Vacation highlights…

Nearing the end of formal vacation. It has been a wonderful two and one half weeks, so far. The birthday celebration in Winnipeg was very special, over the top, wonderful. My children went all out to fete me. Party, dinner out, trips to the newly reorganized Zoo, and the Fort Whyte nature centre. We had a lovely visit with Joe and Caley, Angus and Emma in Brandon on our way to Moose Jaw.

Never having been to Moose Jaw before, I was surprised by it all. There are some magnificent turn-of-the-twentieth-century homes in the city. I keep wondering where they found the money to build them. I’d love to read an economic history of Moose Jaw to unravel that mystery.

Our B&B was an old mansion, built at the top the escarpment, overlooking the Wakamow Valley and River. Great views, wonderful walk through a series of seven parks along the river. Each walking bridge over the Wakamow River is named for a First Nations tribe. I discovered the Assiniboine, the Cree, and the Blackfoot. I believe there were two others I didn’t find.

The Al Capone tunnels under the city were a good show. The story: Al Capone used Moose Jaw as his headquarters for running booze into the Us in the 20’s of the last century. The Soo line ran from Moose Jaw to Minneapolis and then Chicago, where his stuff was off-loaded. He made, reportedly, some millions of dollars weekly. There are some who doubt the total veracity of the story in its full-blown form, but the young actors portraying the characters in the story do a great job of conveying the message.

The second tunnel tour was less “fun” and more sobering. It told the story of the host of despised Chinese immigrants who arrived in Moose Jaw, and who worked in an elaborate underground laundry. Whether fully truthful or partly, the tunnel story made very clear the blatant racism and hatred that was heaped on the Chinese in those early years. They were paid pennies a day, and only paid back their passage after five years or more! Some Saskatchewan residents on the tour were quite vehement in their denial of the factuality of the story, There is, apparently, no archival evidence to support it. And there seems to be a relatively small Chinese community remaining in Moose Jaw. My thought was, “Why would they document this story? It is a shameful blight on Canada, and on Moose Jaw specifically?” It makes sense to me that they portray it this way, to strangers, rather then trotting out documentary proof for the whole country to see.

In Moose Jaw, we spent a delightful lunch hour with Lynnette Miller, who is completing a two-year Interim Ministry project there. She had some very helpful hints for Beatrix in her current situation. It was good to see her after such a long time. The last time I saw here was when Joe and Caley moved to Ochre River, nearly twenty years ago!

Friday last we arrived in Val Marie, Saskatchewan at last. This little town of 100 souls is one of my favourite places on the planet. Val Marie is the gateway to Canada’s newest National Park, the Grasslands Park. It sprawls along the Frenchman River close to the US border. There are hills and buttes and grass and trails, and nary a tree. But there is silence, and a constant wind. Grasslands contains the largest trove of pre-contact archaeological artifacts in Canada, along with 12000 Tipi rings, some dating back 5000 years. A herd of bison roams the hills; there is a huge prairie dog town… and rattlesnakes! If it sounds like an old western movie, it is…minus the cowboys. Only the ghosts of the Aboriginal people inhabit the land.

Val Marie boasts a superb art gallery – 24 southern Saskatchewan artists display their wares there! We always drop cash on the way out. The old brick schoolhouse is home to Prairie Winds and Silver Sage, a combination museum, art gallery, and bookstore and espresso bar! We drop in virtually every day for a latte and a look.

This morning we hiked seventy-mile butte, climbing to the highest point in the park. I was winded a few times, but thoroughly enjoyed the 5 kilometer grunt. Our first day here, we thought we should warm up for hiking, so we struck out across country to the Two Trees trail head. It turned out to be almost a three-hour return trip! We must have logged over 10 km without realizing it.

We have three more wonderful days here, including a four hour guided walk tomorrow, with a Park naturalist! This is a whole other kind of recovery and renewal. More another day.