Coloured Rails & Polar Bears

2022 Travels to Scotland via Canada & London

The Travellers, Ray & Kath, are travelling again to Scotland to spend Christmas with family. Our last Christmas with son Andrew, together with wife Gemma and their children, Amy 6 years, and James 4 years was in 2018.

As usual we try and incorporate some new and past stopovers.

CALGARY, Alberta, Canada

First stop was Calgary instead of Vancouver, arriving the evening of 23 November 2022, with a visit to Spruce Meadows Christmas market, Banff and Cochrane.

The riding halls are all devoted to this Christmas market festooned with colour inside and out.

Other buildings, used at shows for trade displays are also devoted to the market.

Yes, there was some snow on the ground but cleared off roads and walkways.

The sign below was on the stand as shown. Feel proud Amy!

WEST FROM CALGARY

Leaving Calgary across the undulating landscape westward towards the Rocky Mountains.

Where there is farmed land.

Where beef cattle are wintered.

Crops have been harvested.

Small silos for seeds.

The evening sky.

Banff is the high tourist spot of Alberta, so we called in again for a quick look and lunch. It is located on the western fringe of the Rockies close to the trans-Canada Highway. It has the mountains; it has the tourists and some years ago we saw Elk in the streets.

Here are the tourists. They add some interest to the view having lunch. Note the man in the red jacket and his dog.

Below they need a rest after the exertion crossing the busy street while his human companion gives gentle comment.

We had been sitting in a very nice restaurant, in the window above the seat.

LAKE LOUISE

Roads on arriving were found to be compacted snow. Our boot grips were very useful.

There was no vehicle access close to the Hotel, seen below, at the time.

After this quick look we departed.

COCHRANE

Next day we took the Banff Old Coach Road to Cochrane, a small town that we had passed by on other occasions.

We found it to be much larger than we expected. It appeared to have grown from a small village in the valley.

The picture above, in the shop below, certainly did not reflect the conditions.

About to leave Cochrane and its quaint shops.

BRAGG CREEK

is on the eastern edge of the Rockies not far from Banff.

To be welcomed by the local wildlife who...

...checks everything is in order, in the relatively new shopping complex, before customers arrive.

We then drive up the Bragg Creek valley a short way looking for the shop below.

Where some years ago we had a petrol fill from the pump to the right of the shop, but it does not look quite the same. The cause being a big flood which caused havoc in the village due to the creek shown bursting its banks. Strengthening of flood banks is still being carried out. This shop was about all the commercial activity before the flooding.