OT - Road trip to the Canadian Rockies (Pic heavy!!!) knives, landscapes and wildlife

[prom52]

Thoroughly enjoyed the photos of your adventure Tod. I'm sure your son will treasure the memories you've created for him. Thanks for sharing !

 

[hasco]

Wow! So much to like in one post, from your awesome knives to the scenery, and I really love the pop top Element :thumbup: Looks like a great trip, thanks for sharing. (I can't believe Canada GIVES you fire wood, you can't even HAVE a fire in the backcountry in Cali...)

~Jim

Thanks Jim. Technically you are paying for the wood with your fire permit in Canada but still it is really cool. You get all the wood you want. Yeah it is not like here in California. There is a lot of water in the areas we were at and went through. I knew British Columbia had a lot of salt water but I was amazed how much inland lakes there were there and up by Banff and Jasper. If the drought gets too bad we might have to head north!

What a great trip! The Canadian Rockies have to be one of the most scenic areas in N. America. Your photos just make me feel like I'm there. Good experience with the knives, too. Best way to judge handle profile comfort is go out and really work it. Let's you know what might need a tweak. Are both your knives 01? Sure a good idea to try that temper at 425 in your oven and see how you like the results.

Thanks for taking the time to share with the pictures! Very enjoyable. Oh...telephoto lens on the bear shots?

Thanks Rick! Yes both the knives are 01. I will let you know how the next one turns out at 425. Yes, most of the bear shots were with a telephoto lens. I was trying my best to be respectful of all the animals we saw and not disturb them. I did spook one bear in the woods because the wind was going straight from me to him. I was amazed in general though how insensitive some folks were. When we saw the momma and cub there was a guy and a woman just walking right up to them with the camera and phone. The mom looked like she could care less but part of me was hoping she would charge them.

Todd, your adventure is something I dream of taking one day. Thank you so much for sharing! I'll look at your pics and keep the dream alive.

It is definitely worth the trip. I had been wanting to get up there and see it for long time. I had heard folks mention the northern rockies as a possible place to go if things got dire. I had to see and feel it for myself to asses that. I think I will need to go back in the winter to get the full scope. I am sure it is quite different.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Love the shot of you guys on the bench.

Thanks. That was a special spot in a camp that is only for the folks with a permit to camp there. Lucky for us, the folks camping were super friendly and invited us to check it out. I was blown away by the little cabin with a wood stove for cooking in that the parks Canada built. The people there said that the weather can change quickly there and even snow in August sometimes!

:thumbup: Thanks for sharing your beautiful pics.

Thanks for sharing your trip with us. The write-up and pictures are superb!

That was a great read, post and a lot of cool knives
Nice job

Thanks guys for the nice comments guys! We had a good time.

Thanks for the great pictures and story! A fantastic trip with a ton of cool memories. Burney Falls is one of my favorite places in Ca.

I am stoked to know about Burney Falls now. I think it will become a regular stop on our journeys north.

Looks like an epic trip. Those Canadian Rockies look beautiful. Lots of wildlife too. Cool seeing your knives in action.

Beautiful photos, thank you. Love the landscapes & wildlife. That's a heck of a lot of driving

Thanks guys. It was a heck of a lot driving but we split it up well so it was pretty manageable even for our son.

Wow what amazing trip! Being from the flat desert, I don't think I would ever leave after seeing seeing that!

Yeah, those mountains are something else. I would like to go back sometime and spend some quality time in the backcountry.

Wow! Thanks for all the great pics. It looks like you had a great trip.

Great photos of a great trip. Thanks for posting.

Yep, wow is still pretty much all I got. Awesome photos man, looks like it was a heck of great trip!!

Thanks a lot guys. It was definitely a smooth and epic trip. I always feel grateful when we get home from a big trip that went off with no major hiccups.

Great stuff, thanks for sharing the adventure and tools in use. I love the picture of your son with the life straw the best, keeps hope alive for the next generation.

Thanks! My son is definitely getting a healthy dose of nature and bushcraft skills. Spending time in some big campgrounds makes you realize how some folks have very little outdoor experience/skills. I feel lucky to get the chance to get outside quite a bit.

Looks like it was an awesome trip! Those bears would have scarred the crap out of me!

Thanks Duder. Those were all black bears. I have respect for their abilities and try not to bother them but I have never had much fear of them. I have had quite a few animal close encounters and surf regularly in great white territory. I am much more afraid of tail gaiters, drivers who text and the sharks on fiddleback fridays than most things I see in nature.

Thanks for sharing Tod! Looks like it was a great trip and picture perfect scenery!

Thoroughly enjoyed the photos of your adventure Tod. I'm sure your son will treasure the memories you've created for him. Thanks for sharing !

Thanks gentlemen!

 

[Comprehensivist]

Tod,

This is my favorite thread of all that you have posted. I have been back to look at it many times.

You did a great job documenting and sharing many aspects of this epic family trip. I like your straightforward assessments of the various knives you used on the trip. I agree that the Camp Nessie is a great all-around tool for a car camping adventure. I have never seen a Turley knife in person, but they come highly recommended also. I also appreciated hearing more about your two home made knives in use and your thoughts on little tweaks for the next ones you make.

Your fire making kills are very impressive too. I like how you employ different techniques and experiment with different fuels to find out what works best.

The scenery and animal photos are stunning. My favorite series of photos are the following four. I have said it before, but your son always looks like the happiest kid on the planet. The canoe shot captures the quiet peace and grandeur of the Canadian Rockies. The photo of you and your son on the bench makes me think of worldly wisdom being passed down to the next generation. I have to give credit to your wife for capturing many of these moments in photos.

Thanks again for sharing your journey with us.

Phil

 

[awareunlikeu]

This is an excellent post my friend!! May I ask what camera you used? Gorgeous pics of both hardware, family and mother nature!

 

[Bamboo]

Beautiful Tod! Thank you sharing these photos with us.

 

[hasco]

Tod,

This is my favorite thread of all that you have posted. I have been back to look at it many times.

You did a great job documenting and sharing many aspects of this epic family trip. I like your straightforward assessments of the various knives you used on the trip. I agree that the Camp Nessie is a great all-around tool for a car camping adventure. I have never seen a Turley knife in person, but they come highly recommended also. I also appreciated hearing more about your two home made knives in use and your thoughts on little tweaks for the next ones you make.

Your fire making kills are very impressive too. I like how you employ different techniques and experiment with different fuels to find out what works best.

The scenery and animal photos are stunning. My favorite series of photos are the following four. I have said it before, but your son always looks like the happiest kid on the planet. The canoe shot captures the quiet peace and grandeur of the Canadian Rockies. The photo of you and your son on the bench makes me think of worldly wisdom being passed down to the next generation. I have to give credit to your wife for capturing many of these moments in photos.

Thanks again for sharing your journey with us.

Phil

Thanks Phil! It was fun to document parts of our trip. I have a bunch of other photos that I took that I like as much or more than these but most of them are of my son or my son and my wife. I try to keep it as knife focused as I can and send the great family shots to the grandmas. The shot on the bench is actually my son and wife together, but she did take quite a few shots including the shot of the big horn sheep.

Here are a couple more photos you might enjoy.

My son throwing a snowball at me.

My son cracking up after throwing a snowball at me.

The reason my son always looks so happy.

This is an excellent post my friend!! May I ask what camera you used? Gorgeous pics of both hardware, family and mother nature!

Thank you! I was using a nikon d90 and an iPhone 5s.

Beautiful Tod! Thank you sharing these photos with us.

Thanks Ken!

 

[M4Super90]

Great Photos Tod! Looks like a fantastic time!!!