A trip to the UK and Canada (VA, SQ A380 suites, and AC 787 business)

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Novotel London Heathrow Airport T1 T2 and T3 Hotel

I was dropped off the following night after the wedding at the rather long named "Novotel London Heathrow Airport T1 T2 and T3 Hotel". I was quite impressed with the hotel, again booked during an Accor Private Sale for GB£66.50, which at the time was AU$120. No breakfast included for platinum Accor members outside the asia-pacific, but didn't really need it as I'd be heading to the airport lounge by mid-morning.

I was upgraded to quite a large corner room with a king size bed, I was a little disappointed to find the room smelt of smoke but I was so tired I really couldn't be bothered going back down to the lobby and potentially shifting to a new room.



It had a great bathroom, and a lovely rain shower:


The view from the window towards Heathrow - frustratingly close, but not pedestrian accessible:


There is no free shuttle provided by the hotel, but I was told that the public busses from the bus stop on the road were free to/from the airport. Although it would be a short trip, I really didn't like the idea of lugging my 2 bags to be checked plus a small backpack on a potentially crowded public bus, so planned to get an Uber ride. Upon walking out the hotel entrance, a taxi/private car driver who was waiting outside asked if I was going to the airport, and he quoted a price only a couple of pounds more than the Uber estimate, so I jumped in.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

London Heathrow Airport and Air Canada lounge

I was feeling very apprehensive about this part of the trip - originally I was very enthusiastic about it, but I'd been following the conditions in Calgary and Banff, and it wasn't good news. Smoke haze from the bush fires in British Columbia had been lingering over the region causing very poor visibility among other problems. Calgary had also been going through a heat wave with temperatures of 36 degrees. The accommodations I had booked were all non-changeable / non-refundable (and were also incredibly expensive despite me booking the 'cheaper' options), so I didn't have much choice but to go as planned anyway.

Easy check-in and security at Heathrow T2 - no queues at all (priority check-in, and fast track security).



It took me a little time to find the entrance to the Air Canada lounge (I must have initially walked straight past it). I started off with a couple of coffees and a pastry, and then had some of the cooked breakfast options. Quite nice and peaceful, not too busy. I had contemplated visiting some of the other Star Alliance lounges, but wasn't really feeling up to it on this occasion.

Boarding was called (and status changed on displays) but we ended up just queuing for 10+ minutes before anything actually started happening.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

LHR-YYC

Flight: AC851
Aircraft: 787-9 (C-FRSI)
Seat: 2A (J)
Departed: LHR 21/08/2018 13:18 (13 mins late) BST
Arrived: YYC 21/08/2018 14:59 (4 mins late) MDT
Duration: 8h 41m


This flight was booked as a Star Alliance redemption using 65,000 KrisFlyer miles (transferred from Velocity). It cost me SG$650 in fees, which at the time was AU$623.

The Air Canada 787 business seat closely matches the Virgin Australia A330/777 seat with a few minor differences. The seat is air-filled, and the softness/firmness can be controlled. It also has adjustable headrest and lumbar controls, as well as a massage function. Despite this (and probably more because I have no idea what my preference is from any of the mentioned settings!) I didn't find it quite as comfortable as the VA seat, but it was still very good - this style of seat is my favourite business product.

A pre-departure drink choice of water, sparking wine, or juice was presented - I went with the juice.

Our original departure was delayed ~13mins and then another 10mins whilst taxiing due to congestion. At one point we passed a Qantas 787:


I went with a post-departure drink of a ginger ale and warm nuts. Lunch service began shortly afterwards.

Antipasto starter with salad and garlic bread (mozzarella cheese was inside the meat):


I chose the lamb main with a red wine (my first brave attempt at alcohol since the attending the wedding):


Cheese:


I then went with the fruit salad dessert and a coffee:



Very nice food! Quite impressed by both the food and the service.

I was in a strange mood this flight, and decided to have a foreign/arthouse movie session. I watched three interesting films, some of which were quite confronting and had some surprising content for when watching in a public environment - I was relieved that everyone in the business cabin were adults! I watched 128 Beats per Minute (French), Loveless (Russian), and Liquid Truth (Brazillian) - all good movies. The IFE was great, with a good selection of content, a large screen, and noise cancelling headphones.

There were no further offers of drinks apart from a glass of water immediately after the meal service ended, so had to use call bell one time when I got quite thirsty, but as we got closer to last third of the flight the service became more proactive again.

A couple of hours before our arrival, an afternoon tea of scones, sandwiches, and orange segments with coffee/tea was served:


As feared, the smoke haze could still be seen blocking the horizon:


When preparing for landing, the noise cancelling headphones were collected (I'm guessing they're scared people will steal them), and ear phones were handed out for people still wanting to use the IFE.

In summary, a very pleasant and comfortable flight!

Arrivals was pretty smooth once the immigration desks became staffed. It took me some time to locate an ATM (it turned out the only one landside was next to a currency exchange desk/machine, which I had deliberately ignored). I walked to the ride share pick-up point to catch an Uber ride to my hotel.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

The amenity kit provided on both my LHR-YYC and YVR-MEL flights included socks, eye mask, hand cream, lip balm, ear plugs, a glasses cloth, and a dental kit.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

I don’t know how many times I have to post this - ALL SQ stations are supposed to issue ALL R/F pax - paid or rdpt tix - with a hand written TPR Invitation - standard protocol - no exceptions.

...

If they do not hand it to you ask for it.

Just wanted to note here in case I was misunderstood that I wasn't complaining that I didn't receive an invite - I was just making an observation that I wasn't handed one like I've read in other reports. I really enjoyed all the first and business legs on this trip. It's not really in my nature to ask for such things, even if I know they should be expected - well for non-crucial things anyway. But as always, thanks for the info/insight as to how the SQ processes work - always interesting!

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Calgary

My room at The Hilton Garden Inn Calgary Downtown was a reasonable size, and had a comfy bed:


Despite reading online that the East Village area of Calgary was new and filled with bars/restaurants, in reality it's all still under construction apart from a few completed apartment blocks.

View from hotel room:


Not much around apart from one building near the river which had a coffee shop and restaurant. Will probably be better in a couple of years! Downtown was an easy walk however, and I didn't even end up using the light rail service - just walked most places.

After checking in to the hotel I went for a bit of a walk along the river - the smoke wasn't too horrendous, and the evening sun gave everything a slightly golden tint:


The next morning, I walked along the river in the other direction, and passed Fort Calgary:

 

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Calgary

I mostly spent the couple of days I had in Calgary walking around exploring, and caught up one evening with some friends.

Prince's Island Park:


A smoke hazed skyline from Prince's Island Park:


Peace Bridge:


Stephen Avenue Walk in Downtown Calgary:


Wonderland Sculpture:


Behind it was The Bow building:

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Calgary

On my final full day before leaving for Canmore, I woke up at 4am to find my phone flashing with an alert. I've never seen this on my phone before - and wasn't from any app I had installed myself - the alert came from the OS. I could actually smell a hint of smoke from within my hotel room too.



By 8am, the air quality had decreased even more:


The view from my hotel room confirmed how bad it had become:


I headed out anyway, but it was pretty nasty outside. I went in to the coffee shop near the river to start reading up and planning my Banff National Park visit the following day. However the smoke was so bad, that their fire alarm kept going off. Not a smoke detector noise, but a nasty loud siren was triggered every 10 or so minutes. So I headed back outside again, and decided to go for a short walk to a nearby hill to see how the city looked in this haze:


I spent the afternoon mostly staying inside shopping malls!

Reports online indicated the smoke was bad in Canmore/Banff too which was disheartening.

 

[RooFlyer]

Calgary was my second home for about 5 years. The 'East village' had suffered through the ups and downs of the 'oil patch' that drives Calgary's economy. You did well to get a hotel there though. Many of the hotels downtown are old and pretty ordinary.

Hope the smoke clears!

 

[Major]

Not good for sight seeing

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Canmore

The drive to Canmore was horrendous. In addition to it being the first time I've driven on the right, the smoke limited visibility quite a bit. Then at one point there was a period of intense rain where the fastest windscreen wiper setting still wasn't clearing water away. I couldn't see anything of the mountains. The rain had stopped by the time I reached my accommodation at least, and I was able to check in early. The condo was nice, with a well equipped kitchen and bathroom, although it had no views. Despite choosing one of the cheapest Airbnb options, this was still the most I think I've ever paid for 7 nights of accommodation.

I walked the ~15 minutes to the local Safeway to buy some groceries and bear spray. Luckily I only encountered some light drizzle.

The next morning I was still a little traumatised from the previous days drive, so decided to checkout Canmore and the trail around the river. Much nicer weather - but the smoke was still present, if not quite as intense.

Bow River:


Canmore Engine Bridge:


Bow River:



In the afternoon I made the short drive to the Travel Alberta Visitor Centre to pick up some trail maps/suggestions. I then went for a shorter than expected walk along Cougar Creek (the trails weren't well signposted and was a bit of a rabbit warren of paths, so ended up looping back earlier than I'd meant to):

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Kananaskis Country & Canmore

The smoke was still hanging around on the second day, and was accompanied by cloud cover, so I decided to remain in the local area and not bother buying the daily park pass for entry in to the national park.

The Grassi Lakes Trail is a short drive from Canmore, and takes you past a waterfall as you ascend the path to the lakes.

At the trailhead there was a bear warning notice. I had my bear spray in the side pocket of my backpack for easy reach!


The waterfall:


The view across Canmore and the Bow River Valley was still blocked by smoke - there's another mountain range opposite, but you could just make out the odd grey shape:


Grassi Lakes had a lovely turquoise colour:



I stopped at Quarry Lakes Park on the drive back to Canmore, and completed a few more trails. I was delighted to see that the smoke and cloud was beginning to clear!

Quarry Lake:


I stopped in Camore afterwards for a pizza and beer lunch at Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co.:


I then strolled around the river again, seeing as the conditions had improved from the previous day, before buying my park pass for the rest of the week.

 

[RooFlyer]

Did they tell you the joke about bear spray?

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Did they tell you the joke about bear spray?

Not that I remember - go on, tell us!

I was warned it's important to take wind direction in to consideration, as people have sometimes had it just blow back in to their own faces!

Also, a related news story - there was actually a bear attack in the area whilst I was visiting. A couple walking encountered/surprised a bear, which became aggressive. One of them dropped the bear spray, and the other was knocked over / fell whilst reaching for it, but the bear bit in to the canister instead of their hand, and it released in the bear's face, saving them from further attack!

News stories here:
Area in Kananaskis Country closed until further notice after 2 people injured in bear attack
Grizzly's bite sets off can of bear spray in woman's hand

 

[RooFlyer]

Wow, that was lucky. I did a lot of geologist work in the Rockies. I remember the very first job I did for the client was to check out a small abandoned mine, way out in the forest.

I drove up there and picked around the site (with bear spray in my pocket) ... it wasn't a large site, but I just had a bad feeling. I'd been to Canada a few times before and knew about bears. I decided to give it away and went back.

A week later, another geologist (a local) broke down on the forest road out to where I had been. He left the vehicle and tried to walk back - was attacked and killed by a bear.

The joke about the spray is that they say bears like a nice peppery garnish to their meals ...

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Oh wow, that's unlucky and horrible - I understand that attacks and deaths are fairly rare, but I was still a bit on edge in some places (particularly areas where the trail was dense and made lots of turns). I actually ended up making some clapping sounds as I was walking in a few places where there were blind corners.

From what I read on official websites, bear bells aren't any good, but I still passed lots of hikers who had them attached to their backpacks.

Sounds like your instincts were right in that situation, and a good job you left.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Johnston Canyon

Apart from the smoke, one of the more slightly disappointing aspects of this trip was that due to it being peak season, car parks at trailheads were usually full and closed by mid-morning. This meant it wasn't really possible to visit any of the more popular stops in the afternoon, but in saying that - a early morning of hiking followed by lunch and a lazy afternoon really wasn't too troublesome! I'll need to go back and visit more places during the shoulder-season sometime!

I made an early start and drove to Johnston Canyon trailhead, where the car park was already half full. There was some cloud cover and slight drizzle, but at least it seemed less smokey.

Johnston Canyon Lower Falls:


Much of the path to the lower falls was on an elevated walkway in the canyon:


I continued the walk to the upper falls.

Johnston Canyon Upper Falls:

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Johnston Creek Ink Pots

From the upper falls, a longer and much less frequented trail continues to the "Ink Pots".

I passed quite close to this fearless woodpecker, who didn't seem at all bothered by me. The tree was right next to the trail, and it was at about eye level:


The view over the valley was blocked by a cloud layer:


However as the trail came out of the forested area and in to Johnston Creek Meadow, the view was fantastic - this was more like it!


The "Ink Pots" are blue-green pools where underground spring water flows up through the sand/soil. Swirling circles can be seen in the pools in areas where the water/air bubble up. The colour of the pools differs based on the speed the water enters them.







The view further along Johnston Creek Meadow:


On the way back down, the cloud cover had lifted and glimpses of Pilot Mountain could be seen:

 

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Silverton Falls

I had lunch back at a restaurant/diner located at the Johnston Canyon trailhead, and then headed a little further up the road to a less popular / short trail: Silverton Falls.

By this time the sun was out too, and it was quite warm.





Lots of ground squirrels about on the trails:


On the drive back to Canmore, the views were great - and I stopped off at the Vermilion Lakes viewpoint along the highway:

 

[N860CR]

I'm doing the same SYD-SIN-LHR flight combo in Suites shortly. I booked the transit hotel to save the hassle of entering Singapore. I figured we'd get in at 21:30, grab a quick drink or two in the Private Room and crash out in the hotel from 12-6 before going back for breakfast. Seems a bit easier than going out to the Crown Plaza