Through Saskatchewan (Day 1+2)

I got home from my last charter at around midnight and had slept 6hrs. when I woke up shortly before 6am. After kinda finding out where I was (feeling dazed) I let out Molly and made coffee. It was going to be another long day. 

Molly ready to go.

First we had to pack the last stuff, Bea was busy cleaning the rig and I was collecting lose items stored outside. Then we had to drive to town to get the other van back from where we had parked it after our sightseeing van had received a new AC-unit.
Next thing was dumping the trailer at the near-by RV park. 

Beaver House in a slough

Ukrainian Village along Highway 16 (Trans Canada)

At around 12noon we said Good By to our friend and headed out into traffic. Our goal was the Pike Lake Prov.Park at Saskatoon,SK. It's over 500 clicks away and with cruise control engaged we settled into a leisurely driving mode. 

Old and New - Agriculture and Oil at Lloydminster

Red Poles marking the Alberta/Saskatchewan border in Lloydminster

There is no point in rushing down the highway if you have to go that far. We stopped for a McWrap at Lloydminster and an ice cream in another place farther down the highway. Carol, our friend was waiting with supper and since the weather was incredibly warm we ate on her deck overlooking Pike Lake.

For us it was a key experience. After being part of the constant noisy big-city-rush, the peace and quiet with song bird entertainment was so beautiful that it all-of-a-sudden became clear to us how much we had really missed it.

When the clock struck 10pm we were both ready to hit the sack. I fell into a deep sleep but woke up at 5am of being way too hot. 

And the day got hot again real quick. Predicted temps are in the high 80s (31C) Carol prepared a gorgeous breakfast and again we were having it on her deck, breathing the peace of this great place.

Tomorrow we will be heading on into North Dakota seeing more friends. 

The Last Week

The last week has started, and we are getting antsy to hit the road. We decided to leave the trailer in Alberta as we really don't need it at home. It also makes it possible to return to Alberta for shorter periods if the need should arise. My bus company has let me know that they would love me to come back. But for now we are east-bound.
Our sightseeing van is in the shop to get the AC checked out. It already acted up last year back in California and we can't drive guests around if the AC is not working. Besides it's gonna be a hot drive across the country with a working AC. Thinking also of Molly.

Right now, the weather has taken a turn to the wet and cold, but come the weekend we'll be back in the high 20C-range.

Seems like the last three days are gonna be very busy as I am dispatched for a 3-day trip south in the province, which will keep me busy from Thursday on.

After being back in New Brunswick I will be working out a bus round trip through the Maritimes for my employer. We think that people from Western Canada might jump on the chance to see the beautiful east of the country. (Americans are welcome too :-))

And that was the daily news.

Thanks for dropping by.

What A Bummer!

Have you ever forgotten your marriage anniversary? That is if indeed you are married.

I can say that I have remembered it every year,

But not this year!

Was Bea dismayed by it?

No! She didn’t remember it either. But then this morning Bea had an email in her browser, congratulating us to this day.  We laughed and couldn’t believe that we both had forgotten OUR day. 28 years have passed with a lot of fun, with incredible journeys, with excitement but also with grey days nobody likes to remember.

May 30 is also the day when we arrived in Canada in 2002.

We often think of so many younger couples, their marriages ending after a short time before a judge, and we understand how blessed we have been.

We are so looking forward to every new year we can enjoy together.

Stranded Powerless

It was one of those days where I wished I had stayed in bed. And it was Friday as well, though not the 13th.
I had been dispatched on a run up north and was back with 12 passengers who all were eager to get to the big city, where one or the other business was waiting for them.
We were happily crusin’ down the highway when suddenly I felt a significant loss of power in my MCI coach. In fact I noticed we were just merely coasting with no motor power whatsoever.
Realizing something was very wrong I steered the bus onto a rather narrow shoulder where it rolled another few meters before it stopped entirely.

Any further attempt to re-start the engine was answered with an eerie quite. Flipping on my hazard lights didn’t bring any reaction either.

We had broken down with absolutely no electric power. Checking head lights I was greeted with the faintest glow. I remembered that I had been in a similar situation many years ago with an older motor home we owned at the time. Most likely our alternator had quit working.
Now, it was pure luck that we had cell phone reception, which, in these northern wilderness parts can be tricky at times. I managed to alert the company from where we were promised help would arrive in three ways: A tow truck would be dispatched, a company bus would be starting on the 2hr.-run from the city and another (school)bus would be dispatched from the other direction up north.
So, the race for rescuing us was on.

It turned out to be the race of snails. Time was ticking by, and my cell phone would ring every so often to inform us about rescue progress.

I had to do something to keep my passengers happy so I told them a story. It was the story of a hiker in the wilderness who got to a river he had to cross. Without any fort or bridge in sight, he started to search upriver for a way to get across. Pretty soon he found an Indian sitting by a fire boiling water for coffee. Down by the river he had a canoe.
So the hiker, who is from a big city in the south, asks the Indian whether he would get him across the river in his canoe.

The Indian says sure, but is just about pouring himself a coffee. The hiker sits down on a tree stump and waits. After the longest time and many coffee cups later the hiker gets to his feet asking whether the Indian could now get down to business and get him across the river. “Soon” is the Indian’s answer, as he lights up a cigarette. Hiker sits down again. A few cigarettes later the hiker is making another attempt of getting the Indian to ferry him across the water. But now some impatience has sneaked into his voice, so the Indian notices.

When the Indian finally turns around he says to the hiker: “If you are in such a hurry, why didn’t you come yesterday?”

Yes, why didn’t I drive the day before? Or the next day? 
After 3 hrs. a school bus and the tow truck, a huge semi, arrived from the north at the same time. Meanwhile, the other bus coming from the south had received order to turn back to the city.

We all arrived Edmonton very, very tired at 11:30pm. 1 gentleman missed his flight, another missed his Greyhound connection out west. But I guess all were happy as can be to get off the road.

And the “Picture of the Day”:

REDNECKS IN TOWN