Day 10. Another dead end. Yoghurt with raspberries and nuts, then pancakes started the day. The forecast was for hot and sunny again so I left my chaps and sweater behind as I rode away from camp toward the mining town of Elkford. It’s at the end of paved road although there does appear to be a gravel continuation for logging or perhaps another mine. There is a coal mine or maybe many in the area. Coal for making steel according to Google. Part of the route was back over the route I came to Cranbrook on on Friday but it always looks different from the saddle then the seat. Heading South East on Hwy 3/93 I was admiring a mountain range to my left but couldn’t see a place to stop for a picture. Once ... read more

Day 8. 3753Km. I’m happy to have arrived at my first British Columbia destination and the scenery is beautiful but I’m a little disappointed with the campground itself. It’s wide open with no shade which surprises me a bit for BC but not for a KOA I suppose. I only have myself to blame for not doing better research though. When I booked this entire trip back in December I searched for what campgrounds I could book online and the KOA website is handy for that. Most campgrounds were closed for the winter at that point and there was no way to book by phone. Shortly after leaving Lethbridge I could see the mountains. I remember the feeling of excitement from last time I first saw them when leaving Calgary. First just a dark bump on ... read more

Day 6. 2884Km. I got a roadside education from the RCMP today. It’s been a lot of years since I was stopped last. I don’t know if he was in a good mood or if I showed the proper amount of respect but I’m told I avoided a $1200 fine and I suspect some demerit points as well. The only constant is change. I did it again. Because the drive from Thunder Bay to Winnipeg is a long one my original plan for today was to make a shorter day and stop in Indian Head, Saskatchewan and then have another long day tomorrow. Having spent an extra day in Winnipeg I decided to go further today and shave some distance off tomorrow’s drive so here I am in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. I still got here about ... read more

Day 4. 2264Km. I had originally planned to spend two nights in Thunder Bay figuring I’d be tired after two long days of driving but felt OK last night so I checked ahead in Winnipeg to be sure I could get in a day early and cancelled my second night in Thunder Bay. When I did it, it was supposed to rain there today anyway. Of course that changed by this morning but the plans were already changed. When I arrived at camp in Winnipeg I figured I’d made a big mistake. Not only is the campground right beside the highway but I was told that I couldn’t go anywhere because travellers were supposed to quarantine for 14 days or just stay one night and move on. I checked the government web site and fortunately as ... read more

Day 2. 839Km. I don’t remember if I calculated the overall fuel mileage the Dodge gave me in 2009 but the Jeep sure drinks the diesel while pulling the trailer. I’ve seen an all time high of 1200Km per tank on a solo trip without the trailer but so far I’m getting about 400Km per tank so I’m guessing about $2000 for fuel this trip. Oh well, vacations aren’t cheap. I broke camp in good time this morning but lost a bit of time doubling back for fuel in Orillia because the station I went to had an issue with the pumps not working. The rock cuts in the Canadian Shield heading up hwy 69 toward Sudbury are something to see. The road is under continuous expansion as they widen it to four lanes so there ... read more