Dinner was fantastic.
“Dude, this tenderloin is so tender!”
“I can cut it with my butter knife!”
“I can cut my tenderloin with my other piece of tenderloin!”
We reflected on our trip over (surprise) more cocktails and ordered wine and apps. At this point we got hit with a little misfortune. James got food poisoning. It was a damper on the final evening, but it will be our hysteric laughter, our shared accomplishments and our strengthened friendship that will endure for years after this trip.
I think it’s safe to say we all found refuge and peace in the mountains. It was a journey for leisure, reflection, adventure, and friendship. It was so abrupt to see them go. But I know we will all return together someday.
But for now, the adventure of a lifetime begins. Till next time, Canada.
-K