News & Photos - July 2008

Busy Doing Photography
Current Location: Grassy field by the garden, Art's Place, Hilbre, Manitoba
Dates: July 2-9, 2008
Services: E; Cost: Free; Nights: 7

I'm at a little community of 50 people called Hilbre, three hours drive north of Winnipeg. A photographer friend, Art, lives on a former farm on a quarter of a square mile property, filled with old rusting farm machinery and wild strawberry bushes. Nearby are some great areas for photos, including nearby Hilbre Beach and the town of Steep Rock.




































Crossing The Lake
Current Location: Unnumbered site, Lake Manitoba Narrows Lodge, The Narrows, Manitoba
Dates: July 9-11, 2008
Services: E; Cost: $18.90; Nights: 2

Lake Manitoba is really two separate lakes, joined by a narrow channel. Highway 68 crosses the channel, providing a valuable short-cut from one side to the other. I had hoped that this area would be more scenic, but there wasn't much to photograph here.




Riding Mountain National Park
Current Location: Grassy field, Art's parents' cabin, Horod, Manitoba
Dates: July 11-15, 2008
Services: E; Cost: Free; Nights: 4

Art's parents own a cabin in the small community (population of fewer than 10) of Horod, which they bought and fixed up. They've generously offered me free camping on their lawn. It's about a 20 minute drive to the south end of Riding Mountain National Park, and surrounded by rolling farmland.



















Made It To Saskatchewan
Current Location: Site 21, Churchbridge Campground, Churchbridge, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 15-17, 2008
Services: E/W; Cost: $17.00; Nights: 2

This is just a quick stop for groceries, gasoline and banking at a small municipal campground in the village of Churchbridge (population 790). Surprisingly, there is only one other RV here, although the campground staff regularly come by to issue permits, clean washrooms and restock the wood pile.

Although Saskatchewan is also in Central Time, they do not have Daylight Savings Time, so during the summer it is one hour earlier here than Manitoba, and therefore two hours earlier than Ontario.

Qu'Appelle Valley
Current Location: Site 44, Fort Qu'Appelle Campground, Fort Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 17-19, 2008
Services: E/W; Cost: $30.00; Nights: 2

Among the endless canola fields of southern Saskatchewan lies the scenic Qu'Appelle valley, bordered by steep rolling hills. At the bottom of the valley, the Qu'Appelle River occasionally forms a calm lake as it slowly winds its way east towards the Assiniboine River, which in turn flows into the Red River at Winnipeg. Small prairie dogs scurry across the campground, pausing momentarily to stand on their hind legs and look for any cat who might like an unusual meal.









An hour and a half before sunset, the low sun makes the hills of Echo Lake come alive with shadows in this panoramic composite image made from 16 separate photos:

Rain and Thunderstorms
Current Location: Site 73, Buffalo Lookout RV Campground, Regina, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 19-22, 2008
Services: E/W/S/WiFi; Cost: $27.55; Nights: 3

For a provincial capital city, I had expected that Regina would have more tourist attractions. I did visit the RCMP Heritage Center, which has many displays showing the heritage of this force, which traces its roots to both the Royal Northwest Mounted Police (RNWMP, founded 1873) and the Dominion Police (founded 1868).



Famous Waters
Current Location: Site 34, Manitou and District Regional Park, Manitou Beach, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 22-24, 2008
Services: E/W/S; Cost: $22.50; Nights: 2

Manitou Beach is famous for its mineral waters, which are high in sodium, magnesium and potassium. With a salinity of 12 percent (which is 3.5 times saltier than the world's oceans and 50 percent saltier than the Dead Sea), swimming is apparently very enjoyable. The town has several spas offering soaks in heated water, as well as a public beach on Little Manitou Lake, which is fed by underground mineral springs. Alas, during my entire stay here, there was almost solid rain and heavy thunderstorms, so I never did get to swim in the lake.



Last Campsite
Current Location: Site 16E, River Valley RV Park, Langham, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 24-25, 2008
Services: E/W/S; Cost: $23.00; Nights: 1

This is a small 31-site campground west of Saskatoon. Although the campground itself is very nice, it's surprising to find a commercial park this small, especially on a major highway (highway 16 goes to Dawson Creek, the start of the Alaska Highway). Even though the weekend is still a few days away, I drove around the park twice before I found a site that wasn't occupied or reserved; as far as I can tell, it was the last available site.



A Historical Place
Current Location: Site 27, Battleford Eiling Kramer Campground, Battleford, Saskatchewan
Dates: July 25-27, 2008
Services: E/W; Cost: $20.00; Nights: 2

Battleford was the capital of the North West Territories from 1876 to 1883, when it was transferred to Regina. Fort Battleford was built mostly from 1880 to 1890, and is Canada's oldest national historic site. Formerly a 5th North West Mounted Police Post, it now contains 5 of the original buildings. Costumed interpreters give canon and rifle firing demonstrations, and tell of life in the late 1800's.







Best Price Yet
Current Location: Site 2, Kitscoty & District Regional Park, Kitscoty, Alberta
Dates: July 27-29, 2008
Services: E; Cost: $12.00; Nights: 2

“ Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
- Mark Twain 		”

Parks run by a regional or town are quickly becoming my favourite places to stay -- they are basic (but not rustic), and very reasonably priced. This 9-site campground is next to the local baseball fields and golf course. There aren't any laundry facilities, wireless Internet access or even any staff on duty (there's a drop box for cash payments), but that's fine for me. It's a quiet place to spend a few nights, with 30-amp hookups so that I can run the air conditioner if necessary.

This area has lots of small oil wells, randomly scattered through the fields. Sadly, they aren't the old-fashioned derricks, but are much less photogenic pumps and tanks.







A Big Place!
Current Location: Site 41, Devon Lions Campground, Devon, Alberta
Dates: July 29-31, 2008
Services: E/W; Cost: $28.00; Nights: 2

“ The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.
- St. Augustine 		”

Unfortunately, all the campgrounds near Edmonton are pricey; this was the most reasonable one that I could find within reasonable driving distance. It's a large campground on the North Saskatchewan River.

Edmonton is home to the West Edmonton Mall, the largest shopping mall in North America, and the largest in the world until 2004. Opened in 1981, it has over 800 stores and employs over 23,000 people. It includes Galaxyland (an indoor amusement park with 24 rides and attractions), a huge indoor waterpark complete with 2 waterslides, Sea Lions Rock (a salt-water habitat that's home to three sea lions), a skating rink, a miniature golf course, and two movie theatres.



















I Should Have Guessed
Current Location: Site 15, Bowden Heritage Rest Area, Bowden, Alberta
Dates: July 31-Aug 1, 2008
Services: E; Cost: $15.00; Nights: 1

“ I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move.
- Robert Louis Stevenson 		”

I should have been more wary of a combination campground and highway rest stop. The campsites are very small and not level, and the noisy highway is fairly close. I'll only stay one night here!




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