After we head through Mcbride, we stopped at the valemont junction to stretch our legs and Bo was in such awe of the amazing river, which flows white like milk. Harper (2 years old) told Bo that there are bears so we made sure to hop in the Jeep and head off towards Jasper as quickly as possible (lol).

Jasper was smokier than we expected, we headed to the hotel and had an annoying mishap with Tonquin Inn in Jasper. I forewarn families to make sure to always call and get their deposit policies as I gave an online debit visa card and they refused to charge it for our hotel and due to us only carrying the debit, they charged a $500 deposit, which on many of our previous trips could have been detrimental! We also did not have our camping gear this time so that was a bit nerve-wracking but we got it figured out. Might be time with our trips to get a credit card (eye roll). I still give the Tonquin Inn 4 stars because the service and hotel room itself is wonderful. Other visitors are friendly and their guys who walk around are very helpful! I had to deduct a star for the lack of communication regarding the deposit.

That evening we decided to grab some dinner. Here are some places we LOVED to eat at in Jasper!

1. Earls Jasper has a gorgeous patio and super friendly staff. Very welcoming to children.
2. Grandma's ice cream ( I love bubble gum).
3. Jasper Pizza (#1, always)! Make a reservation for the roof top. Their fettucine and pizzas are amazing! I love the vibe and the staff!
4. Smitty's breakfast are some of the most family oriented staff and just have such good food. Breakfast is the best here.

Moving along to the spots we visited.

Jasper Tram

This was an absolute blast, as it always is.

There is a few tips I have. 1) everyone is booking online, ahead and they have reduced their operating times as COVID really affected their number of summer international staff and they just do not have the numbers. You will arrive without any availability, so be sure to do that. 2) Make sure to listen for your number so you can pick a great spot in the car, if crowded. 3) Take the trail to the left around the mountain to catch some views if you do not want to hike to the peak with younger kids. There are 2 hikes at the top, that we know of, a) the summit b) Indian ridge. For The summit expect 45 min, for Indian ridge a couple hours (to fully enjoy them).

Try and go on the clearest day you can, the smoke can really put a damper in what you can see. We loved it anyways! It is so special to stand on a freaking mountain top, no matter the weather! We loved it & so did our kids. They got these cute little souvenirs at the top too!

Pyramid Lake is just my absolute fav place that we explored. There is a bridge that leads to an island. We suggest to go at sunrise or sunset to get a photo without people on the bridge. This is an island that is set up for a wedding and it is just amazing! I have a video on our Tik Tok showing the wedding scenery and pre set up wood logs for guests to sit as you get married with mountains in the background.

https://www.tiktok.com/@freewestphoto/video/6991151292727004422?lang=en&is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1

We would love to do a wedding here, even considering this for my vow renewal next year. Guests could stay in the resort and enjoy sand beaches and canoe, kayak rentals. It is just heaven there....

Horse shoe lake was so cool! I do not feel it is the most child-friendly but we made it work. One parent needed to hold the children at all times, while the other swam and cliff jumped as it is cliff side so there's risk for sure.

You can take the left trail at the fork and go closer to the water's edge, but Bo wanted to get some sweet cliff Jumps in!

I did not think the water would be THAT cold but it really does take away your breath! Every, dang time you go in too! It is just amazing though. Clear, blue water and you can see so many little fish everywhere at the rock edge. You can go lower ( this is what I did, being too scared since having children to jump off the ledge.....it's a real thing, I swear my fear went up with the kid's births, probably nature's way to keep kids having parents lol). I jumped twice off the smaller rocks, and it was very invigorating. I felt really alive in this place and Bo would speak to this too. There's just something about the place. There is a smaller rock right at the water's edge to jump, 40 foot, 50/60 foot and 80 foot cliffs to jump off. YES, I said 80 Feet and some guy actually did it in front of us after 2 hours of building up his bravery (his words, not mine). It was a great day. I suggest going without the kids for this one, unless you have help. Emmy (3 years old) did really love to wade on the smaller, flat rock and enjoy the fish. She also egged us on to jump (lol).

This is about 25 min down Icefield Parkway Highway.