Micael Savoie

What a lovely place Jasper is, if only I would’ve had more time… ah well there’s only so much you can do within 7 days. Around 4h30pm on my way to Jasper, it started getting darker as I was getting closerbut I could still see the mountains and beautiful landscapes.  I’ve stopped a few times, took a few long exposure shots pretty much just to document my trip and mark down a few spots I’d like to hit in the morning.

After a good night sleep, I grabbed a coffee and a muffin and took Hwy 93 toward Athabasca Falls.  For those who know me, if I can take an alternative route instead of the Hwy, I’ll do so.  There are two ways that I know to get to Athabasca Falls, the 93 or 93a… I took 93a, drove about 25km to see ROAD CLOSED with a gate to block the road, and I swear, I could probably hear the falls from where I was, oh well, nothing happens for nothing.  I turned around, drove a few km, stopped, set up my tripod and waited for the sun to come out while screaming every few minutes to let the nature know I was there (bear/grizzly) because it seemed like the proper place to see one.

Pyramid Mountain Off Hwy 93a near Athabasca Falls, Jasper National Park

I finally made it to Athabasca Falls but I was delayed in time and it became overcast after my last few shots of the mountain, in a way it was a good thing.  I was able to shoot the stairs and path without harsh shadows, focusing on lines and textures without doing much shooting of the actual falls.  Those waterfalls are definitely a must during spring and beginning of summer, in November, not so much water flows but therefore no tourist around.

Steps at Athabasca Falls, Off Hwy 93, Jasper National Park

After spending about an hour, I took the road back to Whistler, BC, I knew it would be another long drive and I wanted to be there as early has possible since I had no reservation for that night.  Around Kamloops, the light condition started to change and gold tones started to pop out just before sunset.  One day, the Okanagan valley will be and area I plan on spending more time.

Near Savona, Okanagan Valley, BC

Got to Lillooet and it was already dark outside, I wish it would’ve been daylight because it’s seems like a different world, the roads aren’t the best with lots of curve and little wooden bridge but by far my favorite road and I plan on doing it again next time I head out West, it’s a MUST.  The 50km drive to Whistler took me an hour.  After my 10h I was drained out, my GPS was giving wrong indications and finding a place to stay was a hard task at 9pm.  A women at the tourism information gave me her friends contact information for a room for the night for 50$,  can’t say I wasn’t lucky.