Canada - Rockies

Alberta Plate

A few years ago I asked a lady and her daughter to take a photograph of me somewhere along the Italian coast. One thing led to another and they ended up buying me ice-cream, dinner and putting me up for the night.
I was on one of my spend nothing, hitching and camping trips, so this all came as a luxurious treat. They even gave me 5 Euros pocket money when we said goodbye the next day.

Shelagh, Bill the boys and the cute charming one

They were from Calgary, the next town we were headed to, so it was time to pay them back. By getting fed and sheltered again of course.

It was so nice to see them again (I didn’t get to catch up with the same daughter, rather a sister and her husband Bill). Around the dinner table Shelagh recollected that she had taken me in in Italy because I had come across charming and cute. All heads turn towards me to try and understand for the life of them what she could possibly have meant. I nod in agreement.

The area we had to commando around

The next day Bill takes us all to his favourite spot. A 50ft cliff jump into glacier cold water. If this wasn’t daring enough, the site had since been bought off by a development agency, which was patrolled 24 hours a day. We had to do a commando past the armed security, diving in and out of bushes, probably past cougars and bears to get to the cliff.

When two of them had jumped off I knew I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t go through with it, though it was the single scariest thing I have ever done. Mark went last and landed awkwardly. He was instantly paralysed. We thought he was a gonner. I couldn’t stop laughing.

4 daring heroes

We had to commando our way back out, this time coming fractions away from getting caught, but my army communications to the group pulled off and got us back to the car unscathed. Bill had to rush back to work, so we headed off to Canmore and Banff.

Mark can barely stand, his back hurts so much

Massive on the tourist map, we only really passed through these winter wonderlands. No one can deny how breathtaking it was. Near Banff we heard of some hot springs, but the boys refused to pay 7 dollars to wallow in “Pool” as they called it. We would find some wild hot springs somewhere instead.

The area around the cliff jump - beautiful Ceebey

The last stop we made in Alberta was a visit to Lake Louise where we warmed our bones with our usual meal – a sachet of noodles and boiling water. We weren’t at all prepared for the high altitude weather. After all, (Jim Carrey Voice “We’re in the Rockies”).

Full on noodles in Lake Louise

Needless to say, I froze that night, only surviving it because of a blanket that Shelagh had given me.

Lake Louise

The second highest waterfalls in Canada are your first attraction when crossing over into Beautiful British Colombia. Total height of 384m the Takakkaw Falls are fed by the Daly Glacier on top of the mountain.

Takakkaw Falls

Takakkaw falls river

Known as the “other lake”, (referring to the popularity of Lake Louise), Emerald Lake is every bit as enchanting as its counterpart. I overheard a tour guide saying that “The Edge” was filmed in the area, and not in Alaska where it’s set. You could easily imagine you were in Alaska.

Emerald Lake

We had heard from someone about some secret wild hot springs down in the Kootenays. To get there we had to drive away from the Rockies and into the next mountain range – the Columbia Mountains. After 2 hours, we were to take a free ferry across the Upper Arrow Lakes, then ask the locals to let us in on the secret location.

The ferry guy, after making sure no one could hear us, whispered the following instructions: Drive past two bridges, take a left onto a dirt road and drive 11km. Walk left into the forest for 10 minutes and you will arrive at the natural wild hot springs.

Free ferry from Shelter Bay to Galena Bay

We came across a crazy naked guy who took us to a secret location WITHIN this secret location. Lucky us!

To appease Glen, we all went naked and dipped our travel weary bodies into 3 pools of deliciously piping hot spring water, coming from the ground. Just behind us we can hear a waterfall crashing down into the freezing glacier stream beside us, which is full of spawning salmon.

Another guy, David from Switzerland, helped Glen collect wood for a fire while we prepared our tent. Glen supplied all the alcohol for an evening of lying naked under the stars and sharing secrets in the hot tub.

David and the fire beside the hot springs

The next day we all head out together in the direction of hippy town Nelson, but don’t quite make it. We had picked up a hitchhiker on the way, who had invited us all back to his farm for lunch.

Brent's family

It turns out Brent and his family, were entirely self sufficient, living totally off the fat of the land. Dinner came straight from the garden; Mark helped pick the beans, while I was out chopping wood. Simon was making a kitten house with the kids. Invariably, I had been calling Mark a “City Slicker” throughout our trip. We all walked away from that experience humbled and enlightened.

Brent's farm in the Slocan Valley
Playing with the kids (of course they have no TV or anything like that

On the way to Vancouver we stopped off at the Okanagan Valley. The wine capital of Canada, we tried some surprisingly good wines. The valley is famous for having the only desert in Canada, and the scene of most of the seasonal fruit-picking.

In a town called Penticton, two lakes are joined together by a man made channel, which we went down on Tubes, drinking beer and telling more secrets. Glen lost again, but fresh out of secrets his forfeit was attempting a handstand which he failed miserably, falling back into the channel.

Tubing the Channel between Skaha and Okanagan Lakes

A last night of camping in the wild before a final journey in our car across Manning National Park, which was so smoky due to nearby massive forest fires in Washington State. Sadly the car was due back in Vancouver. But not before we had clocked up over 5500km. Fortunately we had unlimited miles.

Our last night of camping with bears (Mark caught with his knickers down)

We reach the Pacific at Wreck Beach, Glen’s favourite and of course a nudist beach just outside downtown Vancouver. Watching the sunset over the Ocean I ask Simon if he realizes he has just driven from the Atlantic to the Pacific at the widest point of the Americas. He looks on in silence. We both felt like pioneers.

Two young pioneers

Canada - Prairies

Manitoba Plate

We were entering a new Province whose slogan as stated on the car plates is: “Friendly Manitoba”

Lauren from the Tourist Office

We were only in Manitoba a matter of minutes before the people working in the tourist office invite us back to their cabin for a party.

Partying on Star Lake by the fire

All the young people from the area came along for a night of drinks, music (I did some Beatle numbers for them), and to make a fire on the beach in their garden on Star Lake. Miles from any kind of city, the stars were out in their billions. What a welcome we received.

Star Lake

The Prairies is the Great Plains part of Canada, and as its name suggests is endlessly flat. Most Canadians knows them as the “drive through” provinces. We were determined to have a wail of a time none the less.

Typical Prairies

First stop: Grand Beach on Lake Winnipeg. This proved to be a magical surprise. The lake went on further than the eyes could see, and the crystal white sand was set in a cove of luscious trees.

Lake Winnipeg

We stopped in the Town of Winnipeg to take a photo of the Forks where the Red and Assiniboine Rivers meet. That night we camped right on the motorway outside Brandon, it was so noisy, I should never have listened to the brothers – insisting there would be no traffic which there was throughout the whole night.

3 Crazy boys on their haystacks

Continuing west on the number 1 highway we enter the next province along: Saskatchewan, by far my favourite name. There were two ways to get to its capital Regina. Continue along the never changing highway or go through the Qu’appelle valley. This valley trail took us away from a planet we’d come to appreciate as barren for the last 1000km. We went sliding into Crooked Lake in a ghost town called Melville Beach.

Crooked Lake in the Qu'Appelle Valley

Our worst night of camping was endured on the Saskatchewan – Alberta border. We got lazy and didn’t properly peg the tent down (I secretly blame Simon) . A storm broke out and slowly soaked me to the bone. I woke up freezing wet, and had to go to the car and turn on the engine to warm up. An hour later Mark followed suit. Then came Simon.

To stop ourselves from going mad, we had to invent car games which almost inevitably broke out into a fight and a sulk. I.e. I won them all.

All happy because the car game has only just started - give it 5 minutes

Half of Alberta is in the Prairies, the other in the Rockies (so not entirely a “drive through” province). On the map we saw that we could take a detour to: “Dinosaur Provincial Park”. It was a 100km out of our way, but adults or not, we all got giddy and excited.

Dinosaur Badlands

Set in the badlands, over 150 dinosaurs have been excavated so far. Two of them have been left exactly as they were found and covered in a shelter for tourists to look at.

Dinosaur lying exactly where it died 75 million years agoDinosaur Provincial Park museum

Our consensus when completing the Prairies was that they were not at all boring, but we knew that we were headed to Calgary: the last stop before we would be entering into the Rocky Mountains. Adios flatlands and badlands.

Saskatchewan Plate

Canada - Ontario part I

The "Free way" to the falls

The Day Twins crossed the Rainbow Bridge from New York State into Canada around midnight. The rendezvous was the Casino. I had been there for 3 hours already and though I was only a block or so away from the spectacle, I waited for the boys, so we would all see the falls together.

It was dark and misty but my first impression was of the thundering sound. Indeed, the word Niagara is an Ojibwa word meaning: “Thundering Waters”!

The Day twins and me by the falls

When you prepare yourself for a visit to a place which ranks so highly on the tourist scale, you cannot be surprised or even disappointed when they turn a natural wonder into an over commercialized utopia.

Maid of the Mist

The world famous Maid of the Mist is a boat which takes tourists as close into the falls as possible. To save on the 28 dollars, Simon and I snuck past the ticket booth not realizing there would be another ticket check. Somehow we blagged our way through and found ourselves donning our blue raincoats preparing to be soaked by 6 million cubic feet of water.

Me on Maid of the Mist

The night before we had pissed into the river just before the falls, in the hope that we would microscopically spray all the thousands of tourists into their awe-inspired, open mouths.

Seneca falls

The casino proved our source of free luggage storage, free drinks, and once we accidentally made a bet. Fortunately we won 3 dollars fifty which we excitedly changed and converted into bagels and cream. That whole day and night in Niagara cost us a dollar between us.

Bagels and cream cheese and newspapers with a view

Free camping could prove difficult at times, so one night we camped hidden behind a bush and woke up to the roaring sound of a helicopter only a couple meters away. We thought we were caught in a hurricane the tent shook so much.

Camping and helicopters

Trying to hitch to Toronto we find ourselves crossing motorways trying to find a good spot. Suddenly we hear a siren. The cop rolls down his window and more in a tone of empathy than a reprimand says:” What are you guys doing”, to which we reply: “We don’t know”.

He tells us to get in but doesn’t say another word. Riding in the back of this 70’s Cop Car, Simon asks: “Jeremiah, are we going to Jail”.

“Sssh”, I tell him. “Don’t give him ideas”

Consequently I received my second lift in a police car a good few km down the road. These peoples are so incredibly cordial.

Cool Cop

Our next hitchpicker advised us to check out Port Dalhousie before heading to Toronto. So he drops us off on the beach where we spend two days tanning, swimming and lazily eating ice cream and riding the world’s cheapest carrousel (still only 5 cents a ride). Actually, we were so tight we didn’t even pay that. I found some old tickets.

Port Dalhousie (100km away CN tower in backround)

Hitching to Toronto

On our final leg to the city, we were picked up by a half native girl and her two Canadian friends. They invited us to stay with them in there suburb town of Newmarket. Krystale took us rock climbing where her brother works, to her aunts who just had a pool installed, and countless other activities in her area.

Rock Climbing with Krystale

Two Mormon missionaries give us a lift to Sibbauld Point National Park on Lake Simcoe where we spend 3 days sneaking around different campsites (almost getting caught), winning a beach volleyball competition and lazing around eating ice cream again, waiting.

Enjoying a gin and tonic in the Aunt's pool

Both aged 26 and without a drivers license, Simon and I were waiting for Mark to pick us up and start a mammoth 5000 km road trip crossing the second biggest country in the world.

Krystale and Nate and me

Canada - Ontario part II

Ontario Plate

I’m spared a 5 km walk to the supermarket from Sibbauld Point when Gary stops to pick me up. He takes me to the shop and then back to the park. Half an hour later he comes back looking for me in the park. He sees me and Simon scoffing down some ice cream (I promise that we don’t always eat ice-cream, it was an odd sneaky treat).

Campfire marshmallows at Sibbauld Point

He knows we are waiting for Mark to come and pick us up. He tells us that we can all crash around his place that night. He cooks us dinner, plies us with nice expensive Canadian Rye whiskey, and we all share stories, mostly about girls. Gary was 69 but looked 50 and was the coolest guy.

Gary and the boys

He wanted to take us out on his boat, but the weather wasn’t so nice. So after cooking us omelets, we say our farewells and begin the first leg of our mammoth journey.

Common sight along the Trans Canada Highway

The map shows us that crossing the province of Ontario will take at least 3 days. We decide to stop off in various national parks along the way. The first day is spent skirting Lake Huron, where we end up spending a night on St Joseph’s Island.

Eerie Lake Huron (get it?)

The island is situated just south of Sault St Marie a town which has a large Indian population. The girl who picked us up back in Toronto was originally from here.Welcome to Sault St Marie!

From one great lake to another, we visit the pictographs of Agawa Rock inside Lake Superior National Park.

The Agawa PyctographsHundred years old Native drawings

Further down the road we see an isolated beach where we stripped off and went paddling. Mainly as a mode for showering (our trip consisted of keeping clean by dousing ourselves in soap and dipping into freezing cold lakes). Only we hadn’t considered that all the cars on the highway could see our naked butts. We bailed before the rangers caught up with us.

Lake Superior - not big enough to hide our nakedness)

That night we found an airstrip and asked a fireman if we could camp in the bushes on the property. He said there would be no problem. I asked him if there were bears in the area to which he replied:” Oh yeah, loads”!

Simon finding a distraction from bringing food into the tent

I tried to enforce a strict NO FOOD IN THE TENT policy. But the boys were lax, and tried to sneak food in. They weren’t as perturbed at the prospect of being mauled by a bear as I was. The next morning, behind the tent we found 4 mutilated carcasses and bones. I can only hope they weren’t human. One thing we do know was that a hungry bear had recently passed through here.

Probably what the carcass originally looked like

We made a fleeting visit to Rainbow Falls then a walk through the massive Ouimet Canyon before heading down to the "Sleeping Giant" National Park.

Indian Head in Ouimet Canyon

English head in Ouimet Canyon

On the way we were so lucky. Right in front of us a massive black Bear crossed the road. He slowed down, took a look at us, made a sniff in the air, decided we were no good for the tasting and continued on its way through the forest. I was only a meter or so away from it. Scary, but exciting.

The Great Big Mauling and Fiercely Dangerous Black Bear

That night Mark was feeling generous and bought us all an A&W (a company that makes a delicious root beer, and more recently hamburgers and fries etc), which was a welcome break from our staple diet of tuna and mayonnaise, or peanut butter and jam sandwiches. Up until Mark’s treat, a crisp sandwich had been a luxury. Breakfast (and sometimes dinner) had been to get boiling water in a cup from a garage or something, then empty a 20cent packet of noodles into it and hope the heat would simmer them enough to make them edible. Everyday without fail we would indulge on these packaged MSG luxuries. Hey ………when you’re traveling on a budget!!!!!

Mark making his third tuna-mayo sandwich of the day

The morning’s sun rose for us over Kakabeka falls – dubbed the “Niagara of the North”, as we headed away from the great lakes and toward the interior.

Kakabeka falls

Our last treat in Ontario was tiny Blue Lake where the water was so clear you could see 6 meters deep.

Blue Lake

Over 2000km had been completed and it was time to leave behind the scenic Lakes, cliffs, forests, wildlife (on the road we had seen many a deer, moose and bears) and enter into many a Canadian’s nightmare: THE PRAIRIES.

Leaving Ontario sunset