The Rockies Review – Part 1

As I am writing this blog post I am having some mixed feelings. I am sad because our trip to the Rockies is behind us. I am relieved that everything went well. I am happy because I have some time to rest now. I am also thankful for all the great memories we made during this trip. This weekend was something I am never going to forget.

I still can’t quite process how much sightseeing we managed to do during these past few days. I am not even trying to list all the places we saw since that would require a lot of space and I don’t think it would be that interesting to read. For a change I am going to tell you more about few things that were the highlights of the trip for me.

On our way to Banff we stopped at Glacier Discovery Centre. It was time to have a nice walk on a glacier. We hopped on to this vehicle called “the Ice Explorer”, which is especially designed for driving on a glacier. The weather was spoiling us as it was a sunny day and you didn’t really even need a jacket outside. We spent some time walking around the glacier, taking pics (ofcourse) and enjoying the amazing view. There was supposed to be an opportunity to get some super pure water straight from the glacier but it had been snowing so much the previous day that we didn’t find any running water. Instead we ended up collecting some snow from the glacier to our water bottles. I mean it kinda does the job, doesn’t it?

Half way through our trip we spent a night in Banff. A stunning little town surrounded by breathtaking mountains. The night in Banff was a party night for us and we sure partied like there was no tomorrow. The next day it was time to explore the town itself a bit more. Checkout from the hotel was early and our party group was feeling pretty tired after having only few hours of sleep. We made a great plan and decided to visit Banff Upper Hot Springs which was located only a 10-minute-drive away. There we spent a relaxed sunny morning in steaming hot water. The views from the pool to the Rocky Mountains were absolutely gorgeous. What else can you wish for?

As mentioned, this weekend was super eventful, and this was only a sneak peak of the whole trip. If I were to tell you every single thing about the trip, I would have to write a book. What can I say; this trip is something you really have to experience yourself. Thanks to everyone who participated. I had such a great time with you all and without you guys it wouldn’t have been this amazing!

-Jasmin xx

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 6N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Rockies Tour Guide: Optional activities

As you may have already noticed that we have a busy schedule when we are at the Rockies, but there is still time left to do optional activities. We wanted to update you on which optional activities you can choose to do!

Snowcoach
All the optional activities are taking place on the second or third day. On the second day we will go to the Columbia Icefields where you can choose to do the Snocoach. The Snowcoach takes you up to the Anthabasca Glacier and gives you the chance to actually walk on the glacier itself. Here you can make beautiful pictures and taste the fresh water of the glacier itself. You can take an empty bottle of water with and fill it at the glacier.

Lake Louise gondola + buffet
The day after you have the chance to do the two other optional activities. The first one is a bit more relaxing and a perfect activity when you would like to get some rest during this busy schedule. You can take the Lake Louise gondola up and have an amazing view over the Rocky Mountains at the top. The activity includes an all you can eat lunch buffet, so you don’t have to worry about getting any lunch beforehand. You may even see bears on the way to the top!

Emerald Lake canoeing
If you would like to do something more active then you can go canoeing at Emerald Lake. Canoe on the beautiful blue waters of Emerald Lake and forget the world for a second.

The prices for additional activities are about:
Lake Louise Gondola & Buffet – $45
Snocoach Glacier Experience – $65
Snocoach & Lake Louise Gondola & Buffet – $105
Emerald Lake canoeing – $60

To ensure that you can do these activities you have to go to the Westtrek office and book your activity. You can also book the activity on the bus itself, but there is no guarantee that there will be spots available.

Are you getting excited about the Rockies trip? Then come to the office and sing up to make sure that you get to go on this amazing trip!

– Iris

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 6N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Rockies tour guide: What is included?

On the 11th of August, INTERNeX is going on an adventure again. We are going on a 4-day trip to the Rockies, which is the perfect place to spend your summer.

On the first day of our big trip we are going to start our adventure at Waterfront at 7 AM. It is only a short drive to our first stop, Hope. This is where the original Rambo First Blood movie was filmed. Along the way you can enjoy the beautiful views while we are driving over the Coquihalla Highway to Kamloops. In Kamloops we will have a stop to get lunch. After filling our stomachs we will continue our way to Valemount. We will have one more stop at the Spahats Falls where we will have some time to make pictures. Once we arrive in Valemount and are checked into the hotel, we will head out to a Canadian ranch for a real Cowboy experience. There we will watch a Cowboy show and eat dinner (included). After the Cowboy show we will go back to the hotel. Here you can play hockey and afterwards warm up at the campfire.

The second day we will first have breakfast (included) at the hotel before we continue our journey to Banff. We will drive up to Mount Robson, the highest mountain in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. After a short break to make pictures we will get back on the road to Jasper, another famous city in the Rockies. Then we will continue our way on the Icefields Parkway to the Columbia Icefields, which is known as one of the most beautiful drives in the world. On the way to the Columbia Icefields we will have a stop at Athabasca Falls, a beautiful water fall in the Rockies. Once we are at the Columbia Icefields we will have some free time. During this free time you will have the chance to join the Snowcoach tour (optional activity). After spending some time at the Columbia Icefields we will continue our way to the first amazing lake we will visit, Peyto lake. From there it is only a short drive up to the second lake, Bow lake. If you are brave enough, you can try out the Polar Wolf Swim at Bow Lake. From Bow Lake we will drive up to our hotel in Banff where we will have time to get dinner (not included). In the night we are going to end our night properly at a nightclub in Banff!

After our night in Banff we will have breakfast at Tim Hortons (included). We will leave Banff and drive up to Lake Minnewanka, Two Jack Lake and Cascade Ponds. From there we will head out to Lake Louise and Moraine Lake. At Lake Louise we will have time to walk around or to go on the Lake Louise gondola, where a lunch buffet is included (optional activity). After Lake Louie we will go to Emerald lake where you have the opportunity to go canoeing (optional activity). After another busy day we will spend the night at the Mountain View Cabins. Here we will eat as much as we can at the all you can eat barbeque dinner (included). After that we will have a campfire where you can try to make s’mores (included).

On the fourth day we will prepare ourselves for the long way back with an all you can eat breakfast (included). We will drive through Rogers Pass to the Last Spike of the trans-continental railway. After a short stop we will continue our journey to Kelowna, where we will have lunch and possibly a beach stop (weather permitting). After our stop we will drive through the Coquihalla Valley back to Vancouver. We will arrive in Vancouver at approximately 7 PM.

To ensure your spot on the Rockies trip sign up in the office or on PuB NiGHTs before July 25th. The price is only $420 for INTERNeX candidates and $430 for non-INTERNeX. If you would like to know more about the trip, then check out our Facebook page.

– Iris

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 6N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Rocky Mountains

Although driving more than 2.000 kilometers in four days, without too much sleep, nothing will ever replace Internex’s amazing trip to the Rockies.  Early Friday morning a group of people from all over the world stepped into a bus, left Vancouver and took out on a journey to The Canadian Rocky Mountains.  Our tour guide was Hayley from West Trek Tours, who made this trip as unforgettable as it was, together with our bus driver Handsome Ian. We drove along the highway until we reached the beautiful town Hope where we had some pit stop and we already were surrounded by mountains. Next stop was in Kelowna were we had a picnic on the beach, enjoyed the hot sun and took a swim in the refreshing Kelowna Lake.  Back on the Canadian Okanakan highway we drove along the Okanakan lake until we made another pit stop at a farmers market to pick up some delicious fruits to enjoy on the way.

 

Finally before sunset we made it to the Mountain View Cabins in Golden.  After a long drive we were all hungry so the cabin hosts made us a BBQ dinner and after the dinner we grilled some marshmallows on a bonfire. Can you imagine sitting around a bonfire up in the mountains in middle of nowhere were you can smell the nature all around you?  Surrounded by forests and wild animals and being told stories of people running away from a bears? The night turned into a bonfire party, were our lovely guide Hayley sang country songs and played her ukulele and we all sang along. What a wonderful night!

 

 

 

 

Early Saturday morning we drove back on the highway until we reached Alberta State and guess what?  We drove back in time. We arrived into Banff National Park where I’m pretty sure the most beautiful nature on this earth exists. First we went to see Emerald Lake and Lake Louise, a stunning beautiful lakes, as blue as the sky, with mountains all around them. Almost like standing in front of a picture. Then it was time to see Lake Louise from above. We drove down to the Lake Louise ski resort and had a lunch buffet before we took the gondola up to a mountain were we got the most amazing view ever. On our way up, we searched for some wild animals in the forest, but I guess they were hiding.  However we got lucky on our way back.  We found them.  Yes guys, up in the wild nature on our way back in the bus we finally saw some bears. Not just one or two, no we saw seven bears.  A black bear mother, feeding her two little cubs and the cutest grizzle bears hiding between the trees. I actually didn’t know that on this earth there existed a place where wild bears could just chill along the road, but now I know 🙂

 

Next we drove to the cute little mountain town Banff to check in to our hotel and have some relaxing time before dinner. It was Saturday night, so people were in mood for partying. We went to a pub for a drink or two and then we found a nightclub in town. Have you ever visited a nightclub up in the mountains? If not, there is one in Banff 😉

Sunday morning we woke up early and had our breakfast from Tim Horton. We had a long day ahead, the biggest sightseeing day on the trip.  We went to see Lake Minnewanka / Two Jack Lake, Bow lake and Moraine lake, which was even more stunning than Lake Louise. What a nature and what a place. The last lake we saw was Peyto Lake, were we took a polar bear swim were the water is only  5,5 degrees.  That was pretty awesome.  Then we drove in to the Jasper National park were we had the highlight of the day, The Columbia Ice field. The largest ice field in the Rocky Mountains which is about 325 square kilometres (125 sq mi) in area, 100 metres (330 ft) to 365 metres (1,198 ft) in depth and receives up to 7 metres (280 in) of snowfall per year. Our glacier adventure began with an opportunity to ride on the surface in the all-terrain Ice Explorer – a massive vehicle specially designed for glacier travel, and there are only 23 of them in the whole world. When we came up to the glacier, we walked on the ice and filled our water bottle with fresh glacier water. Defiantly the best water we’d ever taste. It was a perfect time to capture the beauty of the Ice field’s breathtaking mountain setting.

Back on the highway on our way to Mount Robson, we made a stop at the Athabasca Falls, the most powerful waterfall in the Rocky Mountains which was pretty amazing. It was cold so we found a Belgium waffle man and had some hot drinks and waffles there. Then we kept driving and were we almost reached Mount Robson, the highest peak of The Rocky Mountains, we unfortunately drove into a thick black fog where our beautiful sunny weather changed into heavy rain. Too bad for a view on Mount Robson. Before dinnertime, we made it to our country hotel in Mt. Robson, were we checked in and had a nice warm shower. A real country night was about to start, yes ladies and gentleman we were now all ready to see some real cowboys. We were picked up of the cowboys and their cowgirls who drove us to their ranch and served us a dinner and drinks. The dinner party soon changes to a wild cowboy party were we all danced line dance late into the night. Monday morning we drove back to Vancouver.

Thank you all for joining us on this unforgettable Rocky Mountains trip. Hope you all enjoyed it as much as the PR team.

 

AAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

PR Team

 

 

Rockies Trip Spring Review II

The second morning was another early morning, we had breakfast at 7:45 and hat to be in the bus at 8:15. Too bad for our German boyband that they were just seconds too late, lucky for us that we did not have to sing. No worries the boyband did a great job in singing “Mamor Stein und Eisen bricht” and got some back up from the other Germans in the bus.

Our first stop of the day was at Mount Robson, the highest point in the Rockies and the second highest peak in British Columbia. We were luckily to see the top of the mountain for a couple of minutes before it disappeared in the clouds again. We shot some nice pictures and headed towards Jasper for a lunch break.

Jasper is a nice town, which get really crowed in the summer because it is so close to all the outdoor activities. Some of us stopped in the grocery store to get some food, others went into to a restaurant or walked down to Subway. After a short break and enjoying the sunshine it was time to get into to bus again and drive to our next stop.

The next stop was at the Athabasca Falls. This waterfall is not known because of its heights, but it is known for its force du to the large quantity of water falling into the gorge. It was a stunning view, especially the color of the water was very picturesque. After walking around the fall and seeing it form all different point we had to get back to the bus to drive to the Columbia Icefield.

The Columbia Icefield is one of the largest accumulations of ice and snow south of the Arctic Circle. We drove in a snow coach, which is especially made for this and there are only 24 of those buses, up to a snow field were the wind was blowing crazy and it was freezing could and of course we all were again prepared super good with or sneaker and thin jackets on! It was a great experience, but I think everybody was happy when we were back in the bus again.

Our next stops were at the Waterfowl Lake and Bow Lake before we ended our day in Banff. In Banff we stayed at the Mt. Royal Hotel and some of us went out for dinner, pizza, McDonalds, Steaks and Ribs were on the menu. Afterwards we went out to a pub for some pre-drinks before we headed out to the Night Club for some crazy dancing.

Stay tuned for the next Rockies review and do not forget to join the After-Rockies-Party by clicking here.

What was your favorite part of the second day?

INTERNeX International Exchange
International Village,
Suite 2077, 2079 – 88 West Pender Street
Vancouver, Canada -V6B 6N9-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Email: pr@internexcanada.com