#41 Jul 2014 Winnipeg Experiences

When we arrived in Winnipeg we setup the RV and just made it inside when the first raindrops fell. They kept falling and blowing for nearly 2 days. Wind gusts up to 80 k per hour rocked the RV very unpredictably. Lightning and thunder were sporadic but the wind and rain were not. We were “housebound”.

That was the beginning of the dramatic flooding, particularly around Brandon. Culverts, creeks and rivers overflowed, washing away fields and roads and creating new sloughs and lakes.

Dozens of military personnel and vehicles were called in to help clean up the mess and debris.

Ducks and geese flourished in all the water.

Family discussions seem to occur everywhere.

When the rain let up we explored the Royal Canadian Mint.

Ralph is hefting half a million dollars of solid gold weighing 23 pounds – chained to the pedestal and watched carefully by Mint security.

The Winnipeg Mint produces all the coins for circulation in Canada. It has also made coins for almost half of the world’s countries. When we lived in Papua New Guinea in 1978 we were tickled to discover that the local coins were created in Canada. The Parade of Flags shows all those countries including Papua New Guinea (top of the second photo).

The wind continued on Canada Day with a lovely prairie sunset. The RV park is on the edge of the city and surrounded by farms. We drove a short distance and watched fireworks in many directions but stayed in the car to avoid the hordes of mosquitos.

The Assiniboine River joins the Red River at “The Forks” which is Winnipeg’s answer to Vancouver’s Granville Island. The shops are interesting and unique but we are not really into shopping with limited space in the RV. Ralph doesn’t believe me about shopping but I usually come out of the shops empty handed.

For over 6,000 years The Forks was a major meeting place for the First Nations people, fur traders and immigrants. Winnipeg became the “Gateway to the West” and was the starting point for Treaty No 1 and the opening of the west to homesteaders. The need for policing led to the establishment of the North West Mounted Police.

The rich, flat agricultural land is prone to flooding and changing the historic park walks.

In Steinbach we explored the Mennonite Heritage Village. My father grew up in Herbert, SK in a Mennonite family but I knew very little about his family history. At the Village I was able to connect bits of information from Dad's family and the well presented story showing the evolution of the Mennonite beliefs and customs starting from 1525.

The first families to arrive in Steinbach in 1874 had to quickly build Semlins or sod huts before winter. Being built into the ground kept the homes better insulated in the winter and summer.

When permanent homes were built barns were often attached. The homes were heated from a central brick oven with openings to each room.

We heard a lot of advertising for the re-opening of the Winnipeg Zoo with a new exhibit “Journey to Churchill”. Our visit was well worth the early start to avoid the crowds.

The polar bear compound looks like a realistic summer in the Arctic.

People can walk through a tunnel under the bear’s water world. We waited a few times but never saw the bears over our heads.

The bears are being trained to respond to human signals as part of their stimulation and exercise.

The display of different inuksuits showed how the cairns were used in the North.

This peacock certainly fit the saying “as proud as a peacock”.

#40 Aug 2014 We're Back!

When we left Surrey May 10^th we planned to visit family and friends in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Well, that extended to Kenora, On and what a good time we had. Lots of people we had not seen for years and many whom we have not seen very often.

When we left Winnipeg July 5^th we finally ditched the rain and found the sun and heat. Every day we were visiting or driving and time flew past. I take photos and Ralph keeps a diary but there was no time to put them together in posts for the blog.

August 1^st we returned to Surrey and setup in Peace Arch RV Park. We will enjoy the good west coast weather until late fall then head south to avoid winter again.

I'm backtracking and posting about our travels during July to bring everyone up-to-date. We hope everyone is having as much fun this summer as we are.

Retirement is Great!

#39 Jun 2014 Lake of the Woods

The day we arrived in Regina we discovered Neil and Nancy from High River, AB had driven through Regina on their way to Kenora ON at the same time as we were setting up the RV. We have known them for over 30 years and heard about their camp on Lake of the Woods. They pointed out that Kenora is only an 8 hour drive from Regina. Hmmm?

We have options and very few scheduled dates. Let’s go!

Tuesday, June 24th we started getting ready to head east when Ralph noticed the surge protector was flashing red. That usually means the power from the park is a problem. The maintenance man checked the park source and confirmed it was OK. Well, we will check it when we arrive in Winnipeg. In Winnipeg it was still giving the same message so we contacted a local RV repair centre but no appointments were available until Wednesday.

We decided to leave the RV in Winnipeg while we were in Kenora. We only needed power to keep the fridge running so left everything off and set out for Kenora, now only a 2-hour drive.

As we drove east the scenery changed very quickly, with bedrock showing in many places as we approached the Canadian Shield.

There are miles and miles of trees, muskeg and rock.

It is a rather desolate drive on that stretch of the Trans Canada with only a few small communities and no Telus cell service.

We left Surrey May 10th. Since then we have only had one full day of sunshine. We have been waiting for summer and thought we had brought it to Kenora with us. As we approached the city we were blinded by blue sky and sunshine. It is on Lake of the Woods and is a summer tourist destination. At the waterfront we saw a brand new restaurant surrounded by water. It is supposed to be ON the shore, not IN the water.

Neil and Nancy have a cabin on Coney Island, less than a 5 minute boat ride from the city.

Their cabin has all the comforts of home plus a beautiful, peaceful view of the lake and forest.

A friend of theirs made very good use of stumps in the yard.

We saw deer crossing the lawn and heard many birds. The highlight was seeing a turtle that had come ashore to lay her eggs.

Thursday dawned overcast and muggy - so much for sunshine. Neil always has a project underway. Ralph was able to help him and have an opportunity to work hard and feel good about it.

We made time for a patio break in Kenora to enjoy local beer and food in the converted fire station.

The men were very productive and the ladies caught up on family news and life in general. We walked to the beach and saw the floating docks being weighted down to keep them from floating away.

The owners likely did not expect to use the large blue flowerpots as dock weights.

The water was cold but some people made the best of the weather.

Friday the men kept working despite the mosquitos. We have been spoiled in Surrey with very few bugs. This was a refresher about mosquitos and lots of water. Nancy and I escaped to Kenora to check out the local shops.

Saturday Ralph helped Neil as much as possible then we headed to the boat. The lake had continued to rise and water was sloshing over the dock.

I like to be on the water, not in it. That was a bit unnerving.

We really enjoyed our visit and finally seeing their camp after hearing about it over so many years of friendship.

We checked out Husky the Muskie and headed west.

That was our farthest point east in this adventure.

#38 Jun 2014 Dead Sea of Canada and Al Capone

When we were at the sand dunes my DSLR camera stopped – just stopped. I have upgraded and passed on my old cameras but never due to any malfunction. I was dumbfounded. What to do now? I grudgingly started using my IPhone and small point and shoot camera. That was very unsatisfactory but I did get some photos. Ralph says the withdrawal symptoms were not nice.

I have used Sony cameras for years and really like their product. I contacted Sony service centre and we tried a few ideas but when the camera did not turn on there were not many options. When we moved from the townhouse I mistakenly kept the wrong invoice for the camera so I have to search for it to see if I have warranty. Even with warranty I would be without my camera for a few weeks.

Our next destination was Watrous, SK near Little Manitou Lake, the “Dead Sea of Canada”. Yes, it compares to the Dead Sea in saltiness and minerals. Over the last few years the rain has increased the water level in the lake and flooded the community of Manitou Beach. Dikes have not been adequate to contain the rising lake.

The gazebo, playground equipment and picnic tables are surrounded by water.

The hotel has a spa and swimming pool with water pumped in from the lake. We finally tried out our 6 month old bathing suits. You really cannot sink in the water. When sitting on the ledge underwater your body floats upward unless you intentionally hold it down.

We took a laundry and housecleaning day but the rain continued so we headed for Regina.

Our first stop was London Drugs where I have always had excellent service and camera information. Over a 24 hour period we spent several hours reviewing the current cameras at London Drugs and a local camera shop. Our heads were spinning with information and choices. We finally choose a Sony A58 camera and life was back to normal.

Our trip to Regina was planned around the Saskatchewan Roughriders pre-season game against Edmonton. Ralph was born in Saskatchewan; therefore, he will always cheer for the Roughriders. Edmonton won 19 to 14 but being at a home game is what mattered to Ralph.

We were covered with green ponchos in and under the stadium. It is old and leaky. The new one will be very welcome.

In Regina we connected with our grandson Joey and visited the RCMP Heritage Centre. The story of Canada’s police force is well described and ties in with our visit to Fort Walsh in Cypress Hills. Ralph was especially intrigued with the Bombardier snowmobile used by the RCMP in the north AND at the Columbia Icefield to carry tourists onto the Icefield in the 1960s where we first met.

The RCMP has used many modes of transportation over the years.

One display takes you through a real crime scene. There are several clues and different technologies to utilize and try to identify the killer. Each clue has several scenarios and we worked together to find the answers. We won’t take up detective work any time soon!

We also took Joey to The Tunnels in Moose Jaw. They were constructed as part of the heating system of boilers underneath downtown Moose Jaw. No photography is allowed in the Tunnels.

The tour about the Chinese immigrants in the tunnels would have been interesting except the tour guide spoke far too fast to keep up with the information.

In today’s world it is difficult to understand the attitude towards the Chinese that forced them to live their lives underground in order to avoid the prejudice of the community.

The tour about Al Capone was presented as if the group were rumrunners. It was inter-active and some tour members were assigned duties such as might have happened during prohibition in the 1920s. We were taken through the tunnels as if we were Mr. Capone's customers coming to purchase his liquor.

Overall we were all disappointed with the tours. One was presented too quickly and the Capone tour had very little actual history. We don’t know which tunnels were original, how long they were used by the Chinese and Al Capone, how extensive they are or how many tunnels remain today.

Moose Jaw is home to “Mac” the world’s largest moose.

It is also home of the 431 squadron known as the “Snowbirds”.