Tour Managers Tales

Coming soon, Scandinavia and Baltic Capitals, depart on Friday from Dover on the NCL Sun. Have a listen to this preview selection of music.... and then buy the CD .....COPY AND PASTE INTO BROWSER http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid62744237001?bctid=292396079001

Rocky Mountain Rail Tour Group August 10th - 20th 2010 Wishing you all the best, and look forward to meeting you all again in the future. Richard  Black Bear at Lake Louise Big Horn Sheep at Two Jack Lake Bow Falls, Banff The Hoodoos

Calgary, Alberta Calgary  is the largest city in the  Province of Alberta , Canada . It is located in the south of the  province , in an area of foothills and  prairie , approximately 80 km (50 mi) east of the front ranges of the  Canadian Rockies . The city is located in the Grassland region of Alberta. In 2006, the City of Calgary had a population of 988,193 making it the third largest municipality in the country and largest in  Alberta . The entire metropolitan area had a 2006 population of 1,079,310, making it the  fifth-largest   census metropolitan area in Canada. In 2009, Calgary's metropolitan population was estimated at 1,230,248, raising its rank to fourth-largest CMA in Canada. Before the Calgary area was settled by Europeans, it was inhabited by pre- Clovis  people whose presence has been traced back at least 11,000 years. In 1787,  cartographer   David Thompson  spent the winter with a band of  Peigan  encamped along the  Bow River . He was the first record

Banff, Alberta Four districts of the Northwest Territories formed the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905: Athabasca, Assiniboia, Alberta and Saskatchewan. Alberta was named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, fourth daughter of Queen Victoria. It was proclaimed a Province on September 1, 1905. The First Nations settled the plains about 8,000 years ago. They sustained themselves by hunting the buffalo. Evidence of their activities can still be seen at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, which is now a World Heritage Site in southern Alberta. Later, these people — who included the Blackfoot, Blood, and Peigan — tamed horses and hunted buffalo with rifles they obtained from European explorers. Another group of First Nations, who included the Woodland Cree and Chipewyan tribes, settled the woodland areas of central Alberta. These people hunted caribou, moose and fished the lakes and rivers. They used bark canoes to travel up and down streams in the area. During the

Banff, Alberta The body of water that the Stoney Indian people knew as Ho-run-num-nay, the “Lake of the Little Fishes,” lies in a valley close to some of the higher peaks in the Canadian Rockies. The first non-native to behold it was Tom Wilson, who – led by a Stoney guide – reached its eastern shore in 1882. The completion in 1885 of a transcontinental line on the Canadian Pacific Railway route, along with the construction in 1890 of the first commercial accommodation at Lake Louise, attracted increasing number of visitors. The Lake Louise area became an international destination, largely due to promotion by the CPR. Pioneers such as Walter Wilcox and Samuel Allen explored and mapped much of the vicinity. The surrounding mountains became a mecca for alpinists. Their activities created notoriety for the area when Philip Stanley Abbot became the first person to die in a climbing accident in North America when he fell during an attempt on Mt. Lefroy in 1896. Legislation had created

Ice Explorer  Peyto Lake  Banff, Alberta Banff   is the largest town in  Banff National Park , in  Alberta's Rockies , Canada . It is the first incorporated municipality located within a Canadian national park, and at 1,463 m (4,800 ft), it is the town with the second highest elevation in Canada, the highest being  Lake Louise . It is surrounded by mountains, notably  Mount Rundle ,  Sulphur Mountain , Mount Norquay , and  Cascade Mountain , and is situated above  Bow Falls  near the junction of the  Bow  and  Spray Rivers . Banff is located 126  km  (78  mi ) west of  Calgary  and 58 km (36 mi) east of  Lake Louise , on the T rans-Canada Highway . Banff is a  resort town  and one of Canada's most popular  tourist destinations , known for its mountainous surroundings and  hot springs . It is a major destination for outdoor sports and features extensive  hiking ,  biking ,  and  skiing  areas within the region. Two  ski resorts  are located in close proximity:  Suns