Date

Description

Fri Jul 24

As is so often the case, despite my best intentions, there was more to do before leaving than imagined. Even with taking the day off work, it was impossible to finish everything in time to leave today as intended. The weather was uncooperative too, with heavy rains preventing us from loading the RV or doing some of the other trip preparation. Oh well...

Sat Jul 25

We all got an early start to the day today, but everything continued to take longer than expected, so we didn't get on the road until 7:15 pm. Janet went over in the late part of the afternoon to get Julia's friend, Tirzah, who is coming with us again this year. Everything is packed (we hope) and we're finally on our way. Fluffy is being looked after by a neighbour, and another neighbour will be watering Janet's much loved flowers. Driving conditions tonight were appalling, heavy rain and some fog, but we pushed through to North Bay, and camped in the Wal Mart parking lot. Arrived at Wal Mart around 1:00 am. We were all pretty tired after a very long day.

Sun Jul 26

Got up early today and were on the road by 6:45. We figured we could drive for a while and then stop for breakfast. We did get some gas and coffee before leaving North Bay and then were off. Next stop was in New Liskeard a couple of hours later for a quick breakfast at Tim Horton's, some gas and then we were back on the road. It was a dreary kind of day, raining off and on, but traffic was pretty light and we made good time. The roads were surprisingly rough though for the most part. Almost like driving on an old log road in places. Next big stop was in Kapuskasing for some lunch and more fuel. That was when we noticed that the outside right rear tire was flat, and put in a call to CAA. It turned out that because the flat was on a rear tire and their local contractor could only lift the RV from the front, there was no way for them to tow us. So they gave us the number of a local OK Tire operation who do roadside repairs and we were on our own to deal with them. This guy arrived fairly quickly, but felt there wasn't enough room for him to work where we were parked on the street, so he had us drive across the street and park in the muddy space behind The Beer Store. He set about jacking up the RV and removing the wheel. He quickly found the problem - the tire had been punctured by a good sized and very pointy stone - the tire was ruined and could not be repaired safely. We had a look at our spare tire - hadn't checked it before we left - my fault there - but it wasn't safe to use either as it was too old and cracked, so we needed to buy a new tire. He took off with the old tire and rim back to his shop and came back 40 minutes later with a brand new tire mounted on the rim, and a bill for almost $500. CAA will partially reimburse that cost, probably all the charges associated with the roadside service call, but the purchase of the new tire will be our responsibility. We had lost almost 4 hours with this stop, but finally we were off again. I have to back up a bit here and tell you about the reaction of the people in the Tim Horton's here in Kapuskasing to seeing Julia and Tirzah's hair colours. It was very funny. The whole place stopped talking and everyone turned and stared at them as we walked across the parking lot. They were treated to a similar reaction from the people in the restaurant in Long Lac where we stopped for dinner. The rain came back heavier at times during the drive after lunch. I really wanted us to push through to Thunder Bay, but eventually had to concede it was impossible, so we pulled off around 1:00 am into a Petro Canada truck stop in Nipigon and camped there for the night.

Mon Jul 27

We were back on the road by 7:30 am today to finish the drive into Thunder Bay. We went straight to the KOA Kampground and checked in around 9:00 am, got set up at our campsite and unhooked the car for a day of visiting Thunder Bay. Our first stop was at the Hoito Restaurant for brunch. It was excellent. Ross had told us about this place, and during my research into things to do in Thunder Bay, this kept showing up on those lists too. After brunch, we dropped in on my friend Angelo for a short visit and to see his new clothing store. We did a bit of poking around at a few stores to find a small DC-AC inverter so Tirzah could use the Sony PS2 that she had brought along. The hope was that she and Julia could play video games during our long drives. We found just the thing at Canadian Tire. After buying that, we split up for the afternoon. Julia and Tirzah went off shopping at the discount stores and Janet and I went to do some sightseeing. The weather just wasn't cooperating though, and after trying to walk around in the rain for a bit, we accepted that it just wasn't very pleasant and went to a nice organic coffee shop next door to the Hoito restaurant to relax, and then wandered around that area a bit. Picked the girls back up from their shopping trip, but on the way back to the campsite, and during a break in the rain, we stopped at the Terry Fox memorial which is on a hill overlooking "The Sleeping Giant" rock formation. The memorial is in a beautiful location and a wonderful tribute to Terry Fox. He had to end his run only a few kilometres from this spot. While there, we ran into a couple from Alberta who are on their way east in an old Greyhound bus converted to a camper. Should have taken a picture of it, but it was a fantastic looking vehicle. Anyway, the funny story with these folks was that they had stolen a garden gnome from a friend back home, and were taking it across Canada with them, taking pictures of it with people in the various locations, and sending them back to Alberta so the owners of the missing gnome could see how much fun it was having. We had heard of similar things, but this was a lot of fun meeting someone doing it. We all had our pictures taken with the gnome. Back at the campsite, we had a heavy thundershower come through, so the campfire was out, but we had supper and Angelo dropped by later for some wine and a longer visit. Watched a movie and had a good sleep. Even though we weren't able to do the sightseeing we had hoped to do in Thunder Bay, it was a good day today.

Tues Jul 28

We were back on the road by 10:30 am today and on our way to Winnipeg. This was a purely driving day today. Using the inverter they purchased in Thunder Bay, the girls were able to play their video games, so that purchase was a success. It rained off and on all day, but the roads were decent - lots of roadworks, but that is understandable given the season. It was a pretty uneventful drive today - especially compared to Sunday - and we made it all the way to Winnipeg and camped at a place just south of the city. We arrived here around 9:00 pm (Ontario time) We had a late supper in the RV and watched a movie.

Wed Jul 29

Today was our first sightseeing day in Winnipeg. We had a more leisurely start to the day today than we've been able to have at any point so far into the vacation, and were able to let everyone sleep in until they wanted to get up. Our campground is only 10 minutes outside the city, so after breakfast, we were on our way. We went to The Forks, and wandered around there a little bit, but the wet weather continued to be a big factor in things and heavy rain forced us inside one of the market buildings at one point. We decided to focus on indoor stuff for the rest of the day. We drove over to the Canadian Mint, but found that all of the remaining tours for the day were fully booked, so we've reserved for tomorrow morning. Had fun picking up the real gold bar in the giftshop area. We figured we could go to the Manitoba Museum, but heavy monsoon like rains made the traffic slow to a crawl, and by the time we got there, it didn't seem like it was worth trying to park, walk in the rain to the museum and only have an hour or so to see it before closing. We gave up, went to the grocery store, got some food and came back to the campsite. With the wet weather, there was again no campfire, so we had dinner and watched a movie. I have to say, Janet and I were very impressed with Winnipeg as a city. They really pay attention to tourism, and have a free bus that covers certain parts of the city, they have some beautiful wall art on many of the buildings, the streets are clean, and the tourist spots are well marked. Ottawa could learn a lesson from the way things are done here. It is very tourist friendly.

Thurs Jul 30

We had more success touring Winnipeg today. We went to The Canadian Mint first but arrived just a few minutes too late for our scheduled tour, so rebooked for another one later in the day. Went to the Manitoba Museum next and spent a few hours wandering throught it. Very well done, with lots of information and interesting displays. The highlight has to be the life sized replica of the Nonsuch, which was the boat that opened up the fur trading routes to the north. The boat they have in the museum was built in the 60's, sailed across the English Channel, and then put onto a cargo boat to transport to Canada. It was then installed in the museum here. You cannot believe how small this boat is, and how daring those men must have been to cross the north Atlantic and enter the arctic in a boat like this. Janet had read something about a costume museum here, and we asked for directions to it, and went to that next. It hadn't been mentioned in any of the tourist literature, and I hadn't seen in during my internet searches, but it was a big hit with Janet, Julia and Tirzah. The girls all had fun trying on different outfits and clowning around. We then went back to the mint and took the guided tour. It's a bit of a disappointment because you don't really see that much. You are taken down a long glass walled hallway and you can see the machinery below. Unfortunately, to make it even less interesting, I think they had mostly stopped production for the day by the time of our tour, so there wasn't even much activity behind the glass. Rained off and on all day long again today, sometimes very heavy rain - had to wade through the water at one point to get to the car. Back to the campsite for dinner and a movie. Still too wet for a campfire!

Fri Jul 31

It was an uneventful 3.5 hour drive to Souris. Pretty much rained all the way there. The campsite reserved in the Souris Campground by Justyn and Christine is beautiful - backs right onto the river - it is the nicest spot on this trip by far! We are camped right next to some other members of Janet's extended family. As part of the wedding celebrations, we were taken on a cruise along the Souris River on a pontoon boat, and then went back to Christine's parent's house for a big dinner and party. The rain was pretty much over by the late afternoon, so these two outdoor activities went off very well. Lots of familiar faces and lots of new people to meet. It was a fun time.

Sat Aug 1

The big focus today was the wedding of Justyn and Christine. In the morning we went to the inn where Janet's sister is staying and joined them for breakfast. I took that opportunity to drive to Brandon for a bit and deal with some work items. Back here in Souris, after breakfast with Janet's family, the day continued with a big lunch back at the campground for a larger group, and then some of the people went for a swim in the new Souris community pool. The wedding wasn't until 4:30 pm at the Kohut family farm. Some big tents were set up on the grass, and we sat outdoors on bales of hay facing the road. It was an amazing setting for a wedding. The ceremony was very special and unique with the two of them having written their own vows. Janet read a special poem that she had found for the occasion. After the wedding, there were the obligatory group pictures etc., and then everyone moved inside the tents for the party! It was a beautiful day for an outdoor wedding. After 7 days of rain getting here, we were amazed at their luck in having a day without rain. The food and music were excellent, and the speeches and the roasts were very well done. Being engineers, the groomsmen put together a short slide presentation to show everyone another side of Justyn from his earlier years. Very funny!

Sun Aug 2

Wedding related celebrations continued today. A big lunch was hosted by Janet's sister's family at the local golf course, and a golf tournament followed for those who wanted to do that. The rest of us stayed at the clubhouse and just relaxed and chatted while the golfers were out doing their thing. The weather continued to be very nice. In the early evening, the four of us went for a walk in Souris and crossed their famous swinging bridge - the longest swinging bridge in Canada - 582 feet. It is really something. Janet and I had a little look in one of the local museums. We were visited by a bunch of geese at the campsite in the afternoon, and finally had our first campfire evening of the entire trip.

Mon Aug 3

The final part of the wedding celebration was a big breakfast send-off at the home of Christine's parents. We have really enjoyed our stay here and meeting some really nice people. We checked out of the beautiful campsite we had on the river and made our way south into the US today. We made one stop in Boissevain, Manitoba to look at their giant turtle statue (4.5 m tall). No problems crossing the border and we made it all the way to Dickinson, North Dakota and stopped overnight in the Wal-Mart this evening.

Tues Aug 4

Pretty much just a driving day today. It took longer than expected to arrive at the campground near Mount Rushmore, but we made it. The mountains (known as the Black Hills) that we drove through were tough on the RV. It barely can climb them with the car hooked up, and then we drove along some twisting roads along the cliffside that demanded 100% attention to ensure I didn't put a wheel off the road because there were no shoulders on these roads. We arrived at the Hill City KOA last night and intended to have a campfire because it was so nice at that point, but then a major storm blew in and we watched a movie instead (watched RV because that seemed appropriate).

Wed Aug 5

A nice sightseeing day. We had a leisurely start this morning, so we didn't leave the campsite until around noon. We're only a few minutes away from Mount Rushmore, so we went directly there and spent several hours walking around there looking at all of the things and learning about the construction and the sculptor. Carving these faces out of granite into the side of a mountain! This is an amazing sight. We then went a few kilometres down the road to the site of the Crazy Horse memorial. It is an even more ambitious carving into the rock on a mountain. When complete, it will be Crazy Horse sitting on his horse, with one arm extended pointing ahead. Work on this started over 60 years ago, so it is moving very slowly though as it is privately funded, and for years it appears to have been just one man working on it. He is now dead, but his children have continued the project. There is a vision of this one day being a centre for native studies and other things. Came back to the campsite and had supper. The day had been beautiful and sunny, but rain moved in during the evening and we decided to not risk a campfire.

Thurs Aug 6

We visited this tourist attraction near Rapid City, South Dakota called Reptile Gardens. It was an amazing place. Some of these kinds of places can be really tacky, but this one isn't. It has been in business for more than 50 years and they present things extremely well. There were interesting demonstrations and information about the animals, and a huge collection of alligators, crocodiles, snakes, lizards, birds, giant turtles (one more than 125 years old), and other animals. It was well worth the visit, and we all had fun there. After that we went to the city of Deadwood. The buildings in parts of it have been restored to their 1880 style. It was a bit challenging to get around with all of the motorcycles lining the main street, but it was good to stop there and see it. We went into the place where Wild Bill Hickock was shot in 1876 and learned more about his life and death. For me this was really interesting, as I used to live and breath these western stories as a kid, but it was probably less so to Janet, Julia and Tirzah, but they hung in there.

Fri Aug 7

Purely a driving day today. We left the campground near Mount Rushmore around 10 am and drove through until 3:30 am on Saturday morning, just stopping to eat and get gas. We basically drove all the way across South Dakota, completely through Minnesota and a good part of the way through Wisconsin. We stopped in Sparta, Wisconsin and camped in the WalMart parking lot. This was the price to pay for an extra day near Rushmore, but I had really wanted to be able to get into Deadwood and we wouldn't have been able to fit it all in otherwise. The goal for today was to get as close to Chicago as possible. We didn't get quite as far as I had hoped but the weather had turned nasty near the end of the drive today and I didn't want to be continuing any further through the hills in a heavy rain, so it made more sense to continue on Saturday.

Sat Aug 8

Got up today and after a quick stop in WalMart to get a few things we needed, we were on the road before 9 am and finished the drive to the KOA campground near Chicago. After setting up camp here, we got cleaned up and drove into Chicago and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at the Ginza Holiday festival at a Buddist Temple in Chicago. This is a Japanese festival and Julia and Tirzah were pretty excited at being able to see it.

Sun Aug 9

It was a really hot day today. We went to a Korean Festival in the Korea Town part of Chicago. We saw some dancing and listened to music, and the girls did some shopping, but the real highlight was the food. We got some food from the street vendors. It was great. After that we started on our way to the Chicago Zoo, but realized that it was getting a bit too late in the afternoon to make that worthwhile, so we decided to skip it. In heading towards the zoo, we drove along the waterfront. It was a very hot day, and there were thousands of people at the beach. They have really organized things very well here and kept the waterfront and beaches accessible and usable by their citizens. If it hadn't been so busy, we would have parked the car and gone for a walk but that was impossible today. After giving up on the zoo, we tried to see Barack Obama's house - their real house is here in Chicago. However the security was too tight, and we weren't even allowed to walk down the street past it. The police officer said we could catch a glimpse of it from another spot, but we drove around and couldn't see it, and everyone was hot and getting tired, so we went back to the campsite. The traffic was terrible today - even on a Sunday - and it took us about 90 minutes to get back to camp. We got some firewood from the campground office and had a nice campfire this evening.

Mon Aug 10

Today is a shopping day. Janet and the girls are wandering around the Woodfield Mall which is this huge shopping mall on the outskirts of Chicago. I brought my computer and a book and am just relaxing while they do their thing. This will be our last day in Chicago and our second last day in the US. We start the trek home tomorrow and should be back in Canada by tomorrow evening. We probably won't have internet connection after tomorrow morning, so I won't be able to finish this travel journal until we get back to Ottawa on Wednesday evening. Back at the campsite after the shopping trip, it was still a beautiful evening, and we had our last campfire of the trip.

Tues Aug 11

We packed up and left the campsite around 11 am this morning and started the drive home. To head east, we had to drive right through Chicago on the I90 toll road. It took a lot of concentration but there were no problems except for the point where the GPS became confused or something and directed us off the highway and into a residential area for a while until we got back onto the highway in time for the toll bridge. These tolls are expensive for an RV towing a car, and I was really glad to get out of that area and back onto the free roads. I had managed to connect with Uncle John by telephone yesterday evening, so we stopped in to visit him after supper at the retirement home near Lansing, Michigan. After a nice visit with him, we continued on and crossed the border back into Canada at Sarnia. No problems with the border crossing and we just parked in the local Walmart parking lot. The travels finished at 12:30 am.

Wed Aug 12

Left Sarnia this morning and started on the final leg of the journey home. We met with Uncle Joe and Aunt Sandy for lunch in Cambridge on the way through and had a nice visit with them in the restaurant. Continued on afterwards and made it all the way home. Our only challenge in today's travel was getting stuck right in the middle of the Toronto rush hour traffic - we hit Toronto at about 4:30 pm - so it took us more than an hour to cross the city. Otherwise a fine drive home and we arrived here shortly after midnight. We're HOME!!! Fluffy was still outside and walked down the driveway to greet us.

Thurs Aug 13

Just have to unpack and clean the RV today and put it back into storage until next time. With only a few problems along the way, everything worked out nicely for our longest trip in it so far. In the RV alone, we travelled about 6500 km in just under 3 weeks. We also drove around in the car at each location when we stopped for a couple of days. It was a lot of driving this year, but has been a great vacation.