The Calgary Journal of 2010

Monday, July 5, 2010

We were off and running today at about 0730 headed in a different direction than we are used to. We quickly got onto US-2 and headed West toward Wisconsin.

Our first stop this morning was at the Ironwood McDonald's about 120 miles from home, for Breakfast.  After that we got back on the road for a long, long day.

The whole day was pretty uneventful with nothing but driving taking up all of our time.  We switched off driving at regular intervals knowing it was the only way to keep on the road and put a lot of mileage under our belts.

The weather co-operated with us all day today as the sun stayed out for most of the day.  We did encounter a couple of sprinkles but nothing more than a windshield washer.

The only other stop except for fuel was for supper and we managed that quite nicely.  It was a short stop for a couple of Chedderwurst sausages, and then back onto the highway.

We arrived at the Bismarck, North Dakota Wal-Mart at 9 PM and settled into a "site" among the rest of the RV travelers.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

We were up and rolling again this morning by 8:30 and headed toward Montana.  The day was pretty uneventful today as we drove in and out of showers most of the day.  It never did rain hard except for one time today.  Sharon was driving and she was temporarily blinded by the water.

We had a couple of fuel stops today as we put in another 600 miles today.  Tomorrow will be an easy day for us but we'll have to go through the border.  We're hoping that won't be much of a hassle.

Sharon was very helpful as she drove a lot today.  She also drove quite a bit yesterday during our 646 mile journey.  Man, we'd still be in Minnesota if it wasn't for her.

We rolled into Shelby, Montana about 7PM tonight and settled in at the Pamida Store for the night.  It was early and I set up our phone for Canadian Service for the next 3 weeks.  Hopefully tonight will be quiet and better than last night.  I always have a tough time sleeping the first night in the coach.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

We were on the road this morning by about 9:30 and headed toward Alberta, Canada.  We were about 40 miles from the border crossing at Sweetgrass, Montana.  There were only two cars ahead of us at the border so it only took a few minutes to get through.

We called Terry and Jo-Anne as soon as we cleared the crossing cause they wanted to meet us and take us into Lethbridge.  We pulled up in front of their house about 11 and we settled in and plugged in the electricity.

We were quickly off to lunch at a little Burger Bar down the road.  The burgers were excellent and Terry and Jo-Anne bought our lunch for us.  After lunch we were off on the scenic tour of Lethbridge.  We checked out the two campgrounds in town along with the longest train trestle in the world @ 1 mile.  We also found out that the bridge is over 100 years young.

We went through town and stopped at the bank to get some "funny money" in exchange for ours.

By the time we got back home we were in need of a short nap.  We went out to the motorhome and Terry slid into slumber in the house.

After the nap we went into the house and they grilled chicken breasts for Dinner tonight.  It was very good and we finished it off with Carrot Cake for dessert.

John and Gail, a couple of friends of the Bertamini's stopped over for a while after Dinner.   We sat and talked for an hour or so and then they left and Terry and I settled in front of the TV.  We watched TV for awhile before Sharon announced that she was going home.

We came back out to the motorhome and watched TV for about a half hour before we finally went to bed.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

I went to coffee with Terry this morning and sat and talked with "the boys" for an hour or so while Sharon was still sleeping.  By the time I got back she was up and showered and ready for her day.  I got in the shower having already eaten a light Breakfast at the coffee shop this morning.

Sharon went in the house and did a load of laundry while I started to pick up our stuff and get the motorhome ready to roll.  We had to put pads under the jacks yesterday in order to get the motorhome level last night.  We also had to wash the windshield and get the bugs off for the trip north.  We'll probably be in Calgary by early afternoon.

It would be a three hour trip today and we finally got on the road about 10.  Our first stop would be the dump station at the Tourist Information booth in Lethbridge.  We made a quick stop and then we were on the road again.

We arrived in Acme about 1:30 in the afternoon.  It's about an hour away from Calgary and we'll have to make the drive to Calgary tomorrow morning early.  We're expecting to have to leave Todd and Laurie Bertamini's house at 5:30 in the morning to get to the parade in time tomorrow.

Jo-Anne made spaghetti for supper tonight and it was very good.  We all sat out on the back deck and ate tonight.

We headed back to our coaches at 9 but I don't know if anyone is going to bed this early.

Friday, July 9, 2010

We were ready,  and in the car by 5:30 this morning.  It was still a little twilight this morning when we hit the road for Calgary.  We would be going to the parade this morning and we needed to be in town before 7 when they start closing the roads.  We arrived at our parking spot right at 6:30 and headed for  little Café called "End of the Line" for Breakfast.  Terry and Jo-Anne's son Todd had recommended it for this morning.  The Café got it's name from being at the terminus of the LRT tracks.

After having our "Bagels and Eggs" for Breakfast we sat around the Café for the next hour just killing time.  We didn't need to be on the parade route until 9, and didn't want to sit on the bleachers any longer than we had to.

About 8 we started our two-block walk to our seats on the parade route and found them without any fuss.  We were two rows up right on the side of the road.  PERFECT!  We had to wait about a half hour for the parade to make it's way to us, but we were entertained just watching people until then.

The parade certainly lived up to our expectations.  We found it to be very refreshing and entertaining even though the bleachers got kinda hard after a few hours.  It was an experience we'll not soon forget in our lives.  It wasn't over until lunchtime and we headed out to a favorite restaurant of Terry and Jo-Annes to refuel our bodies.

After lunch we toured the City and went by their former house that they had just sold prior to moving to Lethbridge.  Terry had to make another stop to pick up satellite stuff and then we headed toward home, stopping at Wendy's for Frosties for the crew.

By the time we got home we were ready for a beer and a nap and even yours truly had one of each.  It had been a long day for sure.

Saturday, July 10, 2010HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHARON

The first thing this morning we got a phone call from Jennifer wishing her mother a Happy Birthday.

We were off this morning to spend the day at Bruce's Cabin somewhere in the wilderness west of Calgary.  We had met Bruce Schultz a couple of years ago in Desert Hot Springs and enjoyed his company very much over the past couple of years.

It took us about an hour's driving time to get there and the area reminded us of a campground filled with Park Models.  It was located in a thick grove of trees and the buildings were mostly about a thousand square feet and resembling a campground.  He was still in the process of finishing the cabin on the inside but it looked like it would be very comfortable when finished.  We met Maureen, his new girlfriend as we arrived, and she seemed like a very pleasant personality.

Brent and Jeanne arrived shortly after we did and I was informed that Brent was the gentleman responsible for my acquisition of the Fire Hydrant.  I thanked him on the spot.  It'll make a great fountain.

Most of the day was spent imbibing and snacking, and conversating until late afternoon when we sat around an enormous Dining Table and ate.  Bruce had grilled Chicken and Steak and we had mixed vegetables from Jo-Anne, and finished off the Dinner with two kinds of cake, topped with fresh strawberries and raspberries, from Jeanne and Brent.

We left for home almost immediately after we finished eating because we still had an hour or so on the road before we got back.  We were all thankful to get home as we had had another long day even though it was very enjoyable.

I watched a movie on TV before I headed for bed and Sharon was already making zzzz's by the time I got there.  It was almost dark by the time I managed to crawl in between the covers.

Sunday, July 11, 2010

We slept late this morning since we had nothing we had to do today.  We had a leisurely Breakfast and went about the business of looking like we were keeping ourselves occupied this morning.  Terry and Jo-Anne stopped over just as we were finishing a sandwich.  They suggested that we go to Drumheller for a day trip today.  It's where a good portion of Terry's family is still located.

Drumheller is the Dinosaur town.  Everywhere you look driving through the streets is a different replica of a dinosaur standing there.  We went up the road where "11 Bridges in 12 Kilometers" still stand today, although we never did cross the last bridge.  We ended up at the Long Branch Saloon where we stopped for lunch.  The Long Branch is pretty equivalent to the Chuckwagon at home.  We all had a Burger and Fries except for Sharon who opted for Chicken Wings in Garlic and Honey sauce.  It was all quite good.  Terry actually ran into one of his cousins waiting tables at the saloon.  He was a much younger cousin, however.  He was 23.

After eating we took off on a sightseeing tour of the town.  Several of Terry's relatives houses were pointed out to us even though nobody seemed to be home.  We continued on to the Swinging Bridge which the miners used to cross many years ago and now it's a tourist attraction.

We also went to Horseshoe Canyon which is a large hole in the ground reminiscent of the Grand Canyon.  They conduct helicopter rides over the canyon but it was quite windy today, although they didn't seem to be closed.

We headed toward home after the canyon and it took us about an hour to get back.  Everything seems so far away from everything else here, but apparently Todd and Laurie like it that way.

After we got back I took the computer and hastened over to Todd and Laurie's porch to see if I could retrieve our e-mail.  They have their wireless router emitting from a former house located on the front of the property.  There was no problem getting hooked up,  and our e-mail downloaded quite handily.  I was surprised to find we only had 14 e-mails from the last several days.  It took a few minutes to get them in because a couple of them were quite large.

We just sat around for the rest of the night since we still weren't getting any signal for TV.  I watched a movie that was taped and that took us up to 10 when we promptly went to bed.  Another day, another adventure.