Western Road Trip – The Milk River and Writing-on-Stone

After a good night’s sleep, I woke early to cool temperatures and a steady downpour of rain. Thankfully, the Lee Creek campsite offered excellent hot showers, and a nearby A&W provided a quick and easy breakfast and large coffee so in no time at all I was on the road heading southeast on 501 out of Cardston and towards the Milk River and Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park.

My first stop, a short distance out of town, was at the bridge over the St. Mary River. As I walked onto the bridge in early morning light, several hundred cliff swallows rose from beneath the bridge to zoom and swirl over the river and above me, likely as a protection measure for nests beneath the bridge. It was an amazing sight, and one that was repeated many times over in the next few weeks each time I walked over a bridge for river views.

Soon, Highway 501 veered due East and I continued along happily on the wide open road. There was no other traffic, the sky was beginning to clear ahead of me, and hawks soared over the fields to my left and my right, hunting for their breakfast.

Soon, the Milk River Ridge was visible in the distance. At a modest elevation of only 400 metres above the prairie, this ridge is known as the Hudson Bay Divide because waters north of the ridge flow into the Saskatchewan River Basin and then on to Hudson Bay, while waters south of this ridge, including the Milk River, flow into the Missouri River Basin and from there into the Mississippi and finally into the Gulf of Mexico. The Milk River is one of only three Canadian rivers that make that long journey southeast across our continent to the Gulf.

The Milk River Ridge was once the southern rim of a lake that was formed towards the end of the last ice age when water from melting glaciers in the Rocky Mountains to the west was blocked by a thick sheet of continental ice in the east.

The road then travelled through a narrow break in the ridge. This break, Whiskey Gap, and several others like it, including Emigrant Gap further west (part of the Old Mormon Trail), provided north/south access through the ridge for easier travel between Montana and Canada. Whiskey Gap was notorious for the illegal transport of whiskey from Fort Benton in Montana to forts north of the border where it was traded for buffalo robes and furs. The illicit “rotgut whiskey” sometimes consisted of raw alcohol coloured with caramelised sugar or chewing tobacco, or it could be a concoction of watered-down American whiskey, ginger, molasses, red pepper, black chewing tobacco and a splash of red ink. This substance was highly destructive to the health, families, and culture of local indigenous people and its illegal trade and other smuggling activities led to the establishment of a North West Mounted Police garrison at Fort Macleod, as well as several smaller police outposts located along the border.

Highway 501 curves towards and then down through Whiskey Gap in the distance.

Once home to a settlement that included homes, a church, businesses, a CP Rail branch line and three grain elevators, now only the church (converted into a private home) is left, as well as several placards marking the historical and geological significance of Whisky Gap. (Liquor also flowed north to south from Alberta into the U.S. during the prohibition years.)

Shortly after passing through Whiskey Gap, I got my first view of the Milk River as Highway 501 crossed its North Fork. More swirling swallows and a curious mule deer were there to welcome me.

Next, at the crossroads with Highway 62, I stopped for a few moments in the teeny tiny town of Del Bonita. The two buildings in the photo on the left were moved here from Whiskey Gap.

Multiple iconic prairie scenes compelled me to stop regularly to take photos as I travelled along 501. It was turning into a beautiful day!

Next, Highway 501 crossed the South Fork of the Milk River and I was greeted yet again by a mass of swallows showing off their aerial acrobatics and urging me to get off of their bridge!

Continuing east, I saw my first Pronghorn antelope of this trip,

my first field of canola blooming glorious yellow,

and my first sightings of the Sweet Grass Hills to the south over the border in Montana. Covered in pine forests, these hills are sacred to the Blackfoot and were a prime hunting ground for deer, moose, and other game animals.

For some distance, Highway 501 parallels the Milk River to the south, but the river remains out of view below the prairie as it flows east/west in its wide meltwater valley. To access the river, I decided to make a rectangular loop by first heading south on Range Road 134 to arrive at the Weir Bridge.

Next, I travelled west on Secondary Highway 500, and turned north onto Range Road 150 to cross the river again at the Coffin Bridge, below. Canoeists and kayakers often put in here and travel downriver to the Weir Bridge or further on to Writing-on-Stone. Travelling on the river would be a very special way to experience the landscape, plants, and wildlife of the Milk River valley and its native prairie grasslands.

Enroute to the Coffin Bridge, I encountered another lone pronghorn, and then the first of several small herds. The pronghorn is the fastest land mammal in the Western Hemisphere and can reach up to 55 miles per hour. They are such beautiful animals!

There are several fawns in this grouping!

I arrived at Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park in the early afternoon, after a morning filled with wildlife sightings and beautiful scenery. Wow! You drive to the edge of the prairie and then suddenly the river is visible below, lined on both sides by sandstone cliffs and hundreds of sculpted hoodoos. Writing-on-Stone is a very very special place, you can feel it in an instant. It is sacred to the Blackfoot and other aboriginal tribes and features the largest collection of aboriginal rock art in Canada. Etched into golden sandstone bluffs are over a thousand images including scenes of humans, animals, bows, arrows, hunting parties, battles, and entities from the spirit world. Archaeological evidence shows 10,000 years of occupation and use of this place by aboriginal groups as the riverside environment and adjacent coulees provided water, wood, shelter and plentiful game and berries. I would learn so much here!

The campground at Writing-on-Stone is excellent and sites must be reserved. I had only been able to book one night ahead of time, but luckily there was a recent cancellation and I was able to stay an extra night! I would have stayed even more nights if it was possible.

After having secured my campsite and visited a bit with my bunny neighbour, I drove back up to prairie level to make a first, brief visit to the excellent and architecturally beautiful visitors center. But, the hoodoos were calling me so I returned outside to spend time in the Hoodoo Exploration Area where visitors are allowed to follow multiple paths and climb all around and over the hoodoos. The park literature asks visitors to tread lightly.

This view, from prairie level, overlooks the hoodoos and the riverside campground below. Shaded by tall cottonwoods, and surrounded on three sides by a loop of the Milk River, you can see why this would be a very special gathering place for the Blackfoot.

This view shows the Milk River with its swimming beach. Swimming here was the highlight of my entire prairies trip! The river loops around the campground so you can walk across the campground, enter the river and then float downstream to exit at the beach below and then do it all over, again and again!

Looking east at the long line of hoodoos on both sides of the Milk River. The stand of cottonwoods in the distance is on privately owned ranch land.

From the top of the hill, I descended to the hoodoos and began to scramble on, over, and around the unique formations, mindful to watch and listen for any rattlesnake that might be either sunning itself around a corner or hiding in the shade of a rock crevice.

Here is a view looking back and up towards the Visitors Center. The structures on the right are shade shelters with picnic tables – a great place to dine with a view!

Scattered here and there among the hoodoos were tiny pockets of flowering plants that are adapted to survive in this rocky, exposed, and sunbaked place.

It was so fun to scramble here, with interesting views all around of the sculpted hoodoos, river, sky, hills, and flowers.

After climbing amongst the hoodoos I returned to camp, put on my bathing suit, and went to the river for a swim. The temperature was perfect! The silt-laden river was not deep at this time of year in mid June (about chest deep in the center, and over my head closer to the far shore) and the strength of the current was perfect for a fun ride downstream, an exit, and then a walk up the beach to walk in and do another run. The second day here, I swam again and this time I crossed the campground to enter the river further upstream in order to float downstream perhaps 400 m before exiting at the beach and then doing it all over again. As I remarked above, swimming here, with the blue sky above and the golden cliffs and hoodoos, was the highlight of my entire prairie trip!

The main beach area in the early evening light, looking downstream towards the hill-top visitors center and then upstream.

Amazingly, my rather full and wonderful day was not yet over. After dinner, as the early evening light began to glow golden, I drove once more up the hill to take more photos amongst the hoodoos.

And then I drove to the nearby Rodeo Grounds, located just outside the park, to see the river there. On the way, I saw three handsome bachelors peeking at me behind a fence. They were shy though, and ran off when I tried to get a closer picture.

Here is the Milk River near the Rodeo Grounds.

Then, on the way back, there were even more special sightings – curlews feeding in a field and a view of the Sweet Grass Hills bathed in the orange glow of a setting sun.

Finally, as I returned to the park, I decided to make a quick stop at the hilltop viewing area beside the visitor center just as the sun was setting. Lo and behold, a line of pelicans were flying above the river, their bellies glowing with the orange light that was reflected by the river and rocks below. I was filled with elation at the sight and felt like I was flying too. What a day!

My second day at Writing-on-Stone was wonderful as well! I attended a morning interpretive program to see and learn about some of the ancient rock art that is protected in the park. The program was hosted by a Blackfoot elder who was a skilled presenter and often humorous. He held our group spellbound as he told many stories and explained the meanings and symbolism of the rock carvings and their relationship and significance to aspects of the Blackfoot culture and way of life, both ancient and modern.

After the program, it was high noon and the sun was too strong for a swim so I spent several hours at the excellent visitor’s center reading every information board, observing every artifact, and listening to recorded stories and legends. I was very moved by one recording, voiced by an elder, which beautifully explains the significance of Aisinai’pi (Writing-on-Stone) to the Blackfoot. With a small amount of paraphrasing from me, the recording was as follows:

The people of this land, the Niitsitapi, the Blackfoot, have always known this place, Aisinai’pi, to be sacred. We know it in our minds, in our hearts. We heard it from our ancestors who called out to us from the spirit world. Their voices are clear and strong here at Aisinai’pi.

And they leave messages, messages on the rocks. The spirit beings come here and they live here, and we come here. We have always come here. We have come here to lay our dead to rest. We have come here to dream, to seek guidance, and to pass from childhood. We have come here to leave gifts, to fast and pray, to connect to the spirit world. We have come here to show our respect to the Creator.

Our parents passed along the stories to us, we give them to our children. We know Aisinai’pi is one part of a larger sacred landscape… We know it’s all connected to something bigger. In all of these places, the Creator brings together the land with the ancestors to create sacred landscapes as a gift to us. We receive it with reverence and awe.

After my time at the visitors center, I decided to take a quick drive to visit one more bridge over the Milk River, the Deer Creek Bridge. I parked and walked out to the middle of the bridge, ready to take my customary pictures both upstream and downstream but as I stepped up towards the raised board at the edge of the bridge, I heard the distinctive rattle of a rattle snake just below me and a little to the left! I stepped quickly back several feet and then could see that a rattlesnake was stretched out in a long straight line, perfectly camouflaged in a narrow space between bridge planks that was just wide enough and deep enough to fit him or her. I considered getting a little closer for a picture but quickly decided that I had already had a lucky call and there was no point in tempting fate!

Back at the campsite, I swam and swam, had dinner, and then drove up to prairie level to the Lewis Coulee and Police Coulee Viewpoints where there were many interpretive boards about the geology, flora and fauna of the park as well as of the people associated with this place: the Blackfoot who have been here for millennia as well as the settlers who arrived in the late 1800s and early 1900s to make homes on the surrounding prairie. There was information also about the Northwest Mounted Police officers who manned an outpost here between 1887 and 1918 . Their buildings still remain below on the opposite side of the river at the end of Police Coulee.

A couple who were cycling by offered to take my picture.

I stayed up on the hill until the sun began to set over the prairie, the river, and the Sweet Grass Hills, first in hues of pink,

and then in hues of gold.

I returned to camp, tired and happy, and walked one last time to the river to take a final photo of this extraordinary place. Thank you Milk River and Writing-on-Stone.

Western Road Trip – A Wonderful Day of Exploration in Southwestern Alberta

During my night at Payne Lake campsite I must have slept very soundly because in the morning I woke to see that a large truck and trailer combo had moved in right beside me and blocked my view of the lake! But, it was an easy fix to just drive to the nearby day use area and enjoy my breakfast there, overlooking the lake, with views of the Rocky Mountains in the distance and with the company of a lone American pelican swimming just off shore.

Shortly after leaving Payne Lake, there was an excellent view of Chief Mountain directly to the south of me (it is located just over the border in Montana).

Returning to Highway 5, I first travelled east and then turned southeast on to 501 and then south onto Range Road 270A to arrive at Police Outpost Provincial Park which is located just barely north of the American border (my cell phone thought that I was in the U.S.) . Lying in a transition zone between grasslands and aspen parkland, this isolated spot was home to a Northwest Mounted Police detachment of four men between 1891 and 1898. Here, they patrolled a wide area on the Canadian side of the border to guard against cattle rustlers and whisky smugglers.

Here is a view overlooking Outpost Lake with its small island. The campground is tucked into a small aspen forest located just uphill from the lake (in the center of the photo).

I checked out the campground and then visited the boat ramp area, popular with fishers in small boats and kayaks. A trail led from there around the edge of the lake to a bridge leading out to a small island.

The walk was lovely, green and peaceful, with a few splashes of colour.

I walked over the quite wonderful wooden bridge and then around the island on a looped trail that featured multiple viewing spots complete with benches.

Here is the view of majestic Chief Mountain from the beginning of the bridge!

On my return trip over the bridge, I met a father and son who were getting ready to cast for trout and the dad kindly took my picture.

Next, I headed to the nearby Outpost Wetlands Natural Area, a rich birding site, but the marshland trails there were closed due to nesting season, so I left the provincial park and headed back north on Range Road 270A. At the tiny hamlet of Boundary Creek (which was basically one old school building now acting as a community hall), I turned northeast onto TWP 20 NE. I had this road completely to myself, except for one or two passing pickup trucks, as it curved up, down, and around rolling hills that were dotted with cattle farms and tidy ranch enclaves.

The cattle looked healthy and happy feeding on the dark green spring grass and there were many calves to admire. I also saw several groupings of fine-looking mule deer as well as many hawks flying high over the fields.

Soon, the expanse of green was punctuated by a lovely small white pioneer church, the first of many I would see on my prairie journey. This was St. Stephens of Hungary Church, built in 1901 and rebuilt here in 1907 after a severe storm damaged the original church, “with the walls being separated from the floor, the roof was torn open; the windows and doors were broke.”

I enjoyed walking around the building and its adjacent cemetery where purple iris were growing.

I tried the door and it was not locked, as was the case again and again at other small churches I stopped at. The interior was beautiful and obviously well loved and cared for.

I took time to admire the artfully painted stations of the cross, and this handwritten and illustrated history of the founding of the church and parish.

Continuing on TWP 20 NE, I soon arrived at the junction with Highway 2 and turned north towards Cardston, a rather rough-around-the-edges prairie town where I stopped for fuel, ice, and groceries. I checked out the municipal campground located beside Lee Creek and learned that several sites were available at this very nice campground. It was still early in the day so I continued my drive north on Highway 2, and then East on 505 to see the large lake that is the Saint Mary Reservoir. This drive took me through part of the Blood (Kainai) Nation Reserve, the largest and second most populated reserve in Canada. Here is the sweep of road and adjacent prairie on 505, looking back to the west, just before crossing the dam over the Saint Mary River.

Now, I must mention that my routes and my explorations today were inspired and guided by two chapters of Liz Bryan’s excellent book, “Country Roads of Alberta.” I was headed to the Saint Mary Reservoir because she had written of an important archaeological site that had been excavated at Wally’s Beach on the lake. When lake waters were lowered for spillway repairs on the dam, strong winds blew away the sandy lake bed to reveal an ancient mud floor from the Pleistocene age. Footprints of long extinct camels, mammoths, muskoxen and giant bison were found, as well as the bones of prehistoric horses, extinct in Alberta for at least 10,000 years. Archaeologists determined that the bones were from animals hunted and butchered by indigenous peoples. Flint choppers, scrapers, and spear points were found, and they tested positive for the blood of muskox and horse, providing the first proof that early North American people hunted horses for meat. Carbon dating of the bones gave dates of between 11,000 and 11,300 years ago! The excavations at Wally’s Beach were done quickly as there was limited time available before the construction work on the spillway was finished and lake waters reflooded the site. Today, of course, there is nothing left of this significant archaeological site and I felt a little sad as I stood here, at Wally’s Beach, looking out over the beautiful green water that likely hides even more important and evocative evidence of an ancient past.

After my visit to Wally’s Beach, I explored each of the four campsites associated with Saint Mary’s Reservoir, two of which are located in the river canyon below the spillway and all of which were scenic. But, clouds had rolled in, the wind was beginning to pick up, and rain began to fall so I decided to keep on driving east to Spring Coulee and then southwest on Highway 5 back to Cardston and its Lee Creek campsite. I cooked and ate a quick dinner under the welcome cover of a picnic shelter as the rain began to fall in earnest, and then I read for a while in my Highlander. An hour later, the rain had eased up and I was able to do a last walk of the day on a path that followed the creek upstream for a good distance and which featured interpretive boards about the local flora, fauna, and human history of the town and creek-side area. It was a wonderful way to end a full day of exploration in this beautiful and historic southwestern corner of Alberta.

Western Road Trip – Into Southwestern Alberta, mountains and prairie together oh my!

After a good night’s sleep at Yahk Provincial Park, I headed off early for another wonderful day of driving on B.C.’s Highway 3. There was little traffic again and I enjoyed the freedom of the road and the “Beautiful B.C.” scenery of forested hills, valleys, rivers and lakes. On the approach to Cranbrook, I began to see the high jagged peaks of the Lizard Range (I thought they were the Rockies!).

After Cranbrook, Highway 3 turned southeast and followed the wide Kootenay River Valley with the Lizard Range in spectacular view off to my left for quite a distance as I drove.

Then, at Elko, Highway 3 turned sharply northeast again and followed the full and fast-flowing Elk River all the way to Fernie.

And Fernie was a revelation! Wow! The mountains there take your breath away they are so close and impressive. The following photos are, unfortunately, completely inadequate at capturing the magic and majesty of those mountains. I must learn how to photograph mountains to best effect!

Looking southwest from the town of Fernie to the northeastern slopes of the Lizard Range.

Mount Fernie, taken from the bridge over the Elk River in Fernie.

My plan (later, sadly, unrealized) was to stay in Fernie for several days on my return trip to enjoy the popular town and surrounding hikes, so after only a brief stop I carried on, headed for more wow moments as Highway 3 approached its namesake, the Crowsnest Pass. At an elevation of 1358 meters, the pass crosses both the Continental Divide of the Rockies and the border between British Columbia and Alberta. How exciting to arrive here!

I stopped at the pass (there was a very brisk cold breeze!) and again several times later to photograph the surrounding mountains but the results are, again, somewhat disappointing – nothing at all like the real thing! The following photos, taken just after the pass and then another five kilometers or so into Alberta and looking back at the Rockies, are somewhat more satisfactory.

Taken just after the pass, Crowsnest Ridge is on the left and beautiful Mt. Tecumseh is in the distance.

Highway 3 stayed high in the foothills through the old coal mining communities of Blairmore, Coleman, Frank, and Bellevue, now popular with mountain bikers, hikers, and passing tourists. The Frank slide was rather shocking to see and drive through. Such a huge area of devastation, a massive jumble of boulders piled up 150 meters deep in places and a kilometer wide. In 1903, 110 million tonnes of rock fell from Turtle Mountain, burying part of the town of Frank, the CPR line, and a coal mine. It was one of the largest landslides in Canadian history and the deadliest, with 70-90 people buried and lost forever under the rock.

Soon, Highway 3 descended onto the Alberta prairie with grand and far-reaching views to the east and south. At Pincher Station, I said goodbye to my good friend Highway 3, turned south onto Highway 6, and continued to enjoy those prairie views to my left and the majestic Rockies and their foothills (some topped with energetic windmills) to my right.

Black metal silhouettes on the approach into Pincher Creek were quite eye-catching!

I had planned to stay in Pincher Creek for the night and tour the Kootenai Pioneer Village there but unfortunately the pleasant riverside municipal campground was full. I found my way to the local public pool for a very nice swim and shower, and then decided to camp at the Police Outpost Provincial Park to the southeast and down near the U.S. border. Leaving town though, I missed my turnoff to head east on 507 and so I decided to continue south on Highway 6 as it was such a wonderful road!

The Rocky Mountains on my right were nothing short of stunning, and the road ahead curved and dipped and rose over the undulating landscape.

The distant mountain seen below on the left was particularly striking. It is called Chief Mountain and I later learned how important the mountain was and is to the Blackfoot who call it Nanaistako.

Some kilometers further south I arrived at an overlook with this magnificent view west into the Waterton Lakes area. Wow! I will definitely return here on another voyage and stay for several days of camping and hiking in the National Park.

Later, there was another viewpoint signed as the “Bison Paddock Overlook”. On my short climb up to the top of the viewing hill I saw my first prairie dog of this trip, a very chattery squirrel, bright pink geraniums, and an official “Alberta Rose”.

This was the view to the south from the hilltop.

And this was the view to the north, zoomed in, of the small herd of bison that are being re-introduced into Waterton National Park.

Just past the bridge over the Waterton River, I stopped at the Maskinonge Overlook for one more beautiful view looking in towards Waterton National Park.

Continuing south to the junction of Highways 6 and 5, I took this last photo of Chief Mountain and its neighbouring peaks before turning east on Highway 5.

It was beginning to get a little late in the day so I decided to stop in at Payne Lake to check out their campground as an alternative to continuing on to the Police Outpost Provincial Park. A lake-view site was available in this family-friendly campground so it was an easy decision to stop here for the night.

I enjoyed a relaxing dinner and then an evening walk in the flower-filled meadows that bordered the lake. I was especially happy to find the lovely Three Flowered Avens, also known as Old Man’s Beard or Prairie Smoke (top three photos). So pretty!

And this was my view heading back along the lake to my campsite, with the sun setting behind the Rocky Mountains. Thank you, Southwest Alberta, for a marvelous day of mountains and prairie together (oh my)!

Western Road Trip – A magnificent start, heading east on Highway 3

Well, it’s a rare, snowy Vancouver New Year and I am finally buckling down to write some posts about my wonderful summer 2021 road trip through southern B.C., Alberta, and Saskatchewan. I hit the road early on the morning of June 16th, the day after the Covid travel restrictions in B.C. were lifted. After a lovely two-hour visit with my friend Anna in Hope, I was very lucky to have beautiful Highway 3 almost all to myself. Free and easy, here we go!

Driving through Manning Park to Princeton and on to Osoyoos is always a pleasure and for the first time in my Highlander I had some CDs along with me. Paul Simon’s “Graceland” proved to be excellent driving and singing music as I cruised at speed up, down, and around mountains and alongside two of my favourite rivers, the fast-flowing Skagit and the sparkling Similkameen.

In Osoyoos, I stopped for a walk at one of my favourite places – the dikes of the Okanagan River at Road 22. On this visit, I walked northwards on the western dike.

It was late afternoon, and the air was warm and still, so the birds were not very active. Nevertheless, I was greeted almost right away by two well-remembered friends, a cedar waxwing and an eastern king bird.

And of course the tall grasses and colourful wildflowers lining the path were a delight as always.

After my peaceful walk, I drove to Haynes Point Provincial Park – a long and narrow tree-lined spit that reaches east for almost a kilometer across Osoyoos Lake. At the day use area, I had a lovely north-facing view of the lake while I cooked and ate my dinner. Later, I set up my camp chair on the southern beach, midway along the spit, to read and write for a while into the evening. This was my glorious view looking south over Osoyoos Lake.

The campsite at Haynes Point was full (as expected) and I had already resolved to camp “stealth” in town in order to get over my fear of doing so. As darkness started to fall, I headed into town, drove to a hotel that I am familiar with, and then backed into one of the spaces in its crowded parking lot. I set up my privacy window covers and curtain and then organized everything I would need for the night. It was still a little early for sleep so I visited the hotel lobby with my ipad to do email and some googling to review details of the road ahead on the morrow. What a great first day I had!

I slept well and without incident, rose early the next morning, and enjoyed a simple breakfast while sitting on the bench in the photo below, overlooking another glorious view of Osoyoos Lake. Bonus, I saw a beaver swimming close to shore!

What a great day to travel! So, off I drove east on Highway 3 but I didn’t get very far before stopping to photograph the curving sweep of the road heading up Anarchist Mountain, and then from the top a beautiful view looking down onto Osoyoos and the south Okanagan valley.

I made a brief stop in Rock Creek to stretch my legs and I took a few photos of this tiny and charming small town.

From Rock Creek, I greatly enjoyed the beautiful drive through the Kettle Valley. Soon, Highway 3 said goodbye to the Kettle River at the neat and tidy town of Midway and then headed northeast through Boundary country. My next stop was in the historic mining town of Greenwood, the “smallest incorporated city in Canada.” Copper mined in the surrounding hills was smelted at Greenwood in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s but when the ore was exhausted the smelter closed and this once thriving town of 3000 almost became a ghost town. The town has seen a resurgence in recent years, and many of its more than sixty heritage buildings have been beautifully restored. Unfortunately, the town was very quiet and seemed a little depressed when I visited, likely due to the absence of tourist traffic because of Covid.

I started my visit to Greenwood with a walk along a short section of the Kettle Valley Rail Trail that parallels Boundary Creek. It’s difficult to see in the picture below (right), but great dark heaps of slag bordered the creek for some distance.

Next, I walked along the main street (which is Highway 3), lined with beautiful and historic buildings. In the photo below, the Windsor Hotel (center, blue windows) was built in 1896 and houses the longest operating pub in B.C.. To its right, the Pacific Hotel was built and rebuilt twice due to fires, first in 1899 and again in 1907. During the second world war, the hotel became a designated Internment Building and housed over 200 interned Japanese Canadians.

Below are several more scenes from Greenwood’s main street. If I lived here, I would join the Kettle River Art Club and the Women’s Institute, and I might occasionally participate in the Legion’s Saturday Meat Draw!

After touring the few short blocks of the main street, I walked uphill and past the historic fire hall, post office, city hall, and several beautifully restored homes.

One street higher up I reached the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic church, built in 1897 as “a mission by Fr. Palmer”, and right beside the church was an old beauty of a home, empty and not yet restored but in fine shape, with a large grassy yard and backed by a forested hillside. I sat on its front porch steps for awhile, enjoying the peaceful morning and the mesmerizing sound of crickets, and I imagined that it was mine. It would be a fine house to restore to its former glory.

I carried on through Boundary Country and made a short stop in Grand Forks. Before leaving home, I had read that Grand Forks recently had high case counts of Covid so I avoided a stop in the historic downtown but I visited the large riverside park and municipal campground for a pleasant walk in the shade of huge cottonwoods. Also, I had wanted to see why the town was named “Grand Forks” so I found my way to a small, unnamed pocket park where the Granby River (on the left) and the Kettle River (on the right) meet. I stood right on the edge of the sandy point that was being inexorably eroded on both sides. There was such a powerful feeling of movement, energy, impermanence, and change here!

It was time for me to keep on moving as well so I returned to my Highlander but as I was leaving town I just had to stop and take a photo of this very groovy VW van. 🙂

After leaving Grand Forks and later Christina Lake, Highway 3 traversed the forested slopes of the Rossland Range, rising to an elevation of 1535 meters at Bonanza Pass. It was wonderful driving, and I was compelled to stop yet again when I saw this view of Nancy Greene Lake with Old Glory Mountain off in the distance. I wish that I had known of the five kilometer trail that loops around this beautiful lake.

I continued eastwards on Highway 3 which soon made its descent into Castlegar and then rose up again steeply to a viewpoint with views back down to Castlegar and the mighty Columbia River. Later, the road followed the gorgeous, braided, and fast-flowing Salmo River for a while before it climbed up to the Kootenay Pass summit at an elevation of 1774 meters.

My next planned stop was the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area which is comprised of 17,000 acres of protected wetland habitat for the benefit of resident and migrating water fowl and other wildlife. Here there are many kilometers of trails, bird-viewing towers, and a small but excellent nature center. Brent and I had visited this nature reserve about 30 years ago and had taken a guided canoe ride through narrow water channels lined with reeds and cattails to view the abundant wildlife. It had been a most enjoyable and memorable experience (we had even sighted a muskrat!), and so I was very excited to visit this very special place again.

Bright yellow flag iris were beautiful to see and photograph, but they are an invasive species and work is underway to try and remove them from the reserve.

You can still book a guided canoe ride through the wetland, and when I saw the canoes I dearly wished that my family was here to join me on this warm and beautiful afternoon.

Heading into Creston, I stopped to take this photo of the Kootenay River. The river and the wide valley here are stunning!

In Creston, I parked beside the art deco inspired Tivoli Theatre (1938), treated myself to a late lunch/early dinner in a hipster cafe, and then spent some time relaxing under a shady tree in the town’s Rotary Park while I made a phone call home.

Continuing on my journey, I stopped in at Yahk Provincial Park campground and decided to stay there for the night. Conveniently close to the highway, my site was just a minute’s walk from the pretty sight and lovely sounds of the Moyie River.

I read in camp until dusk, and then returned to the river to watch as bats started their evening flights, swirling and twirling at speed above the tumbling water. What a wonderful way to end a second magnificent day heading east on Highway 3!

Western Road Trip – I’m Back!

July 19, 2021

Hello everyone. I have been home for a few days now, and will leave again in a few days to visit Salt Spring Island and then family on Vancouver Island. I did not go across Canada, and I am a bit disappointed about that, but I had a wonderful time on the prairies!

I’m sorry, but whoever says that the prairies are boring just isn’t looking! The prairies are certainly not flat, and the roads aren’t always straight. The scenery changes almost every second as you drive along. The roads dip down and climb up and around, passing an endless variety of fields that change shape and colour, from every shade of green and gold to the bright yellow of canola and the pretty blue of flax.

There are distant hills, and wide, deeply eroded valleys that you drive down into, with sparkling braided rivers snaking through them like the gorgeous North and South Saskatchewan Rivers, the Bow, the Red Deer, and the Oldman River. There are sharply etched coulees, copses of trees, reed-lined ponds, streams, and swaths of native prairie grasses. There are colourful and weirdly sculpted badlands, great sand hills, and large freshwater reservoirs and salt lakes. And, even if you are standing still in one spot, the scenery is still always changing because of the almost-constant prairie wind that ripples through the grasses, trees, and wildflowers, and that moves the clouds to create an ever-changing sky. There are manmade structures as well to catch your eye and interest. Some are ancient like tipi rings, and stone effigies and ceremonial circles. Some are from the early days of the pioneers, faded or derelict old farm houses and barns, and tiny white churches that are often well-cared for and freshly painted. And of course there are modern farm buildings, roads, railroad tracks, grain elevators, windmills, shiny metal storage tanks, and other large structures and machinery – all sturdy, well-built, and purposeful.

And there is so much history! I visited many excellent small town museums, went on guided interpretive hikes, and toured world-class facilities like the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Wanuskewin, and Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump. I saw dinosaur fossils, learned about the geological history of the prairies, and viewed artefacts and interpretive displays that shed light on the traditional way of life of the indigenous people who have lived on the plains for more than 11,000 years. I also learned more about the arrival and experiences of European explorers, fur traders, homesteaders, and the Northwest Mounted Police as they moved into and changed the prairie environment forever.

In future posts, I plan to feature some of the wonderful places that I visited, but for now here are a few stats about my trip overall, including a list and photos of some of the wildlife that I spotted.

Days on the Road: 30

Mileage: 4266 miles = 6865 kilometers, almost all on secondary roads and a lot of gravel too (dusty but fun!)

Gas Costs: $946 (lowest price paid, $1.269 per litre, somewhere in Alberta, highest price paid $1.599 in Vancouver before leaving)

Camping Nights: 23 (mostly in municipal, provincial, and national park campsites. 4 nights were “stealth” (and free) in hospital parking lots, a hotel parking lot, and beside a town park)

Comfort Level: excellent! I slept well, camped well, ate healthily, and felt safe throughout.

Exercise: lots of walking and some wonderful swims

Meals: 3 fast food breakfasts, one fast food lunch, and one dinner out in Regina with a glass of wine. All other meals were camp meals or on-the-go snacks.

Hotel Nights: 7 (2 in Regina, 2 in Saskatoon, 1 in Medicine Hat, and 2 in Lethbridge) All of the hotel stays were because of extreme heat warnings and also extreme thunder storm warnings, but it was definitely nice to get really clean, do laundry, have a bit more space, and cool down with the help of AC.

Annoyances: tailgaters, melting cooler ice, and energy-sapping temperatures above 30 degrees!

Massive Prairie Storms: 3 (thunder, lightning, wind, and lashes of rain, but thankfully no hail and no tornados!)

New Travel Companion: I found this little Parks Canada fellow in my campsite at Grasslands and his cheerful face kept me company while driving.

Wildlife Spotted:

Hawks: So many! Soaring and swooping over the fields, usually in the mornings. I love them!

Golden eagles: 2, both sitting regally on fence posts, very exciting!

I saw countless other wonderful birds, including American pelicans, gulls, many kinds of shore birds that nest on prairie lakes, eastern and western kingbirds, warblers, wrens, curlews, killdeer, northern flickers, gray catbirds (google “youtube catbird mewing call” to see how they got their name!), robins, magpies, crows, ravens, and swallows in the hundreds including cliff, bank, tree, barn, and violet-green swallows. Finally, one night in Grasslands, at dusk and after a beautiful sunset, I heard two great horned owls calling to each other below me in the dense trees lining a coulee – a moving and magical moment that I will never forget.

White tailed deer: probably about 20- 30, including this morning visitor to my campsite, munching away on some tasty leaves.

Mule deer: 40-60, including these two impressive fellows in a field of canola.

Pronghorn antelope: 30-50, usually in groups of 1, 2 or 3, including several mothers with babies. One wanted to impress me with his speed by zipping across the highway, scooting quickly under the barbed wire fence at the side of the road, and then zooming at top speed across a field. Wow! They are the second fastest land animals after cheetahs! I loved seeing them.

Bison: I saw several at Grasslands National Park and Waterton, and also a large herd near Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump, with many new calves. Here are a few members of that herd. They look so right in the landscape. It is astounding to me how the buffalo hunters could decimate 30 million bison to near extinction in only several decades. Thirty million! It is shocking, incredibly sad, and nearly incomprehensible!

Jackrabbits: 1 (My, what long ears you have!)

Nuttals rabbits: 6 (tiny and very very cute)

Rattlesnake: 1 (a bit too close for comfort!)

Coyotes: 4

Cross fox: 1 (This fox has caught a good-sized gopher for a midday meal! I was really happy to have seen him or her.)

Gophers (Richardson Ground Squirrels) and Black-tailed Prairie Dogs: too many to count! And so stressful when you are driving and there they are on the side of the road and you are going fast and thinking, “Please, please, please, PLEASE don’t run out in front of me at the last minute! Aaah! Dodge (safely!), oh no?, phew, thank goodness I missed him! Why do they DO that?!)

Badgers: 2 (my first!)

Porcupine: 1 (My first! A large, lumbering old fellow!)

Beavers: 2

Muskrat: 1

Moose: 1, in B.C. (Finally! I saw a moose when I was 17 in Quebec, and a mother moose and calf in Yellowstone in my 20’s, but I have never seen one in all of my B.C. travels, nor in the Yukon, nor in the Northwest Territories, and not even in Newfoundland where they are exceedingly numerous!)

Bears: none this trip, but maybe on the next adventure!

Thank you so much to everyone for reading. I hope you are all having a very happy summer.

Moon Lodge Gathering, 2020, original art by Metis artist Leah Dorion, from her exhibit at the Batoche National Historic Site.

Western Road Trip – Saskatoon Riverside Walk, and a different kind of Canada Day

July 2, 2021

After staying cool all afternoon in my Saskatoon hotel on Canada Day, I ventured out after 6 p.m. to explore a section of the Meewasin Valley trails, a 90 km network of trails and paved pathways that follows both sides of the South Saskatchewan River as it meanders its way through town. The paths pass under, and provide access to the many bridges, and they connect parks and other civic spaces.

Avoiding the freeways, I made my way by car through town to an area on the west side of the Broadway Bridge and parked near Broadway and 4th Avenue South. I walked towards the river and found myself in Kiwanis Memorial Park where a “Cancel Canada Day – Bring Them Home” event was being held to support residential school survivors and to remember the children who did not make it home.

The previous day, I had visited the grounds of the provincial Legislative Assembly Building in Regina where the Canadian and Saskatchewan flags were flying at half mast.

And on the front steps there was this moving display of children’s backpacks and toys. The organizers plan to fill the steps with 751 backpacks to represent the 751 bodies recently found in unmarked graves at the site of the former Marieval Residential Indian School in southeastern Saskatchewan.

I sat for a while at the event, listened to the powerful drumming and singing, and thought about our country – both the injustices and mistakes of the past and also the many wonderful attributes of our country as the vast majority of Canadians try to do their best for their families, neighbours, and communities. I do think that Canada is a country to be celebrated, but on this Canada Day I agreed wholeheartedly with Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark who said that the time is not right for festivities. He said, “We are in a time of mourning in our community and our country. It does not feel like a time for celebration. It feels like a time to reckon with the truth of residential schools and the impacts of racism and colonial relationships in our country.”

After a while, I left the park and walked on this lovely trail heading downstream towards the University Bridge.

I walked almost all the way to the University Bridge, and then returned by way of Spadina Crescent East, where many historic churches were spaced out over just a few blocks. Here is the Knox United Church, built between 1912-1914, with the congregation founded in 1885.

Almost next door was the St. Johns Cathedral (Anglican), and then I passed the St. Paul’s Roman Catholic Cathedral. There was a “We Are Sorry” sign on the door, but the apology was clearly not accepted or appreciated by some who are suffering grief and anger.

A little further on Spadina was St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, and nearby was the Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, all large edifices built of brick and stone and determined, it seems, to proclaim their supremacy as the “right” place to worship the Christian faith.

I left the churches behind to photograph this Saskatoon landmark- a grand old railway hotel which is now the Delta Bessborough Hotel. It was built in 1935 by the Canadian National Railway at the urging of prominent Saskatoon businessmen who wanted to outdo Regina and its railway hotel which was built by the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1926!

From here, I returned to the riverside pathway and continued walking upstream towards the beautiful Traffic Bridge.

I walked over the Traffic Bridge and stopped in the center for this view back towards the Broadway Bridge.

At the end of the Traffic Bridge was some charming crochet art, and another view towards the Broadway Bridge which included the Delta Hotel, 10 stories tall and for some three decades the tallest building in Saskatoon.

Then I crossed the road to the other side of the Traffic Bridge for these great views back towards the business end of town and several tall glass and steel towers.

I crossed back over the bridge to arrive at River Landing, an inviting place with sculptures, pavilions, and a busy spray park where families of many different ethnicities were enjoying the warm summer evening.

I rested for a while on a shaded bench and then walked further upstream and out onto the next bridge (Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge) to take in this view back towards River Landing,

and this view of the river and downstream bridges,

and then this view of people enjoying the coolness of a dip in the river from the east bank.

At this point I was feeling quite warm myself and decided to return to my car. As I arrived back at the Traffic Bridge, I saw that many of the participants of the “Cancel Canada Day – Bring Them Home” event were beginning a march over the bridge, reminding me again that this was indeed a different kind of Canada Day, but one I think that needed to be had.

May all of us live together in peace and harmony, with tolerance, respect, compassion, and understanding among our guiding principles. O Canada. Goodnight everyone.

Western Road Trip – Hiding out in Saskatoon

July 2, 2021

In the end, I decided to head straight to Saskatoon instead of trying to camp because the forecast was calling for 35 degrees on July 1st, and 39 degrees today. I would rather be camping, but decided that it was better to err on the side of caution and stay cool in an air-conditioned hotel room!

For the past two weeks I have been travelling mostly on secondary highways and gravel roads, and have often been the only one on the road except for a few local pickups and work trucks, so it was a change to drive the busy and fast freeway between Regina and Saskatoon. I was happy though as the scenery continued to delight me and I saw my first field of blue-flowered flax and several beautiful hawks soaring. I was also entertained for a time by the radio and enjoyed Jack FM’s, Sherry & Woody’s Canada Day Countdown of the “Greatest Canadian Artists of all Time” (“more Canadian than a heritage moment” said Sherry). I don’t necessarily agree with the countdown line-up, derived from listener votes on social media platforms, but it was very fun to listen to some classic Canadian tunes while zooming along in central Saskatchewan! Here is the Countdown playlist in case you’re curious!

10. April Wine – Sign of the Gypsy Queen

9. Loverboy – Everybody’s Working for the Weekend

8. Kenny Shields (Streetheart) – Under my Thumb

7. BTO – Takin’ Care of Business (very big when I was in Junior High!)

6. Alanis Morissette – You Oughta Know

5. Rush – Closer to the Heart

4. Burton Cummings (Guess Who) – American Woman

3. Neil Young (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) – Ohio

2. Bryan Adams – Summer of ’69

1 Tragically Hip – Courage

I made one stop on the two and a half hour journey when I saw a grouping of American Pelicans on a sand bar at the south end of Blackstrap Lake. They were preening themselves happily in the sun and I was very excited to watch them for a few moments.

Zoomed in views also revealed that gulls, crows, ducks, and a cormorant were sharing the sand bars with the pelicans.

Upon arrival in Saskatoon, I initially got a bit lost on their crazy system of freeways where multiple highways converge and split and there’s a freeway ring road with multiple names and I had to exit more than once to reorient myself!

Huh? Darn Saskatoon Freeway Signs! (Safety note – I took this photo while walking, not while driving!)

One missed exit though meant that I drove over the Gordie Howe bridge for a stunning first view of the wide, curving, sparkling, and tree-lined South Saskatchewan River. Wow! What a river! A long, roaring train, with some double-decker cars, was running parallel to me on the adjacent train bridge as I drove along, adding to the excitement. A picture was impossible of course!

Once turned around, I successfully found my way to my planned destination, Saskatoon’s Western Development Museum – Boomtown. Largely geared to the early settler experience in Saskatchewan, this was a massive museum and very well presented. The first section was an entire fictional town, circa 1910, where you walk along on wooden sidewalks in “Boomtown” peering into more than 30 various homes and business to see artefacts from the era.

Here are some interior shots of the one room school house, pharmacy, and clockworks.

At the end of Main Street there was a beautiful old locomotive engine on tracks, and a full-sized train station with someone on the platform waiting for a train! Interpretive boards explained that the railways were critical to the existence of prairie towns and villages. It brought settlers and their necessary supplies, and transported their agricultural products to distant markets. On my travels in southern Saskatchewan I saw how many small towns have been adversely affected in recent decades with the closure of rail lines.

I spent quite a bit of time reading about the Metis and I admired the artistry of the embroidery and beadwork in these Metis garments, rifle cover, and bags. In the next few days I will be travelling to historical Metis villages and to some of the battle sites of the Metis Rebellion.

There were old photographs and personal accounts accompanying many of the displays throughout the museum, and I spent a lot of time reading about the Depression and Dust Bowl years. This quote really caught my eye,

“In the pioneer days we were all like little boats tossing on the prairie ocean of dry land, taking a chance on success or failure in an unpredictable adventure.” C. Evans Sargent, 1955.

There was a huge gallery filled with early tractors and farming implements. This is just one small part of it!

And, finally, there was one more gallery filled with classic cars which I almost skipped (having already been in the museum for more than two hours, and thinking that I wasn’t all that interested). But, I am very glad that I didn’t skip it. What a great collection of gorgeous machines!

Now, it is too difficult to choose just a few favourites to show you, and I know several people who would love to see them all, so please just scroll through to the end if you’re not that into cars!

I was 14 years old when this baby made its debut!

Yellow: Minneapolis-Moline UDLX Comfortractor, Red: 1954 Chevrolet 1/2 Ton Pickup Truck

Now, my Highlander doesn’t quite compare to some of these beauties, but I love it anyways! It helped me to brave the Saskatoon freeway system once again and after only one misstep I found my hotel and retired for a quiet afternoon of rest and then a nice swim. Unfortunately, today I have a rather loud family beside me in the hotel and all of their noise is coming through the connecting door so I’ll sign off now and go for a short walk to see what 36 degrees feels like! All my love and best regards to friends and family in B.C. and elsewhere.

Western Road Trip – I’m doin’ fine!

June 30, 2021

Hello everyone. This is just a very short blog post to let you all know that I am alive and doing well. I am currently in a Regina hotel for a second night, enjoying the AC and clean clothes! The heat wave that hit BC so badly is just starting here and I’ve spent the day googling campsites with shade and a good swimming lake. I think I have a plan now, but if it’s just too hot for camping, I’ll visit Saskatoon and spend another several days in a hotel until the heat settles down.

Prior to arriving in Regina, I camped for 14 consecutive nights in my Highlander! I have been having a great time and have seen absolutely gorgeous scenery, plenty of exciting wildlife (a rattlesnake rattled me!), and many historically significant sights. I can’t wait to blog about the places I have visited and share some photos, but that will likely have to wait until I get home as wifi, and my time, are very limited.

A field of canola, near Avonlea Saskatchewan, looking west toward the Dirt Hills.

I have decided to limit my current travels to the three western provinces after all. The Maritimes are getting ready to open up a little, but I have only had my first Covid vaccination which makes things more complicated – and each of the Atlantic provinces have different restrictions and requirements. Also, I am really enjoying the prairies and I have over a dozen places still that I’d like to visit in Saskatchewan, and plenty in Alberta as well so I expect that I’ll be on the road for at least another two to four weeks. Now, three more quick teaser photos, from west to east for you, and then I’ll say, “Goodnight, thanks for reading!”

Writing on Stone Provincial Park in Southern Alberta. I spent two glorious days here swimming in the Milk River, exploring the hoodoos, and learning about the special significance of this place to the Blackfoot and other indigenous tribes. The Sweet Grass Hills of Montana are in the distance.

An early evening view towards my Highlander parked at the Belza day use area in Grasslands National Park, West Block.

One of many picturesque grain elevators in southern Saskatchewan.

Goodnight, and thanks for reading!