Alberta Part 1

Ah, Alberta! We finally made it and there is so much to do and say that I have to break into two parts. The first being pre-Rockies!

It was like stepping back in time in a few ways. Our first stop Dinosaur Provincial Park. We took a tour offered by Parks Canada and it was well worth the dollars. We were escorted to a restricted  location in the Badlands amongst the hoodoos about 20 minutes from the Visitor Centre. Kate, our tour guide was excellent and provided great information as well as authority to unfold one of the excavations. We viewed fossils and bones of all sizes and shapes. We both enjoyed our 1/2 day hike.

Then on to Drumheller. We settled in for a few days and weather was great until the second night when we experienced one of Alberta's freak storms. In just a few minutes the sky became very dark and the wind began to blow with great force. Thunder, lightning and rain in sheets. Luckily we had all our belongings under cover but campers nearby found their equipment and supplies strewn all over the Campsite. However, the sun reappeared the next day and we were off to explore the Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology. It was a 7 km. bike ride where Charlene had her first fall (no body injuries) but Don managed to ride over the back wheel of the bike. Whew, only $25. to fix. In what seemed like a blink we passed 3 hours learning lots of things about dinosaurs. It seems amazing that the dinosaurs that roamed the earth for millions of years could have been made extinct by a volcano in Mexico. So goes the theory!

Just as there is time for play and exploring, we must also maintain our home on wheels. We took the opportunity to give Moho a shampoo.

Off to Calgary to visit Don's Aunt Doris and Uncle Don. Aunt Doris proved that she had not lost her touch for cooking. When we arrived we found her sorting through her recipes and arranging them in a new filing system. She has a wonderful flare in the kitchen and I managed to take away a few to try. On such short notice she managed to get Sharon, Deanne and Susan (Don's cousins) as well as their spouses; Dale, Peter and Greg and kids over to visit. Other than Deanne and Peter who we saw at the Boston Marathon a few years ago, it had been close to 25 years. 

Again it was fantastic to visit, exchange email addresses and hopes of these western cousins to visit us back in Guelph in the next few years. We played some cards and Charlene actually got some practice in her new game of Crib. 

However, after a few days the wheels needed to roll again. We thanked them for their hospitality especially the ride Uncle Don gave us in his brand new Lexus - only 4 days old.

Next stop Alberta Beach, where as I said in the beginning of this blog it was like stepping back in time. 

We visited with our Grand Falls friends, Ruby and Bill and it felt like we hadn't missed a beat.  Over twenty five years ago we shared a gourmet cooking club as well as a close friendship and our weekend at Alberta Beach proved that we had not lost our flare to cook and eat. Not to mention the wine. As an added bonus Bill became Don's RV teacher. They made one trip to Canadian Tire and $$$$ later Don had his tool kit outfitted. Most important rule - check the tire pressure! I must add that Bill managed to get Don on the golf course for 18 holes. I think he was more tired after their game then any of his long runs. The four days zipped by and again time to push on. Bill and Ruby we may have to keep moving on but part of us will stay with you.

The Rockies!!! WOW!

I must keep you in suspense as we have four more days and then we'll share our adventures in Jasper, Lake Louise and Banff.