Posted May 31, 2021 by travelaroundthegalaxy blog

June 2021 Wallpapaer

Hello fellow travelers, it’s time to rejoice! We’re are finally one step closer to the official start of summer. The arrival of spring brings warmer weather and longer days which allows for more time outside enjoying the sunshine. In Canada, this means longer and later sunsets! Sunset is a little bit after 9 pm right now here in Vancouver. Today we wanted to feature a little bit of the Canadian wilderness, so our June 2021 desktop wallpaper features the Canadian Rockies. We have chosen this incredible shot from Lake Minnewanka in Banff National Park to represent June this year.

One of our favourite parts of summer in Canada is that the sunset times slowly creep towards double digits. In Vancouver, around the summer solstice (June 21st), there is still light outside after 10 pm. This means more time to enjoy the beach, a barbecue, or a cheeky round of golf. We hope everyone is keeping those travel dreams alive! As travel restrictions are slowly lifting around the world, we know you will able to fulfill your wildest dreams of wanderlust… eventually! Travel is coming back, don’t worry!

The year without travel was hard on everyone. We’ve had lots of time to come up with plans and ideas for future trips. While we have been patiently waiting for our next big vacation, we are planning a few close-to-home adventures once the local travel restrictions are finally lifted. Jasper and Banff National parks are part of the Canadian identity, known around the world for their beautiful landscapes and incredible natural features. This is why we’ve chosen them for our monthly wallpaper feature for June.

The Canadian Rockies

Today, we’ve set our sights a little bit to the east. The Canadian Rockies are basically in our backyard, only about a 9-10 hour drive from where we are right now. It seems likely that we will plan a later summer road trip towards the mountains. Back in 2018, we made our first trip to the Canadian Rockies together. This feels like a lifetime ago with everything that has gone on over the past year. A return trip is overdue.

There are actually four national parks in Canada that cover this incredible mountain range in the south of the country, in the two westernmost provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. During our trip to the Rockies, we managed to time our arrival shortly after the first snowfall of the year. This meant that we were lucky to see the snowcovered mountains and trees with much more manageable weather. While it may have looked cold, this wonderful wilderness wasn’t too frozen… yet.

This year we have made two selections from the Rockies. Our first picture is from Lake Minnewanka, which is located just outside of Banff, Alberta. This picturesque lake was one of our favourite stops on the road trip. The second photo was taken during our day-long drive along the icefields parkway. Athabasca Falls was beautiful during the afternoon we visited. It was covered in snow and even had long icicles hanging off the rocks, protected by the long shadows. With the blue sky in the background, this was one of the best photo days of our trip.

Temple Caves in India

For last year’s desktop wallpaper, we featured two UNESCO sites in India, religious “caves” that were hand-carved into the landscape of central India. These photos are from the Ellora Temples.

These temple “caves” are quite impressive, carved into a 2-km long natural escarpment in Central India. These incredible temples were carved in succession over a 1000 year period by Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu monks who all lived in harmony. This site features over 100 temple caves, 34 of which you can still visit. It is one of the most incredible things I saw in India. Over time the temples became more intricate and the construction more challenging. The pinnacle of this archeological zone is the temple located at Cave 16, which is known as Kailasa Temple. The temples were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1983.

Kailasa Temple is massive man-made structure that was carved out of a single large rock feature. It is the largest single monolithic excavation in the world, close to twice the size of the Parthenon in Athens. It’s hard to imagine how impressive it is, as it is one of the most impressive man-made structures I’ve seen anywhere in the world. This is a destination worth planning a trip around!

It’s almost time for Summer Solstice

We’ve been spending lots of time locally and taking in the sunset along the Fraser River, as it is a quick trip from the house. The best part about sunsets is they’re never the same, and you never know what the skies are going to look like once the sun passes the horizon. Sometimes you’re treated to a magical array of reds, yellows, and oranges as the sun disappears for the day. We previously featured one of our favourite sunset photos from the Lower Mainland, taken along the Fraser River in Ladner, BC., a small fishing village about 30-km south of Vancouver.

The river delta here is home to many islands, which in turn has made this an important sanctuary for wildlife. There are many migrating birds who love the fertile soils that have been deposited by the mighty Fraser River. It’s nice to find a nice quiet place along the river and watch the sunset. You won’t find many other places that offer the same peace and quiet that you can find here.

We hope our latest desktop wallpaper will brighten your day. Since 2018, we have been creating desktop wallpapers as a monthly feature as a fun way of showcasing pictures from some of the amazing places we’ve visited. We hope you enjoy our latest installment and are looking forward to our July wallpaper coming soon! Happy travels everyone!