Labour Day 2006: Jasper, AB (Part I)

If god were to invest some time in creating a landscape, Jasper would have been a good result. However, since nature took that deed to task and the 'creation' had more (comletely more) to do with unruly tectonism and unfathomable time...I find it much more appealing - landscape evolution at the behest of nothing but physics. Beauty, mathematical, geological, physical, chemical beauty.....



Well, lets start with a picture that is not actually from Jasper, but from home sweet (ly smelling of paper milled excrement) home - a Woodpecker. It hung around our fromt yard long enough for me to snap a few. It didn't seem bothered at all, actually.


]Why, what is this? Is this a commercial for a book? Is this evidential proof that I can read, or at least pose with literature and allege that I can infact read? No, no, no....none of these wo-de pengyou. Simply me reading a book of books, a worthy read (for those interested in Earth's history - the real history - and not ashamed to reveal that there is so much to be learned from a single specimin of rock or mineral...). And perhaps it can be said to be a reflection of the time takes to relax during the holiday or relaxation....a nice book, a tent and a crispy dinner on the campfire. And a beer.




This is Crystal hiking along a ridgeline - well, to the side of it really - on one of our various destinations. This one was a shorter, yet insanly uphill, off the path venture that left us wishing we brought more water, more energy and a little less pizza for lunch. Beautiful, and a scary downhill section to get back to the trailhead, well, no trailhead really, just the path we christened (christ, I hate that word) as our trailhead. ANywho, the scnery and the weather is the point. Beautiful, hot, sunny, breezy...



And then we saw a Lynx. It was a mother and a cub, but we only saw the cub a couple of times as it was hidden in the brush to the side, apparently afraid of the noise of the road. The mother was trying to coax the cub across the road, and would go back to it, play for a moment, and then slowly walk across the road continually looking back to see if it was being ardently followed by her cub. No luck, and she sould go back, repeat the routine, and try crossing again. We didn't want to stay once we realized what was happening so after a photo or two we went our way and the Lynx went her way...with cub. Beautiful and alluring animal, to say the least.



This is me, Trevor, hiking along the same ridge as Crystal is above. It was a gorgeous day, but wish I had more water.