Icy Turquoise Waters of the Athabasea River

The most amateur of photographers will get a perfect picture at any angle of the Athabasea River running through the mountain ranges and valleys of Jasper National Park in Alberta Canada.

Maligne Lake

 
 
The above photographs are just a few of the magnificent scenic views I saw on the boat cruise to Spirit Island.  Maligne Lake is regarded as one of the most mesmerizing lakes in Jasper National Park, Maligne Canyon and Lake, the pride of the town of Jasper, is famous for its deep blue water surrounded by snow-capped peaks dotted with glaciers.

Boundless As The Sea

 

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite.”
― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet    

Medicine Lake

Medicine Lake is a geologic anomaly in the sense that it is not actually a lake but rather an area in which the Maligne River (flowing from Maligne Lake into the Athabasca River) backs up and suddenly disappears underground. 

Mystery of Spirit Island

There are many mythical stories about the name of Spirit Island.  From these the one was a romantic Indigenous peoples’ tale which relates the story of two youthful lovers from two tribes who were not on the best of terms. They would meet secretly on the island in a blissful world.  However, when the young woman’s father, one of the tribes’ chiefs, found out about their forbidden affair he banned her from ever returning to the island. Heartbroken, her lover continued to return again and again throughout his life to the Island, hoping to see his beautiful lover. She never came and eventually he died on the island, where his spirit still lives.

Wandering River

To The River

Fair river! in thy bright, clear flow
Of crystal, wandering water,
Thou art an emblem of the glow
Of beauty- the unhidden heart-
The playful maziness of art
In old Alberto's daughter;

But when within thy wave she looks-
Which glistens then, and trembles-
Why, then, the prettiest of brooks
Her worshipper resembles;
For in his heart, as in thy stream,
Her image deeply lies-
His heart which trembles at the beam
Of her soul-searching eyes.

 

Edgar Allen Poe                  

Peace Like A River

It Is Well with My Soul

When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea-billows roll,
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to know;
"It is well, it is well with my soul."

   Tho' Satan should buffet, tho' trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed his own blood for my soul.

   My sin - oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin - not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross and I bear it no more;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, oh, my soul.

   And, Lord, haste the day when the faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll,
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend-
"Even so - it is well with my soul."

   For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live,
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou shalt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

   It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

By Horatio G. Spafford (1828-1888)

Endless Chain

“People travel to wonder

at the height of the mountains,
at the huge waves of the seas,
at the long course of the rivers,
at the vast compass of the ocean,
at the circular motion of the stars,
and yet they pass by themselves
without wondering. ”
― Augustine of Hippo

Kootenai Ranch

“Montana seems to me to be what a small boy would think Texas is like from hearing Texans”  


― John Steinbeck, Travels with Charley: In Search of America   

In High Country

 

“I’m in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection. But with Montana it is love. And it’s difficult to analyze love when you’re in it.”

― John Steinbeck, Travels with Charley: In Search of America.

The Highest Wave Every Recorded

T

Over one hundred years ago, the lighthouse at Trinidad Head was assaulted by a wave of monstrous proportions. Although the details are unclear, historians know that the storm that produced the waves was unusual. They believe that the highest wave ever recorded struck in Trinidad on December 31, 1913. Lighthouse Keeper, Fred Harrington, was performing his duties in the lighthouse perched 196 feet above sea level during a ferocious winter storm. As he turned to wipe the lantern room windows, he observed "a sea of unusual height". In his words, " The sea itself fell onto the top of the bluff and struck the tower on a level with the balcony, making a terrible jar." The spray flew forty feet above the crest. The lens was thrown off level by the wave but the plucky Mr. Harrington had the light back in operation in a half an hour. Harrington also recorded observing waves crashing over nearby Pilot Rock (103 feet) - known as "a perfect 10 over Pilot" these days.

Far Over the Mountains

“He loved mountains, or he had loved the thought of them marching on the edge of stories brought from far away; but now he was borne down by the insupportable weight of Middle-earth. He longed to shut out the immensity in a quiet room by a fire.”


― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Snake River

“Faeries, come take me out of this dull world,
For I would ride with you upon the wind,
Run on the top of the dishevelled tide,
And dance upon the mountains like a flame.”
 
― W.B. Yeats, The Land of Heart's Desire

What Are Men to Rocks and Mountains?

“What are men to rocks and mountains?”
― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice    

Call of the Mountains

The mountains are calling and I must go.
John Muir