Osoyoos or Chilliwack?

In Australia we have Wagga Wagga and Woolloommooloo, but the last few days we've been checking out places with first nations connections such as Osoyoos and Chilliwack.

Nk'Mip, Osooyoos

Osoyoos is nestled in the Okanagan Valley. It boasts it is Canada's only desert wine growing district. We didn't even know you find deserts in Canada, so go figure.

We dodged the rattlesnake signs near the Nk'Mip Cultural Centre and enjoyed a walk around the Lake where people have been fishing for centuries.

The drive from Osoyoos to Chilliwack along Highway 3 (apparently known locally as the Crowsnest Highway) takes a winding route through the mountains, following a river and offering fantastic views. The road drops away on both sides in places, so it was a struggle to keep my eyes open to take n the view. Hopefully David was watching the road!

We went past the Hope Slide, which is a huge landslide that occurred in 1965 after two earthquakes.

Further along at Chilliwack, people have been living in the area for around 5,000 years. Today it is one of the largest cities in British Columbia, although it is surrounded by a farming district and is near to Cultus Lake (one of around 2 million lakes in Canada), a beautiful area where you can get away from it all.

Cultus Lake, Chilliwack

Natural Highs

The US has some of the most beautiful natural scenery found anywhere in the world. For much of the past ten days we've been living higher than any point in Australia (Mt Kosciuszko is 7,310 feet or 2,228 metres, and Canberra is only 1,893 feet or 576 metes above sea level).

Mt Rushmore

We've been to the top of Pikes Peak, and Mt Evans, in Colorado, both above 14,000 feet. The views were great, but the air was thin and I found I had to concentrate to think and to walk (just as well I didn't have to chew gum too!)

On 21 August, an eclipse crossed the US, with many states
directly under the path of the total eclipse. There was a general frenzy, exemplified but the fact that Walmart sold out of eclipse glasses nearly a week in advance. We know because we tried unsuccessfully to buy glasses in places 300+ miles away on our travels to Colorado.

Lindy and Chris at Evergreen

Luckily our friends had enough for us, so we ventured to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre near Denver to take in the experience.

Somewhere in Wyoming

We've also been to Mt Rushmore, an amazing engineering and sculptural feat, and through some high mountain passes on the backroads in Wyoming.

Tennessee to Colorado

Our trusty Rav4 has made it across the Great Plains. Yes, we saw the Mississippi River, some bison (on a farm - sigh), some rollercoaster moraines, as well as miles and miles of sorghum and corn (almost as high as an elephant's eye).

Nothing will prepare you for the theme park that is Branson. Amongst other things it boasts a King Kong clinging to a high-rise in the main street.  You can attend any kind of variety or tribute show you can think of. And then some. If you love Las Vegas, you may well love Branson.

Dodge

No sign of Dorothy or Toto (or many people or businesses at all) in the town of Baxter Springs, following a tornado a few years ago. Sad sign of the tough economic times.

You might want to dodge Dodge, especially if you are a Texas longhorn. Some of the world's largest feedlots are dotted around this regional town. Think tannery and dial the smell down 25%. I'm officially off hamburgers for the foreseeable future!

Royal Gorge

Canon City is home to the Royal Gorge. Take the 2 hour train ride along the Arkansas River and enjoy the splendid views.




A little further down the road at Colorado Springs we took the funicular to the top of Pikes Peak (14,115 feet above seal level). Amazing views and a day to round out the bonus points for train enthusiasts.

The Garden of the Gods in the centre of Colorado Springs is a fabulous (free) natural attraction. Beautiful. Make sure to put this on your bucket list. Historic downtown is also worth a visit.

All Shook Up

Channel your Loretta, Dolly or Shania and get ready to party in Nashville. A tour down Broadway will give you that up close and personal experience with another 50,000 C&W music fans all out for a good ol' time. Y'all might never know who y'all might bump into.

In a party mood

Maple fans know that cowboy boots go with everything. If you already have yours on, you can strut your stuff, but you might still need a few essentials, such as a hat, oh, and feathers to go with it.

Y'all will need a hat

Down at the Country Music Hall of Fame, you can build up a thirst checking out the sequins, guitars and cadillacs.

Y'all can never have too many guitars and sequins

Over at the Ryman Theatre you can soak up more musical history and relive the highlights of this historic building.

When you've had enough you can fall into one (okay several) of the dozens of bars to listen to live music, kick back with those boots and remember to 'swing with who swung you'.

Picto-what?

Indigenous art at Yankee Hat

It's a long way from Yankee Hat in Namadgi National Park near Canberra to the Shores of Gi chi Gamiing (Great Lake) in Ontario, but they share a common feature. Both have fabulous Indigenous art.

Yankee Hat is a great day walk to a rock shelter and overhang. At Agawa Rock, Gi chi Gamiing, there is also a rock shelter, but rather than being in a grassland setting, this is perched on the edge of the lake. The waves lap the ledge.

Canoe and Serpents at Gi chi Gamiing

On the Shores of Lake Superior

The Ojibwe art, described as pictograms, can be reached via a walk through a gorge filled with ferns and lichen. According to the information at the site, the Ojibwa people had been in the region for almost 9,000 years.

David near Agawa Rock

Near Agawa Rock

Cowabunga!

Thunder Bay lives up to expectations because:

* it is the martial arts capital of Canada (we read the sign so it must be true)

Excitement in the 9th

* the Thunder Bay Border Cats thumped their cross-border baseball rivals the Mankato Moon Dogs 8-7 on Thursday night

* you can be hit in the head in any disc golf zone (hey - we've only heard of it recently too...go look it up!)

Don't forget to duck

* you can shoot the rapids in Boulevard Park (and if you are a salmon, you can navigate the thoughtful fish ladder back up river to spawn)

Rapids downtown

Walking around Lake Boulevard

Lake Boulevard one side of the weir...the other is Lake Superior

* the fireworks at Fort William Historical Park lit up the night with the biggest display outside the capital (Ottawa for those who are asking).

We enjoyed this pragmatic and industrious town. Next time you here, also check out the Lake Superior marshlands (home to flowers, birds and deer), the Museum full of local social history (including the shipbuilding, docks, commercial and mining sectors), and chat with the friendly locals at the Blue Door Bistro (been to Australia in the past) and at the Bight (now chock full of information about how to have a good time in Melbourne). 

Zombie Moose

'The best way of being kind to bears is not to be very close to them.' I considered this sage advice from Margaret Atwood as we left the prairie and Winnipeg behind and arrived in Kenora, situated on the Lake of the Woods. Of course, we all know about bears and woods, right? Even so, we encountered a sign that put this part of the world into perspective and made me wish I'd opted for the bear spray.

Not your average bear

Wildlife appears to be on most people's minds in this neck of the woods. We know this because:

* We drove past a deer casually eating the grass in front of a home on 2nd Avenue

* All the children's pyjamas in the shops were covered in fish, moose or bears

* You could buy a hunting license on the way into town

* Canada geese and their goslings were swimming on the lake

*Signs on the highway indicated zombie moose waiting to eat your car at night.

Nightmare on Elk Street?

Thinking about all the good times at the Boathouse in Canberra

The area around Kenora filled us with delight, not least because we were able to settle in at the Boathouse and enjoy the lake as the sun went down. We chatted with our 'hostess with the mostest', Alice, who was once on the Canadian swim team, whose father worked maintaining the TransCanada Pipeline, and who one day hopes to study medicine.  

Meanwhile she's dishing up food with the small talk, letting us know that not only does it snow in Kenora, but in winter the lake freezes over. Apparently people drive across to a nearby island. Hope they pack their anti-freeze and their insurance.


We decided to keep driving before any hint of winter appeared and lost count of the lakes and rivers we passed on the way to Thunder Bay. We're hoping it doesn't live up to its name because we're off to the ballgame tonight.

We'll let you know how the hotdogs and beer work out in the ninth!

Near Kenora

Gordon Lake? George Lake? Little Joe Lake?

Maple Street?

Who knew that Maple Creek was just waiting to be discovered by the intrepid Maple Dixie? Surely the highlight was the fabulous cutouts on the signs throughout this town a few kilometres off the TransCanadian Highway.

Maple Street in (where else?) Maple Creek

Maple Creek is one of the many rural communities dotted across the Canadian prairie between Medicine Hat and Moose Jaw. We visited quite a few of these communities that are surrounded by wheat, corn and canola. The huge fields have no fences and no trees - it's a green Nullarbor!

All that grain has to go somewhere

Even out here, the smoke from BC continued to make an impression with a hazy sky. Luckily we found a few places to stop, enjoy a change of scene, and even enjoy a few respectable coffees.

David in Maple Creek

Trainspotters will be excited to know that there are any number of long, looooong, trains carting produce across the country.

Trainspotter alert!

We also enjoyed some Canadian hospitality at a B&B in the oldest house in Moose Jaw and read up on the history of the area and tested out the pancakes and maple syrup.

Breakfast reading

After all this sitting and eating, Maple is off to do a little walking and contemplate a new exercise regime!

Badlands

Although I hid behind my hands for parts of Jurassic Park, I've been fascinated with the treasures to be found in what is often called 'the badlands'. 

At Drumheller, the Royal Tyrrell Museum has stories about how workers in a range of industries - construction, mining, roadbuilding - have found amazing fossils while digging around Alberta. The  museum runs a research program that helped identify Albertosaurus (think T Rex on steroids) or Edmontonia, an armoured plated herbivore.

In Australia you can visit Winton and check out Australovenator wintonensis, or Diamantinasaurus matildae. You can even help dig them up. In Alberta, although it seems almost anyone can find a new species of dinosaur fossil, you need to be a researcher with a license to remove dinosaur bones from the ground. 

Looking at the dinosaur tracks, you can imagine the ghost of these creatures chasing each other through the muddy riverbed.

Here at Drumheller in the Canadian Badlands, you can also take a walk back in time, exploring the fossil record and thinking about how fast you would have to be to outrun a dinosaur.

It seems that's about 40km/hour (or around 25miles/hour).

Which is just a fraction more than my best time sporting flip-flops in the mud.

Fred-heads

It all began on a freezing day in Canberra when Fred Eaglesmith, who had been keeping us company on road trips for years, 'popped in' to say hello.

On this occasion he wasn't singing about big trains, big cars, big hair or other big catastrophes. He was selling tickets for his show at King Eddy's in Calgary and we decided to skip the long distance conversation for a chance to hear him in person.

In Calgary they only let you into the venues if you're wearing a cowboy hat, cowboy boots and a western shirt, or are accompanied by a responsible adult.

Under adult supervision at King Eddy's

Luckily for us, fellow 'Fred-head,' Jackie and her friends were happy to escort us to a front row seat and provide the adult guidance necessary for this type of show.

Those familiar with Fred will appreciate his straight-talking as well as his music. Those with man-buns probably won't. Fred was unable to identify any of these trouble makers in the crowd, so the night progressed as expected.

We kicked back with a few locals, a few laughs, a few tips from Jackie and her like-minded friends, and a few local beverages.


In keeping with his rock star status, Fred was happy to pose for autographs and photos. We were lucky to get away with a T-shirt.

Rock star and groupie

If you've never heard the word 'Fred-head' before you'll be pleased to know we are waking up with one this morning!

Rock Stars

If you've ever dreamt of being a rock star, then you'll know it involves not only an excited crowd, but a great show and heaps of travel. Today was one of those days.

Setting out from the 'big smoke' of Kelowna, we travelled along the Okanagan Valley towards Lake Louise and Banff. Although the wildfires (bushfires) around BC were still burning up the pine forests, the morning radio happily announced that the air quality index was 11 (down from 36) on a scale normally in the range of 1-10. We took that as a positive sign and beetled up the road past red barns and an Angus cattle farm to spot this gem at Grindrod:

Gordon's New and Used (the Angus farm should have been a give away)

Perhaps the desire to recycle goes with the name!

Further up the road we drove through Sicamous, self proclaimed  house boat capital of Canada. We have no reason to doubt this since there were at least 500 house boats on the lake there.

You'll be overjoyed to learn that Revelstoke, the home of one of Canada's newest and happiest grandmas, a neat pink and white Studebaker and any number of cafes nestled under the Big Hill, has also been hit by the Fidget spinner craze. We gave the Fidget spinners a miss at $8 and invested in a great sandwich for the same price at the Modern Bakeshop and Cafe where they also serve great coffee.

David soaking up some of the mountain atmosphere with the Revelstoke bears

The mountains came into focus a short while later as we ventured through the Glacier Mountain National Park. We spared a thought for the many railway workers who lost their lives trying to build the Trans Canadian Railway through Roger's Pass (thanks Science Centre Vancouver for the background scoop on this). We hope those taking the Rocky Mountaineer appreciate it too.

Every direction had breathtaking views, including at Lake Louise and Banff. It was around this time that the rock star scenario kicked in until it became apparent the crowds were here for the scenery, not for us and we realised we were part of the groupies and not in the band (sigh).

Chris at Lake Louise

Banff - even here it was hazy from the fires

Our favourite signs for the day were:

Beware of the (insert animal here) moose/mountain goat/big horn sheep/elk.

We finally made it to Alberta 'wild rose country' and would like to give a special commendation to the Road Maintenance and Construction Department teams across British Columbia whose work at various points on culverts, tunnels, avalanche protection, potholes, bridges, road widening, traffic light installation as well as verge management and mowing enabled us to enjoy the scenic splendour of the Canadian Rockies at the ideal viewing speed of 0-50km/hour!

BC's secret tourist support service slowing traffic to enjoy the view

Hope and Dreams

The Maple Mobile is on the road! We were dreaming of a VW Combie but settled for a RAV4 that will take us across the continent over the next few weeks on our quest for maples and a drinkable coffee.

In our dreams

Windscreen full of Hope

While we already had the dream sorted, we knew we were heading in the right direction when we saw this hopeful sign. The auguries amongst you will be as happy as we were!

British Columbia is in a heatwave that had us enjoying the cooler mountain drive from Vancouver to Kelowna through spectacular scenery with 'Beware of Avalanche' signs. Why Kelowna? Not only is it one of Canada's premier wine districts, it is also home to our friends Rick, Flo and Alana who have generously agreed to host us for a couple of nights.

David explains to Rick how the Maple Mobile made it this far

Naturally, Maple has some tips about staying cool (and being cool) on road trips.

Tip 1: Head for the cool places such as Coquihalla Summit 1244m and a refreshing 18C with splendid views.
Tip 2: Drink plenty of cool liquids like those on offer at the Mission Hill Winery tasting session. It was air-conditioned - the room, not the wine.
Tip 3: Hang out with cool people (see Tip 2).

Our favourite sign for the day was to the 'Bridal Veil Falls Tourist Attraction' - we bet it is!

And just to 'round out' this post, we'd like to make a special mention of:

• The homemade (vegan) vegetable samosas at the Merritt Visitors Centre Snack Shack
• Flo's Asian Buffet that continued the home cooked theme
• Flo's authentic Canadian Pancake and Maple syrup - just the one but it could easily feed a family of six for a fortnight.

Time for a short hibernation until dinner....

An All Day Ticket Takes You To...

We woke up without a plan ('Amazing!' those who know me gasp.) Truly...a full day ahead and an all day travel pass in hand. We were likely to end up anywhere. But today it was off to the famous  Butchart Gardens on Victoria Island.

We took a 20 minute train to Bridgport, transferred to a 35 minute bus that ended up at the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal. The ferry to Victoria Island took 1.5 hours which was just enough time to learn about the sea life in the Salish Sea from Rachel the designated Parc Canada expert who shared some fun facts:

• The Salish Sea is one of the most biologically diverse marine ecosystems on the earth
• Only male Humpback whales sing
• Orcas are the largest species of dolphin and they love salmon
• Pacific Harbour Porpoises are the smallest cetaceans in the world.

Once we landed on the Island, we caught another 35 minute bus to the Gardens (yeah!). We spent a great afternoon wandering around the delightful creation that has been blooming for over 100 years and is an official National Historical Site of Canada. We spent a while enjoying the warm-up session from a couple of local musicians who you will be surprised to learn played the dobro, mandolin and guitar. Perfect for a sunny afternoon.

Then we did the whole transit thing in reverse. Seamless, easy connections, tap on and off pass (thinking of your Laurie!) and home not long after sunset (well, sunset is about 9pm).

Tomorrow to Kelowna where we will take care and think of all the evacuees from the fires further north in BC.

Vancouver

This maple leaf in Vancouver was just waiting to be discovered on our first walk around. With temperatures up to 30C the dogsled and snowboarding are aspirational only! 

Maple Dixie's Packing Tips

Whenever I'm going on a big adventure, I make sure I take the essentials with me.

If it's been so long since you ventured out that your suitcases are the kind that will bump against your leg and rip your stockings, go get yourself one on wheels. You can pull it along while talking on your phone or drinking that last latte before the flight.

Some people pack dresses and matching shoes. Others like to have a separate make-up case. You can try that if you want to. I don't usually bother.

Whatever luggage you have, here are my top packing tips:

1) Pack your curiosity - but don't fold it up too tight. You'll need it most days.

2) Dust off your sense of humour and tuck it into your hand luggage. You don't want to be looking for it when the unexpected happens. Who knows, you might even need it as you disembark.

3) Roll a little courtesy up with your clothes and remember to put some on every day. It's a small thing, but it can go a long way!

Hi, I'm Maple Dixie. I'll be reporting on the extraordinary, the imaginative and the homespun as I take a road trip across Canada and the Good Ol' US of A.

If you have a question, leave it in the comments and I'll answer it in a subsequent post. So start packing and come along for the ride.