Oh, Canada!

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

We recently spent ten days exploring western Canada by rail, bus, and just hanging out. It was quite an adventure with some spectacular scenery. Our northernmost stop was at Jasper National Park where we stayed at the historical Jasper Park Lodge.

View from the Jasper Lake Lodge. We stayed in one of the cabins off to the left.

I’m sure more than one detective fiction author has stayed at the lodge over the years, but it was fun to discover I was walking in the footsteps of the creator of the world’s most famous fictional private detective, Sherlock Holmes. It seems that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his family visited Jasper over a hundred years ago. This photo was posted in a hallway of the lodge.

Arthur Conan Doyle, far left, picnicking with his family and guides near Lake Jasper

I haven’t mentioned this publicly yet, but my next novel will be a Holmesisan adventure, set in San Diego in 1891 (during The Great Hiatus). This fleeting connection to Sir Doyle felt like a small validation of my efforts.

Here’s some more photos from the trip for those who are interested.