LAKE LOUISE, Alta. - Prince William and his wife Kate stepped out of the royal tour spotlight for about 24 hours and spent their private time holed up at a backcountry lodge in Banff National Park.
The royal couple has been immersed in the intensity of their first official tour since landing in Ottawa on June 30. Their public activities resumed Thursday afternoon with a jam-packed schedule in Calgary, to be followed by a whirlwind weekend to California.
But on Wednesday afternoon after leaving Slave Lake, Alta., where they met with families affected by the devastating wildfire that wiped out much of the community, William and Kate left for a private retreat.
Their spokesman Miguel Head said the royal couple spent their downtime at the idyllic Skoki Lodge.
The backcountry retreat is typically accessible only by an 11-kilometre hike from the Lake Louise ski area, but media reports suggested the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived by helicopter.
William and Kate spend private downtime at Alberta's idylic Skoki Lodge
