Rocky Mountain High and Plains Drifters
Some of you may have thought we are still in Canada. When we last reported we were in Vancouver watching hockey. But that was just the first part of our Canadian adventure. This edition of the trip log has been a bit delayed by a trip to Georgia for a family reunion of Mrs. T's siblings and by the muse's preparations for her upcoming TREES show.
The second part of our Canadian adventure was in Manitoba, and to get there we took the train. This was not the train that some of you may see advertised as a "Canadian Rockies Adventure' or some such name. This was the regular cross-country passenger train. We took this nearly two-day trip to western Manitoba and Winnipeg to visit our many other met-in-Mexico Canadian friends. The train ride – beginning with more hockey at the train station in Vancouver - was wonderful and our visits were extraordinary. We especially thank Barrie and Helen, Dwain and Marlene, and Ron and Diane for graciously providing room and board.
We must note that at the time of our visit Manitoba was suffering some of its worst flooding ever. In the U.S. this did not receive the news coverage that it should have. While the flood in Minot, North Dakota made headlines, it was old news north of the border. The flood in Minot started in Canada and the water first flows south into North Dakota but then flows north again back into Manitoba. It is a one-two punch. The devastation in Manitoba was massive and we hope that they are recovering by now. Mysteriously the rain would usually stop and the sun would come out at the appropriate times for us.
Here is Mrs.T's travelogue with some pictures interspersed:
When we checked in to get on the train the guy wanted to check all of our bags. Well I was not having any of that!
"I need my small bag because it has my pills!" I stated firmly.
"Well we can check your large bag," the attendant suggested.
"I cannot wear the same clothes for three days, I will be stinky "(!), I complained.
'I will give you this little bag and you can unpack a few clothes into it," the attendant suggested. Obviously he had dealt with this problem before.
I viewed it suspiciously. It was a nice little cloth bag with a zipper and two pockets, not too roomy but large enough. I consented.
Now Dan was jealous because he did not get a bag since he had cooperatively relinquished his bag without complaint. Oh well, tough to be him.
We had a nice little compartment for the two of us with a teeny, tiny, toilet which flushed with alarming force. There were two nice chairs where you could sit and look out the window. At night our car steward, Joe, came around and somehow the chairs disappeared and two bunk beds folded out.
The train had an observation car. It had two levels; the downstairs was for playing games etc, and the upstairs had glass windows and ceiling so you had great views of everything. It was getting late and there wasn't a whole lot to see so we went to supper. It was excellent. How they cooked for everyone in that little kitchen I will never know.
When we got back the beds were made. I volunteered to take the top one. It has been a long time since I went to Girl Scout Camp. I carefully climbed the little ladder. One more step and I would be high enough to crawl onto the bed. BONG I bumped my head on the roof. When I had recovered a bit I did a swan dive over the top step of the ladder and landed with a belly flop on the bed. WOOF! "Victory," I thought. Of course it was almost worthwhile when I discovered a little chocolate on my pillow. I awoke in the middle of the night. Was it worth it to climb down the little ladder and brave the scary toilet or could I wait 'til morning? Well when you gotta go, you gotta go.
The next day after breakfast we went to the observation car. We were approaching the Rocky Mountains. This was why we had come. Looking out I understood why people everywhere, in all cultures and religions put their temples on the tops of mountains and their God(s) in the sky. There is something that makes us yearn upwards. The pure clear air leaves behind all that is small and meaningless. And when it seemed impossible that after hours of contemplation our spirits absorb any more the train climbed around a mountain and I saw an immense rainbow that arced from peak to peak ahead of us. As we descended we saw a second shadow rainbow beyond. Although we were speeding along it seemed that we would never reach the rainbows, but at last we did and I thought perhaps we weren't in Kansas anymore. As we came down, and always at last you do, we past foothills with forests and rivers and lakes and at last the plains.
As impressed as I was by the Rocky Mountains, I had expected to be. I was surprised to find the plains were also overwhelming. Columbus, Ohio, where we had lived for years is basically flat. But in central Canada you could see huge fields that stretched for miles upon miles.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9151458@N07/sets/72157627234322259/
After we had lunch the stewardess announced the next few stops. OOPS!! She did not mention Rivers where we planned to disembark.
"Oh yes, we know you are getting off at Rivers," she assured me with a smile.
If this was not a stop did they plan to slow down and shove us out the door, I mused.
"Your cabin steward will help you," she said.
"Your checked luggage will get off first," Joe explained. I had a mental image of our bags rolling themselves down a ramp. It seems the train was too long and the station was too small (about the size of our storage shed) for it to stop once. It would first stop to let our bags off and a lady in a forward car. Then the train would creep forward a few hundred yards and Joe would help us off. It went off like clockwork, but still I was greatly relieved to find we had our right luggage and that Barrie and Helen were waiting to pick us up. (The train was a bit late.) (We were required to yield to freight trains –dt)
This spring there was a lot of heavy flooding in central Canada. (And a lot of snow melt from Saskatchewan. –dt) The land is so flat the water has nowhere to go. (And it had already been saturated with snow and earlier rain. –dt) There were rivers that were far out of their banks and water sat on the sodden fields. Planting was impossible. (Crops here are primarily sunflower, canola, and flax. – dt) When we arrived the water had subsided a little bit still it was a disaster especially for the farmers. One river ran right beside Barrie and Helen's house. Every morning we could see how far it had crept up toward their house or receded. (This stream eventually fed the Assiniboine River. –dt) Their house was a lovingly cared for farm house that had been in Barrie's family for over 100 years. (It has been designated as a Century Farm. -dt)
The next day we toured the area and stopped at a little town called Boissevain. All over this town there were different murals. The murals were painted by local people in all different styles. I loved it. The town mascot was 'Tommy the Turtle'. ( http://www.boissevain.ca/visitors/turtlestatue.htm ) This was because the town was near the Turtle Mountains (rather small hills I thought but then I had just been through the Rockies.) Evidently a lot of turtles live in those mountains.
Next we went to the International Peace Garden. This park is half in North Dakota and half in Manitoba. It was opened in 1932 to celebrate the peaceful relationship between our two countries. What a lovely idea. (http://www.peacegarden.com/ -not to be confused with the International Peace Park, also on the US/Canadian border but at Montana and Alberta. -dt) There is a bell tower, the Peace Tower, Peace Chapel, fountains, and flowerbeds arranged symmetrically so that each side is nearly the same for each country. There is also a fantastic collection of cacti. We found a friendly gardener who took our picture at the border with Barrie and Helen in Canada and Dan and I in the US. As we left we all had to show our passports; I did not mention Mexico.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9151458@N07/sets/72157627359031454/
We visited Brandon which is the big city in the western part of Manitoba. This is close to where the Souris River and Assiniboine Rivers meet causing massive flooding in the region this year. In Brandon they had humongous sandbags protecting a particularly vulnerable retail area in a valley. Why Walmart and other major retailers had built in this area is a mystery. Probably the land was really cheap.
That night Helen made us a lovely supper and the highlight was Saskatoon Pie. These are little sweet red berries. I had never encountered them before but they are quite good! (Second that! –dt)
After Rivers Barrie and Helen kindly drove us to visit and stay with Dwain and Marlene in Winnipeg. Winnipeg was also flooding from the same rains. (The Assiniboine and Red Rivers meet in Winnipeg. –dt) But it is not quite as close to their house. In Winnipeg they took us to a restored shopping mall. Marlene and I really enjoyed looking at the old china and glass and antiques in a store there while the two D's waited patiently.
Then we went to Asssiniboine Park Gardens. This park really has several parts. There is an art gallery which had an original drawing of Winnie the Pooh, not to mention a lot of other interesting artists. There was some really excellent landscapes. One set of pictures was illustrations of different Canadian wildlife. This is really nice. There are formal gardens, a conservatory, and zoo. The formal gardens make me a little nervous for some reason. Then we came to the really exciting part - the sculpture garden.
The sculpture garden was my favorite part. Generally I am not fond of sculptures of people because they look like children posed for a school picture. But these were different- there is emotion and passion on these faces that gave you thought of what the real people must have been. As Shelley said,
"Tell that its sculptor well those passions read,
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed;…"
(from Ozymandias)
Of course I loved the animal sculptures. You would enter a little copse of trees and come upon two bear cubs tumbling playfully. On down the path, you freeze so as not to frighten a group of deer browsing quietly. And then you realize that they are not alive, at least not exactly. All these sculptures are by Leo Mol. He was a Winnnipegian who emigrated from the Ukraine. If you ever are in the area you should go. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Mol ; there are many pictures on the web. –dt)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9151458@N07/sets/72157627361919300/
We next went to see Ron and Diane on the other side of Winnipeg and stay at their cabin. The highlight of course was when Crystal brought over the baby. Every one who knows her knows that Diane would never be so overjoyed!! But Edwin was a happy peaceful child. He cheerfully endured being held by strangers. I love babies. Then we went to their cabin by Lake Winnipeg.
When I think 'cabin' I think of a little hut of logs with an outhouse. The cabins we visited are as nice as our home in Ohio. And the thing is all these clever and industrious Canadians did a lot of the work themselves. Lake Winnipeg is one tremendously huge lake. However as chance would have it many of our friends have cabins near each other. We visited Lorne and Audrey at their cabin down the lake a bit. Their cabin is in a more wooded area. There were lots of wild flowers. And we could see how the flooding had toppled a lot of trees along the shore. Meanwhile Ron and Diane and Ben and Road Bump were preparing for the party. Ben and Road Bump are two gorgeous golden retrievers. Road bump has another name (Barkley?) but he always wants to be near you so he lays down right in front of you so you step over him a lot. But Ron was getting the grill set up and Diane was getting the food organized so when we returned all we had to do was sit by the lake and watch the pelicans. (I didn't know pelicans came this far north but these were white pelicans.) There were also a couple of geese with thirty or forty goslings. Evidently this was the local equivalent of a goose day care center. I was amazed.
Then came the party. It was perfect. The weather was perfect. Cool but not raining. The food was great: grilled burgers, all the appropriate sides, a few new things that were interesting, and of course chocolate. The sun was lowering over the lake. I am still surprised at how late it is light in Canada. The evening was full of friends, laughing, talking, telling silly jokes, sharing interesting ideas. And just sitting back in front of the lake, absorbing it all, sipping, lemonade, wine, beer or whatever, feeling mellow while the evening slipped through the air, until the party ended.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9151458@N07/sets/72157627237727817/ (Hope I have at least one picture of everyone (thanks to those of you who sent them); too bad we did not do a group photo. Guess we will just need to visit again. –dt)
Sigh!! Our trip to Canada was over, and the next afternoon we flew home. (Thanks to Al and Louise for taking us to the airport. And thank goodness the Air Canada strike was over. –dt)
Thanks again to everyone up north. We had a fabulous time. See many of you this season down south.
Dan and Rebecca
www.casa-de-terrible.blogspot.com
