Mark Thau Photography

Happy 20th birthday to Kendal - we have parented ourselves right out of the teen years and it feels like it! We know you already had a great day in Australia, time changes are odd for birthdays. Can’t wait to see what 20 brings, 19 was pretty epic.

Hot tips for travel to the Banff area from Chico:

SFO - Calgary is under 3 hours of flight time on a non stop

You might* have texts from home when you land that there was a grass fire in front of your house in Chico.

Lodging choices exist, search for them! Here is where we stayed:
Solara Resort, Canmore
Tunnel Mountain Resort, Banff
Pine Bungelows, Jasper
Baker Creek by Basecamp, Lake Louise
Downtown Marriott, Calgary

Most nights we were a group of 6, so lodging for all was our challenge.

Any hike is a good hike! We mixed our days up
and enjoyed each one for what
Is was.

And a special thank you to good friends and an awesome fire department for knocking the grass fire out while it was still way in front of our house. Pictures from July 16th, and all is well that ends well!

The final few days of our Canadian Rockies adventure were just as beautiful as the first. 🏔️

The younger group got in one more big hike, taking on Cirque Peak, while we made our way through some of the incredible sights along the Icefield Parkway, including Panther Falls and the Columbia Icefield.

We spent the night near Lake Louise, which meant an early morning to catch the sunrise. Although smokey but beautiful.

Then we headed back to Banff for one last day — a little shopping, a stop at Vermilion Lakes, and Bow Falls before saying goodbye to the mountains.

Our final night was in Calgary, where we packed up and prepared to fly home the next day.

It was a pretty perfect ending to an amazing trip.

So many miles, a whole lot of hiking, countless beautiful views and more photographs than we know what to do with. 📸

The Canadian Rockies gave us everything we were hoping for — and then some.

Until next time, Canada. ❤️🇨🇦

Our one full day in Jasper National Park led us to Maligne Lake. And deep in the canyon, the smoke cleared!

We spent the morning on the lake in kayaks and a canoe, enjoyed a polar plunge and a bald eagle territory on the drive out (warned you about the birding in my last post)!

The younger legs were happy for a rest day, and the day flew by. Easily one of our favorite vibe days of the trip. Luckily, Mason’s laundry bag was in the car so everyone had shorts to swim in!

Continuing on, we headed north up the Icefield Parkway to Jasper for 2 nights. Peyto Lake was well worth the stop and short hike out to multiple viewing areas.

Clouds were hiding the vastness of the Rockies, but the amazing color of the lakes and water was on full display.

Further north, the Parker Ridge trail to us up to the skyline and a view of the Bow River Valley and it’s glacial beginning. Seeing the glacier feed into the river and everywhere it has carved over the years was well worth the 2-3 mile hike up the ridge.

The top of the Icefield Parkway showed off massive waterfalls and eventually led to a great dinner and evening in Jasper.

Smoke from the wildfires around Alberta began impacting our trip and location choices - without the vast extending views, we quickly picked up waterfall hunting and birding.

Jasper was an amazing town, working to come back from the 2024 wildfires that devastated the area. Our stay at the Pine Bungalows was perfect, a pocket of land spared from the fires right on the river.

Another incredible day from our July trip to Banff. 🏔️🇨🇦

Moraine Lake was our starting point, and from there we split into two hiking groups.

We took on the Consolation Lakes Trail — about 4 miles round trip with a gradual climb. For our Chico friends, I’d compare it to hiking the North Rim in Upper Bidwell Park: a steady, manageable climb with beautiful scenery along the way. And, of course, when you're hiking around Banff, you see a few more “grizzly area” signs than in Bidwell Park. 🐻

The younger group headed up through Larch Valley to Sentinel Pass, which was a much bigger challenge with more elevation gain and a pretty spectacular payoff.

Both were top-notch hikes, just at very different difficulty levels.

That might be one of our favorite things about the Banff area — you can find an incredible hike whether you're looking for a moderate 4-mile adventure or you're ready to really challenge yourself.

After a full day on the trails, we headed back to our lodge in the Tunnel Mountain area to watch the World Cup Final.

And apparently we weren't quite done with wildlife for the day…

A squirrel decided to join us in our lodge room. 😂🐿️

Mountains, Moraine Lake, two great hikes, soccer and a squirrel.

Not a bad way to spend a day in Canada.

Still thinking about our July trip to Banff and the Canadian Rockies. Reflections uploading slowly but surely.🏔️

We loved every minute of exploring Banff — the lakes, the mountains, the town, and scenery that honestly didn’t seem real.

But one of the best decisions we made was staying in Canmore.

Banff is amazing, but there’s a definite hustle to it in the summer. Canmore gave us a completely different pace. Quiet and relaxed, we used the kitchen in our suite and enjoyed slow evenings before heading out to the 9-10pm sunsets or to the movies to catch The Odyssey (great movie!)

It turned out to be the perfect balance for us — close enough to everything we wanted to see, but far enough away from the crowds to feel like we were on vacation.

The Bow River flows right through town with amazing river trail systems and unforgettable size and color. We also hiked in the Kananaskis area and took the Sunshine Meadows gondola up for the lakes loop.

After 3 nights, we left Canmore to explore the Icefield Parkway and the Lake Louise area.

Canmore checked every box. ❤️🇨🇦

Already looking forward to getting back to the Canadian Rockies someday.

Need to order or request proofs - www.thauphoto.com/order will get you where you need to be!

The end of summer in Chico has brought colorful sunrises and sunsets against the hills and fields of golden grass and wild oaks. It's as reliable as the bounce back into the upper 90s after a week of cooler temps.

We are starting to prep for the Open Studio Art Tours, planning promotions and ordering prints in. Those weekends in October are some of the best times to get out and see everything in the local art community. We can't wait!

It's banner season! Contact us for affordable options for all of your team needs this fall!
Email : [email protected]
Phone : (530) 566-9189