A Tourist Attraction

Building a steel and concrete walkway into Johnson Canyon has turned a scenic and natural area, into a tourist attraction. The first warning came from the guide book,"Better hiked in the early morning to beat the crowds." Since Banff is where 95% of the tourists won't stray more than 500 meters from their car, the lower falls at 500 meters is the outer fringe.

The hiking trail began six hiking lanes wide and quickly became concrete and steel walkway which hung off the canyon's wall. This canyon was tamed by these railings to bring the tourists where perhaps they do not belong.

Traffic was light; we had missed rush hour, so we quickly arrived at the lower falls. There a narrow, jagged tunnel had been blasted to allow a close-up view of the falls (as well as a quick shower). From there, we climbed to the viewing area above the falls. We could see a crowd pouring into the tunnel towards the lookout. They kept pouring in. As the now spray drenched viewers got pressed against the rail, I couldn't help think, that it looked like a scene out of a general admission Who concert.

The mile stretch to the upper falls had began to try the patience of some, who dared to push forward. The most common mutterings were "Are we there yet?", and "Do we have to stop at every lookout?"

The upper falls greets you with a sign declaring, "Congratulations, You made it all of 1 1/2 miles!"

We left the concrete and steel behind and headed for the Ink Spots. Alas Nature, well other than the paved path.

The hike to the Ink Spots consists of climbing up to a ridge and down into a valley. At the top of the ridge we were greeted by a woman whose lung capacity obviously couldn't keep up with her girth. She said it was all down hill from here. "Yeah for both of us", I thought.

The Ink Spots are beautiful spring fed pools, each a different shade of turquoise. Lunch by a gurgling mountain stream was pleasant until it was interrupted by kids pitching rocks in the stream. Before we left, I attempted to get a picture of one of the Ink Spots. A perfectly still pool reflecting the mountains. Still until, one of those kids lobbed a rock into the pool, ruining the picture. No apologies from him, just a smile of satisfaction.

On the way back I was determined to get a picture of something in its undisturbed natural state. The moss covered log surrounded by wild flowers was out. Ten asians were scrambling all over it getting group pictures with their point and shoot cameras. They left only scraps of moss and trampled flowers. I did manage to this picture of these trailside flowers, which were tucked safely behind a tree.

A few meters further down, I witnessed a boy tugging at his father's arm trying to get assurance that for all his effort, an electric cable car would wisk him down. Sorry kid, wrong mountain.

Then we were confronted by young man who spent a little too much time lifting in the weight room. "Is it worth it?", as he points to his sweat soaked arm pits. We assured him the Ink Spots are worth the hike. I was sure he expected to see one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Boy would he be dissapointed!

Things got ugly from here. At the upper falls we spotted a bloody high heel. A woman had hiked 1 1/2 miles in high heels. Hasn't anyone told her fashion is out past the 500 meter mark. Fortunately we wouldn't be around to see the additional damage as she hiked the 1 1/2 miles back out.

All around there was the enchantment with the four legged furry friends. "Look at the big chipmunks." These are not actually chipmunks, but squirrels with similar markings. But these tourists are nature experts, so big chipmunks they are. Of course the kids, small and adult size alike, were feeding them. I wonder if their friends back home will notice the "Don't Feed the Animals" sign in the background of their souvenir pictures.

Then their was the mom who was coaxing her son to step behind the rail, so she could get a picture of him and the natural beauty of the falls. Fortunately the boy wasn't cooperating. Someone who tried that the day before at a nearby falls, got a ride down, and hasn't been found.

The air quality dropped with our altitude as we headed for the lower falls. Tourists were catching puffs of their cigarettes in between gasps of breath. The litter got thicker too. They forget that this is not a showcase exhibit at Disney World where they sweep up after the tourists have all gone home.

We hiked right past the lower falls and into the home stretch. We heard a man commanding his children to turn around. He told them, "There are plenty of falls in the world, and they all look the same. Let's get back to the car!" Now there was a 300 meter man if I ever saw one.

Alas the end was near. I could tell because the tourists were still licking their icecream cones and chomping on their peanuts. Mmmm, all that food made me hungry. We had soy dog vegetable stew that night, which was basically everything that was going bad in the cooler. I bet the tourists didn't eat that well.

The most annoying part of the hike was that all these incidences really happened.