Story and Pictures of My Autumn Visit to Jasper Following the July 2024 Wildfire
My first visit to Jasper was in 2007 with my daughter, Nurin, as part of our weeklong holiday in Alberta, which included stays in Calgary, Banff, Jasper, and Edmonton. The highlight of our 1 day stay in Jasper was watching a mother bear with two cubs near Maligne Lake before proceeding to Edmonton. It was a very short stay, as much of our time was spent in Banff National Park. Then, in late summer of 2022, after moving to Calgary, a routine search on events in Jasper that fall made me aware of Jasper’s annual Dark Sky Festival in the 3rd week of October. With temperatures forecast to be in the high teens to mid-twenties during the Festival week, I decided to spend a few days in Jasper. That was my first significant taste of Jasper.
Starry skies have always intrigued me. Before I visited Jasper for the Festival, I had never seen our galaxy, the Milky Way, with my naked eye, aside from photographs. A clear night at Pyramid Island in Pyramid Lake offered me stunning views of the Milky Way, star constellations and the solar system’s planets. An Edmonton photographer, Ron Richey, shared stunning night sky photos in this blog. Impressed, I vowed to make it to Jasper for the Festival every 2 years.
However, the devastating wildfires that swept through Jasper National Park and the town of Jasper in late July 2024 abandoned any advance plans for another trip. My visit to the Aga Khan Garden for its fall colours and a youth orchestra in early October, just before the Thanksgiving Weekend, and the re-opening of Jasper to visitors prompted me to make a spontaneous trip to Jasper instead of returning to Calgary after visiting the beautiful Garden gifted to the University of Alberta by His Highness the Aga Khan.
First, though, I revisited Elk Island National Park for a night’s stay, stopping over at the Alarakhia residence in Sherwood Park for a delicious meal and an incredible dessert that my hosts, Fariyal and her husband Mehdi insisted I take with me along with the tasty leftovers.
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Fall was at its peak, and the unexpected burst of beautiful autumn colours along the drive to Jasper the following day was a delightful surprise. I had underestimated the scenic potential of this route, assuming it to be unexciting. How wrong I was! A detour off Hwy 16 led me to Miette Hot Springs, where I indulged in the warm sulphur springs, followed by an exquisite lunch at the resort’s Mediterranean/Greek restaurant.
Then, proceeding to Jasper, the sight of dozens of Big Horn Sheep by Hwy 16 interrupted my drive. I was filled with awe and concern as I breathlessly watched them coming down the cliff, always worried that the little ones would trip and fall. I was lucky, as the cliff was across from a lookout point, and I took my time to watch the excitement.
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JASPER: THE DEVASTATION AND STORIES OF HOPE
As I continued my drive, the scope of the wildfire damage did not dawn on me as I approached Jasper from the east side of the town. There were burnt forests, but the main street, where I would put up, did not appear to be that damaged. It was late in the evening when I reached my hotel. A delicious hamburger at Whistle Stop Pub within the Whistler’s Inn hotel satisfied me before I retired to bed. Up very early, an A & W a few hundred metres away was recommended for breakfast, but there was a very long queue. I continued my walk back to the hotel in a clockwise direction and entered a grocery store serving freshly brewed coffee.
For the first time, I was able to meet and talk to someone who had been affected by the wildfire. The store manager’s home and all in the block he lived in were destroyed — only 1 had survived, untouched. I was amazed. Actually, I visited the block and saw the spared home. How was that possible, I wondered? The winds played havoc with the fire, which changed directions as it charged through the town. The gentleman put up a brave face. He and his wife had a 7-year-old son and a much older son at the University of Calgary. He and his family were put up in a cabin while his future remained uncertain when I met him.
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Then I met a young lady who appeared to be in her thirties. She had tears in her eyes as I explained to her why I was in Jasper — that I wanted to see the impact of the fire that had engulfed the town a few months earlier. She said she was a nurse at a care facility, and while she could have left the city and found a job anywhere, she decided to stay because of the elderly she was looking after. How could she desert them at this time of need? I was absolutely touched by her unselfish attitude and willingness to sacrifice.
I then took my car to the worst affected areas of Jasper and saw the devastation. Houses were flattened, trees and gardens were burned, there were charred cars everywhere, and an Esso gas station and nearby restaurant were utterly destroyed. As I crossed the street, I saw a very old gentleman on one of his regular daily walks. An Italian, he had been named Quinto, as he was the fifth in the family. He was 95, and he walked with a stick! He was sharp and alert. His mind was bright. He said he had moved to a care facility after his wife died a few years earlier. He gave his property to his daughter, where she now lived. She was on the east end of the town, and the property, with many others in that area, was unaffected by the fire. A jovial person, he thanked me for visiting Jasper. I continued walking.
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I came across two destroyed churches — an Anglican Church and a United Church. A young couple stopped to talk to me as I was taking pictures and said they had decided to visit Jasper because, precisely two years ago, in 2022, they had been married at the Anglican Church. They came to pay tribute to the church and the town that meant so much to them. The hostel I stayed at in 2022 was untouched. The Legion branch beside the hostel hosted a special BBQ to raise funds for the town’s inhabitants. Volunteers were at work grilling burgers. You paid whatever you wanted to towards the cause. I then returned to the car I had left behind on the street, walking through another area of Jasper affected by the wildfire. I was sad to see the town’s condition. I came to admire the courage and bravery of the town’s residents who had to evacuate their homes within a few hours’ notice.
JASPER: A BOY’S STORY
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Outside a home numbered 730, I read a little story with a drawing of a young child walking alongside a horse. The boy tells the horse, “I can’t see a way through.” The horse asks: “Can you see your next step?” The boy replies, “Yes.” The horse responds, “Just take that.” l left the scene deeply moved. The boy’s family had obviously returned to their home once residents were allowed to come back to see the effects of the fire. Just imagine coming back and seeing their lives having to take a new beginning. And the child writing about his feelings about the future.
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THE ICEFIELDS PARKWAY
Driving through the Icefields Parkway, I was struck by the sight of 50 kilometres of burnt forests, a reminder of the immense impact of wildfires. This was a particularly poignant sight for me, having visited Jasper in 2022 when the town was untouched by the flames. The contrast was stark, and it drove home the unpredictable nature of wildfires.
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This was my first experience of a tragedy that had occurred a few months earlier — a tragedy that destroyed vast forests and a large section of the Jasper townsite, fortunately without the loss of a single life! I left Jasper with renewed hope for its future, having met people who dared to begin their lives anew despite their devastating losses. The little boy’s story touched a vital element of life. Keep on walking, and never look back.
The young, dynamic nurse I met thanked me for visiting Jasper and told me to spread the word that more people should visit Jasper to contribute to its rebuilding.
Date posted: November 24, 2024.
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