One of my favourite drives is between Banff and Jasper along the Icefields Parkway. I am lucky enough to live where I can even make Jasper a day trip (a long day, but I’ve done it). The Icefields Parkway is probably one of the most impressive stretches of road on the planet. It is crowded with lakes and mountains, punctuated with massive thundering waterfalls, and carpeted with tundra and forest. Along the road you can see mountain goats, woodland caribou, moose, grizzly and black bears, eagles… its majesty is infinite.
But sometimes, you can find some of the most fetching scenes in miniature. Just north of Herbert Lake (one of my favourite spring sunrise spots), right next to the road, is a small unnamed waterfall, a cascade of water flowing over intense green moss. There is no pull-out here, you have to stop on the hard-shoulder of the road. This location has become one of my little gems to visit after a sunrise shoot at Moraine Lake, Lake Louise, or Herbert Lake. The little waterfall is on the east side of the road, so it is in shade in the morning–perfect for photography.
This first image was shot at ISO800, 1/15 second, at f22. I had meant to lower my ISO, but forgot (it was actually raining quite heavily when I took this, so I wasn’t being as careful with my settings as I should have been).
The next image was taken at the same location: ISO200, 3 seconds @ f22.
While the waterfalls of Sunwapta and Athabasca are the big draws on the Icefields Parkway, it is well worth keeping an eye-out for the wonderful little vignettes that crowd the road, and that you will have all to yourself if you choose to stop and enjoy them.
Michelle Gilders' Photography 