On The Road Again...This Time to Canada

Hey all,

I'm finally back with a new blog for everyone.  We've made our way through the states and are now living here in Vancouver, Canada.  The eight day trip was interesting and enjoyable and we were able to spend time with our daughter which was wonderful.

We started out by leaving Austin EARLY in the morning and doing a last stop at Buc-ee's Truck stop for gas and human fuel.  Buc--ee's is sorta like a Texas Wall Drugs (which is this amazing stop in South Dakota that has Burma Shave type signs all the way to Florida and back).

Once we'd grabbed our coffee and such, we were back on the road and driving through Texas. 

And driving...

And driving...

*sigh* Have I said how bloody BIG Texas is????  And since we usually take the road less driven, we get to see a lot of rural and small towns which is the only thing that makes the drive worthwhile.

But it's fun to discover things on the road and we often find out info we'd never heard of before.  For an example when we crossed the border into Colorado, we stumbled upon a small sign about the Ludlow Massacre.  We weren't aware of anything by that name, but assumed it was something to do with the Native Americans.

Color us surprised when we looked it up and discovered it was an incident between a corrupt mining company and striking workers.  The company sent men to force the men back to work and wound up murdering women and children instead.  It was a horrific attack and was the start of what some believe was the deadliest strike in US history.  But it was the thing that changed the child labor laws, so at least something good came out of such awful carnage.  If you want to learn more, you can read about it HERE. 

Anyway, after a long day we arrived at my daughters and spent a wonderful few days enjoying her company.  Mostly we just visited, but one day we went on a hike in North Cheyenne Cañon Park. We hiked up to Helen Hunt Falls and then did a longer hike up Mount Cutler and enjoyed a picnic lunch. Here are a few pics...

It was hard to leave Jessaca, but finally we forced ourselves out the door, and we headed north to Canada.  We took a beautiful but barren route through Colorado as we headed into Yellowstone to spend the day in one of my favorite places.  Beautiful and filled with life, we love it there.  More pics below.

Then it was off to our old stomping grounds, Sandpoint and North Idaho. To get into Canada, for expediency sake, we had to go through the border crossing at Eastport, Idaho. So we were able to eat dessert first and grab the best ice cream in Montana at Little Bear's in Thompson Falls.  And we got to see the local Big Horn Sheep as we passed through!  Then we drove into Sandpoint and ate what I consider the BEST pizza on the planet.  2nd Avenue Pizza is amazing!!!  I ate way more than I should have, but it's just soooooo good!!!!! More pics...

We crossed the border into Canada with no problems and no waiting which was great.  Some crossings farther west say it can be up to an hour wait depending on the time of day, so zipping across in less than ten minutes--even with getting a work permit--was so nice.

After a good night's sleep we started west on Hwy 3 towards Vancouver. This was probably the prettiest drive on our trip and since it had rained the day before, the fresh smell of the forest kept us stopping even when we didn't need to.  It took us the whole day to get across the mountains, but every moment was worth it. Beautiful scenery and great small towns that welcomed us. As you can see...

Finally, we arrived in Vancouver just after dark.  Our hotel is right downtown and just a hop and a skip from the harbor.  We're pleased with the location, and thought this are REALLY expensive here, we know we'll enjoy our stay.

Anyway, next time I have another guest blogger for your pleasure. Ann Siracusa has a blog right up my alley when she shares about traveling to foreign lands for her version of romance and intrigue!  

Until then, enjoy your upcoming weekend!!!

Hugs,

CJ England

Follow Your Dreams

http://cjengland.com/wanderingstar/whathappensinmexico.htm

http://cjengland.com