Seems like you had a great day!! Don't feel like a quitter for abandoning the hike, better than getting yourself in a trouble situation, some of them are pretty long and strenuous. On the Icefield parkway instead of the highway (it takes longer to get there tho)to get to Jasper will get you to some neat places, Of course the Columbia ice Fields, near Jasper there is Athabasca Falls that are very impressive and it's neighbor Sunwapta Falls, both very near the parking lot. Maligne Lake Road possess many spectacular views, First the 6 Bridge walk in the Maligne Canyon (the first 4 bridges are the better views) Medicine Lake higher up the Road is a beauty, to keep following the road to the end to Maligne Lake where a Tour boat can take you to the Famous Spirit Island for a lofty price. At the beginning of Maligne Lake Road wildlife can often be spoted including your sought after Grizzly (not a promise they are an elusive creature that took me 10yrs of going to even see one) The higway that connects it to Jasper and Towards Edmonton until reaching the Park boundaries is a hot spot for Elk, Deer and Rams (sometimes grizzly) Jasper is where you should see the most wildlife being in the Montane Forest Region, early in the morning or a few hours before sundown they come out of the woods. There is a spectacular view from the gondola as well, Pyramid bench is also a great view and has plenty of activities going on including horse back ridding. I hope you have a great time in Jasper. ( By the way, Famoso in the town of Jasper makes a rocking napoli pizza if that's your thing) If you have time to drive around a bit, Mount Robson Provincial Park is about 1 and a half hour away is amazing (the Bherg trail is a few hours walk to Kinney lake for a better view) Sorry I turned my recomendations into a post on your blog, there is just so much to see. I prefer Jasper over Banff.