Banff Township

Banff Upper Hot Springs

FROM WIKI-Upper Hot Springs are commercially-developed hot springs located in Banff National Park in Canada, near the Banff townsite. The hot pool is outdoors and while in the pool, visitors can look across the valley to Mount Rundle.
The Upper Hot Springs are one of nine different naturally occurring hot springs in the Banff area. The hot spring water flows naturally through the Sulphur Mountain Thrust Fault, with the source area located at higher elevations on either Sulphur Mountain or Mount Rundle. The flow rates fluctuate seasonally with snow melt, with highest flows in the spring and lowest during winter. Since the early 2000s, flow to the Upper Hot Springs has stopped for several months of the winter. During these times, municipal water is substituted for the recreational pools.[1] Water temperature is kept at approximately 38°C (100°F).

Banff Springs Hotel

The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is a former railway hotel constructed in Scottish Baronial style, located in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. The hotel, designed by architect Bruce Price,[1] was built between spring of 1887 and 1888 by the Canadian Pacific Railway, at the instigation of its President, William Cornelius Van Horne. The hotel was publicly opened on June 1, 1888[2] and rebuilt in the 1920s after a fire.
Under the stewardship of its current owner, Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, the hotel has recently had an extensive renovation which, however, has not changed its original grandeur. A significant feature of the change has been the addition of a world class spa. An original construction flaw, the siting of the entrance and lobby on the river side, has also been corrected in this renovation. (The architect is said to have declared "you built my hotel backwards!")
The hotel is within a spectacular setting in the Rocky Mountains, just above the Bow Falls, close to thermal springs. It is within walking distance of the resort community of Banff. The main view from the hotel is across the valley and towards Mount Rundle, frequently cited in geology books for its exposed and tilted ancient seabeds.
The original wooden hotel burnt down in 1926, and was rebuilt larger and in its current form in 1928. In 1968, the hotel was winterized and has been open year-round since.[3] Some have compared its past operating schedule to the fictional Overlook Hotel from Stephen King's book The Shining in that, like the Overlook Hotel, it was quite large and grand, located in a remote wilderness area prone to impressive snowfall every winter, and only open in spring through autumn months.
The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is one of the premier resort hotels of the world. The golf course in the river valley is also noted worldwide.
Halfway up the internal staircase closest to the Bow Falls may be found a noted painting of William Davidson felling trees on the Miramichi River in colonial times. Davidson was the first European settler in that area, and grew up in Moray, close to Banff, Scotland

Chateau Lake Louise

From Wiki (including last picture)- The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is a Fairmont Hotel on the eastern shore of Lake Louise, near Banff, Alberta. The original Chateau was gradually built up at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century by the Canadian Pacific Railway and was thus "kin" to its predecessors, the Banff Springs Hotel, and the Château Frontenac. The hotel's wooden Rattenbury Wing burned down on July 3, 1924, and was replaced by the current Barrot Wing one year later. The Painter Wing, built in 1913, is the oldest portion of the hotel still standing. The Mount Temple Wing, opened in 2004, is the newest wing of the hotel and features modern meeting facilities, including the Mount Temple Ballroom.
The hotel was first conceived by the railway at the end of the 19th century, as a vacation destination to lure moneyed travellers into taking trains and heading West. By the time airplanes and automobiles had displaced the trains, it had gained sufficient renown to have a life of its own. The Canadian Pacific Railway long ago sold it to other interests.
From the start, the goal was to exploit the stunning natural beauty of the emerald-green lake and of Victoria glacier which rose above it. There were many hiking and canoeing itineraries for nature lovers. Eventually, all the natural areas around the hotel were incorporated into the Banff National Park. This park has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Originally built to function only in summer, the hotel was winterized in 1982 and now offers all of the regular ski resort fare during the winter months. In addition to the usual skiing, ice skating and snowboarding, there are sleigh rides, ice sculpture contests and snowshoe excursions.

Sleigh Ride

A real Cowboy.. maybe!

Okay, so its actually a horse drawn snow plow.. but who's counting?

mountain filler shot

These banff shots were my first attempts at shooting black and white.

Lake Louise

Please forgive me.. as I am building up a library or current work I am going to back and post some "I always wanted to post, but never did shots" These were taken in February (of last year).

Lake Louise, or Lac Louise as it really is a french name, is picturesque to say the least. The lake is glacier fed and lies at the feet of two mountains. This particular day was very over cast and the clouds were low, but for a brief moment the clouds parted, sun shown in and I got this one shot of the lake.

Link

Link is the other addition to my life.

I love the light that comes in from my round south facing window. In a perfect world my umbrella and sandals woulds not be in the shot, but i find they add something.

Link is grey and white. The pictures looked HORRID in colour, but they look fantastic in black and white.

Spring Cleanup

Meet Angus. after the divorce i decided to rent out me spare bedroom. I also became a defacto dog owner.

Cute little bugger isn't he!