I stood on a glacier today.  🙂

The feeling is exhilarating. It was something that I will treasure for the rest of my life.  Think of all the superlative words that comes to mind. That is how awesome it is and more….

But I have mixed emotions as I write this. Today, I also realized the magnitude of the global warming’s effect. Yes, of course it is true! Those who said otherwise should be charged with treason and hang them on  the rockies. ha ha ….  Then they’d stop all the BS they’ve been feeding us.

So moving on. Where the heck is the Columbia Icefield?! Nope, not in Columbia. hehe

It is located between Jasper National Park and Banff National Park at Highway 93, Alberta, Canada. Famously known as the Icefields Parkway . I am writing a separate blog for the Parkway as it deserves its own. Believe me, you would not want to miss that.

We left Jasper about 9:00 in the morning.  The sun was up. But the forecast was – a high of 6’c  and a low of 2’c. That is effin’ cold! For a Filipina like me, who lives in the tropics, that is!   Seriously though, I loved every bit of it.  🙂 You will see from the photos my silly grin the whole time. ha ha

The trip should be about 1 hour only. But well, we had to stop several times for photo op. Remember, this is at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Glacier fed lakes , snow capped mountains, evergreens and yellow leafed trees in the background , waterfalls along the road, overlooks that makes one realize how small we really are in this vast universe. (So yeah, be humble!  🙂 You’re just a dot , a speck on earth. Really! ) Amazing is an understatement.

We arrived at the Visitor Center just in time for the 11:30am schedule. I paid $115 cad for both the hubby and I.  After giving me 2 passes, the receptionist told me to fall inline below the Icefield Adventure. (There is another line for the skywalk. So if you have a fear of heights, then you would not want to go there.) I’ve seen the overlook and it is pretty high. Walking in glass would probably give me a heart attack. ha ha

The bus took us to the ice explorer terminal. That’s about 4 minutes away from the Visitor Center. From there, we boarded the Explorer. This is also a very short trip, but there’s a steep part of the road that was scary. ha ha. When the driver asked, are you scared of a roller coaster? Someone replied with “does it matter?” . ha ha … I remember John telling me, you would not want to see the road. So I just held on to my seat and went to la-la-land to keep me calm. And then the driver said, well I started working here 2 days ago so I’m pretty sure, we will make it.  lol

Don’t worry, that was just part of the script I guess. The tires of the explorer is 5 ft tall. That’s as tall as me. And it is made for that terrain. So there was no danger at all. 🙂

Okay, here are some facts: 1) Since 1885, the Athabasca Glacier has lost more than 60% of its volume. That’s over 350,000,000 cubic meter of ice.  2) This glacier is as high as the Eiffel Tower.  3) Today, glaciers are rapidly receding, confirming that our climate is changing. Scientists believe this is mostly due to excessive amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.  4) If the glacier continue to recede at its present rate, there will be very little left in one hundred years.  That’s just more or less, 3 generations from now. Eventually, our future generation will no long see glaciers. Sad huh? 😦

I feel blessed to have seen such in my lifetime. So ’nuff with words… 🙂 Click on the photos for a bigger copy. And enjoy!

The ice explorer costs $1,300,000.00 Canadian Dollars. This massive snow coach is built specifically for glacial travel. Like I said, the tires are 5 ft tall. haha

See, it’s as tall as me. 🙂

The hubby and I drank glacial water too… 🙂

I look so small beside this huge icefield.

Took this photo with my cellphone. ha ha… I’m getting good at this selfie stuff. lol

The whole trip took 45 minutes. It was more than enough considering how cold it was.

After the glacier adventure, we had lunch at the Visitor Center’s restaurant called Dining Room. The buffet looks good. But I apologize for saying this, for $29 dollars per head, it wasn’t worth it. So if you can, bring food and eat somewhere else.

After lunch, we decided to walk to the ice cave trail.  It looked near. From a distance. ha ha When we started climbing, that’s when we realized that you know, it was far. And the elevation made it worse. Simply put, we weren’t up to it because we are not healthy! We need exercise. lol

But we made it on top, slowly but surely! 🙂

Weeee!!!! 🙂

A small ice cave with chunk of ice on the pond.

The second ice cave.

The view from above.  The lake and the parking space looked so small already. 🙂

Before I forget, at the basement of the Visitor Center, a movie is shown about the rocky mountains in the theatre. The museum is there as well which showcases the rockies’ history.

Friends, if you are thinking of visiting the Canadian Rockies, then I suggest that you do it now. It is worth it.  The view is magnificent. But more than that, the feeling of standing on top of a million year old glacier is indescribable. To be able to drink its very pure water is a one in a million experience as well….

Lea C. Walker

http://www.davaoproperties.com