We’re rockin’ another busy summer of travel.
We left home July 1, and since then we’ve logged over 4000kms. For non-metric folk, that’s about 2500 miles. Along the way we visited–briefly–with friends and family, but mostly we cruised alone, the two of us and our travel trailer, aka, my mobile office.
Our first night out, we celebrated Canada Day in a forestry campground on Davis Lake, just outside of Merritt, B.C. Such a lovely setting. Hubs kayaked, while I chilled in the sun with a book. In the evening, we enjoyed staying toasty around a campfire, while listening the Loons call to each other over the glass-still water.
Our next two nights we camped at Kentucky-Allene Provincial campground, about ten kms from Davis Lake. Hubs had to work work in Merritt and Kamloops, so I spent the first full day there writing. Our friends showed up in late afternoon and before firing up the grills for supper, we got our hike on, on the 4 km path around the lake. The mosquitoes, and trees fallen across the path in places, made for a swift obstacle course that had our hearts pumping, and full of appreciation for the turquoise blue lake we admired from multiple vantage points.
We parted company with our friends the next morning to head on to Cache Creek and 100 Mile House, BC for more work-related stuff, before stopping to spend the night camped on my aunt and uncle’s ranch. The same ranch that inspired the setting of My Dear One. We arrived in time to catch aunty settling in on the sofa with her supper, and uncle heading out the door to close a gate to contain six missing cows.
Heading down hill on long driveway into ranch. Directly ahead to right immediately the other side of the garden is where the old house used to be. The barns you see have been there as long as I remember…
Seems when uncle and aunty moved the 70+ steers and heifers earlier in the day, six had decided to be elsewhere. Recalcitrant bovines safely contained, he returned for his supper, and afterward, we all set out on the quad and side-by-side to move those six to a far meadow with the rest of the herd. I got to drive the side-by-side, while aunty hoofed it over land shooing the cattle along the fence line, while uncle rode flank on the quad, ready to buzz any bovine that thought to bolt. Before you chastise me for driving the side-by-side, while aunty ate up ground on foot, I did as I was told. She’s seventy-five. And a volunteer fire-fighter. She knows what’s she’s doing, and doesn’t need a mostly-sedentary greenhorn getting in her way.
After moving the cattle, and doing a foot tour of the barns and reconditioned one-room cabin built long ago for my great-grandma, aunty took us over to the fire hall she works out of to show us the new-used truck their hall had received by donation. It was being converted to their crew truck, and would haul water and hoses for tight ground work the larger fire engine had trouble getting to. We returned to the ranch to discover my cousin and his partner, who own ten acres sectioned off from the ranch, had it made it home from a trip to the coast. A short visit, and it was bed time.
We had time for a quick coffee with everyone in the morning, and we were off, this time to Quesnel — for an hour — and through to Prince George where we set up for two nights, so Hubs could put in a full day at two of his company’s offices there. We pulled up stakes morning of the second day, and drove through the communities of Mackenzie and Chetwynd, on route to Ft. St. John where we set up for two nights at Beatton Provincial Park on Charlie Lake. Lovely spot. Awful lake. It was roiling with algae so thick, it reminded me of food-processed lettuce dumped into a sink full of water.
Ft. St. John has some beautiful country surrounding it. Large, waving swaths of yellow canola, and green alfalfa. Twisty roads diving into steep arroyos to wind up the far side and on to a plateau with ruler-straight asphalt roads reaching toward Alberta. It also has a spotless laundromat owing to the No Shoes/Boots policy. Any who enter have to leave off their footwear and sock-foot it around on the linoleum floor. There’s a stack of magazines (for reading) books to take ($.50 donation. Of course, I took one), and tables for sitting with laptop or coffee and board games. It’s the only game in town, so I was glad it was a comfortable place to wile an afternoon. Especially as the following day we tried to cripple ourselves with a ten-hour drive to Jasper, AB.
Jasper was an interesting moment in our trip. I’ll save the details for another post, but suffice it to say, after some confusion we found a place to fuel up, refill the RV water tank, and camp for the night. We actually snagged a site in Wapiti Campground. After setting up, we drove back to town to enjoy what remained of the evening. The next day we cruised through the National Parks on route to Lake Louise where we bought a coffee, and browsed the shops briefly (after the previous day’s long-haul we really needed to stretch our legs), before continuing on to Radium Hot Springs.
Radium Hot Springs is even smaller than Jasper. But it had all we needed, including a grocery store, and lovely RV Park: Canyon RV Park, where we were (like the previous night in Jasper) fortunate to snag the only site left. We’d gone to Radium thinking a soak in the hot springs–after over a week of cool, wet weather and thousands of kms clocked on our aching bodies–would be ideal. Of course, we arrived back in BC the same day the temperature started to climb, so instead of a hot soak, we took a cool stroll through the shaded park. Come morning, we were on the road again.
Revelstoke was where we stocked up on groceries and fuel, before heading south to Blanket Creek Provincial Park for one night. Real lovely campground, especially for families as it has a man-made lake and playground, perfect for small children. From there, we met up with friends and family in Burton, BC, for a ten-day, technology-free vacation. Sun, beach, fishing, boating, wine and campfires… it was heaven.
Now set up for two-weeks in an RV Park, I am trying desperately to catch up. It’s tough. Part of me is twitching, itching to get back on the road. Another part of me wants curl up in bed and sleep for a month. The adult part of me is insistent I get to work. She sounds just like my mother. <g>
Seriously, I have edits to complete on My Own, and the first draft of My One True Love to finish writing. But I really want to keep popping into Amazon and Kobo to admire the 5-Star reviews of My Dear One. See?
Alright. Alright. Sheesh. You don’t have yell–ow. That’s my ear. Okay. Okay. I’ll get to work–
Deborah
I learn by going where I have to go. ~Theodore Roethke
