Travel Guides | Stoness Travel Blog

The Ever Striking Blue Ridge Parkway

If you enjoy mountain driving you will be in your element driving the Blue Ridge Parkway from Virginia through North Carolina. The parkway is essentially a mountain crest highway joining peak to peak through the long Appalachian chain of mountains. This means there will be a lot of climbing up the side of one mountain, and descending the other side for over 469 miles.

However, if the weather is good, it will be 469 miles of forests during the climbs, and tremendous panoramic views from the mountain tops. Mostly it will be necessary to use the lay-bys to see the valley sights. Years ago the forests had been cut and it was easy to see across the countryside below as you drove. Now the trees are maturing and are too high to see over.

The road is generally in good shape, but some sections are grown in to the point where you have to keep away from the edges or suffer scratches from limbs. It is necessary to watch for branches above as well or endanger your air conditioner if you have a high RV. There is a section of road at the southern end that has three tunnels too low for many RV’s.
There are several excellent campgrounds without hookups so it’s a good opportunity to try out your RV’s self containment features. One drawback is the use of noisy generators. Although there are new quiet generators on the market, many people insist of using the cheaper, noisy variety, thus ruining the camping experience for those around them.
In the spring miles and miles of beautiful rhododendrons line the route and these along with the other spring flowers make it a terrific drive. In the fall the leaves and mountain ash berries provide another colourful time to make the trip.

For more than four decades James Stoness has travelled the roads of North America, photographing and writing about what he has seen. His travel articles and beautiful pictures have been published in several magazines and newspapers. He is also the author of five western novels. Visit his website at: www.stonesstravelguides.com

Linking to the Grand Canyon by Train

When was the last time you visited the Grand Canyon? Driving by car or RV is a great, fun way to see this great spectacle. One of the most exciting ways of visiting is to leave your RV at Williams, Arizona, and ride the train. I can remember the train rumbling into the South Rim Station before it ceased

operation in 1968. Now, since its reopening in 1989, people are again able to ride to the rim in style. The old cars are refurbished and drawn by good old nostalgic steam engines, although once it gets cold in the fall they switch to diesels.

The trip starts from the historic Williams Depot, now fully restored to its former grandeur. Nearby is the brand new southern style Fray Marcos Hotel, now called the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel, with 196 rooms, is handy for travellers who want to stay in Williams overnight.

The Grand Canyon Railway RV Park is across the street from the hotel and the train depot which means there is easy access to the train when it’s time for your train ride to the canyon. Campers can also get away from the noise of town by driving a few minutes north to the Williams KOA and leave their rigs while they visit the canyon.

The train leaves for the canyon right after an exciting shoot-out at the corral. At first you cross several miles of open grassland shadowed by a few volcanic cinder cones. I saw a cattle roundup in progress on my last trip there. Later the open landscape is replaced by the green shade of evergreen trees. After executing a couple of loops,

where the train almost runs back over itself, you begin to climb to the rim of the canyon.

You can see it on television a dozen times, but the wonder and amazement of the first view of the great canyon will stay with the visitor for a lifetime. The Grand Canyon is a mile deep and perhaps eighteen miles wide. Erosion has created freestanding buttes and mesas as well as several steep sections of cliffs. The morning or evening sun blends with the natural colours of the rock layers to create a kaleidoscope of reds, purples and mauves that change steadily as the light level changes.

Time will be short if you go up just for the day,

so the obvious thing to do is to book an overnight trip go up on the train and stay at one of the Grand Canyon National Park Lodges. There are several lodges, all with good rooms, excellent food, and with prices to accommodate almost any wallet. We stayed at the Maswik Lodge and found it very comfortable. You can exit right onto the rim from some lodgings, but you’re never very far from a shuttle stop so it doesn’t matter which one you choose. You can ride to the end of the paved trail along the edge, and walk back at your leisure. That’s nice, and no vehicle to park, or to have to go back to get. It’s like being young again with no worries. Just wander as you wish and stop where you want to.

I suggest riding the shuttle east, getting off at either Pipe Creek Vista stop, or the South Kaibab Trail stop, and walking back along the trail which edges the top of the canyon wall. The views are great, and you’ll likely find solitude along the way. It seems not too many people take the time to get away from the crowd.

You can also book bus tours to take you to the more remote parts of the rim. These tours are well worth the money and the scenic overlooks you will stop at provide excellent views into the canyon.

11 Reasons That Make Canada’s Rockies so Appealing

A visit to the Canadian Rockies is a dream for many people, here and abroad. But what is it that the Rockies have to offer that makes them so alluring? Is it only the striking scenery, or other attractions?

1- The Canadian Rockies are not particularly high as big mountains but they are spectacular. Mount Robson tops them all at 12,972 feet. Its massive rocky structure, bare, and glacier laden, stands more than 7,000 feet above the pass and thousands of people view the barren crags as they pass through British Columbia’s Mount Robson Provincial Park by train, or on the highway. Visitors arrive at the park to enjoy activity. Some wish to scale the steep mountain’s cliffs, some will hike the many trails to higher meadows and viewpoints. Many will relax in its shadow at a campground, or perhaps throw a fish line to a hungry fish lurking in some nearby waters. At this park you will not likely go home without having seen some of the many deer, or bears.

2-   Just next door to the east is Jasper National Park. One of the more secluded attractions here is Maligne Lake. This 22 kilometre long lake is edged by tall white capped mountains, a fact attested to by the many people who have taken a ride in the available tour boat. Others take their own water craft and enjoy the silence of being alone, and may stop at one of the campgrounds… a long trip with weather to look out for.
3-   The Banff-Jasper Icefield Parkway’s 230 kilometres is a five star spectacular. Winding between high snow clad mountains, and occasionally rising up and over a pass, this highway has some of the best scenery on the continent.
4-   Still in Jasper NP is the outstanding Athabasca Falls which drops 23 metres into a narrow gorge. The entire flow of the Athabasca River disappears into the ravine with a tremendous roar. Canada’s early explorer, David Thompson, tried navigating the Athabasca River hoping to find a route to the Pacific Ocean way back in 1810.
5-   Continue south along the Endless Chain Ridge, a long sedimentary ridge that has swung from the horizontal, upward, as if hinged along one side.
6-   The Columbia Icefield has become a necessary stop. The Icefields are the remnants of the great icesheet that once covered this part of Canada. Ten thousand years of a warming climate have removed thousands of metres of ice leaving us with what is now visible. When earlier explorers came here the icefield reached across the valley where the road is now. You can expect the that the ice will retreat more quickly now. Over 10,000 years the suns’s energy was used to melt vast quantities of ice. Now many thousand cubic kilometres of ice are gone, and the sun’s energy will now be used to heat the earth and the air. Sounds like a good reason for the earth warming. If you take a ride in the large people movers you get a chance to ride out on the ice in safety.
7-   Along the Parkway expect to see many basins containing small lakes, often a beautiful turquoise colour, reflecting the image of a nearby mountain. Peyto Lake has a short hiking trail that takes you to a perfect viewpoint.

8-   Now the jewel of the Rockies. Banff Townsite is the main attraction for thousands of visitors to the Rockies. This small town is wedged between the mountains, yet contains fine lodging, good food, and numerous trinket shops. You may also find a few elk just loafing about. Good camping above the town, too.
9-   The often photographed Banff Springs Hotel is a great place to visit, and stay.
10-   Lake Moraine and the Valley of the Ten Peaks can provide one of the best places to visit for mountain scenery, and great hiking up to Larch Valley and nearby Wenkchemna Pass. The lower area is now too crowded but is still beautiful, but you can get away by yourself by taking one of the hikes.
11-   Is there anyone who does not know about Lake Louise? It’s the fabulous blue/green lake backdropped by a massive mountain. Again, so many people go here in season that you should likely try to avoid it, and save it for off seasons.
This is a short list of the many attractions in the Canadian Rocky Mountain region. If you drive the Icefield Parkway, I suggest you turn around and do it from the other direction. The scenery will look totally different to you. Twice the enjoyment for you.

For more details and maps download my Scenic Trails book, CANADA: Beyond the Far Horizons.
For more than four decades James Stoness has travelled the roads of North America, photographing and writing about what he has seen. His travel articles and beautiful pictures have been published in several magazines and newspapers. He is also the author of five western novels. Visit his website at: www.stonesstravelguides.com