Continuing on after the doodle dog fiasco, we headed for the Bow Summit Lookout trail. 

Except I wouldn’t really call it a trail, considering the small path I’d just come from. This one was more like a road. And you’ll see it in the top corner of a picture or two, it looks like an old farm road! 

But we’ll take it, without complaints. Welcome it, in fact. 

Peyto Overlook: 3.8 miles roundtrip - worth hiking beyond the first viewpoint with the wooden deck, even if you get the sh*t scared outta ya!!

Day 2: Peyto Lake, one of my most anticipated pit stops of the adventure.

The moment we arrived at the parking lot, the clouds magically starting to produce a sprinkle of rain – very funny Mother Nature!

The main trail was paved, a loop to the main viewpoint and up through the woods a bit.  Fairly busy, but while most people seemed to ignore the pups yesterday, today everyone wanted to pet them. We hung out at a bench, letting people enjoy a moment with the hounds and listening to their stories about current and past pets. Dogs have the amazing ability to create an instant bond between two strangers.

​Mom, we got this tent life down. Seriously. We have our own camp beds, lots of blankets, AND your fuzzy feet to sleep on – what could be better than this?!

​Embarking on what I considered to be our first real day of adventure, we aimed for Emerald Lake. The journey there was, of course, spectacular. No amount of rain or stormy weather could diminish the beauty of this wilderness. 

The hardest part of a road trip is somewhere between hour #2 and hour #3 of driving. The first hour is grand. I’m excited to start the adventure. I usually have a cup of coffee next to me. And, most importantly, I don’t have to pee yet. Life is amazing! Then it starts to sink in just how long I’m going to be driving for the day, and I’ve likely finished my coffee, which means I’m probably starting to feel the urge to pee. This also means I’m about to hit a stretch with limited stops for a bathroom, because that’s how those things work. :P And yet, that painful space between hour #2 & #3 is completely worth it.

​Driving to Canada was no different. Day #1 was pretty straightforward – go north to Idaho. But note to self for Day #2: don’t get so caught up in the beauty of the landscape that you miss your next turn again!