The Last Legs of the Journey

It has been over three months since I arrived back home in Vancouver. I will try to do a quick catch up.  

After leaving my sisters place I went to Didsbury  to help a girlfriend move to Olds. Once the move was done, we managed to spend an afternoon touring   the area  between Didsbury and Sundre. The country side there is very pretty.

Just off the highway a few miles east of  Sundre

I took this picture in Davidson Park. It was lovely there and as you can see some young fellows were trying their luck at fishing. 

I also got to spend a few hours with a

 girlfriend from school that I had not seen

Joanne on her patio in Olds

 for years and it was great catching up

 with each other. Joanne and I vowed to keep in touch and we have. She is such  a super lady.

I was lucky enough to catch a ride as far as Salmon Arm, BC with Janette,  another very dear friend of mine, who just happened to be out in Alberta and heading  back towards Vancouver the same time I was. We had a wonderful trip together through the mountains and managed to stop numerous times to take pictures.

Kicking Horse River

Kicking Horse River

Marine Lake

Unfortunately it was very cold and  windy when we stopped at Marine Lake. We still took some time to enjoy the view though. I think it is one of the prettiest lakes in BC. 

Janette braving the cold wind at Marine Lake

We both took tons of pictures. Janette is an amazing artist so  I may see some paintings of the area in the future.  

We stopped at Canyon Hot Springs for a refreshing swim and then relaxed in the Hot Springs. It was wonderful. The view from the Springs is fantastic and the hot springs were just what we needed to get all the kinks out after several hours of driving. 

We stayed overnight in Salmon Arm. A big thanks to Janettes brother for letting us stay in his fifth wheel there. The next morning Janette drove me to Vernon to catch a bus back to Vancouver and she went off to her painting workshop.

The bus trip back home was great as the scenery was beautiful all the way home. We were high enough up in the mountains at one point to find ourselves in  a snowstorm. 

This picture was taken through the bus window so is a bit blurry.

West of Vernon

After several hours and numerous stops we finally reached the Vancouver Greyhound Depot where my daughter was waiting to meet me. After seven months ( the longest we had ever been apart), I finally got to wrap her in my arms. It was so good to be with her again. I did not ever want to let go. It was so good to be home. 

Winter on the Ranch

I have been staying on the ranch with my sister since arriving back in Canada so have really been immersed in  the Canadian Winter experience. There is a lot of snow here still. We were nearly getting rid of the white stuff and then a bad storm hit this past weekend and gave us another huge dump of snow.  We drove to  Hanna on Saturday to watch my great niece in another dance review and ended up driving home in a terrible storm.

We  plowed through a lot of snowdrifts and experienced some total white-outs. It was a bit of a hairy journey.  Fortunately, my brother-in-law had come with us so he was doing the driving.

I took the picture on the left through the windshield.






It took a lot of snow removal work to get rid of the snow that the storm dumped at the ranch. There was so much snow piled everywhere and paths needed to be plowed in order to get to the feed  and then get the feed to the cattle.  It was a full days job and kept my sister and her husband very busy  on machinery all day.   These kinds of storms are not at all welcome, particularly this time of year as it is calving season.  Thankfully, all the animals came through the storm well and  the past few days have seen a lot of the snow start to melt away.

 My sister and her husband raise  purebred Texas Longhorns. When I first arrived here it took me a couple of visits to the pasture and corrals for me  to get past the horns.

 But I soon saw how gentle they are and  I  am totally comfortable being around  them now.

Making friends

This young  heifer is just checking me out. I think she is likely admiring my stylish attire.













They are beautiful animals and the new born calves  are such a joy to watch.

Getting a talking to from mom

I am trying to make myself useful here helping out with whatever I can. I love the ranch life and find I really miss it. It guess that it is true that you can take the girl out of the country but you can't take the country out of the girl. This time at the ranch  is just what I needed to get myself grounded  again after the winter holiday in Texas and prepare myself for going back to the hectic pace of the big city.

Macey's Dance Review

I have been enjoying time with family since returning to Canada. Last weekend I went to Brooks with my niece Tammy  and  her daughter Macey to watch Macey  in her first Dance Review. Macey does both ballet and tap dancing.

 The Dance Review included groups of all ages and  it was  conducted in a very professional manner. The best part though was that it was clear that everyone was having a good time.

Going through the steps one last time. Concentration.

 It was fun watching all the young people go through their warm ups in the gym before going on stage.

Tammy and Macey

Of course, there is a lot of preparation before going on the stage. Hair and make up must be touched up. Macey loves this part.

Macey and friend

One last practice before the show. Is this cute or what?

As you can see from the smiles, these girls are confident that they know their steps.

Almost ready to go!

There are no pictures allowed once the dancing starts on stage but I can tell you that Macey's dance team had their steps down pat and  won not only a silver medal but were given a "Most Promising Group" award. And yes, I am a very proud great aunt!

It was a wonderful day!

The Last Day

This blog is a little late getting posted. I have been back in Canada for 3 days now but my priority has been to spend time with my family here that I have been away from for so long.

Our last day started at 5:30 am. We were both anxious to get the miles behind us and beat the bad weather that was reportedly moving in. We crossed the  border into Canada just after 7 a.m.   It was good to see those Canadian Flags. I had been out of my country for  5 months-the longest I had ever been out of my country. I had a great time in the USA but it was good to be back in Canada. I am a very proud Canadian who truly loves her country.   Anna pulled over when we got to the Welcome to Alberta sign and as I rolled down my window and felt the cold air I couldn't believe that it could be that much colder than it was at our campground in  Shelby this morning.

 As we crossed over the prairie landscape, there was no sign of green. We passed many huge flocks of geese migrating north.

 Although most of the landscape was like the picture above we did  pass through some beautiful  valleys

Approaching Milk River

We passed through Taber, best known for growing the best corn in Alberta.

As we edged farther north we started seeing a bit of snow in the ditches and fields. By the time we

 passed Brooks we were seeing A LOT of snow.

We felt lucky that at least  the snow was not falling from the sky.  We stopped at Cactus Corner

 at the intersection of Highway 9 and Highway 36 and were told that it was snowing in the Didsbury

 area which is close to where Anna lives. This was not good news.

 As we approached the town of Hanna, I couldn't resist taking a picture of the Canada Grey Goose

 on the east side of town that greets all visitors.This area is famous for being in the flight path 

of the Canada Grey. 

This goose stands on the West side of town

 at the end of Main Street.

We met up with my sister Linda and I was thrilled to see that she had my niece Tammy and her two

 wonderful children Denton and Macey with her. A BIG bonus for me. After a delicious lunch at

 Tammy's house we all went to the nursing home to spend the afternoon with  my mom. It was

 so good to see her. We had a wonderful day. It got even better when we brought the kids back

 to the ranch with us to spend the night. 

And so my adventure of being a Winter Texan ends. It will take me awhile to get back in the groove

 as I am still flooded with memories of my trip. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity 

to spend a winter "practicing" retirement.  I am so glad that Anna kept calling and emailing me

 all those months last winter and spring to persuade me to come with her on the trip.  Sometimes 

in life one just needs to chuck it all and head off on an adventure. I am grateful for the support

 of great friends in Vancouver who didn't tell me I was crazy for getting rid of most of my 

earthly belongings to make this trip and to my friends Gordie and Janette for letting me store some
 things at their places. 

Thank you  so much.

To all my Winter Texan friends  let me say it was indeed a great pleasure to get to know you.

 You are special beyond words. 

And so this journey ends.  I will stay here  in Alberta for about a month before I return to Vancouver.

Perhaps I will share some Alberta adventures from time to time while I am here.

What will be next?  Stay tuned. 

Quote for the Day

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do 
than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor.
 Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

~ Mark Twain

Last night in the USA

This is our last night in the USA. We left Lewistown around 9 am this morning. We could have left sooner but the water hose froze up and we wanted to fill the tank up before we left. We went out for breakfast while the sun warmed the hose and sure enough when we returned the sun had done its job.

We headed down Highway 87, drove through Great Falls and took  the I -15 up to Shelby.

It was a nice sunny day but the drive seemed long today. Possibly because the landscape didn't vary too much for the most part.  Most of the land was ranch land but we did see some farm land here and there as we did yesterday. 

We travelled up  some fairly large hills but "the ole girl" as we call the MH made it up without a problem.

I think it must get pretty windy  here as a lot of the ranchers have their house built in little places like this where they are sheltered by the hills. 

We got to Shelby and after asking a few questions we found a campground outside of town. We unhooked the car and went into town for a late lunch at Ringside Ribs. It was an interesting place.

I saw my first Easter Bunny Tree. It had Easter Egg lights and as you can see, an Easter bunny at the top and all around. Someone at the restaurant has a great sense of humor.

Behind the tree was a group of pictures of some famous boxers and their stories. Below is the one of Jack Dempsey.

We returned to the campsite and hooked up the car for the last time on this trip. Tonight I pack up all my gear. Tomorrow  we will be driving to Hanna, Alberta where my sister will pick me up and Anna will continue down the road to Three Hills where she will stay for the summer. I will stay in Alberta for a month and then return to Vancouver, BC.

We have had a wonderful trip. I have met so many wonderful people, had such great times,  and seen so many amazing things. My memory card is more than full.  

One more day on the road.

Keep warm.

Quote for the day:

"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. To keep our faces toward change, and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable." —Helen Keller

Montana

We had another early start this morning. Had to dump our tanks and fill up with water and then we were on our way shortly after 7:30 am.  We took Highway 90 up across the border into Montana and  up and across through Billings and then we took  the 87 to Lewistown. We were originally only going to go as far as Roundup but we got to Roundup around noon and could not see the point of quitting then so we carried on.

We saw some spectacular country today. Had to stop once to take some pictures but most I just took while we were driving.

As you can see we still had some mountains in view  today.

There were some bits of snow lying around throughout the day.

This is my "almost perfect" shot of the day.  Due to the bright sunlight I could not see in my monitor so was just guessing . Unfortunately, I missed most of the mountains. But on the bright side I did get the moon and the beautiful sky.













The landscape changed a lot throughout the day. We saw everything from flat land like in the picture below

to beautiful rolling landscape with mountains in the background like this one below.

 Several miles east of  Lewistown on Highway 87

It was an amazing day.














We drove into Lewistown and discovered  a pretty town with beautiful scenery all around us. We decided it would be a perfect place to end the day.  After getting set up  we walked to the 4 Aces for a lovely lunch of taco salad and just relaxed there for awhile.

The room off the restaurant was a Casino so we decided to try our luck again. My luck stayed true to form. I lost about $6.00 on a nickel machine. Anna was playing the only penny machine in the place and won $100.00. This woman is some kind of lucky.

We took a walk about the town and took some pictures of some beautiful old buildings.

Downtown Lewistown 

Can you believe this building was built in 1904?













 We stopped at an Art Gallery that had some very nice  paintings, mostly from Montana artists. I would loved to have brought a couple of them home with me.

We returned to the MH and decided to just veg out for the evening so we can get an early start tomorrow. We are planning to go to Shelby tomorrow and then home the next day. Not long now.

Keep warm.

Quote for the day:

Smiles are rays of sunshine from the soul. Spread the rays.

Brenda Zeimer (that would be me)

Beautiful Wyoming

We were on the road extra early this morning and drove into Douglas for breakfast at 6:30 am. It was cold last night and as our furnace is not working again we were grateful for warm blankets. It wasn't cold for sleeping but it sure was cold when we got up to get ready. There was frost on the ground and much on the car.  It is a good thing that we are tough Canadian girls.

I love Wyoming. It is a beautiful state where you can see forever. Lots of huge, rolling hills and we passed by many small herds of antelope.

Antelope in Wyoming

We passed by a huge Open Pit Coal Mining operation. I couldn't get a decent picture of it but it was at least 1/2 mile long.
We passed a sheep ranch and also a ranch that had a large herd of buffalo.

Today we have had mountains ahead of us and  off to our left. Those mountains have an awful pile of snow on top of them still.

Mountains in Wyoming

We have been bucking a bad wind for most of the day today so when we reached Buffalo we decided to call

 it a day. We  are staying at The Indian Campground right in town and we have power so it will be warm

 tonight. Tomorrow if the weather allows we will head to Montana.

Keep warm.

Quote for the day:

 None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm.

 Henry David Thoreau

Wyoming

We got an early start this morning and were on the road by 7:30 am. We drove up the 281 through North Platte to Highway 30. I caught a picture of a nice mural as we were going through.

 We stopped at a place called Paxon and had breakfast at a place called Ollies Big Game  Steak House and Lounge. This place was originally started Rosser O. Hersledt in 1933 after prohibition ended.

Ollie was  a big game hunter and for 35 years he hunted on  every continent. The place has been added on to over the years and now consists of a large restaurant and a large lounge. Along the walls, and in some cases on the floor, he has about 100 different kinds of animals that he has hunted. Many of the animals were taken from Africa. There is an elephant,a giraffe, a water buffalo, and a polar bear, just to name a few.

This place is apparently quite famous and has been visited by people like Jack Dempsey and numerous other politicians, singers and actors.

After  a hearty breakfast, we continued down the highway. When we got to Ogallala I saw a street similar to the one we saw at Dodge City.

Frontier Street in Ogallala

We were seeing some snow in the ditches here and there and crossed our fingers.  The land is much prettier than what we saw in Kansas and I was taking lots of pictures as we were driving along.  Much of it is farmland but we are seeing lots of pasture also.

It was hilly in places and off to the side there were buffs similar to what we see in Alberta.

Here is Anna taking a break next to one of the bluffs.

We crossed over the Oregon Trail where the wagon trains used to come through. At 12:30 we crossed the border into Wyoming.  It is very beautiful. Lots of big rolling hills.  To the far north we could see the Black Hills.

As we approached Glendo we could see what looked like snow  coming down over the mountains to our left and rain coming down to our right. Where we were driving it was clear and sunny.

The Glendo Res. which the North Platte River flows into was to our right and I could not resist snapping some pictures as we drove by.

 We seemed to be right between two storms.

About 10 miles from Douglas we found a place along the highway where we could pull over and park so we decided we would call it a day. We have been on the road for over 8 hours and that is enough.  Anna drove nearly 300 miles today. Time for a break. 

Keep warm.

Nebraska

This morning we went to get our free breakfast and found out the restaurant did not open for breakfast until 11am so we had to pass as we wanted to hit the road early.

The landscape remained unchanged. As it is winter everything is rather gray. No green here at all. We passed by some snow in the ditches  along the way. Drove across the border into Nebraska around noon. The landscape got  hillier. It seemed that we were always either going up a hill or down.

Nebraska

We found a State Park south of North Platte and decided to call it a day.  The campground is on Lake Mahoney and is very pretty.

Campgrounds on Lake Mahoney

 There are campsite on both sides of the lake. We stayed on the closest side and can park here for $7.00 a night. We have no hook ups but there is a dump station so that is really all we need. There is supposed to be a storm coming in tonight. They really need rain in this area so it will likely be welcome.

Around 6 pm the camp host, who was parked across from us,  came to the MH to warn us that there was a tornado watch out and that there had been one that had  touched down across  the lake.  He told us to keep an eye out and if we saw anything we were to run for the building next door and he would come and unlock the building and the three of us would hide there until it passed over.  Anna and I spent the next couple of hours watching rain and hail and looking for tornados. Thank goodness none materialized.  Being in a tornado is definitely NOT on my bucket list.

Keep warm.

Quote for the day:

What lies behind us and what lies before us are small matter compared to what lies within us.

Ralph Waldo Emerson