Pioneering Spirit Continues to Inspire Visitors to Banff, Canada

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Peter Whyte’s father, Dave, came out with the railroad and started a grocery store. Peter grew up here and built a compound with their home and other cabins.

The Whyte Museum offers four galleries, including a heritage Gallery. It is a marvelous display, where we see an actual open-top vehicle the Brewsters designed, fantastic photos (including them driving the King and Queen of England in 1939), so that you feel you are literally walking through history.

But my favorite part of visiting the Whyte Museum is the visit to the Moore House, which is on the museum’s property.

The cottage belonged to Pearl Brewster Moore, who was Jim and Tom Brewster’s sister (born 1889, she was the only girl among seven children). The cottage dates from 1907 when she married Philip Moore, a Princeton graduate from New Jersey who came to Banff as a guide, and contains the couple’s own furnishings, so is a window into their lives and the times – their sheet music on the piano, their books, a stunning Chippendale dining set from Philip’s New Jersey family.

“She had 6 brothers – that shaped who she was: a horsewoman, she hunted, played hockey,” our guide tells us. “Pearl led trail rides. Her parents sent her to two finishing schools – she was sent home from both. When Pearl passed away in 1973, the obituary called her ‘one of the best horsewomen,’ and she was remembered for her forthright opinions she was not afraid to express.”

You get to see the Moores’ many indigenous artifacts. The couple had close ties with the Stoney Nakota and were made honorary members of the tribe. Pearl regularly judged their beadwork competitions. And I note a book on Indian sign language in the book case (Philip majored in history and English at Princeton).

The Moores had one child, Edmee, born 1908, who sadly pre-deceased Pearl. Her husband, Philip died in 1971. That same year, Pearl bequeathed the house and contents to the Whyte Museum and had it moved from its original location on Fox Street to the Whyte Museum grounds where she lived until her death just two years later, in 1973.

The Whyte Museum also houses important archives including the Alpine Club of Canada’s archive, Banff National Park history, Crag & Canyon newspapers going back to 1900 (www. whyte.org).

We pick up sandwiches from the café at the Elk & Avenue hotel, and set out to picnic at Lake Minnewanka (the name means “Spirit Water”). There is still snow and the lake is still frozen enough for us to walk on (someone has started to build an igloo and another couple is posing for wedding photos). It is a delightful place that is especially popular in summer – hiking trails, boating and scenic cruises from the marina (also operated by Pursuit Collection which has the snack shop).

Blackfoot Nations

Luxton Museum

I go off on my own to explore and come to the Blackfoot Nations Luxton Museum, located behind the Trading Post which Luxton started.

Visiting the Blackfoot Nation Luxton Museum fills in that 10,000year gap before the railroad workers discovered the hot springs.

Built of logs to resemble a Hudson’s Bay Trading Post, this is an astonishingly excellent museum that takes a bit of patience and focus to really appreciate. But once you spend a little time, you are overwhelmed by what is on view. It has the feeling of visiting a private collection (it was the collection of Norman Luxton), even with a comfy sofa where you can sit to watch a series of fascinating videos.

There is a feeling of informality and personal engagement. The notes that are provided actually give a more direct and different perspective than other indigenous museums I have visited.

You see realistic manikins in indigenous dress, surrounded by artifacts in settings staged to put you in the scene –a meeting in a teepee, a gathering around a fire.

There are fabulous historic photographs often placed adjacent to the artifact. So right beside a beaded leather baby carrier is a black-and-white photo of a woman with that carrier (with baby) on her back.

I sit myself in a comfortable sofa and watch a video about the residential schools that First Nations children were forced away from their family to attend and a group’s activism to recover the heritage that had been stolen from them.

“Their idea was to kill the Indian in the man, but both were killed... The schools were like jail. ...The biggest defiance is who I am now,” the narrator says.

The museum feels personal because it is founded on the personal collection of Norman Luxton, one of Banff’s pioneering founders, who, the more I learn about him, the more I admire him. He seems to have been a mix of

Everyday Cheapskate

How to Pack a Cooler to Keep Everything Icy Cold All Day

BY MARY HUNT

Coolers are supposed to keep ice frozen, drinks icy cold, and food safe and ready to enjoy anytime, anywhere. But as you may have experienced, things don’t always go that way. Remember that time you opened the lid to find sodas, sandwiches, cheese and disappointment floating in a mirky sea of disgust. That’s why it’s important to know the simple basics for how to pack a cooler.

As the weather heats up, even the most highly rated cooler may struggle to avoid a meltdown. You can put those fears to rest with these easy tips for how to keep ice, food and drinks cold in a cooler -- even as temperatures rise.

Bring It

The first rule for how to pack a cooler: Bring the cooler with you to get ice

-- right to the ice machine or into the store -- and put the bags inside right away. You don’t want to give the ice an opportunity to meet up with warm air.

More Than You Think

Always buy more ice than you think you will need. Your goal is that when the cooler is packed and ready to go, there is as little air space as possible. You want it filled to the brim, and that means all of that dead air space filled with ice.

Both Versions

You need both an ice block and cubes/chipped ice. The ice block will lay the foundation, and the cubes and/ or chips will fill in the air gaps.

AT THE BOTTOM

Make certain that the ice block is placed at the deepest part of the cooler, preferably at the bottom. This maxi-

P.T. Barnum, Wild Bill Hickok, William Hearst, and Thor Heyerdahl.

When Norman Luxton was in his 20s, he sailed around the world in a 100-year old, 30-foot long dugout canoe with an eccentric sea captain, going as far as Tahiti, Samoa and Fiji. He took over the Crag & Canyon newspaper which he published from 1902 to 1951 (still publishes), and launched many of the important tourism enterprises in Banff (still operating), including a hotel, movie theater, trading post, the Lake Minnewanka cruises, promoted year-round tourism with the Winter Carnival and Banff Indian Days festivals, earning him the nickname, “Mr. Banff.” But, most importantly, he respected, admired and supported the indigenous people all his life, collected indigenous artifacts, and worked tirelessly to create the Luxton Museum of the Plains Indian, which opened in 1953, now the Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum. ( https://banff.ca/1135/ Norman-K-Luxton, www.luxtonfoundation.org)

Hudson’s Bay Trading Post, Buffalo Nations Luxton, https://www.buffalonationsmuseum.com/content/museum

Befitting a town built on tourism. there are wonderful signs, markers, historic plaques (there are 48) and descriptions. There are 179 sites in its Inventory of Historic Resources including 25 Landmarks and Legends, which can be accessed on its Heritage Finder website, https://banff.ca/113/Historyand-Heritage that immerse you in their stories.

You can find Pursuit Collection’s services and attractions at https:// www.pursuitcollection.com/; to book Pursuit Collection’s Banff and Jasper experiences, https://www.banffjaspercollection.com/.

© 2023 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear. com mizes its effectiveness in maintaining a low temperature throughout the cooler. Placing other items on top of the ice block helps to insulate further and keep the contents cold.

You can easily make your own ice block by freezing 3 or 4 inches of water in a large container a size and shape that will fit easily in the bottom of the cooler. Plan ahead, as this could take a few days to freeze rock hard.

You can also freeze water in empty milk cartons and plastic bottles or jugs. Both are mess-free and can go right into the cooler.

LAYER UP

Add a layer of drinks on top of the ice blocks. Mix flavors throughout so you can always have a chance to find

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