Motorcycle Sidecar Adventure in the Canadian Rockies
Wildlife and wild life
When I met Rob of Jasper Motorcycle Tours, the first thing he said to me is, “I think I have a set of leathers that will fit you.” I knew that I would be spending the afternoon riding alongside his Harley-Davidson, but I didn’t realize that I would get to dress the part. I loved it. Once we were geared up, we roared out of downtown Jasper and set off to explore the surrounding terrain.
Even though the area is healing from a devastating fire two years ago, it’s a magnificent countryside, especially from the perspective of a sidecar just above street level.
Rob had been out riding earlier in the day, and he had a good idea where the wildlife was hanging out. He asked me about my Nikon Zf with Nikkor 28-400mm lens. I told him it’s perfect for shoots like this because I don’t have to change optics. (This seemed especially important when cruising 60 mph in a sidecar.) We continued talking about photography for a bit while working our way out of town.
Our first encounter was with two hefty bighorn rams near a small lake. They had stopped by for a drink, but then they cut us off from the road as they sauntered back to the hillside. We just had to wait, which wasn’t a problem for me with the camera firing away.
After we were allowed to pass, we headed up the mountain to Medicine Lake. Right away, Rob spotted a marmot sunning itself on a rock. I didn’t see it at first until he pointed it out. It blended into the environment so well that I’m sure dozens of people could walk by and never notice it.
He also pointed out a bald eagle sitting high above us and at a distance in its nest. It was great to see its home, but the reach was too far for a decent photo, even at 600mms.
Medicine Lake itself is fascinating. Sometimes called “disappearing lake,” it’s 7-km-long, glacial-fed, and renowned for its dramatic water-level changes and, in indigenous folklore, for being “magic” because of its disappearing water. It’s actually part of a complex karst system, draining through sinkholes in the lake bed into the Maligne River and resurfacing downstream. It’s also stunning to view.
We saw it at a relatively low level. But as the spring thaw continues, the waterline will rise… until it sinks once again.
We went back down the mountain and continued to explore the countryside. We spotted some movement in a dense thicket of trees and brush, and to my delight, I saw my first moose of the trip.
It heard us and turned to see what the commotion was all about. Fortunately, that provided my only opportunity to photograph his face. And even luckier, I got the shot. The moose is the tallest and the second-largest land animal in North America, falling short only to the American bison in body mass.
Following that, we had a long stretch of road with no animal sightings. That wasn’t a problem for me since I already had dozens of pictures that I couldn’t wait to review that night on my laptop. So I enjoyed the fresh mountain air blowing in my face and the way that Rob skillfully navigated the twists and turns of the highway.
But we had one last treat before returning to town, a pair of bighorn rams resting by the roadside.
A beautiful finish to a great day in Jasper National Park.
If you head up to the Alberta Province, I recommend visiting Jasper Motorcycle Tours. It’s a great way to explore and photograph this magnificent territory. Tell Rob I said hi.
Great sampling of the area. I was there a few years ago and it brought back good memories!
Great pictures, Derrick! It must have been a fantastic ride.