Hello Moraine and Louise

What do three girls in their early twenties do on an early brisk Wednesday morning in the middle of July? Well, in this case leave the house before 3 am and drive from Calgary for over two hours to watch the sunrise at Moraine Lake. Truly an adventure I'll never forget.

It all started just over two weeks ago, when my sister Monica and myself decided to fly out to Calgary to visit our relatives. Conveniently, we had timed the trip around the Calgary Stampede so we could join in the festivities. But, like everything there's only so much you can do until you're ready to branch out from cowboy boots and hats.

We knew we wanted to head out to Banff to explore for at least a day. That's when my cousin Madison, had a slightly ambitious, yet very compelling idea for our next adventure.

Wake up after 1 am, so we can get ready, leave the house before 3 am, and drive two hours to Moraine Lake to catch the sunrise.

A real enthusiastic idea for three girls who a) love their sleep, and b) well, love their sleep. But it didn't take much convincing after my aunt and uncle had a little fun poking at us with doubt.

So the next morning, while most people awake were probably on their way home from Stampede, my body woke me up at 1 am cueing the start to our trip. By 2:50 am Monica, Madison, and myself were packed, with three outfit changes (the inner blogger in me was calculating all the photo-ops), a bag full of snacks, and a playlist fit for the occasion.

The ride consisted of a couple scary stories I don't care to repeat and definitely didn't enjoy, a karaoke sing-a-long, and endless laughs. By 5 am we were winding down the scenic road to Moraine Lake. We climbed up the side of a rock, and found ourselves faced with the most breathtaking view. The picturesque turquoise lake, framed by towering mountains, speckled with evergreens was magical. And as the sun rose, the turquoise turned brighter and the mountains sparkled. We spent about an hour there taking photos and just soaking in the whole thing. Then we hopped back into the car and headed over to Lake Louise.

I'd never been to Lake Louise before either, and I heard it was another beautiful view. But when we strolled down to the lake, instead of clear view like at Moraine Lake, the sky was blanketed in fog giving it an eerie and stunning appearance. Again, we took in the view and snapped a couple photos before making our way to Banff for the rest of the trip.

What can I say? It was definitely worth it, a trip if you ever have the opportunity to do, you have to.

Here's some photos from our trip.