The early bird gets the worm...

...and the best views on the trail unobstructed by other hikers, the peace and quiet of being alone and the best parking spots. And that's the extent of my wisdom and advice for this post.

My first full day of Alberta adventures was immpecable. I definitely am not here for long enough and am attempting to fit in way too many things in my short days here. However, this ispired me to not waste any time and I started off at Grassi Lakes bright and early, where I packed my Jetboil, some organic instant coffee and a quick little breakfast of fruit and a protein bar. For anyone who hasn't been to Grassi Lakes, there is an easier trail and a more difficult one both leading to the famous views, I chose the difficult one and realized really quickly that less than 24 hours since I arrived is not enough time to ajdust to mountain air. Every single step was worth the effort though because the views were immaculate. I sat on a bench overlooking the lake and made my coffee, having the entire viewing platform to myself for well over 20 minutes. Once people started to trickle in, I continued up to the top for continuous overwhelming joy and incredible beauty. I opted to take the difficult trail back down too and was faced with many people asking me how much furhter they had until the top and realized just how thankful I was that I pulled myself out of bed to get there early. By the time I got to the viewing platform where I had my coffee, it was swarming with people looking for that perfect photo.

I continued onto Quarry Lakes where I enjoyed a beautiful picnic in the middle of the mountains and then wandered around until I found a waterfall I had heard of from a dear friend and wanted to explore. After lunch, I carried on west to Banff for my next campground stop and after I checked in, was too restless to sit at a campsite all night. My brother in law (now an expat living in Germany; that's a story for another time) spent a few years growing up in the West and recommended I find Cascade Ponds. Google maps hates me. Instead of the ponds, I found myself in tourist central...downtown Banff. Talk about being out of my comfort zone (crowds are not my thing, traffic is not my thing, crossing roads with 20 cars waiting for me to do an awkward waddle run through the intersection is not my thing.) I figured I should check it out while I was there, walked up and down one street, made friends with a woman who owns a flannel shop where I bought some shorts (proud of myself for this being my first purchase considering my shopaholic history) who helped my find the actual cascade ponds I was looking for and then hightailed it out of there.

Cascade Ponds is an absolute must stop if you're anywhere near Banff. About 10 minutes before you hit the downtown area is an incredible experience, heightened by the fact that it was a little bit later in the day and much chillier than I anticpated but it meant that I had so much space to myself. I only crossed paths with 4 other people and got to explore everything the ponds had to offer completely by myself. So many highlights of this day, my heart was flying so high after so much adventure, stepping out of my comfort zone and walking through glacier water at the cascade ponds barefoot.

After some hike planning for the next day (so many hikes, so little time!) I tucked myself into my campervan bed and settled in for the night. I already am starting a list of "must do's" and "have to hikes" for next time I find myself booking a plane ticket out this way, trying to keep my head on straight and not get overwhelmed is proving to be quite tough. I just have to keep reminding myself that the mountains aren't going anywhere.