You know when it starts to hit you.
You start feeling a little antsy and fidgety. You start dreaming of faraway places and of interesting people with stories you have never experienced. You start scrolling on the Instagram explore page and all the photos of exotic places, ancient buildings, statuesque mountains, breathtaking canyons, or little romantic cobble stone streets are the photos that catch your eye.
You start inadvertently packing.
But you don’t even have a trip planned.
My friend-if you have any of the symptoms listed above-you have wanderlust. Wanderlust is a serious affliction upon those who have a deep desire to see the world, to experience it through another person’s eyes, to be apart of something greater than themselves, to feel small. To feel wonder as you gaze upon creation unable to even comprehend the beauty, the majesty before you. You want to stand before something and have the shocking realization that your eyes cannot drink the whole scene in because the beauty is so startlingly obvious. You want to sit in other person’s home on the other side of the world, share a meal together, laugh about your new experiences, listen to what has shaped their life and realize that although cultures may be worlds apart, we are all tied together by the common human experience. My friend, if you have one or all of these symptoms, continue reading, and if not, continue reading and they will come. There are so many wonderful places I could write about, so many incredible people whose faces are forever seared into the canvas of my mind; I will write about them all soon. But for now, I want to talk with you about why you should take a four-day weekend to the most beautiful place I have ever been: Banff.
1. Lake Louise
As you stand before Lake Louise, something happens in your soul. You see the glacier nestled amidst the two towering mountains. You see the rocks scattering the shore, lovers canoeing and taking insta-worthy photographs that they will remember for the rest of their lives. Finally, you gaze upon the waters, the azure waters are like nothing you’ve ever seen before. As your hand touches the water, you feel the chill. The minerals have made this water bluer than any water you’ve laid eyes upon. It’s a different kind of blue-not like a tropical destination-as you look closer you see little blueish white flecks throughout all the water. As you look around you, you encounter all types of people. A family from India is on their fall holiday, a set of lovers from Boston is taking a selfie trying to capture the scenery behind them, and an entire family reunion of 28 bedecked with “Johnson Family Reunion 2018” traipses around the park with a selfie stick. The scene is so interesting-nature bringing together people from all different walks of life to gaze in awe of creation.
2. Lake Moraine
Your next stop is Lake Moraine. You drive down a windey road, you have Mumford and Sons playing (because you’re in the mountains-obviously), and your feet are up on the dash. You are wearing two pairs of pants, a thermal, jacket, raincoat, and beanie. Yesterday at Lake Louise was 75 degrees and you were wearing your Outdoor Voices shorts and a crop top, but now its 35 degrees. You had to be prepared for anything on this four-day trek into the mountains. You pull up into the parking lot. Are greeted by a friendly Canadian guiding the cars. As you begin the walk to Lake Moraine, you begin to glimpse the same azure waters you saw at Lake Louise- but it’s different. It’s a darker hue of blue, more vibrant. You start hiking up to the best vantage point. You make it up there. Beauty surrounds you. Six sister mountains jut up behind the waters. It’s morning, so a fog still clings to the waters, obscuring the feet of the mountains. As you take in the scene, you hear voices: six British voices laughing. You look over and see three British couples around 55 years old laughing and trying to take photos with their ipads. You walk over and take their photos, exchange some friendly banter and decide these people freaking rock. They’re hilarious and so friendly. You spend an hour taking in this view, and then decide to hike. You don’t want a pansy hike-you want an intense hike.
3. Larch Valley
From Lake Moraine you’ve began your first hike of the day to Larch Valley. It’s all uphill the first half so it’s a little slow going. You began to see little mounds of snow as you begin your trek. You wave and say hello to fellow hikers who have already completed the expedition. As you travel higher and higher, you see more and more snow. After what feels like two hours, you are now surrounded by snow, you can see down and see all the trees that were once a vibrant green, dotted with white. You start to see some little animals. Little mountain squirrels pop their heads up out of their snow holes to see who has come to visit. Finally, you reach the valley. Snow is everywhere. It’s like a scene from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. You hear running water. You follow the sound to investigate: you find a gorgeous waterfall energetically gushing through the snow. You have to stop the take some pictures to take with you. As you look at Larch Valley you are in awe. 1. Because yesterday was 75 degrees and today you’re covered in snow 2. The absolute beauty of it is breathtaking.
So if you feel wanderlust creeping up on you. If you feel that urge to go, see beautiful places, meet incredible people from all over the world, and ultimately feel small-go to Banff and be amazed and completely in awe of how beautiful creation is. As I looked at Lake Louise, I thought of Revelation 4:6 where God’s throne is described as being surrounded by a sea of glass. I couldn’t help but consider how God’s throne is going to absolutely blow away the beauty that I saw at Lake Louise. I got a tiny glimpse into God’s beauty, creativity, and love as I explored Banff.
Peace n Blessings
Rachel
P.s. The three places I described are the tiniest peak into what this Canadian National Park has to offer. The people are incredibly kind, welcoming, and gracious. This town is adorable and has tons of cute shops and places to visit. If you’re looking for accommodations, I stayed at The Hidden Ridge Resort. Our favorite place I ate at was Touloulus. I highly recommend both these places! If you have some trails I need to go back and try-please put them in the comments!
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