Alberta Camping

After all that travelling in the RV you'd think we'd be tired of it.  But no.  We went on a few camping trips within Alberta in August and September, roaming to all corners of the province, or so it seemed.

GREGOIRE LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK

August 7-10

Shortly after our return from the East Coast Glamping Trip, we went up to Fort McMurray to spend some time with our family there.  We decided to try camping at Gregoire Lake which is about 30 km out of Ft. Mac.  It's a lovely campground which was relatively untouched by the big forest fire from a few years ago.  Our granddaughter, Nora, had a wonderful time at the beach, even though it wasn't super hot.  Dave enjoyed the fishing off the dock, even though he'd brought the wrong fishing gear - or so he thought.  He found that the ultra-light gear worked just fine and it was like fishing out of a barrel.
The added adventure was locking ourselves out of the trailer!  Yes, that can happen.  Thankfully Gregoire Lake is only 30 km from a town with a locksmith who could rescue us.  Lesson learned. 

PIERRE GREY'S LAKES PROVINCIAL PARK

August 18 - 24

A few weeks later we joined our fly-fishing friends, Dale and Nicole, at Pierre Grey's Provincial Park which is about 30 kms from Grande Cache.  They had been fishing in cool rainy weather, but when we arrived the weather improved!  This was Dave's first real fly-fishing experience and it was quite the learning curve.  Lesson 1:  Never try to walk forwards with fins (flippers) on your feet when trying to come ashore with the pontoon!  You will go for an unexpected dunk in the lake!
There are three adjacent lakes in the park so it was fun for him to try his luck fishing at each one.  Unfortunately, the only fish we saw all week was the one that Dale had caught the day we arrived and graciously offered to us for our first dinner!
While the three of them fished, I enjoyed hiking and biking around the campground and lakes, as well as trying my hand at some painting. Later in the week, Dave's sister joined us and the three of us went for a hike to the beautiful Muskeg Falls.
From there we went up to Grand Prairie for one night.  What a noisy road-side campground in contrast to Pierre Grey's where there quiet, dark and had virtually cell phone coverage. 

CYPRESS HILLS INTER-PROVINCIAL PARK

September 10 - 14

It was getting into September when we called our friends, Dennis and Irene, in southern Alberta and asked them if they'd want to go camping one last time for the summer.  Sure!  Why not?  We decided to go to Elkwater in the Cypress Hills south of Medicine Hat.
It was a long rainy drive to the park. This did not bode well.
What an abrupt change in landscape when you come upon the park.  To the right is bald prairie and to the left is hills and evergreen forest.  It's some of the highest elevations on the prairies east of the Rockies.
Wednesday was much nicer (no rain) and Dave enjoyed some fishing at Elkwater Lake.  He even brought one pike home for dinner!   The rest of us went on a lovely bike ride along the boardwalk following the lake's edge.  I miscalculated the width of a bridge crossing and my handle bars hit the rail and I went down in a heap.  The resulting bumps and bruises limited my activity for the rest of the trip.  But it's nice to sit and relax sometimes.
Thursday was even nicer as we went for a driving tour of the park and then stopped at Reesor Lake where both Dave and Dennis tried out their fly-fishing gear.  It was a beautiful sunny warm calm day but they had no luck with catching anything.
The following morning the weather turned into the usual southern Alberta weather: windy.  We left the park, stopped to visit a few people, and got as far as Lethbridge for the night.  We were tired of fighting the wind.  Saturday, on our way home, we stopped in Nanton for a bit to check out some of the interesting antique shops.  Dave came home with a classic fishing rod.

(Thanks Irene for the photo.)

FISH LAKE PROVINCIAL PARK

September 23 - 25

We thought the previous trip was the last one for the summer, but our friends, Dale and Nicole talked us into joining them one more time.  Because of other commitments we only went for two nights.  Fish Lake is west of Nordegg on the way to the national parks.  What an absolutely beautiful drive both to and from the park.  The autumn leaves were at their best and it was a photo-worthy scene around each bend in the road.
Our daughter's father-in-law, John, came out to the lake with his little boat and he and Dave had a wonderful afternoon of fishing.  Dale was in his pontoon.  "If you're dressed for the fall weather, it's not so bad", they said.  Besides, catching a few trout made it all worthwhile.  Meanwhile Nicole and I stayed warm by going for some walks along the lakeshore and visiting in the trailer.
We pretty much had the whole place to ourselves so it was very quiet at night.  And very dark.  The stars were amazing.  It'd been a while since I'd seen so many stars so clearly.
The next day we went to Crescent Falls for a little walk.  Dale told stories of fishing along these falls early in the summer when the water level was much higher.  They were beautiful even now in fall. 

Home Sweet Home

July 24

As we were in Killarney, we realized that one of the trailer tires looked like an accident waiting to happen.  Turns out, all four of them needed replacing.  Thankfully we were still in town and not on the road somewhere.  God is good.

The miles go by so slowly when you're on the last leg of the journey.  The ambition to have picnics and find unique campgrounds is gone so it becomes fast food and Walmart camping.

After two months away from home it's good to be back.   It's good to go away and it's always good to come home.

We'll sit down --- until the next adventure calls.

Killarney

July 22

After the six-day odyssey across central Canada we finally arrived in Killarney, Manitoba to sit down for a few days.  This is the town I grew up in so it was like coming home.  Most of our time here was spent visiting with family:  my parents, aunt, brother and his family.

Killarney is a small prairie town located along the shores of Killarney Lake.  It’s a farm supply town and a bit of a tourist town as well with cottages and campgrounds all around the lake.  We were lucky to find a weekend camping spot on short notice.  There’s usually something going on each weekend in summer, like a country fair, beach fest, VW car show, or harness racing.  The best place for ice cream is at the Beach Hut.  We always make sure to enjoy a treat and a sunset walk along the beach.

Killarney takes its Irish name seriously with shamrocks as a theme name for some businesses such as the Shamrock Centre (the sports facility).  It also has green as a theme colour on the street signs and even a green fire truck.  When I lived here St. Patrick’s Day was a major event too.  It’s kinda quirky, but it will always be my hometown.

Mennonite Heritage Village

July 19

Sometimes when you travel you see something and say, “Next time we should check that out.”  So today as we were travelling from Kenora to Killarney, we saw the sign for the Mennonite Heritage Village and said, “Today’s the day.”  I’d been there once as a teenager, and Dave had never been there. 

The Mennonite Heritage Village is located on the edge of Steinbach and tells the story of Mennonite pioneers coming from Russia and settling in southern Manitoba in the late 1800s.  Dave and I are both of Mennonite heritage, but our families immigrated at a later time.  Dave's parents came in the 1920s with his dad's family beginning in Ontario and his mom's family in Saskatchewan.  My parents came after World War II landing in Manitoba - my dad's family in Killarney and my mom's family near Winnipeg.

At the museum, they had an example of their early homes which were sod huts (semlin) built into the ground before winter struck.  Once they had the lumber, they built houses with the barn attached.



They laid out the villages in the same way as in Russia, with the church being at the centre and heart of the community. 

The Mennonites also built windmills.  As their heritage goes back to the Netherlands, the windmill technology went with them from country to country.  Unlike the windmills in Holland, most of which were used to pump water, the windmill that was built in Steinbach was primarily used for milling grain and sawing logs.  The sails were wooden louvers and were able to turn in any direction to catch even the slightest winds.

We had an enjoyable afternoon of wandering around the various buildings and ,of course, enjoyed a traditional Mennonite meal of vereneki met schmauntfatt, woorscht and komst borscht.  (Cottage cheese 'perogies' with cream gravy, farmer sausage, and cabbage soup.)  Delicious!

Sioux Lookout - Here we Come

Adventures along the way to Sioux Lookout:

Day 1:

We have a thing about rain.  We arrived in New Brunswick in the rain and now we're leaving it behind in the rain.

It's an emotional time for Devon and Katherine as they are now leaving New Brunswick for new adventures in a new place.

A truck stop is the worst place for a rest stop for a baby.  Wait ---- there are rocks, sticks and flowers?  It's the best rest stop!

The chaos of five people, a dog and a cat living together in a 5th-wheel trailer.  Sometimes Devon and Katherine slept in a tent and sometimes the couch was pulled out and everyone slept in here.





Our first night's stay in Levis, Quebec.  A lovely spacious site.

Day 2:




Trucks and trailers don't go through drive-through so someone is sent on the coffee run while the rest wait in the parking lot.




Never try to convoy three vehicles together through Montreal, or, for that matter, Gatineau/Ottawa.  We lost each other at the first light and everyone was on their own.  Each of us found a different route through and we made it to our rendezvous spot unscathed but with some nerves frayed. I drove the 5th-wheel trailer through Montreal alone with classical music and a GPS to guide me.



Jack, the cat rode in the Butler and lived in his kennel.  In fact, even in the campground he'd go hide in the kennel rather than face the world.

We stayed outside of Cobden, Ontario in a grassy field camping site, able to have the vehicles parked right across from the trailer.

Day 3:



'Nough said.



Still smiling! 
We're on our way, up the Ottawa Valley and then over towards Sudbury and Sault St. Marie.



Now this is a better lunch stop.  Someone was sent on a McDonald's run, while the animals and Elliott had a good long stretch break.




There's always an extra adventure thrown in.  But God is good.  This could have happened at a truck stop, or along the side of the road somewhere, but it was in the campground at Serpent River. We discovered the situation in the evening, allowing time to make arrangements for repairs in the morning.  God is good.

Day 4:

Devon took the car in to Blind River and got a new starter installed and we were on our way by noon.





Garth lived in the back seat of the Duke.





We figured out a system of everyone travelling on their own and meeting up at the campground at the end of the day.  Turns out we all met up for lunch at the same place in Sault St. Mairie.



  

This boy was done.  We stopped for a run-around break at a trail head parking lot.  Sticks, flowers, stones, and no traffic.  That was the best stop.



The campground at Wawa had a pool!  We had enough time to relax a bit.



Ontario is beautiful with lots of lakes and trees.  But this time we're on a mission and aren't stopping enough to look around.  Maybe next time.

Day 5

Travelling as a large group with three vehicles takes longer even though we aren't stopping to sight-see.  As a result, Devon (and Jack the cat) decided to go on ahead (with the U-Haul) and get to Sioux Lookout in one day.  The rest of us would take a slower pace and take another night on the road.





Beautiful northern Ontario, following along the shores of Lake Superior.  It's a big lake and takes all day.  I wish we'd had time for some of the view points, but that would also disturb a sleeping boy so we continued on.



Gotta run!



We saved the best for last.  We stayed at the KOA outside of Thunder Bay.  It had a pool, a splash park, and we even had our dinner served pool side.  Resort camping for sure.  What a wonderful way to end our last camping night together.

Day 6:

One last day of convoying together.

Devon had arrived last night.  The people they will be staying with have been so generous to them already, allowing them to store their stuff from the U-Haul in their house, and getting a group of their friends to help unload it.  And, driving the U-Haul back to a depot an hour away.  This is such a blessing.






It's a Hildebrand tradition to eat at Subway at least once on a vacation/road trip.  Today was the day.  Making it a picnic was even better.



We did it!  We're in Sioux Lookout.

Devon, Katherine and Elliott (plus Jack and Garth) are beginning the first day of their next adventure in life.  We will help unload and then we continue on with our adventures, looking forward to a few days in Killarney.