Across Canada Week One: July 17 - July 24, 2023

 

And we're off! All the months of dreaming and planning pointed to this day when we began our 11-week adventure across Canada. 

We left Vancouver Island in the afternoon, headed for Abbotsford where we mooch-docked at my parents' home. 

(18th July) Up early the next morning for the drive across BC. Our plan was to zoom across the west, covering a province a day. We stopped at Yard Creek Provincial Park for 90 minutes to eat lunch and take a walk. Driving through the mountains is always beautiful. 

We had hoped to get to Calgary, but an hour's delay west of Banff due to paving had us looking for something closer. Plan B was the municipal campground in Canmore, but it was full. IOverlander took us to Plan C, a small municipal campground in Exshaw. Tucked into trees beside the river, we did hear the trains in the night, but they didn't bother us. There was a nice hiking trail along the river that we enjoyed. 

(19th July) Next stop - Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Driving through Alberta we noticed how dry the fields were. Nothing grew. Fortunately, as we travelled east the fields greened up considerably. Fairly light traffic. We stayed at the Prairie Oasis Campground - an okay site, not private, but shaded by big trees. Free showers. 

(19th July) Next stop - Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Driving through Alberta we noticed how dry the fields were. Nothing grew. Fortunately, as we travelled east the fields greened up considerably. Fairly light traffic. We stayed at the Prairie Oasis Campground - an okay site, not private, but shaded by big trees. Free showers. 

Austin, MB

(20th July) Up with the birds. More canola and grain fields, beautiful in the morning light. Into Manitoba where there are very very few rest areas. We pulled into the small town of Austin and parked in front of the postage-stamp sized Fireman's Park for our lunch, followed by a walk around town. An old grain elevator, quiet streets with modest homes set on green, neatly cared for lawns. Flourishing vegetable gardens. 

Carried on to Niverville, just south of Winnipeg where we mooch-docked on a friend's property. 

(21st July) A slower morning. We left our friends' place around 11:00 and had a long day of steady driving into Ontario, through Kenora and down to Kakebeka Falls, arriving at 8:30 local time. The provincial campsite was not full at all. We had a lovely treed site, quiet and peaceful. Nice washroom facilities and showers.

Kakebeka Falls, ON

(22nd July) Another slow morning. After breakfast we walked the Mountain Portage Loop to the Little Falls. It felt great to move after so many days of driving. The humidity and heat felt intense, and there were plenty of mosquitoes. 

Little Falls, Kakebeka Provincial Park, Ontario

We left Kakebeka Falls at 12:30. Lunch was a quick stop in Nipogon, quite late because of our late breakfast. Rain poured down while we ate and the coziness inside our Escape made me want to curl up and read. Instead, we drove a few more hours to Neys Provincial Park on the shore of Lake Superior. After dinner we walked down to the lake, immense as the ocean, but without the salt tang in the air and seaweed on the beach. Lovely, fine white sand, but so many grasshoppers! 

(23rd July) Our 46th wedding anniversary. We arrived at Blind River in the early afternoon and investigated a couple of boondocking sites. Very hot and humid. Showers were available at the marina, but the power was out (a scheduled outage), so we walked through town admiring some of the old homes and lovely gardens. Found a spot by Lake Huron in the shade of a large tree, brought out the folding chairs and enjoyed a cold drink while reading and looking at the lake. Later, we took our showers and then went to the end of Jetty Street where we, along with two other vehicles, spent a quiet night. The view of the lake was wonderful, and the breeze off the water cooling. 

(24th July) Drove to Caledon, ON, running into a construction delay, and later a fierce thunderstorm. The skies opened pouring heavy rain down for about 30 minutes. In Caledon we stayed with friends, and connected with a cousin.  

Boondocking on the jetty in Blind River, ON