Canada -
Western Canada's Nature & Culture

Tour Highlights

• Whale Watching Boat Cruise
• Gondola Ride up Sulphur Mountain and Hike
• Columbia Icefields Ride and Walk
• Study at Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology
• First Nations Cultural Experience

DAY 1 LONDON TO VANCOUVER - You will land at Vancouver Airport and meet your guide. We will check in to our accommodation and then head to Stanley Park for an introduction to the city's splendour.

DAY 2 WHALE WATCHING - Today we will go whale watching for Orcas! Our next trip is to the Georgia Cannery Museum.

DAY 3 THE OKANAGAN - Today we will travel to the Nicola Ranch in Merritt. A cowboy will guide us around the property.

DAY 4 JOURNEY TO BANFF - Our first stop will be in Oyama where we will get a tour of an orchard. Next is a short hike near
the town of Revelstoke through a dense stand of giant Western Red Cedars. Then we will visit the Roger's Pass Interpretive Centre in Glacier National Park. In Banff we will take the gondola to the top of Sulphur Mountain to hike the trails.

DAY 5 JOHNSTON CANYON - Today we will hike one of the most beautiful trails in Banff National Park, seeing waterfalls, steep canyons, rugged mountain vistas and the inkpot pools at the end of the trail.

DAY 6 COLUMBIA ICEFIELDS - This morning we will drive to the Columbia Icefields. The Icefields Highway will be our best chance to see grizzly bears.After loading up in specialised coaches for a ride on the Athabasca Glacier, you can get out and run around on the ice that is hundreds of metres thick.

DAY 7 DRUMHELLER BADLANDS - Today we depart to Drumheller - the land of dinosaurs, and on arrival pitch our tents near the Red Deer River. The coach will take us to many sights in the Drumheller Valley including the Rosedale Suspension Bridge, the Atlas Coal Mine and a Bison ranch. At Reptile World we will see Canada's largest collection of reptiles. We also visit the East Coulee School Museum where we experience first hand what it was like to be a student in the 1930's during the depression.

DAYS 8/9 ROYAL TYRRELL MUSEUM - The group will be split up for the next two days and will rotate through many activities at the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology. This is the largest dinosaur museum in the world and we will participate
in an actual fossil dig and get a hands-on approach to the science. We will also go fossil prospecting.

DAY 10 CALGARY - We will travel to Calgary and visit Heritage Park, a living history landscape that has recreated the 19th century with over 100 restored buildings and 400 staff in costume. In the evening we'll take in the view from the top of the Calgary Tower.

DAYS 11/12 FIRST NATIONS TEEPEE VILLAGE OR
CALGARY STAMPEDE - In the rolling foothills south of Calgary we will study First Nations culture, learning about medicinal plants and survival skills. We will try some traditional foods and activities, interact with natives and stay under the canopy of our teepees for two nights.

Groups travelling in July coinciding with the world-famous Calgary Stampede can attend 'the greatest outdoor show on earth'. Rodeo is what the stampede is really known for. Every afternoon there is a world-class event: watch saddle bronc, bareback riding and the thrilling bullriding.

DAY 13 DEPART CALGARY - This morning drive to Calgary's airport and depart for home.

DAY 14 ARRIVE LONDON - Your flight arrives back in the UK early this morning.

Price Range £1350 - £1795
Depending on month of travel and group size.

 

Call or register on-line for further information on Casterbridge's programmes.