Hello campers, and welcome to one of the most wonderfully beautiful places on earth, Banff Alberta! If you've never seen it for yourself, well what are you waiting for? Banff National Park is Canada's first national park, covering an enormous 2,564 square miles (6,641 square km). The actual town of Banff itself is entirely within the park boundaries, which must make it feel like camping year round, don't you think?

All together now... Oooh.

See what I meant about spectacular? The park here in Banff is packed with incredibly rugged mountains, glaciers, ice fields, alpine meadows, beautiful blue cold-water lakes, mineral hot springs, plus for those of you that like seeing wildlife in person, keep your eyes open for elk, bighorn sheep, grizzly bears, wolves, and caribou. (Especially the grizzlies and wolves. The beans would never turn their back on them!) So bring your camera and a parka (and for heaven's sake, don't forget the beans!!!), and come check it out for yourself. You'll be glad you did.

Of course, during the winter, skiing is king, as is snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sleigh rides, ice walks, and even dog sledding. And if you're really daring, you can even ski from a helicopter if you wanna. As far as the beans go, they appreciate the wonders and daring of extreme sports, and wish you all the luck in the world while you jump out of a helicopter onto a snow-packed mountain with only a pair of skis to break your fall. (They wisely won't say "break a leg", however...)

If you look closely at this picture of the beans visit to Lake Louise, which was taken at the end of June 2002, you will indeed notice ice on top of that lake. So take the bean's advice: Skinny dipping is not recommended, unless you're part polar bear...

Here, the beans pose next to Lake Louise with BATW Ambassador Richard, who is proud to be a bean fanatic. (Check out his Bean Lover's Web site if you don't believe me...)

Several of the events from the 1988 Winter Olympics were held here at Lake Louise, as it's only 90 minutes away from Calgary. It's too bad that the beans weren't able to participate in the '88 Olympics - they would have been fantastic at the 'Freestyle Tumble Down The Glacier While Screaming Your Little Label Off' event...

Finally, the beans stop off with their friend and Ambassador Ramona at the border between Alberta and British Columbia, near Field, B.C. The village of Field itself lies in the heart of Yoho National Park, and is chock-full of small hotels, bed and breakfasts, romantic restaurants, and everything you need to escape the big city for a while.

The beans enjoyed their Canadian vacation, and were glad to leave the real world behind for a few days - even if it did drive them kind of crazy to be away from their TiVo for that long...