The Rocky Mountains

Just this last summer, my husband and I did a 10 day road trip through BC and into the Rocky Mountains of Alberta. Its been a bucket list dream of mine for awhile to go to Lake Louise and see those beautiful glacier lakes you see in the photos. It was such a breath taking experience, from the drive through the lush BC interior, to the desert like and hot Oakanagan (can we talk about the FRUIT? to die for), then into the winding mountain roads, surrounded by the most majestic mountains you could ever imagine! We went in early August and despite it being summer, you really can't predict the mountain weather... We spent alot of time camping in the rain! Our first stop was Jasper - definitely my favourite place!

The landscape is very rugged and rocky, completely different to Banff which is much more lush and covered in trees. We booked our campsites through Parks Canada Reservation site https://reservation.pc.gc.ca/ParksCanada

We stayed at 3 campsites for the duration of the trip

Wapiti Campground - Jasper

Definitely a nice campground, it was close to town and quiet, the only downside was there isn't much privacy between campsites so everyone is looking at everyone, we also had a poorly placed fire pit which was no where near our tent pad. The bathrooms were about 3.5 out of 5 for cleanliness. It was definitely not a bad place to be. We would definitely return While you're in Jasper, do not go past visiting Maligne Lake! Absolutely breath taking! We even did a 6 hour hike up the Bald Hill Mountain and when we returned the place was almost empty so we had the whole Lake to ourselves for sunset!

Lake Louise Campground

If I was to ever visit Lake Louise again, I would not stay in the town of Lake Louise, let alone the campsite. Unfortunately we didn't know at the time and booked 4 nights here. It was the worst camping experience for sure. Every night was booked out and noisy, the campsite offered free firewood (with purchase of a fire permit) but that was unusable as they leave it out in the rain, so it was all wet and we had to go buy our own wood anyway and lets not even talk about the bathrooms! 1 out of 5... So Disgusting! Lake Louise itself is very small and boring. If you're planning a trip to Lake Louise, just stay in Banff and make the 30 minute drive. We were so bored in Lake Louise, we drove to Banff for one of the days and then decided to drive to Calgary on another day just to escape the place.

The weather also seemed worse in Lake Louise, raining non stop, yet on the same day in Banff it was sunny and clear skies. It was a shame as Lake Louise was my most anticipated place to visit, but unfortunately I found it to be a little too underwhelming.

Lake Louise itself is a huge tourist trap, it took us over 2hrs to even get up and finding a parking spot to actually view the Lake. It felt more like a Disneyland experience. Moraine Lake was beautiful but unfortunately 5 mins after we arrived a huge hailstorm came so we had to leave. I would have liked to spend more time there but the weather just wasn't co-operating during our time spent in Lake Louise. Johnston Canyon - Banff

When we arrived in Banff we stayed at Johnston Canyon Campground, it was about a 20minute winding and dark drive from the actual town of Banff, so a little further away than I would have liked, and it did have a kind of eerie murder vibe to it. However it was quiet, with lots of privacy and the bathrooms were brand new and oh so clean! So that was a bonus! We ended up cutting our time short by 1 night as by this point the bad weather and 9 nights of straight camping had done us in. We were ready to head home. Banff is a bustling little town and you can't go far without hearing an Aussie or English accent.

Just like Whistler its a top destination for those working holiday makers! Unlike Jasper and Lake Louise, there is plenty to do in Banff - restaurants, shopping, markets etc. I wish we had of stayed here instead of Lake Louise - but hindsight is a bitch! Out of all the places we saw though, I will return to Jasper... something about it just really stole my heart. It was such an amazing experience! I'm already planning my next visit!

Have you visited the Rockies? Where was your favourite place?