Location, location, location...

It seems that the high mountains around Jasper and South along the Icefields Parkway are elevating moist air and creating their own local weather problem. Jasper has been socked in for two days. Nice place to get $5.50 a gallon gas but I haven't even seen the town yet.

A bit to the East where I'm staying, there is much more frequent Sun. Traveling in to Jasper, there was our old friend, the Wild Buck!

Alas, when I reached Jasper, it was under a positively Mordorian sky.

No matter. The day was young, and I headed South on Icefields Parkway. The first break in the cloud cover was at 11:00 A.M. or so over the Icefields, 100 kilometers south of Jasper:

Looming in the distance above the milky Athabasca River, it looked like Valhalla.

Had to drive on to see it again!

Driving back toward the North, I was heartened that there had been breaks in the !#!$!%! clouds at least in one place. For example, there was a bit of color here along the river:

When I got to the Athabasca Falls, there was some sunlight there, too. It brought out the milky color of the river's water:

As I drove out from my fifteen minutes of sunshine, I looked at the sky. In all directions there were dark clouds! I'm putting in for a raise and a bonus for my Make-a hole-in-the-clouds angel for at least getting me a decent session at the Falls!

Driving East out of Mordor, er, Jasper, the skies cleared as if by magic:

Along the road was this lake of a startling green color! No, this is not Photoshop! It is this brilliant green!

I saw a commotion ahead, with some cars stopped. that means an animal jam! Sure enough! Three Big horned sheep were feeding by the side of the Trans-Canada highway.

Why did the chicken, er, Big Horn, cross the road?

Another day of prayer and sacrifice to the weather gods ahead. Eleven days of this and counting...