Monday Sept. 27, 2010 Rockies Day Trip

On Monday B. and I decided to take a day trip into the Rockies, and on T and A's recommendations, chose to go to Canmore then back to Kananaskis and down the Kananaskis Trail (route 40), the long loop back to Calgary. The day was perfect - clear blue sky with just a few clouds.

First we went to Canmore to the Sugar Pine Quilt Co. to pick out some quilting fabric, and had lunch at Communitea Cafe, which was relaxed and delicious. Then back into the truck and down the Kananaskis Trail which follows first a valley, then up over Highwood Pass (7239 feet) through the Rockies. Taking photos of the Rockies is always a pleasure, but the views were especially lovely with all the hardwood trees in their autumn yellows. They contrasted beautifully with the tall, dark green evergreens on the mountains. We recommend this trip to mountain lovers everywhere, especially in the fall.

Sept. 23, 2010 The birth!

Today, at long last, little H. was born, about 13 days late. What a joyous event for us all! He is a doll, and above is a photo of him with B and me at the hospital, less than a day old.

Friday Sept. 17, 2010 Swift Current to Calgary

Today we visited Fort McLeod, the site of a fort built for the Northwest Mounted Police. It is a reconstruction of the fort with an impressive collection of memoribilia of the NWMP, precursors of the present day RCMP.

From there we went on to Calgary to see A and T, and await the birth of their baby.

Thurs. Sept. 16 - Saskatchewan

Left Boissevain around 9 and decided to take route 18 across SK, as we were intending to go to the Grasslands National Park, and 18 looked to be the shortest route. Little did we know that Rte. 18 is not a tourist route. In fact, we had to resort to finding a Cdn/US border crossing to find a toilet! I mean, there is NOTHING on this route, not even a gas station. We figure that most of the grain farmers who remain in this area have their own gas and diesel fuel at their own homes.

In a way it was a rather depressing drive (we finally decided to head north to Swift Current after talking to a couple of local women in Coronach along route 18) because of the number of abandoned ranches. Also, the heavy rains this summer have ruined many of the crops grown in this area....hay, grain, and sunflowers (for oil). The ladies we talked to said that all the young people are leaving the area for Regina and Saskatoon, with some going west to Alberta, in search of jobs. We saw large herds of beef cattle from time to time, but not as many as would be expected. It also appeared that many of the tall grain elevators have been abandoned in favour of smaller cylindrical bins kept at the farms. Trains are few and far between, and have been supplanted by trucks taking the grain to larger holding areas.

Our observations seem to indicate that economies based on resources are in decline everywhere.

Wed. Sept. 15-More Manitoba

Here are a few more photos of our day(s) in Manitoba. The bear is the greeter in the lobby of the Canadian Wilderness Inn!

Wed. Sept. 15-Mennonite Museum

We stayed in Steinbach MB last night, and in the a.m. visited the Mennonite Museum there. It is a relatively small collection of Mennonite buildings dating from the late 1800's through the 1930's, but very interesting, and not overwhelming. The ladies at the desk were so friendly and informative. We spent about 2 hours there, and had lunch in their Mennonite cafeteria. The Mennonites who came to Canada came in the 1870's, 1920's and 1940's from Russia and the Ukraine. Their origins stem from the Dutch Mennonites, rather than the Swiss Mennonites who generally went to the US. Most Mennonites today are fully integrated into Canadian society, except for some small groups which keep the old rules and are much like the Amish. More photos in a continuing blog.

After the museum we drove to Boissevain, MB, via the Northwest Mounted Police Commission Boundary Trail near the US border. The NWMP followed this route in the 1870's on their way to Alberta. MB is certainly "Big Sky Country!"

Overnight at Boissevain's Canadian Wilderness Inn.

Tues. Sept. 14 Geography lesson

We are now in "Big Sky Country", and from some of the last post's photos you can see why they call it that. Now for some photos of the geology and geography of northern Ontario. The telephone poles have to be supported because of the swampy ground on top of pure rock.

Saw a couple of interesting signs today - at a general store run by First Nations people west of Thunder Bay -"Fried Eggs and Bologna, Home Fries and Toast, $5.99". Also, an ad for a tourist stop: "Dryden Historical Museum - Life in the Past Lane". Pretty clever, I think!

Tues. Sept. 14, 2010 Today's travels

Just a reminder that you can click on the photos and they will enlarge, which might help with the map especially!

Lovely day today! We left Thunder Bay around 8:30, and an hour later, turned the watches back an hour as we entered the central time zone while still in northern Ontario. As you could tell from my last post, we were anxious to be done with Ontario today, and we did it. But we drove nearly 400km from Thunder Bay to the border of Manitoba, then about 200km beyond that to Steinbach. Our travels took us through lake country (see photo of map above!) with many of the lakes not shown on the map. We have driven through boreal forest (mixed deciduous/coniferous) for 4 days, and today we were in the transition zone, with boreal forest interspersed with taiga - coniferous trees growing in wet marshy land. We have seen hundreds of moose warning signs, but no moose! Lots of interesting geology, which put me in mind of college geography class years ago. I will post the educational photos in a second blog entry tonight.

Tomorrow we'll begin the Red Coat Trail which follows the US/Canada border from Manitoba through Saskatchewan to Ft. McLeod, Alberta. The Mounties followed this route in the 1800's on their way West. I'm told that the geography is much more interesting than that we would see on the Trans-Canada Hwy. route.

Sept.13,2010-ON,ON,ONtario

We entered Ontario on Sept. 9. Yes, we did spend two nights in Ottawa, but since then we've spent the night in North Bay, Wawa, and now Thunder Bay, and we still have most of a day's drive to get to the Manitoba border! You can't imagine how wide the country is until you've crossed Ontario!

We are following the Trans-Canada Highway, Route 17, and are pleasantly surprised at the excellent driving conditions we have found. Yes, there are tractor trailers, but because the road is at least three lanes wide most of the time, passing is not a problem. Traffic is very light at this time of year, and save a car from New Hampshire that we passed today, we are the only easterners we've seen. Northern Ontario is pretty desolate - rocks and trees and lakes. We are at the northern end of Lake Superior this evening, and will be leaving the Great Lakes area tomorrow. Today the lake looked green, almost like a glacier lake. Many of the small towns, like Wawa, look pretty sad, as though most of the young people had left. Of course the economy here is mostly resource based, with mines and paper mills in many towns. Judging from the number of motels that are closed, tourism isn't on the increase.

We may make it to Manitoba tomorrow, and maybe not. Depends on the weather and how the driver is feeling!

Sept.9-11, 2010 Ottawa

We arrived in Ottawa at our friend K's home around 4:30, and had a bit of a rest until she came home from work. Had a delicious home-cooked meal and good conversation with K and A, and a comfortable good night's sleep after our drive from Quebec City. On Friday we spent most of the day in downtown Ottawa, meeting another friend for lunch, and visiting the National Gallery to see their Canadian collection, including the Group of Seven. Loved the AY Jackson and Lauren Harris work especially. Wandered around Byward Market, and found our favourite olive oil at La Bottega.

In the evening we had dinner with K and A, then headed back to K's apartment to pack and get ready to go Saturday morning. We left Ottawa around 8:30 am, and drove as far as North Bay, through the delights of northern Ontario...mostly rocks, trees, and lakes/rivers. In North Bay I went to a small quilt show in the afternoon, before we enjoyed a marvelous meal at Churchills Roast Beef Restaurant. Off to Wawa area tomorrow.

Wed. Sept. 8

After a large and delicious breakfast (with good conversation!) we left our B&B (owned by a retired teacher) and visited the woodcarving museum before heading to Quebec City. It rained quite hard along the way, especially in Montmagny. We depended upon Harriet, our GPS voice, to get us to our hotel "by the shortest route", which meant we took some small streets down by the waterfront in Levis, which was very scenic. Thanks, Harriet! She then led us to a ferry to cross the St. Lawrence, rather than the bridge which probably would have been a real traffic headache. We successfully followed her directions to our accommodation - Hotel Cap Diamant, which is just below the Citadelle in the Old City.

The hotel is very old and typical of the buildings here in Vieux Quebec. On a quiet street, but nearby the busy tourist attractions, we have a second floor room overlooking the little garden with garden water feature. Parking is very close, and we are looking forward to our included breakfast tomorrow am before starting for Ottawa.

Sept. 7 afternoon/evening

Arrived in L'Islet, a neighbouring village to St. Jean-Port Joli, QC, and found our B&B easily. It is called "Les Pieds dans le Mer", and it is aptly named, as it is right ON the St. Lawrence. The tide here is 17 feet according to our hostess. She recommended an excellent pizza restaurant, and on the way there we stumbled upon a community park. It has been the site of several international woodcarving congresses over the years. SJ-PJ is definitey the center of woodcarving in Quebec, if not in Canada.