Jasper to Whistler via Edmonton and Vancouver

 7th January

A day of travel today. As we drove out of the Rockies the snow had stopped and it was still dark. At 9.30am, we were still commenting on how dim the day lighting was. 

Most of the 4hr drive was sludgy. It took us probably two hours to get out of the Rockies, during which time, according to road signs, we needed to be aware of elk, bear, big horned sheep, moose and caribou. The kids did see a coule of caribou the previous day, but none of the above animals were sighted today.

It was a gradual decline onto the praries where we sighted the soft snow covered rolling hills with white covered fields and the classic red barn (just like Charlottes Web) towards the back corner. 

I know that Perth is a relatively flat city, but compared to Edmonton, where we could get a clear at level view of the city from approximately 60km away, Perth is not comparable.  

During the flight to Vancouver you get a glimpse of expansiveness of the Rockies. Although for most of the flight the scenery was blanketed in cloud cover, every now and then you could see a mountain peak through the clouds. The mountains were like little islands amongst a sea of clouds. Because you are elevated while you are in the Rockies, you dont quite realise how tall these mountains are.

By the time we picked up the car in Vancouver, the drive to Whistler was dark. Today marked the last of the school holidays and the first weekend of snow (thankgoodness). As we drove up, a stream of steady cars were going down - I think most of Vancouver spent the weekend in Whistler. 

It wasnt snowing when we arrived but there was certainly plenty of snow on the ground. Yay! As I assured the kids, a lot can change in two weeks. Our fears of no snow in Whistler were eased.