Breakfast with Charlie and Kathy (daughter of my mom’s older sister Olga):
Uncle Justin “torturing” Sophia:
The house we stayed in was a 15-minute walk from the football stadium. How the nearby roads are blocked:
Mosaic Stadium, home of the Saskatchewan Roughriders:
You enter at mid-level, the playing field is down in a bowl.
Saskatchewan Roughriders v Calgary Stampeders.
A stadium favorite: poutine. French fries, topped with gravy and cheese curds.
Halftime show: a hoop dancer.
It was a great game. Lots of back and forth, quite exciting in the final two minutes.
We went ahead in the score, sadly followed by a Calgary win in the last few seconds. There are only 3 downs to achieve 10 yards and the field is 110 yards. It really made the game entertaining. I am now a fan.
Glenn did a great job organizing each day’s adventure. Today we toured the Depot where all Royal Canadian Mounted Police are trained. The visitor center:
We boarded a people-mover for the tour of Depot. Glenn worked as a carpenter at Depot for over 30 years and volunteers as a people-mover driver.
Beyond the parking area is Depot. No picture-taking allowed.
No trip to Canada would be complete without a stop at Tim Horton’s.
Wheatwyn Church where Glenn went to Sunday school and where both my parents were confirmed. The yellow field is canola, the green is field peas.
Cousin Gordon drove down from Melfort.
Behind the church, the well-tended cemetery.
The graves of my grandparents, Sophia’s great-great-grandparents, Ludwig and Julanna Manz.
Next stop, the Manz family farm now run by cousins Donald and Reg. My mother, the fourth born of 6 children, was the first to be born in the house in 1918. Donald and wife Marcia live here. Glenn brought cinnamon rolls and coffee.
Cousin Gordon drove down from Melfort. Our next stop would be the gray barn in the background, the structure built before the house.
In the loft, many birds chirping, piles of bird droppings.
The sons of Johnny, my mother’s younger brother. Glenn, Gordon, Reg, and Donald, plus Justin. Reg and Donald farm 22 sections of land (about 3500 acres). Some owned by them, others leased. They grow canola, flax, wheat. They also have small herd of cattle. Justin is 3 years younger than Reg and has gone up there to help with the harvest a few times (and loves it), so now he’s sort of like their youngest (adopted) brother.
From there, we drove to Southey
where Glenn’s younger sister lives with her husband Les. We had dinner in their backyard.
Another wonderful family get-together. Thank you Angela and Les! Tammy & Reg, Angela holding grandson Brooks & Les, Marcia & Donald, Gordon, Glenn:
on Saturday. I came home yesterday (Friday) to a warm refrigerator and a thawing freezer. Within 15 minutes of sending texts to 3 neighbors, the meat was at Gerald and Viki’s, everything else was split between Elaine and Terri. I have the best neighbors and friends! This meant that I had to take the easiest-possible snack to Merrilyn’s: cherries and cheddar-flavored chips. Phyl brought Dot’s pretzels. Merrilyn made an artichoke dip.
We drove to Bend Oregon and got a hotel downtown. Friday morning, I rode parts of the Deschutes River Trail. Surfing a 20-foot wide “wave,” back and forth. One mistake, over the top, swim back upstream and get in line.
Time to turn around.
The bluffs on the other side of the river.
I met Phyl back at the hotel, we loaded up and drove to Sacramento.
Yesterday Phyllis and I left Deer Lodge in the morning and drove to Liberty Lake Washington. This morning I rode away from the hotel at 7:30, found the Spokane River Centennial Trail and rode west.
The trail went through Gonzaga University.
Downtown, Riverfront Park.
At this point I was still downtown and lost. Time to look at a map on my phone and figure it out.
Eventually I made my way to Fish Lake Trail. The smell of pine was wonderful.
Phyl picked me up about 9 miles down the trail and we started our drive to Bend Oregon. 31 miles today.
The sun goes down in Deer Lodge at 9:30 and it takes a long time to actually get dark. From my upstairs bedroom window, looking south toward town, you could see at least 7 different locations shooting big fireworks into the sky. It was quite the show!
