At six in the morning, Lake Louise is almost quiet. The canoes are still chained to the dock, the first light has reached the mountains, and somewhere inside the Fairmont, coffee is brewing.
Then the buses start arriving. People step out speaking German, Japanese, French and Spanish. Many of them have crossed an ocean to see a lake that millions of Americans have never visited.
There is nothing wrong with dreaming about Europe. Go to Rome. Eat in Paris. Spend a week along the Spanish coast. But it would be a shame to keep putting off the places closer to home because you assume they will always be there.
North America has Arctic mountains, desert canyons, French-speaking cities, ancient forests and coastlines that still feel remote. Some of these places are an easy drive away. Others require a boat, a bush plane or months of planning. They are all worth seeing.
Lake Louise has appeared on so many postcards and laptop screens that it can feel familiar before you ever get there. It isn’t. The water is even bluer in person, especially early in the morning before the wind moves across it. Mountains rise behind the lake, and the Fairmont Château Lake Louise sits right along the shore.
The area near the hotel gets crowded fast. Keep walking toward Lake Agnes or the Plain of Six Glaciers, and most of the noise gradually falls away. Back in Banff, it is worth getting off Banff Avenue for a while. Drive the Bow Valley Parkway, walk along the Bow River or stop for a beer and listen to hikers compare weather, sore legs and bear sightings.
Late June through September gives you the best access to the trails, but July and August are packed. In winter, the lake freezes, snow covers the surrounding peaks and the whole place slows down.
New York is usually shown through its skyline, but you get to know the city by walking through it. Buses pull up to the curb, cooks carry deliveries into restaurants and people grab coffee from bodegas before work. Down in the subway, a musician might be playing while everyone else acts like they do not hear him.
See Times Square once, then go somewhere else. Walk around the Lower East Side, eat in Jackson Heights and take the train to Brighton Beach, where Russian bakeries sit a few blocks from the ocean. The Staten Island Ferry is still one of the best free rides in the city, especially near sunset.
Spring and fall are the easiest times to spend all day outside. December is crowded and expensive, but the city is worth seeing at Christmas. Do not try to cover everything in one trip. Pick a few neighborhoods, wander around and come back another time.
The Grand Canyon looks big in photographs. In person, the size is hard to make sense of.
From the South Rim, the opposite side can seem surprisingly close until you notice how small the Colorado River looks below. Stay until late afternoon and the canyon keeps changing as the sun drops and shadows spread across the rock.
Many people stop at the railing, take a few pictures and leave. Walk part of the Rim Trail or drive out to Desert View instead. Anyone hiking below the rim should remember that the easy walk down becomes a difficult climb back, often during the hottest part of the day. April, May, September and October usually have the best weather. Winter is colder and can be icy, but there are far fewer people.
Old Québec can fool you for a moment. The streets run downhill toward Petit-Champlain, stone buildings crowd the blocks and Château Frontenac rises above the St. Lawrence River.
Walk the old city walls and Dufferin Terrace, then get away from the busiest tourist streets. That is where you will see people carrying groceries, walking dogs and shoveling snow from their steps. Stop for onion soup, bread or a pastry before heading back into the cold.
September and October bring cool weather and fall color. Winter is harsher, but it suits the city. Snow settles on the rooftops, smoke hangs above the chimneys and the streets empty out after dark.
The Nā Pali Coast rises straight out of the Pacific. Green cliffs run along the coast, broken up by deep valleys and small beaches with no road access. After heavy rain, waterfalls pour down the slopes and disappear into the forest.
See it from the water if you can. A boat gives you a better sense of how large the cliffs really are. The Kalalau Trail gets you closer, but it is not a casual hike. Expect steep drop-offs, mud, heat and weather that can turn quickly. Know the permit rules and what the trail involves before setting out.
Late spring through early fall usually brings calmer seas. Winter boat trips are canceled more often, so do not build your entire schedule around a single day.
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