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  • Spinning into the wineries in a bright red dress, because I’ve had a weeks worth of less than flattering mountain appropriate clothes. By mountain appropriate clothes I mean pink trainers and a pair of leggings that have ripped scars into my legs (not exaggerating, maybe I will sue @hm to fund my next trip 🤣) . The Rockies have been an absolute dream but I’m totally ready for some chill out time and what I think is well deserved relaxation. So we have rocked up lakeside at the @covelakesideresort, already tried some local wine and looking forward to tomorrow which will quite literally be a wine day with @tripadvisor. Who knew Canada was hot enough to grow grapes huh? Well you better believe it! The sun is shining and the heat is on. It’s a long weekend for the Canadians so lots of locals from Vancouver soaking up the rays here too. . Big thanks to @covelakesideresort for having us, and to @hellobc for organising this for us. Canada is massive and therefore quite a daunting country to plan a trip to. Shame I no longer work for evil travel company because I reckon I could bash out some pretty good North American itineraries now! . This time next week I will be somewhere over Iceland on our way back to London, probably crying into a croissant about leaving Canada 🇨🇦 . . #exploreBC #ThompsonOkanagan #ExploreKelowna
  • Anyone who knows me well knows I am a self confessed hotel snob. It’s actually quite bad, I have champagne taste on a lemonade budget. However, over the years I’ve come to love tiny properties and BnBs, for lots of reasons but my accommodation last night summed it up completely. . We had been driving 4 hours, then did a 2km walk to a waterfall, we then drove to our ‘home’ for the night. By home I mean Clearwater Springs Ranch, I wish I could tag them but they do not do social media, if you look through my stories I have added a link to some of the photos! We were met by two smiling hosts, Kurt and Tania from Belgium who quit their life in Europe and moved to Wells Gray Park in British Columbia and started up a BnB in a gorgeous log cabin. . We were exhausted, we are a week in and our bodies are starting to feel it. We wanted an afternoon to just relax. And relax we did. In our pretty lodge was a huge viewing window, you can see across the valley and onto the mountains ahead, we watched the hummingbirds play, listened to the frogs, and we spent 15 minutes watching a black bear playing in the field right in front of us 🐻 I can’t even tell you how amazing it was, we looked through the binoculars and could see every detail, it was a moment to just be in rather than document. I have instantly fell inlove with this beautiful part of the world, and I don’t think I am even scared of the bears anymore, they just want to go about their daily business and eat their dandelions 🤷🏻‍♀️ . So today was a toss up between posting a picture of the most incredible waterfall I’ve ever seen or a picture of this view. The view won because I think this moment was the most peaceful I have felt in a long time. . Wells Gray Park is much quieter than its neighbouring national parks but is just as beautiful. This is rugged territory where you can get up close and personal with nature. I just wish I had longer here! . #exploreBC #ThompsonOkanagan
  • It was only when flicking through the pictures I took I even realised I caught this lil birdy. At first the photo bugged me because I couldn’t see the bird’s reflection on the water, and I was thinking it looked like I photoshopped him (or her?!) in the picture. But I’ve finally spotted it, can you see it? 🐦 . Is it really Saturday? This time last week I was flying over Greenland on my way to Canada. I had no idea what to expect, only the photos I had seen. There are various sights I see pop up on Instagram a lot and I was sure they were highly edited, however after spending time exploring I’ve realised Canada is probably the most naturally beautiful country I have ever seen with my own eyes and the pictures you see are true. . To any kid that is not into geography I would ship them off to Canada immediately so they can witness every amazing geological process that goes on here 😍😍 . Today we leave beautiful Alberta and head into British Columbia where @explorebc have so kindly arranged our entire week here. Tonight we will be in Wells Gray Park, then onto the Okanagan Valley, Vancouver and finishing on Vancouver Island! . I will be writing some blog posts etc for you all as I have taken hundreds and hundreds of photos that I can’t wait to share with you! I have stayed in some amazing places which I will also be sharing with you in case any of you guys have plans to visit and need some inspiration! . I am behind on posting due to time difference/lack of internet so bear with me over the next few weeks as I share snippets of my trip with you! 🇨🇦❤️ . PS. Happy royal wedding day. Sadly I missed it due to time difference so now I’m going to go catch up on it all. Harry was always my favourite prince 🤴🏻
  • I have so many Canadian related questions. Well some of them specific to people who live in the mountains 🤔🤔 . - Do French Canadians speak French in a French accent or Canadian accent? 🇨🇦🇫🇷 - Does Amazon deliver to the Rockies? - Is food this expensive in all of Canada? I mean, $4 for the cheapest loaf of bread, I nearly had a heart attack. People in England whinge life is expensive, next time I hear someone moan, I will send them to Canada. Or Norway. - Where are the supermarkets? You know the huge ones you can buy anything at. - Is it scary living near bears? 🐻 - Does everywhere in Canada have amazing dessert selections? I even had Lemon Meringue Pie yesterday, it was fabulous. I feel like there is a granny hiding in the kitchen of every restaurant whacking together some apple crumble or something. - Does everyone in Canada speak French really well? Literally there is the French translations on absolutely everything, even tomato ketchup. I’m becoming very educated during my time here 🇫🇷 - Why is the national animal of Canada a beaver when all I see are chipmunks here, there and everywhere?! 🐱 . Okay that is all. I’m sure I have many more questions I just forgot them 😇 . PS. Some of these rivers have been giving me major Pocohontas vibes. Constantly have ‘Just Around The Riverbend’ floating around my head 🎶 (I am totally aware she was not from Canada but I feel like whoever drew the animation for the film totally got him locations mixed up)
  • It was images of reflecting lakes that first drew me to wanting to visit Canada. Part of me assumed they were photoshopped, part of me was desperate for them to be real. The first lakes I arrived at, Grassi Lakes, bear Canmore were everything I imagined, turquoise, crystal clear and gorgeously reflective. . That night at dinner the waitresses asked our plans, when we told her she mentioned she wasn’t sure if the other lakes had defrosted. ‘Whaaaat’ I thought? Yep for a girl with a geography degree I can be pretty stupid, I didn’t realise in this day and age lakes froze over, I thought that was something that happened in the harsh winter of 1945 or whenever it was! Anyway. Turned up at Lake Louise. Boom. FROZEN. Quite literally the entire thing was frozen and dashed were my dreams of having Alex boat me around in a canoe. . Alas, a pickle it almost was. However we did a 4 hour round trek, half over ice and the other half through 2-3ft of snow (I was wearing suede trainers HA). Reached a couple of frozen but gorgeous lakes and saw the most amazing views over the Bow Valley and all was not lost. Breathtaking. . Head back down to Lake Louise and the whole lake was beginning to de thaw. It looked incredible, lots of reflections and also got to enjoy the sun glistening over the snow and ice. Yesterday was a bit like that too. BUT. This one single lake we literally found on the side of the road filled all my lake reflection dreams. I could just stay here forever. . Oh and by the way... WE SAW A BEAR 🐻 He ran across the road in front of our car 🐾
  • Yesterday was full on, 31,000 steps walked and I have seen some of the most breathtaking scenes I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing in my life. My grandparents absolutely adore Canada and I can totally see why. I have heard many stories about their Canadian adventures and at 94 and 96 they were over the moon to here Alex and I had picked it for our holiday this year. Tomorrow we head into Jasper National Park which was their favourite so I definitely need to remember to send them a postcard! . My grandparents have had such an interesting life, it’s hard to run out of conversation when they’re around, although we have to shout most things at my grandad because he is deaf as anything 🤣 My grandparents ran a post office in Berkshire, during the war my grandad took a train all the way across India before being stationed in Malaysia and Singapore. My grandma was engaged to be married but sadly her fiancé was shot down in the war in Malta and passed away. Later on she met my grandad, they got married and had my mum! They have travelled all around the world and last year at age 93 and 95 they took a cruise to New York! They’re pretty hardcore. I wish I could bring them back to Canada but sadly I think their travels have now ended, my grandma has had some nasty falls the last few years and both of them are now extremely unsteady on their feet. But they always love sitting down with us grandchildren and talking about our own travels 🤗 . Anyway, went off piste with that. My brain is full of waffle most of the time and my fingers just tend to type it... We visited Lake Louise, climbed a mountain, saw some lakes, saw the most breathtaking views over Bow Valley, went to Lake Emerald (pictured) and had the best night sleep at a place called Stephen Creek Guest Cabin. Our little cabin was surrounded by the most beautiful mountains and is a great place to base yourself when you are driving from the Rockies through to Vancouver, or from Banff up to Jasper. Lake Emerald was only 10 minutes away so it was absolute heaven finishing our day here and getting to cosy down in our log cabin. Alex was convinced a bear would come in during the night but clearly it did not as I am here!
  • Three days and the sun hasn’t stopped shining. Taking a moment to feel grateful for the opportunities I have had recently. I am fully aware not everyone can travel the world. Less than 2 years ago I could barely go anywhere or see any of my friends and family due to a demanding (and crappy paid...) job that meant no weekends, no bank holidays, work, work, work. We would be pacified with a fam trip once a year, that’s an education trip where we would be sent abroad and we would inspect hotels and learn about them and the areas so we could sell them to our clients. This was pretty much the only thing that kept me in the job. . Staying at somewhere like this, @buffalomountainlodge, was once just a dream I sold to my clients. I would spend hours upon hours planning their holidays, organising picture perfect hotels, when all I wanted to do was go and travel the world. Yet for my own holidays my husband and I would spend hours and hours doing the exact same thing, but on a much cheaper scale... . I was scared I would reach a point I would start taking this life for granted but I haven’t yet. Thank you so much @buffalomountainlodge for having Alex and I to say. I write this as I sit on my balcony overlooking tunnel mountain, listening to the birds and watching red squirrels hope around the lawns ❤️🇨🇦
  • May I pause my feed of chocolate box English cottages and bring to you the clearest most turquoise water I’ve ever seen, insane mountain ranges, Christmas trees galore and the cutest wooden chalets you have laid your eyes on. . I’ve only been here 2 days and I have fallen inlove with this beautiful country. You have to see it to believe it. All the photos I have seen of the lakes I assumed were photoshopped, but nope, they seriously are that blue. And can I say thank you to whoever is up in the sky operating the weather. I picked 80% warm clothes as I expected it to be cold, both days now have been a balmy 24 degrees and it looks like tomorrow is the same. Hiked up this mountain (okay I’ll admit it’s not like I scaled the summit or anything) in a jumper and a pair of jeans, big mistake, I boiled alive and wanted to somersault head first into that water. . Arrived in Banff this afternoon, staying at @buffalomountainlodge and now slightly obsessed with wooden decor. Our balcony literally looks onto a ginormous mountain (Tunnel Mountain I believe!) and I even managed to gobble down the most tasty three course meal 🙊 Looks like I’m gonna have to get myself up another mountain and burn off all the food I’ve been eating. . Big love to you Canada, thanks for having us 🇨🇦❤️
  • Cor blimey, I thought walking a mile to Tesco to get myself a sandwich was a big effort. Just watched a documentary on some ladies living in Arctic Canada who have to go to the frozen sea and wait for the tide to go out. They then have 45 minutes to dig through 6 feet of ice, climb down a hole and crawl under the ice (where the sea normally is), grab some muscles and hope that the thick chunk of ice they’re crawling under doesn’t collapse on them! . Makes me realise what a pansy I am, I cried when I had to climb up a clock tower in Strasbourg because the steps made me out of breath 🤣 . Pretty snazzy flight over. Flew right over the Scottish Highlands and got v excited. Alex got annoyed because he said he couldn’t see out the window because my bum was acting as an eclipse 💁🏻‍♀️ Anyway, you snooze you lose, the window seat is mine!!! . PS. My phone does not work in Canada like I thought it would so it’s gonna be WiFi only for me the next few weeks, I feel like I’m in 2011 again 🇨🇦 (PS. Feel sorry for all Canadians for having to put up with the prices of your phone plans, I nearly had a heart attack when they quoted me the cost!). . PPS. No Canada pucks yet, too tired 💤 Heading into Banff National Park for the next three days however so that’ll change 📸

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