Lake Louise

Before we headed over to Lake Louise- a signature attraction in Banff NP, we had a few hours of excursion around Lake Minnewanka. Most of trails around the Lake Minnewanka were closed due to bear's feeding season. We got to share a small trail with a flock of goats that cautiously side passed people on the trail.
The drive from Banff town to Lake Louise was very scenic with many viewpoints worth a stop.
Lake Louise town is much more humble and plain than Banff yet it seems to better fit in the Rockie mountains settings. The weather was definitely much cooler than Banff town and we stayed at a hotel for the two nights when we were in Lake Louise.
The first peek at the Lake Louise in the morning helps me understand why Lake Louise is the most significant attraction in Banff. The crystal green water is sitting still with reflections of surrounding snow-capped mountains and the glaciers on the slopes. Morning ray shone over the lake and peaks. It's intricate. We took the most famous trail in the Lake Louise area -Plain of Six Glaciers Tea House. The 4-hour scenic hike took us to a closer view of the glaciers as well as the tea house. We could hear the blowout from Avalanche from the other face of the hills and watch some snow rolling down from the peak. Tea house ran out teas. But I had the best apple pie ever at the tea house as a reward.
After we got back to down, we rewarded ourselves with some really satisfying and inexpensive Ruben sandwich,sweet potato chips and beer at a hostel cafe.
Lake Moraine was another spot on our "to do" schedule. We took a leisurely lake shore trail around the lake after dinner.