I get to check off one of my items from my Five-Year Plan! We are visiting my son Keaton and his girlfriend Kate in British Columbia.

We’ve been wanting to get out there for a visit because they’ve been living in Fort St. John for the past three years. They bought a place in 2022, so they plan to be there for a while.

The great thing is that our daughters, Caileigh and Tara, were able to get time off and join us for the visit, too. So, we’ve got a mini-family reunion happening. Our son-in-law, Chris, couldn’t make it out for the trip, unfortunately.

Keaton and Kate planned the itinerary. So, before we bought our plane tickets, they suggested we fly into Calgary, Alberta. They would meet us there and take us to Banff. The next day, we’d go to Jasper for a couple of days. And then we’d drive to Fort St. John, British Columbia.

Caileigh got to Calgary the day before us. So, she hung out with Keaton and Kate and some of their friends in Canmore.

It was an early rise to get to the airport. Our flight was at 7am, so we figured we should try to get there for 5am. Which meant waking up at 3:30am.

I got to bed around 12:30am. Deb and Tara were at a cast party the night before, so they only got to bed at 2:30am…!

We were pretty darn sleepy when we arrived in Calgary at 11am, Calgary time.

But we were on a schedule, because we had a gondola ride booked in Banff. And it was an hour and half drive away. So, there was no time to stop. They had picked up subs and coffee for us and we drove on to Banff.

I had driven through Alberta when I was a kid on a family vacation. But the impact of the mountains had long faded from my memory. Seeing the mountains up close was incredible.

Everywhere you looked was a photo op of the majestic mountains.

Banff is small tourist town. And was VERY busy. It was Family Day Weekend and many folks were taking advantage of the long weekend to visit Banff.

The original plan was to take the gondola ride and walk around for a bit. Then go over to the hot springs and have a sit in the pool.

It was so crowded at the hot springs and gondola, that we decided to postpone the hot springs until the next day.

I’m not a fan of heights but going up the gondola wasn’t so bad as long I faced up the mountain. Looking down the mountain gave me the willies!

So many gorgeous views.

Some friends of Keaton and Kate’s had suggested we go to the Grizzly House for fondue. But when Kate called to make a reservation, she was told that they were completely booked for the day.

Later, Keaton called to see if there were any cancellations. No. And they were completely booked for the day.

On our way to our second-choice restaurant, we passed the Grizzly House. Kate suggested Keaton go in and see if there were any cancellations.

We continued on, not expecting any different answer.

But Keaton came out and told us to get our butts back to the Grizzly House.

We enjoyed a lovely (and expensive) dinner. The ladies had cheese fondue and the men had chicken and beef grill. We shared chocolate fondue for dessert.

And then we were off to Canmore, a town close to Banff, for our lodgings for the night.

Once we were settled in, we had some drinks and played some games before most of us started to fade.