This panorama was taken from near the end of the access road to the Athabasca Glacier. It is in this area that tourists disembark from conventional buses and board the special "snocoaches" that go out onto the ice of the glacier. These are buses with very large wheels that can grip the slippery ice, cross rivulets of meltwater, and deal with smaller crevasses that have to be traversed.
On the left you can see some of the heavy equipment used to maintain the road; since it is literally made of ice, and the ice melts rapidly to slush in the summer, constant work is required to keep it navigable. There are two snocoaches visible here, one going in each direction; in a larger version of the image you can see two further down the road. The glacier itself can also be seen more readily here, since I was closer to it. Note the "do not walk" signs... nobody will stop you from walking onto the ice if you really wish to do so, but it's dangerous if you aren't familiar with glacier travel.
On the left you can see some of the heavy equipment used to maintain the road; since it is literally made of ice, and the ice melts rapidly to slush in the summer, constant work is required to keep it navigable. There are two snocoaches visible here, one going in each direction; in a larger version of the image you can see two further down the road. The glacier itself can also be seen more readily here, since I was closer to it. Note the "do not walk" signs... nobody will stop you from walking onto the ice if you really wish to do so, but it's dangerous if you aren't familiar with glacier travel.