1308_0720 Vermilion River
Still in Kootenay, but a much more recent shot (only ten years old!). The Vermillion River runs parallel with Highway 93, the park's only highway and the route that connects it with Banff, in Alberta. One afternoon I found a pullout, and after a short walk, this view along the shoreline, looking north.
It was late August, sublime weather - these were the years when forest fire smoke was not a huge factor - and although I was on my way to the west coast to visit a sick friend, I camped in the park for two nights and hiked a couple of the shorter trails. That brought back memories. A few years earlier, I used Kootenay as the starting point for a fairly long backpacking trip into Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park. It's the most physically challenging way to access this spectacular area, but the up side was pretty special: nobody uses this route. So I had a couple nights of very quiet camping at increasingly dramatic locations as I got up out of the forest and into the high country. I hiked this trail three times, in 1979, 1988, and 1990, and made it all the way twice. In 1988 a massive early snowfall forced me to turn back. These were my glory days, and every time I drive Highway 93 through this park, I get to relive them!
I used my trusty old (from 1981) manual focus Nikon 24mm lens for this, with a polarizing filter to intensify the colours a little. It's a great lens; I still use it occasionally.
Photographed in Kootenay National Park, BC (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2013 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
1308_0720 Vermilion River
Still in Kootenay, but a much more recent shot (only ten years old!). The Vermillion River runs parallel with Highway 93, the park's only highway and the route that connects it with Banff, in Alberta. One afternoon I found a pullout, and after a short walk, this view along the shoreline, looking north.
It was late August, sublime weather - these were the years when forest fire smoke was not a huge factor - and although I was on my way to the west coast to visit a sick friend, I camped in the park for two nights and hiked a couple of the shorter trails. That brought back memories. A few years earlier, I used Kootenay as the starting point for a fairly long backpacking trip into Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park. It's the most physically challenging way to access this spectacular area, but the up side was pretty special: nobody uses this route. So I had a couple nights of very quiet camping at increasingly dramatic locations as I got up out of the forest and into the high country. I hiked this trail three times, in 1979, 1988, and 1990, and made it all the way twice. In 1988 a massive early snowfall forced me to turn back. These were my glory days, and every time I drive Highway 93 through this park, I get to relive them!
I used my trusty old (from 1981) manual focus Nikon 24mm lens for this, with a polarizing filter to intensify the colours a little. It's a great lens; I still use it occasionally.
Photographed in Kootenay National Park, BC (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2013 James R. Page - all rights reserved.