HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

I need to check to be certain, but when I last sat down to add a blog entry I believe I was in Calgary awaiting the return from a week in the mountains  of Gabrielle, one of my sisters-in-law (one of Suzy’s two sisters) and her husband Clarence.  They are exceptionally active folks and do stuff like camping in a tent in the mountains for a week and other excruciatingly painful activities in a similar vein, and think they are enjoying themselves.  I think in another life they might have enjoyed being airborne troops.  Which reminds me, Gabi did the Canadian Army basic parachutist course, she was the only woman on the course, she was the only reservist on the course, all of the other course members were regular force soldiers from the Canadian Airborne Regiment, and she still was awarded top candidate.  Seems that at the end of each day when everybody else was exhausted from all of the gruelling activities, she needed to stretch her legs a bit and went for ten mile runs.  But she did the running in real running shoes, not combat boots so maybe she isn’t that much of a hard-ass.  (NOTE:  she is and always has been a SERIOUS hard-ass....)  A LOVELY person, but still an Olympic class athlete, went to Everest once or twice, you know, just your basic MOUNTAIN WOMAN.  In fact if memory serves me, when she was getting married, the person who was going to do her hair and all that mysterious stuff that women do before getting married (unlike us men, who try to remember to wear fresh underwear and maybe also have a shower), anyways that person who was assigned to make Gabrielle look even more beautiful, said that she understood and she would make her up as a MOUNTAIN WOMAN.

I believe I have a fifty-fifty chance of Gabi either confirming all of the above or forsaking any future contact.  I am hoping for the former, because I still need to visit their Calgary B&B once or twice more before I head home.............

So anyways there I was at the home of Gabi and Clar, who were due home “later” on the Saturday.  I waited until 7 pm to eat supper, which I believe was a week-old soft white-bread Kaiser with a can of Maple Leaf “Chunks of Chicken” and a couple glasses of white wine with ice cubes.  Now for those amongst you who are foodies, I know it doesn’t get much better than that, but I am a pretty good cook so I know how to make such feasts, and with ingredients you probably have at the back of your pantries.  And if you don’t then you should.  I was amusing myself by reading a couple old copies of the Canadian Medical Journal (be still, my heart!) when the doorbell rang around perhaps 10 pm.  “They must have their hands full of gear and so can’t get their key,” thinks I, and opened the door to greet my SIL and BIL.  Imagine my surprise when two attractive young women were there instead.  So they introduced themselves as friends of Gabi, and the one woman Jessica was staying the night.  In fact she was planning to sleep in the bedroom where I had established camp, but I had stayed on an extra day.  Myself being the selfless person that I am, I told Jessica that there was enough room for her in the bed and that she should come right in and make herself at home.  She apparently thought my generous offer was a joke and she laughed at it.  The second woman Sonia (not sure of that spelling, nor for that matter how Jessika spells her name......) anyways Sonia was going to hit the road to return to Red Deer and there rescue her husband, who was at a wedding reception.  Now I hear all of you guys out there thinking that a man at a wedding reception does not need to be rescued unless the bar has gone dry.  You are correct, but who am I to argue with another MOUNTAIN WOMAN?  And so off went Sonja.

So with Sonia departed, Jessica had a shower, and she and I were having a chinwag (she’s living near Denver Colorado) when finally around midnight Gabi and Clar returned.  Much to their surprise, I was still there!  So we had a grand reunion, but by then it was well after midnight, my coach had turned into a pumpkin, and I needed to get my head down.  Thankfully I had a glorious sleep, and awoke fairly late to find a brunch in the making.  The day was gorgeous, the four of us had a fabulous brunch out in the back yard patio (including home-made blueberry pancakes!), and then it was time for me to pack up and head out again.

Now I am always one to consult people with real honest-to-goodness first-hand knowledge about routes to take.  The fact that I often decide not to take their advice is another matter entirely..........and so I asked how I should get to Cranbrook BC.

“Back up, Doug, why would you go to Vancouver Island via Cranbrook, on the southern route with all of the mountain passes and shitty driving?”  GOOD QUESTION.  Well, when I was doing my map recce I saw that this route goes through the aforementioned Cranbrook, home of a guy I have wanted to meet for years.  Bruce aka “hunterhenderson” or similar on Gun Nutz is there.  We talked on the phone and yes indeed he was going to be away Sunday morning, but would be back in Cranbrook around 3 pm.  PERFECT.  Bruce told me how to get there but I confirmed with Gabi, who said that I should absolutely go by the secondary routes through Nanton, past the Chain Lakes and so on, because there would be no traffic and the scenery is glorious.  Same route as Bruce suggested, so that’s a wrap.

WELL...................it was an INTERESTING trip and I believe there may have been some gorgeous countryside to see if a person could take their eyes off the road for more than a millisecond.  And then the very threatening  storm clouds opened up and suddenly it was like God was hosing down the highway with a twenty-inch fire hose.  Wipers at full speed ahead, but truck at about 70 kph and still in danger of planning out on the flood.............somewhere on Highway 22 south of the Chain Lakes I was somewhat perturbed to see animals marching two by two towards a towering wooden ship..........

And the “no traffic” turned out to be hundreds of people in camping rigs and the odd sports car driver.  In fact some of the sports car drivers are behind the wheels of trucks towing travel trailers............

Quite some time later I finally arrived in Cranbrook, an hour late for the RV with Bruce, and I gave him a call.  Left him a voice mail................half hour later sent him a text...................went and fuelled the truck and bought some groceries.............and an hour and a half later figured he was probably hung up on the road and I should make tracks, which I did.  Indeed, Bruce had been hung up on the road by a traffic fatality, which I am pleased to report was not him.

I have another Gun Nutz contact I hope to meet, who lives just north of Creston BC.  So I saw that Creston was about an hour or so from Cranbrook, and the “WOODALLS” camping book had a recommended campground (Pair-a-Dice) and I headed the rig to that location.  I am pleased to report that this campground is an excellent choice for the itinerant wayfarer, but my buddy was not at home.  In fact he was up in the Yukon, so I am not going to see “c-fbmi” any time soon!

I had a very good night in Pair-a-dice and after pumping bilges headed the rig west again this morning, and at a good hour.  That was three mountain passes and several lives ago.  I made it to Hope, BC where I am now, but without Internet connectivity.  More later...........

Doug