Banff Road Trip
by Amanda on July 23, 2010
I always imagined that I would get to visit beautiful places on planned vacations. On planned vacations that take me 2o plus hours of plane travel to arrive at. This little trip came out of the blue on a dark, winter’s day when the possibility of a family reunion taking place in Edmonton was announced. Sean suggested we make it into a road trip so I could see the Rockies and experience the awesomeness that is Canada.
I never imagined that this little road trip would change my life the way it has. I have always been a traveller and a lover of seeing the world. It’s something we Australians do, we travel, we see the world, we leave our homeland to go exploring. I think it comes from being so isolated from the rest of the world. We have to go out there and make sure it really does exist.
So it changed my life, how? I had the most amazing experiences with nature that I never dreamed could happen. I literally had a close encounter with a deer as tall as the car as she peered into my window, our eyes locked and I was transfixed by her beautiful, honey coloured fur. I was gob-smacked at how calm she was, at how beautiful her eyes were…and then she was gone.
And I think the gob-smackedness comes from that thing about Australians being so isolated from the rest of the world. We hear about these creatures in fairy tales and books like Wind in the Willows and because of that they seem mystical and surreal. Stumbling across elk one morning gave me the same feelings I felt when I saw Bjork on stage. She was as much an enigma to me as these majestic creatures were with their velvety antlers and prancing through the forest. Yes, I did just compare Bjork to elk.
I still peer into the trees and bushes whilst driving along the highway into Vancouver hoping for the slimmest chance that I will spot some wildlife. My animal spotting obsession is now with me for life but that’s OK. While many road trippers were sleeping through their drive, I spotted over 30 animals in their natural habitat. I think that’s pretty damn awesome.
Photographs taken with a Nikon FM3A 35 mm SLR using Kodak Portra 400NC film.
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Wow – these shots are simply amazing and you have me wanting to go on a road trip just like this. Thanks so much for sharing!
loving that you connected with wildlife!
and gorgeous images too.
That is awesome! !! !!!
those magical moments are always the ones i want to press in memory books to hold on forever.
beautiful shots – i would love to be there instead of here in the deep south where temperatures are expected to reach in the 100′s today.
These photos are positively gorgeous. You’ve captured this warmth despite there being snow.. and I love snow-capped mountain tops. My boyfriend’s brother will be going on his honeymoon there this coming August. I can’t wait to see their photos now! I am so in awe of your eye, these photos are so majestic.
May I ask, were these taken with your 35mm?
stunning photography … sounds like a wonderful trip!
So very, very magical.
Thanks Ashley! It was a really amazing time. I totally recommend it.
Vivienne, your lovely country is good at making that happen!
Thanks WilB. :)
Char, yeah it was a trip I’ll remember for a long time.
Lili, they were taken with my Nikon 35mm FM camera. Forgot to put up the specs. I’ll add that now. Thanks for the lovely comments. :)
Thank you Laura. :)
Thanks so much, Kate.
Amanda, these photographs are fantastic! I especially love how you described your connection to nature. I’ve had similar encounters and know how they can change your life. Nature is such a gift, isn’t it? As a South African expat in the US, I feel the wanderlust you describe as an Australian – perhaps because we were also “cut off” from the world for so long. I love the fact that creatures on every continent are so different. Photography is precious in that you can share faraway places with so many hopeful wanderers all over the world. x
You are so cute in your elk videos. I just love your sense of wonder! I lived in Yellowstone National Park where elk, deer, bison, bears, moose, eagles, herons, cranes, etc were common occurrences and I took them for granted after I’d been there a while (except the bears, they are always amazing to see). But now that I’ve lived away from the area for 11 years, each visit is as magical and exciting as the first time all those years ago. I’m so happy you had such a wonderful experience on your travels.
And like I said earlier, stop it with the canoes. You’ve killed me again. :)
I’ve been to Banff before, it’s amazing there isn’t it?
You should come to Halifax. I don’t know if it’s just me, but I’ve seen deer quite often while living here for past 10 years. I’ve also seen some foxes around where I live, and we used to be able to hear wolf once in a while, but not so much these days.
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That is pretty awesome!
I’ve always loved visiting Banff and Jasper, the wild is that much closer there than it seems in our cities.
When I was younger and my family would go on road trips we always kept a tally of the animals we saw. :)
beautiful! though i’m not australian, i’m too am a traveler and wanderlust-er at heart.
Wow. Stunning photos. I must drag out my photos from my visit there 7 years ago now! Thanks for the inspiration to look back.
I love the chair and desk in the window overlooking the lake. Oh, how it makes me dream of sitting there with warm chocolate and writing long letters to my loved ones.
Beautiful, beautiful photos, Amanda. Thanks for sharing them.
O, beautiful….
I love the photos of the canoes in front of the mountains. So original and captivating. Hearing about your trip is inspiring me to think more about traveling the U.S., although I usually am most captivated by Europe.
The Bjork-Elk comparison makes a lot of sense :)
these are all just stunning, amanda.
I can’t sleep on road trips! I love looking at the land. You never know what you might find!
gogeous! Banff has been on my list of places to visit for a long time. one of these days…
my parents judge how successful their “drives” are by the amount of wildlife they see. it is an obsession with them.
Your shots are so beautiful. Looks like it was a great trip. I will be heading out East (Montreal, Quebec City, New Brunswick and maybe parts of Nova Scotia) in a couple weeks with my family.
so, so breathtaking. what a gorgeous trip… it looks so peaceful, like time is standing still!
It’s hard to believe places that beautiful exist until you see them with your very own eyes, smell them with your very own nose and feel their air swirling around your very own skin.
I want to go see.
Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments everyone.
I love sharing my little adventures through pictures.
wow, that is completely gorgeous. I haven’t been to Banf in years but this makes me want to return so badly. I will certainly be returning to your blog! Cheers!
I love the Chateau shot! The framing is brilliant!
love this series expecially the first two