Snow mobiling up above the clouds in Canada

One of the absolute highlights of our time in Canada has to be snow mobiling up above the clouds in the Canadian Rockies. This was one of two tours that we booked prior to even getting to Canada. We knew that, it being peak season, it would fill up quickly. And that it did. We went with Toby Creek Adventures for this winter adventure. They were fantastic from start to finish. We chose to take the free shuttle available included in the cost for the day. So, we got up well before the sun, got ready, and parked at the meeting place in town (I accidentally forgot to grab Josh's gloves and beanie, but luckily they had a spare pair of gloves and we did not really need the beanies because w head the helmets on the entire day. The shuttle was maybe half full and everyone was so excited though quite sleepy. See, at the time that we left for the snow mobile day it was still dark out. We picked up others from different meeting points and then off we went! We were so excited for this wild adventure that we were practically buzzing. And you could feel that energy rise up the more that we all woke up and saw the snow pass us by more and more brightly as the sun began to ride behind the mountains and the sky slowly brightened into the day. 

The drive there is, like anywhere else in this part of Canada, awe inspiring. You really cannot do it justice in writing or with photos and videos. Seeing it all pass by in brilliant colours and textures is such a surreal feeling (especially if you are from somewhere that does not typically see snow, like we are!). And the further away from Canmore we got, the greater the excitement grew on the shuttle. We had a fantastic driver too, who explained culture, history, and nature in Canada and told us there were blankets on board for us to use for the drive up. Over an hour away, the blankets were definitely very appreciated and very welcome. It made the journey even greater because we could either sleep or talk amongst ourselves or tune in as he spoke over the speakers. And when we took the exit off the highway and started to shift into a wilder landscape, the driver explained to us that Canada actually has a wildfire season too (in Australia, ours is so often brutal). During a wildfire a few years ago, flames tore through this section of an isolated and intended road through the wilderness. Some of the trees - many of which were hundreds and hundreds of years old - were sadly destroyed. What was usually a fence forest filled with wildlife was in some parts a broken and slowly recovering landscape, sparse in comparison to other sections where the fire had not reached.

Hearing that story broke our hearts. This was January, and Australia had just been through the most catastrophic wildfire season in recent history. So we knew the pain of seeing and living through that kind of devastation. Quite a somber realisation, he tried to lift the mood by telling us about all the wildlife that frequents that wild road - even after the wild fire. And it was heartening to hear that the wildlife was still very much there. The section of road that we were on was largely in fenced, so animals could come say hello at any moment and at any point along the road. Eventually, the stark beauty of the landscape lured us away from the sad events of the past. All around the bus there was bright snow that blanketed stone and trees and mountains. And above it all was a cloudy sky. We all hoped that the higher up we got, the more the sky would clear as the day continued to come alive. And throughout the day, that is exactly what happened! Eventually we got there and as the bus slowed to a stop in the parking lot, we all checked to make sure we had our belongings and off we got, so high up it seemed that the base cloud cover had somehow drifted below us. 

We got there and were greeted by a beautiful happy pup who we were informed was one of two resident dogs. We all got signed in and allocated to our groups and then we got taken to the gear room where we suited up. We were each given a snow suit (mine was almost comically large but it was okay), snow boots, a helmet, and an individual GPS device that would "make it easier for us to be found if a freak avalanche came along". Oh, super chill, cool cool cool no doubt. So we changed, putting our own jackets and shoes in gear boxes under the seats in that room. First we put on the GPS device and then we suited up and put our boots on. We carried our own goggles and the helmets with us. The excitement was filling the entire room to the point that it almost felt like it was going to burst through the cracks of the doors and windows and the very walls. You know that kind of nervous exhilaration that comes with doing something crazy fun or something new for the first time (or, in our case, both?). That energy was rippling through us all and our guide explained how we would group up and then we were given the OK to go out and see our snow mobiles. There were three couples in our group and Josh and I chose to go on our own snow mobiles while the other two couples doubled. We were shown how to operate the snow mobiles and then our guide was putting his helmet on and we were starting our snow mobiles for the adventure ahead.

Somehow, I ended up getting told that I would lead the group. I will not lie, I was a little bit scared of doing that because I had never driven a snow mobile before and I did not want to slow down the rest of the group and ruin the experience for anyone. Josh and the guide both reassured me and then before we knew it we were off. From the very start of the snow mobile trip we were surrounded by the deepest abs fluffiest snow you can imagine. Softly sparkling in the reflection of the rising sun, the snow was blindingly beautiful. The trees around us were deep green and tall, surrounding the snow mobile path on both sides and framing the snowy track ahead. Soft clouds drifted through the sky. Our guide effortlessly glided his snow mobile through the powder and, a little surprisingly, it really was quite easy. As we navigated our way up the track began to turn twist and turn more often and more sharply. I was getting the hang of it all and we were picking up speed a little bit as we continued to ride up the snowy mountain. We could tell how cold it was however the snow suits, helmets

Heading up further into the mountain and away from the base below, the blanketed snow cover became heavier and our surroundings became brighter and lighter, the stone and emeralds of the trees being covered more by the snow all the time. A few times we stopped as the rest of the group caught up (I know, I am as shocked as anyone that I was not only not slowing anyone down but the guide, myself, and Josh were actually going quite fast). When we regrouped, we all excitedly cheered to keep heading up the mountain. The guide explained to us at one point that we were going to be heading into some tighter corners and sharper turns in the track. Honestly up until that point I thought we were already getting into some pretty hectic twists and turns, so this revelation caught me by surprise. And sure enough, literally around the corner some wild twists and turns started to come out of nowhere.

It was so much fun shredding around every emerging corner and shift in the fluffy snow. The higher we got up the mountain, the more the few clouds around us dissipated and suddenly there we were, snow mobiling through fresh white powder with deep emerald pine trees and a beautiful blue sky all around us. 

'The world of the everyday suddenly seemed nothing but an inverted magic act...'

Brian Greene, The Fabric of the Cosmos

After a little while, we eased up the steepest incline yet and burst out into an open sky with drifting clouds and an old cabin. To the left of us was the peaks of the Rockies and to the right was the entrance to a long abandoned silver mine. We stopped here to take in the magic in front of us. And then, in the middle of this perfect moment, it started to snow. Falling snow atop incredible mountains and a picturesque wooden cabin to top it all off. The Canadian Rockies are astounding from the ground, however there is something unreal about standing up there amongst the peaks with the falling snow drifting down from the sky. Josh knelt into the mine entrance and found that it was blocked off. We were all invited into the cabin where we got given warm cookies and our choice of hot chocolate or coffee. The inside of the cabin was decorated with mining tools and photographs of the cabin and mine back in its glory days. And at the back of the cabin was a glass wall that looked out to the snowy mountain tops. We passed around big chunks of silver and the other materials that the mine used to mine.

It was not long before other groups showed up and the cabin started to fill out. So, Josh and I took our hot drinks and pulled on our gloves, going to explore this snowy paradise outside again. Standing there, we realised that there was all this insanely fluffy snow just piled up everywhere...and we had not done a single snow angel! This was our chance. Watching Josh laugh as he fell back into the snow with the snow swirling up around him in a powdery cloud while the falling snow created this incredible contrast, is one of my favourite memories from that whole day. When I watch back the videos of us laughing at each other falling back in the snow, it always makes me so Happy. After throwing some snow balls at each other and laying down in the snow looking up at the falling snow flitting down onto our faces, it was time to ride on to the bowl. The bowl is a valley section amongst the peaks of the Rockies. There are a few trees and the like around but for the most part it is a giant free-for-all zone. Which is exactly what our guide said when he was explaining the few rules that there were for the bowl (mostly common sense stuff).

Parking my snow mobile by the side of the bowl, I looked down and I can remember so clearly just having one of those moments of total gratitude. We got the GoPro out, I jumped on the back of Josh's snow mobile, and we sped off. When I say that we were speeding along incredibly fast, I am not joking. I actually did not even know that snow mobiles went that fast. And here's the thing. We will both try anything once. Which is great! I love that about Josh. And the man has no fear. Even he gets to speed up and really have fun with it, he gets a little cocky. Annnnd that is exactly what happened. With every half lap or so, he would speed up a little more. And then we took a turn and I deadset thought that he was going to flip the snow mobile over. There was a couple of times that I had to literally scream above the sound of us barrelling through the snow to remind him that he was not in fact the only one on the snow mobile, that he needed to readjust just a little bit. However, then it was like when he did slow down it was too slow. Before I knew it, we were lapping others and having a ridiculous amount of fun. It is one of my favourite things to have experiences that send adrenaline surging through the body. And it is always even better getting to have these experiences with Josh. All too soon, it was time to head back down. When we got the signal from our guide, we headed back and I jumped off, got back on my own snow mobile, and kickstarted the engine.Leading the group back down the mountain, it looked like a scene straight out of The Grinch where they are on the mountain. We were still riding the natural high of getting to speed around the basin at our own speed. So much so, in fact, that we kept riding that balance between wanting to go faster and not wanting to go so fast that we shot straight off the edge of the track. It was spectacular in every sense of the word. I had never seen so much snow before. I looked in my mirror back at Josh a few times and even though his face was masked inside the helmet and his goggles, I know that he had the same bewildered smile on his face as I did. I will never forget the feeling of looking ahead and seeing that picture perfect landscape sloping down in front of us, the trees topped with fresh white snow and soft falling snow adding to the blankets of snow that laid atop everything in sight - including our snow mobiles and us. I was half expecting Whoville to appear in the breaks between the trees. It was that perfect. 

We stopped off to hike up a little way to see a surprise that our guide had in stall for us. There is no path off that main snow mobile way and so we hiked up through snow, at points knee deep. When the tree line opened up at the other side, we saw this stunning waterfall, frozen solid in an icy blue colour. We literally stopped in our tracks, awe struck. The guide knew it, too. He had this knowing smile on his face. "Want to climb it and slide back down?", he asked. We all ran up in our excitement, trying desperately to maintain our footing as we clumsily made it up the snow covered icy sides of the slope up the falls. We were told that the cave behind the falls was utilised as a bear cave sometimes but it "should be fine". It was so awesome. I did not go all the way up the falls, but I did get to slide back down which was so much fun. Josh and another guy climbed all the way up and explored around and under the base of the falls a bit before they slid back down. And close to the frozen waterfall, you could actually hear the soft tinkling of frozen streams of water trickling underneath the frozen water itself. We were literally standing in the middle of a dang postcard. And it was epic.

When we left that waterfall, we spent the rest of the ride down the Rockies to base admiring the remarkable scenery that surrounded us in the most beautiful natural wonder. And then, all too soon again, we were coming to the end of the trip. Arriving back at the bottom, we got back just in time for the rising sun to cast glittering golden late morning light over the snowy ground and the trees. We twisted and turned through the final few curves of the track, pulling up into the parking section. We were immediately greeted by that same Happy pup. We were all positively buzzing from the insane way we had and it was coming to a perfect end. Our guide thanked us for a great day, and vice versa, and we headed to the gear room to return the gear and get our belongings back. We thanked our guide a final time and went outside to play with the snow pup until the shuttle arrived. As it turns out, the dogs in Canada love to bite the snow and eat the ice. So, we made a game of kicking snow while this sweet little pup ran at it, catching the snow in its mouth and wagging its tail in eager anticipation for the next bout of "falling" snow.

We did not drive to the site ourselves, so when our shuttle got there, we got on abs were advised that the other tour was not due to come back for another twenty or thirty minutes and he could take us to check out the ski resort next door. So, on we jumped and we soon found ourselves snacking on hot chips, having some drinks, and watching the ski resort visitors slide down the slopes toward us. When we met the shuttle back at the entrance, everyone was on board and we were off. We spent that bus ride home switching between taking in the breathtaking views from the comfort of the bus and napping. We were the last drop off for the day and by the time we got back to the pick up point for ourselves, we were tired from the big day and exhilarated by the incredible experience we had just had up above the clouds, snow mobiling around the peaks of the Canadian Rockies. We cannot recommend this magical experience highly enough. You have not seen and experienced Canadian winter until you have seen it from a snow mobile, trust me.