Soaking in the Banff Hot Springs - Just Magical

It’s been raining in Canmore this morning.  Last night a major storm raged most of the night, dumping more water into streams and rivers already swollen from an unusually wet spring season preceded by heavy snows last winter.  One of the highways to Lake Louise was closed today because of unspecified debris on the road.  We headed to the Banff Hot Springs, hanging out there most of the morning to take advantage of the lull before the next storm system predicted for the afternoon. 

At 10 o’clock in the morning on an unstable weather day, the pool was deliciously nearly empty.  I couldn’t tell if the floating mist that kept thickening and thinning was from the heated water or from the cloud fragments drifting right overhead, sometimes touching down like curious ghosts.  At times I couldn’t see the other end of the pool, only a white curtain.  We glided through the water, in and out of that curtain, pretending we were magicians' assistants practicing the Disappearing Lady Trick.                                                                         
The sky was overcast, working hard to turn the water the same color, so sometimes looking down it was like the horizon at the beach on a cloudy day: where does the water end and the sky begin? The drizzling rain added another dimension to the surreal atmosphere, cooling the skin without us having to get out of the water.  And then there were the mountains, which in this weather loomed above as huge opaque shadows with a startling visibility when the clouds hiding them drifted away. A sunny day at the hot springs will seem too ordinary after all these special effects.  

After about 45 minutes, we heard thunder and Parks Canada employees ushered us out of the pool but promised we could return when the storm passed.  Parks Canada operates all the hot springs in their parks right now, but that will change next year when private operators take over.  This was a decision by their Federal government to reduce expenditures in response to a significant budget deficit.  I don’t think that the friendly, helpful, and enthusiastic attitudes I see in Parks Canada employees can be duplicated by private firms, so I’m glad we are visiting now.  By the way, the water was about 40 degrees Celsius.  You can figure out the calculation into Fahenheit. Then let me know (Bayard and Marcia, this means you).