Throughout our lives we have heard how spectacularly beautiful Banff and Lake Louise are. So our expectations for this part of the trip were extremely high. The village of Banff and the National Park certainly did not disappoint!
Our first outing was a drive to Lake Minnewanka and hiking the Johnson Lake Trail. All of the lakes and rivers in the area are glacier fed, so they nearly glow with the brilliant turquoise blue of sunlight reflecting from the ultra-fine “glacier flour” of microscopic rock particles suspended in the water.
We shared the experience of Lake Louise with about a thousand other tourists. It was beautiful, but really crowded! 
A “must see” in Banff is to take the tramway to the top of Sulpher Mountain. While it was in the upper 50’s at the campground, it was cold, windy, and snowing on top of the mountain — but still a spectacular sight!
Our last day at Banff we drove to several of the spots identified as good for pictures (as if the rest of the place wasn’t, LOL).
Surprise Corner on Tunnel Mountain Road:
Cascade Ponds:
Mount Norquay – The Green Spot:
Next stop: Jasper National Park and the Columbia Ice Fields