What does Freemont Street in Vegas and Jasper have in common? It may not be what you're thinking.
Highway 93 is a north-south route that travels from Jasper, Alberta at "mile zero", down the Icefields Parkway through the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia, then traverses the Continental Divide and ends in Arizona. That means that Highway 93 boasts the Icefields Parkway and also shares its route with famous tourist destinations in the United States such as the Hoover Dam and Freemont Street in Las Vegas. Mind-blowing right?
Jasper - Mile Zero of Highway 93 starts in Jasper at the town centre where a large rock marks the start of one of the best drives in the world. The magnificent Icefields Parkway shares a stretch of Highway 93 between Jasper and Lake Louise for 232 km.
Named as one of the world's most scenic drives, the Icefields Parkway is a mountain road built almost parallel with the Continental Divide. That’s why they say a drive on the Parkway is like driving on the backbone of the North American continent. The Icefields Parkway, named after the Columbia Icefields, is also known as Highway 93.
The Columbia Icefield is in the southern part of Jasper National Park. The Icefields Parkway highway travels through Banff National Park for 122 kilometres until arriving at Lake Louise.
For a short stretch, the highway interchanges with Highway #1 Trans-Canada until Highway 93 (also known as the Banff-Windermere Highway). Highway 93 continues southwest through Kootenay National Park to the small town of Radium Hot Springs. Radium Hot Springs is part of the Kootenay Rockies which stretch all the way to the US border.
photo credit: Parks Canada - Radium Hot Springs Pools
Highway 93 crosses the border at Roosville, BC into the United States and travels parallel with Lake Koocanusa. Highway 93, also known as US Route 93 travels south through many highlights such as the Hoover Dam, Freemont Street in Las Vegas, and Joshua Tree Forest Parkway.
Highway 93 draws to an end in Wickenburg, Arizona, a small town of 6,000 people.
In 2012 Wickenburg, Arizona become a sister town to Jasper, Alberta.
photo credit: OutWickenburgway.com
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