ON THE ROAD WITH PAT AND WARD: June 2014

Sunday, June 22, 2014

RV = Repair Vehicle

We are currently in Dawson Creek, British Columbia and will leave tomorrow (Sunday) to backtrack to Grande Prairie, Alberta. I'm really not fond of going back, but our bedroom slide will not extend and sleeping in the fetal position is not my idea of fun.

Due to the lack of good WiFi, I'm a bit behind with blog posts. I know! I know! What's new? So, here goes.

Like I said, we are in Dawson Creek, British Columbia and have been here for two days. Dawson Creek is the beginning of the Alaska Highway and has a marker for "Milepost 0" in the downtown business area. Dawson Creek is just a nice little town surrounded by some of the greenest countryside you would ever want to see. Long green vistas are the order of the day. Looking across a valley you can literally see for miles across seas of green.

Dawson Creek's main claim to fame!

This metal statue which stands in the middle of a traffic circle is pointing the way to Alaska.

This is the famous Milepost Zero of the Alaska Highway which was a joint venture of the US and Canada during WWII. The story is to long to tell here but a Google search will show you what an amazing feat it was.

Make this a must stop while in Dawson Creek. We got a lovely loaf of bread that was still warm. Glad I brought my larger pants with us.

If you visit Dawson Creek, Make sure to go by the Old Fashioned Bakery which is near the Dawson Creek Art Gallery. Superb baked goods.

North Battleford Saskatchewan

Well we are back to checking out statues along the route and we located a couple of interesting ones in North Battleford Saskatchewan. One is of a Mountie on his horse named "BoB" and the other is of a buffalo which is made from barbed wire.

This statue was installed in the sixties for the centennial celebration.

This larger than life sculpture of a buffalo is titled "Don't Fence Me In" and is mad entirely of barbed wire. I don't see how anyone could sculpt with barbed wire without cutting himself..

The detail is amazing considering the medium.

The plaque identifying the sculptor.

The scenery was wonderful but we just couldn't get a good photo because of the overcast rainy conditions. These buffleheads in a roadside pond were an interesting find.

On The Way Sioux Falls, SD to Foam Lake Saskatchewan June 16

It has been continuous rain for the last several days, so it was fun to stumble upon the welcome center in Russell Manitoba. I don't know why, but we get a kick out of these statues along the way. I guess it is just a humorous way to pass the time.

I can heartily recommend this sentiment. Manitoba is a beautiful scenic wonder, which makes the drive a comfortable experience.

This fanciful bull in front of the welcome center in Russell makes for a nice break in the travels.

Of course, some folks will find a place to sit no matter where they are. Pat and the boys enjoy passing the bull with the bull.

There are lakes and small bodies of water all along the route which makes for excellent bird watching. This pair of redheads are just one example.

Manitoba offers not only great bird watching but mega doses of scenic beauty.

June 13 Sioux Falls South Dakota

Sioux Falls South Dakota is a typical American city that has one of the neatest parks we have ever seen. One of the things that makes this park so interesting is the number of families and individuals who take advantage of it's beauty and facilities. This park was aptly named Falls Park.

The falls at Falls Park, though not very high as waterfalls go, are quite spectacular due to the rushing water and the various sloughs that are here.

It was nice seeing so many families visiting the falls and just enjoying nature in some of it's awesome beauty and power.

The people in this photo give you an idea of the size of the falls. Check out the women in the top right sitting on a rock.

This photo gives a pretty good overview of what the falls and park are like. Behind me is grassy scene and the ruins pictured below

These are the ruins of the 1881 Queen City (Sioux Falls) Flour Mill which was billed as the largest flour mill in the Midwest, at that time. The mill building was seven stories high, and there were several smaller out buildings. It must have been a very impressive sight for 1881. There is bad news to the story however since the mill was only in business for two years. The reason for the failure was lack of sufficient water and wheat. It would be interesting to see the climate data for that period.

This gives another overview of the park and some of the facilities. Note the viewing tower in the background.

People were fishing downstream of the falls and the downstream area was very popular for people just sitting and enjoying the mild weather and the areas beauty.

I bet he had to bait her hook as well.

Friday, June 13, 2014

Back Underway to Alaska

Our big dog Newton had a bout of pancreatitous so we stayed in Oak Grove Missouri for five nights and four days. The very nice folks at the KOA referred us to Crain Veterinary Clinic in Grain Valley, Missouri and this turned out to be an outstanding choice. We left this morning, Friday the 13th headed for Sioux Falls, South Dakota and had an absolutely beautiful day to travel.

Pat and I took off to tour the town and take in the local sights. The USS South Dakota Memorial is about what you would expect a memorial to a WW II battleship to look like far inland. Hmmmm, wonder why they named a battleship after a state as far inland as South Dakota? There was an exhibition of Native American art in town but the venue was closed. The building it was in was quite interesting and we would have liked to stay one more day, but decided against it.

In 1880 the falls were the location of a huge flour mill that only stayed open for two years since there wasn't enough water or wheat for the mill to operate.

You can get a feel for the size of the falls by comparing the size of the people around the falls. This place was really utilized by the people in this area. The park was simply lovely and was a great place to take the kids for an outing and this Friday afternoon apparently was a good time to get out of the house.

These folks were fishing downstream of the falls. Notice who was having to get the hook out of the fish. Bet he had to bait the hook, as well.

Monday, June 9, 2014

KANSAS CITY MISSOURI OR IS THAT KANSAS? (BOTH!)

Boy, this interstate driving sure moves you along at a rapid pace but with lots of boring scenery. Going 500 miles in a day is a very unusual experience for us and we usually only opt for 200 - 250 and that is off the interstate. By the way on I70 at mile marker 188 there is a Flying J which has become a must stop for us. Outside the store area is a large canopy structure called Grandma's Kettle Corn and she makes some of the best you have ever put in your mouth.There is a great deal more to see, places to visit and people to talk with. Oh well, here we are in Kansas City and we were surprised at how neat of a city, or is that cities, this place is. Clean, friendly, people oriented, dynamic traffic routing and good BBQ make this a must come back to place.

We wound up spending two nights here in a KOA which is unusual for us because we feel they are expensive since we don't use many of their recreational facilities. Today we ventured out to the Kansas side of the border and went to visit the Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical Garden which was quite an interesting place. If you are ever in the Kansas City area, I will recommend that you visit this attraction and see what a small city can do with a large measure of "out of the box" thinking.

This fine facility had a Monet Garden which was designed, right down to the bridge to replicate Monet's famous garden in France. Instead of a live Monet, this garden has a life size statue of the famous painter engaged in painting his garden.

Some enterprising soul came up with the idea of planting a rotten log with flowers and building a model of a cliff dwelling.

This photo shows the amazing detail in the statue of Monet.

Saturday, June 7, 2014

FIRST LEG OF SUCHES TO TOK ALASKA

We got off to an early start this morning, which is a miracle for us. Normally we are lucky to get going by 9:30 - 10:00. There was only one problem and that was our good old Norcold 1200 refrigerator just would not work on propane, so we stopped at Camping World in Chattanooga for repairs. Due to some issues in years past, we had stopped going to this Camping World for repair or service work, but when you are desperate, any port will do just fine. Wow, what a change! These folks have really gotten their act together. They got us in did the repair and got us out rapidly, and they appeared to be quite busy. So if you need service on your RV, check with Casey at Camping World RV.

When the day starts out poorly, it usually goes downhill all day long. Today just got better and better. First the good experience with camping world and then finding the Clarksville RV park in Clarksville Tennessee. Nice clean place with excellent WiFi and friendly folks working here. So if you are near Nashville, you may want to consider stopping here.

This is what the entire trip will look like. The entire trip from Suches, Georgia to Tok Alaska will be just a tad over 4000 miles and that doesn't count the side trips Pat is sure to come up with.

This is a miniature view of our Delorme routing. We have posted the locations of proposed campgrounds, Flying J Truck stops (easy in easy out with a 35 feet long RV plus tow behind car), Walmarts (here again easy in and out) and Cracker Barrel Restaurants. We went into Google Maps and looked at each location n order to assure we could easily get in and out. know it doesn't sound like a big deal, and it isn't until you have been stuck in a gas station and had to do some fancy driving (cussing) in order to get out.

Birds of the Savannah NWR

Anyway you look at it, the Savannah refuge is an urban refuge with a paper mill spewing pollution and the huge gantry cranes of the Savannah Port visible from much of the wildlife drive. This only adds to the difficulty of making a winter resting place for migratory birds. A place to refuel, put on weight and mate for the summer nesting season usually in the North.

The refuge staff using controlled burns and manipulating water levels provide a marvelous wintering over habitat for some large numbers of waterfowl. One of the things the refuge staff has to contend with is salt water intrusion due to those wonderful people at the Corps of Engineers dredging the Savannah River. Is it possible to go anywhere that the Corps hasn't degraded habitat for wildlife?

Of interest to environmentalists who look for healthy ecosystems having healthy predator and prey communities, is that Savannah NWR has numerous predators to control the waterfowl populations. The predator population is made up of alligators and bobcats, both of which were seen along the wildlife drive. So if you want a winter excursion for birding I would strongly recommend the Savannah NWR.

When visiting the refuge, stop by the visitor center on highway 17 first for some great displays and friendly volunteers to help you. Make sure you watch the 11 minute video about the refuge.