Well, it has taken a long time to write this final entry (is it really final??), but here it is. I have been back since mid Saturday, settling back into the everyday life in Powell River. There are good things - my garden lawn was mowed (yay!) and all the spring flowers still in bloom, and my lovely little car was just pining to be taken out, and friends were great to catch up with. But then there was work... and you can probably guess that I was wanting to pinch the minivan back and drive all the way out east again.

To finish off the trip across Canada, I took the Number 3 road from Penticton through Princeton and along to the Number 1 into Vancouver. It snowed as I drove through Manning Park, and at the park gift shop I stood in line with 30 kids as they tried to grab as many bags of chips and fizzy drinks as they could carry. I didn't get anything to eat, which meant not having to fight with the youngsters for the last pack of chocolate chip cookies!

The canyon that I drove through looked like something from central America, with very low cloud breaking to show sharp jagged cliffs. I found my first and only bear of the trip - a very healthy looking probably 2 year old - on the road edge. As I pulled over, grabbing my camera, it looked at me, turned around and with it's bottom in my direction pooped! I saw a bear pooping!! So, there you have it. I decided against putting that photo onto the blog.

There are apparently 3 rush hours for the Greater Vancouver area - early morning, mid day, and mid to late afternoon. Thinking it would be quieter, I chose mid day and was bumper to bumper with fast moving traffic from Chilliwack right into the centre of the city. Behind a pick up truck I realised that the other headlight had gone on the van. If you remember the episode in Quebec when I tried really hard to change the other one, you can imagine that I wasn't exactly thrilled.

However, I dragged a friend down into a covered carpark and together we managed - after about an hour - to figure out the technicalities of Kia mechanics. I had an apartment to myself for two nights and visited with friends before turfing the maps and deciding that I didn't need any help to navigate the last journey north on ferry and road back to Powell River.

It was reassuring to get back and realize that no matter what I had seen along the way, I still think that Powell River has everything one could need - it is beautiful, there is great recreation here, there is no lingering snow, spring has definitely sprung, and it all looks happily familiar.

So, until I venture off again, this is it. Thank you for reading and for your many comments. I hope, if you haven't already taken the plunge and driven across our country, that you will do so in the near future. And, if you do, keep a blog!

I was minding my own business, driving up the highway from Cranbrook to Invermere (because I don't think I have been to Invermere before and, well, why not), concentrating on the verges of the road to make sure no deer or moose were about to run out, and what should I find but two emus. So, I had to take a photo. I waited for ages for them to walk away from the fence, but this was as good as it got before I was too cold to wait any longer.

I seemed to drive a long time yesterday and not get very far, but I did chase a storm right into Creston. No lightning this time, but terrific downpour and hail. I pulled off the road for a while to wait for the worst of it to subside then took these photos when in Creston (where I stayed for the night).

Creston, to any naturalist, should be mecca. For as long as I have been involved with the Malaspina Nats we have received newsletters from the Creston Valley Naturalists, so I was determined to figure out why. And I figured it out! They have something like 25,000 acres of protected wetland that holds 265 species of birds and loads of mammals and amphibians. The place is an orchestra of songs and I spent a great time there yesterday after one storm and before the next and then again this morning, which had much better weather.

Ok, so to any birdwatchers, here's what I think I saw - red necked grebes, red winged blackbirds, a snipe or shrike (I get confused between the two) that made funny coo-ing noises as it flew, tree swallows (they have countless nesting boxes for them and there must be a waiting list because it was busy!), I'm pretty sure I saw a few purple martins too, a water rat, song sparrows, a hawk of some kind, hooded mergansers, mallards, wood ducks, flicker, crows, osprey, ravens, bald eagles, etc. etc.

For anyone travelling through the south east of the province, Creston is a must see. Please go there! It was great.

As I wound my way up to Penticton I followed the winery trail and of course had to stop in at the Golden Beaver Vineyard just because of its name. After trying out 1 sip of 3 different wines I felt just a little bit tipsy leaving the shop :)

Tomorrow I'll be in the big city of Vancouver and following that I'll be home, so I guess this is probably the penultimate entry. Next and final entry will probably be on Monday when I am back at work and once again connected to the internet. Until then, have a great weekend!

You have found me in Fernie, B.C. (yep, home province at last), but to get here took a little while.

At the end of the previous blog, I was unsure when I'd leave the Drumheller area. That decision was kind of made for me. I packed my stuff and left the accommodation of the night before, and as I loaded things into the vehicle I thought I'd write a thank you to the owners (as they were not around when I left the key).

So, I tore off a piece of paper from one of my Drumheller maps and wrote on it. My intention was to leave it with the key that I had already put on the desk. But, I guess being the only guest the owners decided to lock the door the instant I had walked outside. I couldn't get back in. So, no note. And, with that I headed off to Horseshoe Canyon and roamed around there for an hour or so before it got too unbearably hot.

That was my only photo for yesterday. I drove down to Cardstone, found accommodation, did laundry, had a pizza and watched loads of TV :) Travelling is tough!

This morning, though, I left early for Waterton Lakes National Park. Into the snow. Last week they got 3 ft of snow so all the trails were closed and there was minimal driving possible. So, didn't stay there long, either, but took the following photo of the Townsite. I am sure it is a lovely place when everything is available to be done. I did have a nice breakfast there.

So, then I was off to the Crowsnest Pass. On route I drove through the foothills of the Rockies and found that a huge area just outside Waterton has been placed in the Nature Conservancy of Canada to be used for self-sufficient farming practices.

I also found this cool boulder. Couldn't help but take a photo - so abstract.

Tomorrow, John Cusack will be in town directing and starring in his new movie Hot Tub Time Travel or something like that. Here's a link to a description: http://www.cinematical.com/2009/05/02/john-cusack-rob-corddry-and-crispin-glover-jumped-in-a-hot-tub/

I'm off to perfect my acting abilities and see if I can snag a role.

Bye for now.

So, here's a few photos for you to guess where I am...

A clue would be that human evolution is just a blink in the time that these creatures were around... Got it?

If you said Drumheller you'd be right. Wow, this place is really quite something, although I had to get out of the touristy town as soon as I could. I'm about 10 km south of D upstairs from a pool table - the bar itself is pretty quiet but I hear the clunk of each ball going down into the hole. It's quite a cool hotel, between a railway track (I have my earplugs handy) and a river and in the heart of the Badlands. Oh, and it is for sale for a tiny sum of about $750,000. If you fancy working hard in the summer and having the winter off, then let me know!

To get here, I've actually been having a great time. A few days ago I drove through the rest of Manitoba and the weather was nasty - luckily not snowing but heavy driving rain and strong winds. I drove via Souris on the advice of Barbara, Geology Prof at U of Manitoba, to the rock shop where I bought a $10 permit to go onto private land and root around for gems. In the rain, remember. So, freezing as it was, I plodded around in mud until my fingers couldn't move anymore, and dragged my stash of stones into the van and drove until I thawed out.

I got as far as Regina that evening laughing at myself for being so gullible as to purchase a permit to play in the dirt. But, then I washed the stones and found one that intrigued me. It is small, round, bubbled, and heavy.

Yesterday the weather was great - dry and warm. Every scene deserved to be captured on film (if I can say that in the digital world). My good friend Amy had mentioned in an email that I was only a few days away from home if I drove all day. So, I started to tootle around the countryside. I went up a road, following a pair of binoculars, to Thunder Creek Heritage Marshes - a fabulous birding area. Pelicans flew low overhead on my approach, and there were maybe 13 different species on the water (I realise this will frustrate the birders reading this, but not sure what I was looking at other than the usual - and there were some fairly unusual specimens). Here's a photo of the sign so you can get there yourselves.

Back on the highway, not far to the west, was a pull off for Mortlach. Signs leading to the junction showed photos of natural history so I went to the gallery. The photographer is David Krughoff and website is photoartcanada.com. Walking around helped me identify a lot of the wildlife I have been seeing including the mule and white tailed deer, pronghorn antelope, curlew, shrike, red tailed and ferruginous hawks, partridge, grouse, pheasant, and red fox.

Mortlach is a lovely little place. It seems there are only about 300 people there, but going into the gallery then the rock shop then the tea shop everybody was happy to talk and speak positively of their little village. In the rock shop I showed the owner my bubbly find and found out that although I paid $10 for a permit, this little gem is worth $28 on the market. It is a prophesy stone... sounds to me like a second or third vocation!

A bit further along Hwy 1 I found a back route to Cypress Hills Provincial Park, that led me through to Eastend and the T'Rex Centre. In the hills around Frenchman River, which flows through Eastend, a discovery was made of one of only 12 known Tyranosaurus Rex remains. With very little government funding and lots of local support, a visitor centre has been created that is built into the hillside with just a semi-circle of glass marking its presence - apparently to look like an eye watching over the valley.

Debbie, a very friendly ex-Quadra and now Eastend inhabitant and who works at the centre (and, who decided to live in Eastend after 1 hour of walking around the town and enjoying an ice cream a few years ago) gave me a good tour of the facility which, having now been to the Tyrrell museum in Drumheller, was simple, uncomplicated, and I think I was the only visitor at the time. I have to say that I actually preferred to learn in that atmosphere, where I didn't have to vy with hoards of people to see the exhibits and where I got a one-to-one transfer of knowledge about what was going on here a few million years ago.

On Debbie's advice, I got up early this morning and drove up toward Leader to see the Great Sand Dunes. Apparently typical of Saskatchewan, finding out about the touristy things to go and see is quite a mystery. For some reason Sask. is not advertising it's points of interest very well. I got a little lost, but finally found myself at the foot of a line of sand dunes and had fun - being the only tourist there.

That's one of the nice things about travelling at this time of year. Yes, lots of places are closed, but as long as I can find my way to things I really have these lovely places to myself.

Obviously, though, many have been through here before me.

All day today has been a lovely drive. I approached Drumheller along the scenic route rather than the direct tourist drag. I saw some scary over-burdened trucks with farming gear - ploughing stuff that hung off both sides so that a regular sized truck becomes 3 times it's width as it teeters along.

I now find that walking around out here it is difficult to keep my eyes on the horizon. I am looking at the ground searching for the ultimate clue to discovering a dinosaur of my very own. I might stay around another day before heading south - the weather is supposed to be great tomorrow. We'll just have to see.