Province of Alberta Warnings Or Dangers Tips by kymbanm Top 5 Page for this destination

Animal Warning signs ....

I did see some critters - some even in the road just standing there waiting for me to slow and stop .... but driving and phtography don't always go together at the same time. I did manage to snap a picture of one of their typical animal shaped signs ........ they're reflective, so at night they pop right out at ya!.

As I was snapping this picture through the windsheild, a couple of bighorn sheep jumped into the road along the side of my car .......arrrgghhhh! Missed another shot!

Read and follow warning signs ... please!!

You'll need to click on this picture to see just how stupid some people can be ....... this couple went under the gaurd rails at Athabasca Falls and were walking on top of the falls to get pictures of themselves .... okay, some may find this adventurous, I find this riduculous!!

1- the first rule of rescue work is not to endanger the rescuer and make more victims
2- that is a long fall, with lots of water .... even if you survived the fall, you would probably drown
3- no photo op is worth my life

So please, don't endanger others by placing yourself at risk ..... just follow the rules, okay?

Rock slides are real .....

Though blurry, I wanted to share this pic of a rock slide that is taking up part of Hwy 93 ...... for 2 days I'd seen signs warning of avalanches and poo-poo'd them all .. until I drove by this bit of road. This slide was taking up half of one lane of this 2 lane Hwy ... and some folks were wierd about taking their time and letting others by ...

So, believe the signs, wether you actually SEE the evidence :)

People, people, everywhere!!!

If you are wandering the parks during the high summer season, expect to me around a lot of fellow tourists, whether you want to or not ;) Despite the overcast and drizzly weather, there were still people EVERYWHERE!! This was actually a problem for my whole trip .... lots of people at the places I thought I wanted to see the most .... though I understand this weather meant this crowd wasn't as full as it usually is this time of year.

So, take a chance, and research some options off the usual path of tourists so that you can truly experience the wonder of these parks ...... and avoid the coach filled parking lots at all costs!

Speed traps in disquise ....

I have to say, I never, ever saw a law enforcement vehicle my entire journey through Alberta! For this urban American, I found that eirie ...... but pretty cool too!

I did find out one moderatly high tech means they do use to keep an eye on folks on the road ... these construction zone signs that clock your speed - some of them also have cameras that snap a picture of your car so they can send you a ticket later! So be cautious and watch your speed ... even when you think no one is looking :0

Da Bears!

I never actually saw a bear, but with the weather changing, and hibernation nearing, there were a lot of bear sightings during my stay. There are signs and pamplets to educate folks about wildlife encounter safety ....... but this little handwritten sign at Sulphur Gates staging area was the most impressive sign I saw on my entire journey. It was not there when I entered my path, and was there when I exited my path at about 3:30pm ..... I didn't hang around very long as I had no idea where Hell's gate might be :)

When nature calls ......

In the US, we are used to using restrooms located at truck stops and gas stations. But while traveling Alberta, I noticed that those sorts of bathrooms were not necessarily the cleanest ... actually these were the dirtiest facilities I'd experienced in quite a while .....

On the other hand, I found the Mecca of road trip potty breaks was really .... get this ... those campgrounds and recreation areas that are EVERYWHERE in Alberta!! Though not necessarily flushable in nature, these camp toilets were clean, functional, and had alcohol based hand washes, always had toilet paper, and smelled pretty good :)

So for potty breaks ... take your car into a campground, and avoid the gas stations, except for gassing up, not gassing out ....