Last Post!

My last post ended with pictures of gophers at Grasslands National Park, and from there, I've felt like I'm making my way home rather than travelling. It's a small distinction, but it makes for longer drives and fewer park stays just for fun.

I did an overnight in Regina with friend Sally - grocery shopping, laundry (thanks again Sally!), dinner and chat.  

From there I set out for Blacknot Farm north of Winnipeg. It was a long drive, and I chose not to go via Highway 1, but instead went north of Regina through Yorkton - the long way around. It was beautiful - very scenic - and the roads were great - occasionally. I went through one particularly scenic Manitoba town in a river valley. All the leaves are turning with black spruce standing out against the yellow and red. There was a sign outside this lovely town which announced a new housing development - 2 and 3 bedroom homes starting at $209,000! So if you folks in SouthWestern Ontario are feeling the pinch, this would be an option. You couldn't find prettier country and I think you'd be hard pressed to find nicer people if the ones I met are a representative sample.

Google unfortunately sent me on a 69 km dirt road which rattled my bones, the trailer, and covered everything with a layer of dust. My attempts to find pavement took me to a railroad crossing where the longest train I'd ever seen kept me waiting. It was a long day, but my overnight at Blacknot Farm with Cindy involved gin and Hawkins cheesies - two main food groups. Also great chat and time with her dogs who kept me company near the trailer.

The nights are getting cooler, and wetter, but the camper is snug, dry, and warm. I am feeling the drive to get home. The weather is changeable, and many of the parks are closed, so the options for camping are reduced. It's too bad - this is a lovely time of year to camp! 

The next morning I drove an hour to meet Cindy's Mom, Mary. She's a Harley driving, former union rep for years, and now doing a women's studies degree at UManitoba. An interesting woman to be sure! Hope to keep in contact with her on one of her trips to SWOntario.

And then it was on to Kenora through Whitesail Park. Had I not been totally outside of cell service I'd have been tempted to stay. Such a gorgeous place! There are road signs announcing portages on the canoe routes through the park. And a road sign that announced narrow, bumpy, and twisting road should be expected for the next 100km. It did not disappoint. Another long drive.

I overnighted at an RV park, and then made my way across the top of Lake Superior staying at a provincial park the next night near Rossport. Right on the beach!

I met a woman from the Yukon who grew up in Whitehorse. She and her partner were travelling around Lake Superior. I now have her card to visit when I go north! Such a great conversation about the importance of travelling to broaden one's perspective. About the political situation in Canada and the US, about the north. She told me about the Liard hotsprings which sound wonderful! and urged me to travel north. Maybe. Some day.

Then I arrived at Lake Superior Provincial Park. I had been going to spend a few days, but instead stayed only 2 nights. My leg pain precludes any hiking, but I did get a wonderful swim in and spent the afternoon playing with my watercolours.

First, my yoga view at my campsite:

More campsite views:

The sunset was spectacular and the lake flat calm - I was envious of the neighbours who kayaked until dark.

The next day I rested and played with paints. There is something calming that happens when you create art - a peacefulness which makes the process worth it no matter what the final creation looks like.

Pine bark - to add to my collection of textures:

The second night was stormier, the lake whitecapping, and the sunset less spectacular - but beautiful nonetheless.

And then it was off to the Soo and along the top of Lake Huron to Powassan where I stayed again with Bill and Sue who made me so welcome at the start of my journey. Another lovely dinner and an overnight on their beautiful property. I had intended to take a picture of their property to compare to what it looked like in May - but sadly forgot.

And then on to Ottawa to visit Matt and Kallie. Matt and I tried to walk in the Arboretum, but I could barely make the 2 km. What a lovely place though! Great pathways for walking and biking - and the canal with its locks. We ended up at the UCarleton campus then took the train back to the truck.

Tomorrow I drive home to Guelph. It's been a wonderful trip. 15,000 km, 4 pairs of socks and 2 pairs of gloves. Reconnecting with friends and family. Meeting new people and having new adventures. Learning patience as my body tries to keep up with where my brain wants to go. Seeing parts of the country I've never seen. Listening to CBC radio in remote campsites and in the middle of large cities. I wish everyone had the opportunity to travel through this country so they would get a sense of how magical and diverse it really is.

I've really enjoyed my little camper - it always felt safe and comfortable, and I loved having my house right behind me!
But it's time to go home for the winter - maybe east next year?

September 15

My time in Fernie was so wonderful! I walked the streets, enjoying the alternative vibe of the town , and every time I looked up the Rocky Mountains met my eyes. What a place to live! They must have done some serious building after the two fires in the early 1900’s because there are some old, and wonderful, buildings which would be the envy of any town.

City Hall:

Library!

I stopped by the Fernie Blacksmith Shop and Yarn store – both functions undertaken by the same woman! She immigrated from Britain in the 2010 and not only is a wonderful blacksmith, but also a very talented felted clothing designer, including felted boots, and tapestries. She was a wealth of information. She told me that the current Knox United Church had been built on the same site as the Knox Presbyterian Church – which burned in those early fires. She also told me about the cemetery on the hill outside of town, and that they would have a record at City Hall of the gravesites. After stopping by City Hall I left with information and the email of the person who manages this list and I’ll certainly be pursuing it when I get home.

The Crowsnest Pass, while certainly not the highest or steepest peak I’ve crossed in the last few days, is certainly one of the most picturesque. There is nothing quite like those peaks of rock, and I couldn’t stop taking pictures.

One interesting thing I passed was the Frank slide – the rock is piled on either side of the highway as if the slide happened yesterday instead of in 1903. There had been a supposition that grandfather came out to Fernie in his role as station agent for CN, because of the Frank slide, but in fact his marriage in Fernie took place three years prior to the slide. It will be so interesting to try and sort out the movements of my grandmother and grandfather during those years, and to see if there are any Cranes, Wrays, or Farquharsons still living there. And I’m going to look into the Cranes living in Chatsworth in Grey County – practically neighbours!

The Rockies gave way to foothills and the rolling grasslands began to appear. Unlike northern Alberta, this area has many windmills – so good to see alternative sources of energy being used. I’ve seen some solar panels, but wonder why there aren’t more since this area has many hours of sunlight winter and summer.

I made a wrong turn at one point and ended up in a small town. While circling the block I drove by a house which had a large hand-lettered sign in red which said “No liberals or NDPs allowed on this property” – all capitals of course. Thus it begins…

I tried a provincial park only to find every campsite had a ‘reserved’ sign on it and other than two occupants, there was no one. Likely these signs are left over from the summer, but it didn’t feel welcoming so I moved on. I settled in a private RV campground in Pincher Creek. Tomorrow I’ll head out for Cypress Hills in hopes of finding a spot – possibly for the weekend.

The Pincher Creek campground was awful! Full of construction workers, dogs running off leash and then of course, everyone got up to go to work the next morning at 630. Got little sleep – there was a domestic just down the road that kept me up.

I made it to Cypress Hills PP that night. What a difference! The trip was unremarkable – southern Albertan badlands are not that wonderful. At least not the part you can see from Highway 1 – but of course, that’s so true of most things.

Cypress Hills is lovely – with a lake which looked perfect for paddling, but by the time I had unhitched the trailer and paid for the night, the wind had come up. So I decided to go for a walk instead. There was a lovely boardwalk lakeside, and a shower (cold water) and some knitting whiled away the afternoon. I was about to dig out the kite I bought on Saltspring when I turned and saw that dark clouds were massing behind the hills. So decided agains that too. The windstorm which ensued made my little trailer shake and rattle. I was about to try to hitch it again, thinking at least the truck would keep it earthbound, when it started to subside and I was eventually able to sit outside again. I watched a thunder cell across the lake flash lightening. Didn’t seem to bother the cattle on that side of the lake. A better night – but cold! I had to turn on the heat and go back to bed to let it warm up (not a hard life).

View from my campsite at Cypress Hills PP.

After dinner activity once the wind had begun to die down:

This morning (Saturday September 14) I drove to Grasslands National Park, 4 hours south of Regina. It was a long trip on some challenging roads south of Highway 1 – but what lovely scenery. At one point a field of some kind of grain with nodding full heads contained several pumping oil wells, and then in the next field in the distance was a wind farm – now that makes sense! The road into the park is long, dirt (some gravel, some washboard, some gumbo) and feels treacherous. But once here, I’m snugged up in my trailer and every window has an amazing vista of rolling hills. Just now the sun has set and the sky is glowing. The air is perceptibly cooler (probably will need heat again tonight), and I look forward to tomorrow’s adventures in the park.

Views from my campsite:

Bison herd - and yes, they are a long way away - and that's the way I like it. I had a big black bull fall in love with my truck in BC - I don't need a repeat performance with these wilder versions!

This place is definitely NOT flat - Hills, coulees, river valleys, but still that enormous sky.

A corral left over from the days when this area was a free range cattle ranch.

The park had 'trails' with signs explaining the features, but you could also just walk anywhere - as long as you kept track of where you are.

The Frenchman River carved this deep valley at the end of the last ice age. Now it's a quiet stream - at least in fall.

Bison poop! Complete with mushrooms! This is just like the wild horse poop I saw in Northern BC - but a different species of mushroom. These are a lovely golden hue.

And I'm pretty sure these are owl pellets. There are burrowing owls which take over abandoned prairie dog burrows. Unfortunately, I didn't get a glimpse of one.

There are a few glacial erratics which have been used over millenia by the bison to rub their itchy pelts. They have done this for so long that the stone has become smoothed.

At various points in the park you can see tipi rings - stones which had been used to secure the base of a tipi left in a ring. This had the same eerie effect on my that the watchers did at Burgoyne Bay - as if someone had just walked out of the scene and might walk back in any minute.

And then of course there were the prairie dogs. These are black tailed prairie dogs which used to be much more widespread. There is a webcam online - you can watch the dogs and the bison at the park!

It's hard to get the perspective in the picture of how high up I am - standing at the edge of a coulee.

And apologies to those who don't have my fascination for lichens - these were particularly spectacular, as were the tiny plants which grew around the rocks.

More shots of a coulee:

And right where I was standing - an ant or termite nest!

Since I was unable to do any of the hikes - so disappointing to have my leg seize up on this particular day - I drove to a picnic site. This was stunning. Barbeques complete with cooking tools and propane tanks, chairs, tipis - everything pristine at the end of the season. No vandalism or theft. Gotta love Saskatchewan.

Mystery bird - this was as large as I could blow up this picture. This critter was on the ground on the other side of a prairie dog colony. It must be quite large considering the distance away. No idea what it is since I don't think there are bald eagles here - anyway I think there's too much white for a bald eagle!

This park is stunning. You can do back country trips either on foot or on horseback. I watched with envy as a group of young people set off with packs, walking over the hill. And as I was sipping my beer one night, I saw four horseback riders come over the hill opposite the campsite. I felt like I was in a movie! I want to go back when I can walk the day hikes that are marked out - they range from 3 to 15 km. I managed 0.75. Sigh. Next time.

From the park I drove to Regina and joined friend Sally again for dinner and laundry (thanks Sally!) and the next morning headed out for Winnipeg and Blacknot Farm where I stayed on the way out. The leaves are changing and the countryside is lovely. Googlemaps directed me onto a 69km dirt road - that wasn't the best of times, but other than getting everything in the bed of the truck dirty, we did fine.

Now I'm off to Kenora - Ontario again at last!