The last time I was in Banff, I was travelling for a few days with a family friend. For a little man, boy he could eat! He basically scheduled our sightseeing through Banff, Lake Louise and Radium around regular meal and food breaks. I honestly can’t recall another time in my entire life that I felt so full, for so much of the day.

That being said, my favourite stop was the Grizzly House in Banff. I tried, and highly recommend, the Exotic Fondue which included a range of exotic meat including venison, shark, ostrich, alligator and my favourite, rattlesnake. He also took me to the Keg where I devoured the largest steak available on the menu. After the steak, he insisted that he would not have dessert unless I had one as well. So I proceeded to stuff down more food and I instantly regretted wearing a belt.

When we returned to the hotel, the heat of the room was unbearable. I felt so sick that I desperately required fresh air. Despite it being the middle of winter, I stood outside on the balcony and debated with myself, would frostbite be more pleasurable than going back inside? Going back inside meant facing the overwhelming warmth of fullness, and I may be forced to puncture my skin to see if the overflow would ooze out like it does when you cook a sausage.

I managed to survive the food onslaught, and had a very memorable weekend with fantastic company.

I’ve spoken to my wife about this trip over and over again, and so as we entered this phase of our trip, I was very excited. After experiencing the beauty of Chateau Lake Louise, we made dinner in the Motorhome before heading to Banff in search of an RV overflow (aka paid parking lot). When we arrived, things didn’t seem right. The first clue was that there was not another RV in sight. With every RV park booked full in Banff, this didn’t make any sense.

So we drove back towards Banff and considered parking alongside two other trailers we’d noticed tucked away off the main road. It looked like a tight fit, so we continued back into town. After some discussion, we parked two streets off Banff Avenue. It was a young part of town, seemingly home to many restaurant staff, long term travellers, and possibly uni students. I heard the Australian accent on numerous occasions as they walked passed the Motorhome, I saw a guy arrested from his apartment, and a broken window with a soccer ball sitting innocently next to it.

Now this really doesn’t paint a true picture of Banff. The town is wonderful, and it is beautifully designed and built. Every building adds character, and you can really spend an entire day on the main street. We did exactly that, and as it was a Wednesday the local markets were also operating. On display was some fine photography and artwork, clothing and jewellery, fresh fruit and other little informational stands.

For lunch, it was finally time to take my wife to The Grizzly House. The Exotic Fondue was still on the menu. There was no way I could have anything else after talking about this dish for 10 years. However when the waiter informed my that they didn’t have Rattlesnake, I knew it wasn’t meant to be. This was a new experience, so I needed to try something else. Not only did I enjoy my selection of buffalo, wild boar and venison, so did my wife and kids… but not as much as the melted toblerone fondue for dessert!

Thanks again Banff, we had a blast 🙂