PDA

View Full Version : Canmor



tomorrowstreasures
03-07-2009, 02:10 PM
DLK and I are going in July and would love any input about the area....anyone who wishes to add info or photos to this thread- please do!

Kiley- hey thanks for getting back to me! We can't wait to go! We did Whistler a few years back - before I bought my slr - and before I allowed the photo bug to rebite me. Wish I would have had the camera and drive to snap away there!

What did you mean by not sell them? I would not but just curious what that means... do they have a law or something in place?

kiley9806
03-07-2009, 02:30 PM
yup - there are rules in the national parks - heres a link to a thread where we discussed it before: http://www.photography.ca/Forums/showthread.php?p=6102

kiley9806
03-07-2009, 02:40 PM
sorry theyre all pretty huge... as you can tell, we didnt spend enough $$ on the photographer, and the lighting was harsh, but at least you can see what canmore is like in july! (july 30th to be exact) :)

JAS_Photo
03-07-2009, 02:51 PM
Oh that is a beautiful wedding, Kiley!

Are going to visit Banff, Lake Louise at the same time TT? Lol, that was stupidly worded. Of course you are! It is beautiful there. You will see lots of wildlife in the parks including bighorn sheep, elk, bears, chipmunks, bluejays, etc.

Here is a photo of Kanaskis country:

tomorrowstreasures
03-07-2009, 03:07 PM
oh Kiley ! so beautiful!! the scenery is too! The color of the water is a far cry from our muddy Mississippi river.

Raiven,we are going to pack in as much as my body will allow...:o that photo reminds me of an alpaca farm for some resaon...

maybe a top five list could be formed by you guys who live there. interests are the obvious - nature... architecture.... historical sites...

tomorrowstreasures
03-07-2009, 03:14 PM
yup - there are rules in the national parks - heres a link to a thread where we discussed it before: http://www.photography.ca/Forums/showthread.php?p=6102
now that i went back and reread that thread, i remember it, but did not store it in the brain....

i can see both sides - glad that there is protection in place, but for the hobbyist with decent gear - frustrating!

kiley9806
03-07-2009, 04:38 PM
the town sites of banff & canmore are maybe only about a 10-15 min drive apart from each other, so i would highly recommend going to Banffs Gondola ride: http://www.banffgondola.com/
there are tons and tons of hiking trails, horseback tours, helicopter rides, whitewater rafting adventures, etc, to keep you busy. if you want to go for a day trip - bragg creek is an awesome spot (high biker population in the summertime - the people you meet are SO COOL! the shops & restaurants are great too) theres the elbow falls to see in bragg creek where you can spend the day wandering the river, make a campfire, bring a picnic, etc. : http://www.braggcreek.ca/kananaskis/elbowfalls.htm

EJC
03-07-2009, 06:03 PM
Hi TT

On top of what the others have mentioned if you have time and a vehicle there are the Badlands to the east of Calgary. Dinosaur Provincial Park is a World Heritage site with dino bones, petrified wood and spectacular scenery. Here is a link you may find interesting. Dino's (http://www.pc.gc.ca/progs/spm-whs/itm2-/site3_E.asp)

There is so much to see and do you may have to take 2 trips!

cheers
EJC

tomorrowstreasures
03-07-2009, 06:12 PM
Kiley and EJC- great start to a list! Thanks so much for taking the time to do this!

kiley9806
03-07-2009, 10:53 PM
no probs! i used to live in calgary, grew up half my life there, so canmore was one of my favorite spots to go - we used to do girls weekends there ALL the time - chateau canmore is wonderful... it was our regular hotel. ejc is also correct, the royal tyrell museum is a great site to see - the badlands are amazing, a great photograph just waiting to be taken! lol :)

tomorrowstreasures
03-07-2009, 11:07 PM
if any one is game for a get together while we are there, we would looovvveee that! we have the first week in July - feed back welcome on this :)

casil403
03-08-2009, 12:16 AM
After consulting with my partner, we came up with a list and some websites you might want to check out. We posted some links for you to check out if interested. We hope they work for you.....

1. Columbia Icefields and the Icefields parkway - the drive alone is worth the ride. If you have a vehicle and a day (the drive is about 21/2 hours one way) then it is an absolute must and the scenery is something you will never see anywhere...highly recommended! Definitely stop at Bow Lake for photos and You will probably see lots of wildlife on the way. http://www.columbiaicefield.com/ http://www.columbiaicefield.com/the_icefield_parkway.asp If you don't have a vehicle, then Brewster tours will take you up there.

2. Lake Louise and Moraine Lake - Hike to the Lake Louise Teahouse for lunch. Moraine lake is the picture on the old Canadian $20 bill and about a 15 minute drive just off the same road to Louise.
http://www.discoverlakelouise.com/
http://www.banff.com/hiking/lake_agnes.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moraine_Lake

3. Lake O'hara and Takkakaw Falls - just inside the BC border. Iv'e not been to either but it comes highly recommended!
Lake O'hara is "just Spectacular" (according to my partner)
http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/bc/YOHO/activ/activ15a_E.asp
http://www.field.ca/yohonationalpark/lakeohara/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takakkaw_Falls

4. Take the Smith-Dorrien Road (that road that goes right up the side of the mountain to the south of canmore ...you'll see if for sure) to Spray lakes. it's the back way into Kananaskis Country. Stop over for some shots at Spray lakes, Upper and Lower Kananaskis lakes (one of my favorite places can't...beat the scenery:)) Takes the better part of a day to do but so worth it!
http://www.canmorekananaskis.com/sightseeing/canmore_scenic_drives.html


5.Banff - Cave and Basin, Banff Hotsprings, Bow Falls, Banff Springs Hotel, Vermillion Lakes, Lake Minnewanka and the Minnewanka Loop, Whyte Museum, Johnston Canyon, of the Rockies...so much to do and see, the list is endless!
http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/banff/index_e.asp

If you need any other information please let me know...more than happy to help! We are always available as tour guides as well as I can never get enough of the Rockies!

tomorrowstreasures
03-08-2009, 12:22 AM
that's it - i think i need to move to Canmore area. What an amazing place to visit!!! The list you guys are generating is fantastic and much appreciated!!!
I am pretty sure we will have a rental car... thank goodness, i am not having to cough up the cash for film and processing! I think i would go broke!

AcadieLibre
03-08-2009, 12:28 AM
If you get a chance get up to Jasper, one of my favourite places in the mountain range.

kiley9806
03-08-2009, 01:19 AM
thats funny - if you click on #4 of casils links - the smith dorrien road one, and click on the 1st map link, you will see the yellow trail on the map - look near the top lefthand corner on that yellow trail and you will see "goat pond" - that is the ceremony location of my wedding! hahaha, we only found out its name AFTER we picked the location... and we didnt tell anyone its real name lol!

i would LOVE to meet up for a visit TT, but sadly we moved a good 10 hrs north of there, so unless the Gods are smiling down and I happen to be in the Calgary area at that time of the summer.... :) well, i'll let you know!

JAS_Photo
03-08-2009, 01:22 AM
Lol, the Calgary Stampede starts on July 4th!

casil403
03-08-2009, 01:30 AM
I found a link for photographers as well in Banff National park. Doesn't make mention of the fees at this site but it does give some tips for wildlife .


http://www.pc.gc.ca/pn-np/ab/banff/activ/activ8_E.asp

Greg_Nuspel
03-08-2009, 07:12 AM
Another spot you may want to go to is Waterton Lakes National Park (http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&rlz=1T4GPCK_enCA302CA302&q=waterton+national+park&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=aKezSYX1JJGYsAPCqYmLAQ&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=5&ct=title), it connects to the US Glacier National park. Wonderful place down there. Then you'd have to go and see Going to the Sun Road (http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&rlz=1T4GPCK_enCA302CA302&um=1&q=going+to+the+sun+road). Overall no mater what you do out here there is lots to see.

casil403
03-09-2009, 11:58 AM
Hey TT, I found another link on Canmore at Virtual Tourist. I hope I've not overwhelmed you with info but it does have some write-ups on the town of Canmore itself.

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/North_America/Canada/Province_of_Alberta/Canmore-910586/Things_To_Do-Canmore-BR-1.html

EJC
03-09-2009, 10:05 PM
Hey TT

It would be great to get some of us together when you come to Alberta. I can't make any iron clad plans right know but by June 1st I should have a better idea.

cheers EJC

tomorrowstreasures
03-09-2009, 10:13 PM
You guys have been fantastic!!! thank you sooooo much for everything!

Kiley - i really want to go to goat pond and have honey's and my photo taken there for fun!!! we will rename it Kiley's Kamp. :)

would really enjoy hooking up with anyone who is game... if any one needs a place to stay, i think our condo sleeps 6...2br and lr sleeper... more later for those more serious about a gathering...

can't stay on too long tonight as i have a load of work to do...
take care! and keep em coming!! so much appreciated!

casil403
03-10-2009, 11:57 AM
We could probably come out from Cowtown and meet up one day...maybe head out to Field, BC or something for a photography day if you like....maybe get a group together?
Perhaps my picture taking skills will be slightly better by then...gosh I hope so!

F8&Bthere
03-16-2009, 11:37 AM
Maybe this has been answered already- but as for the fees and restrictions in the Rocky Mountain area parks, when I read about it a while back in a Canadian Photography Mag it seemed pretty clear to me that this only applied to professionals intending to sell their photos. And that for hobby/personal use, you could shoot to your heart's content without any restriction. Anyone with evidence to the contrary?

If any local authorities actually stopped and questioned a guy like me snapping some photos with his family in tow, as opposed to a lighting or sound crew, I'd really be thinking it's a bunch of totalitarian BS

kat
03-16-2009, 11:38 AM
Maybe this has been answered already- but as for the fees and restrictions in the Rocky Mountain area parks, when I read about it a while back in a Canadian Photography Mag it seemed pretty clear to me that this only applied to professionals intending to sell their photos. And that for hobby/personal use, you could shoot to your heart's content without any restriction. Anyone with evidence to the contrary?

If any local authorities actually stopped and questioned a guy like me snapping some photos with his family in tow, as opposed to a lighting or sound crew, I'd really be thinking it's a bunch of totalitarian BS

Yah, that is the last I've heard too.

tomorrowstreasures
03-16-2009, 11:57 AM
I think a gathering for all of those that would like to is definitely in order!! Our dates at the time share are July 4-11th. What dates would be good for you guys? Like I said earlier - we have room for over nighters if any one needs it. We have a spare bedroom and the lr couch. Would love to have any one stay!!! :party::party::party:

EJC
03-16-2009, 04:36 PM
Hi TT

I may be able to pop out on July 5 or 6 but only for a day trip. Work really gets in the way of fun stuff.

cheers
EJC

casil403
03-17-2009, 04:16 PM
We might also be able to stop by one day as well....not sure which though...most likely the 5th of July depending on work-schedule.
Maybe we could all head up for some photo-hunting on Smith-Dorrien road or out somewhere else.