It was a restful sleep with no or few mosquito incidents. The campground was quiet as most have been in the morning. People, including children are up late and then are not up with the sun! By the time we were packed up and ready to go there was some activity, a couple of little ones on their balance bikes and an older brother on a bike bigger than he was. We waved and shouted, “Merci!” to our host from last evening. A few were heading to the beach and early swim.
There were still lots of cars parked outside the gates and then had an “ah ha” moment. We realized that many of the campers parked were just campers, no cars or trucks!! It makes sense I guess. The campsites looked to be all wooded except for a few up front.
The seasonal camping things sort of gelled too. Why buy ONE vacation place when you can pull your camper and set it up like home for an entire season. Then you get to really check out an area and move on to somewhere else the next camping season.
The scenery changed a we drove south, the scraggly spruces and birches replaced by taller spruces and pines and other hardwoods. The landscape produced mofr farms, herds of cattle, fields of hay, wheat and I believe canola. The reason I think it was canola is a LONG time, after Grandma and I had been at WalMart, we drove 36th street in Jasper so we could drive by Robert and his kids’ arms (Mill Creek?? I can’t remember now) and they were big farms. One year they tried to grow canola and had to invest in a new seeder as the seeds were erytiny and when we drove by the field was full of yellow flowers that looked like these fields today. I don’t know how long the Hopfs even grew it, if it was a one year trial or not. I do think there was a different way to harvest too. It has been some years ago. Wow.
We pass through charming little towns, and passed a giant giant dreamcatcher sculpture in someone's yard and were not quick enough for a real picture, but the mental one is vivid. A motorcade drove by, the lead vehicle featuring a pink bow and the 2nd vehicle a really large pink bus? We were trying to figure it all out and then it was past. These two vehicles were than followed by MANY motorcycles, with their riders wearing pink under their safety vests One motorcycle had a sidecar in which sat a dog, enjoying the ride, goggles and all. We drove through Bruce Mines, home of Canada’s first copper mine, even though it wasn’t a mine for too long.
Many of the areas we are passing through “belong to FIrst Nation tribes: Serpent River, Thessalon, Whitefish Lake. There are actually 133 First Nation communities and 220,000 people identify themselves as First Nations. First Nations are the indigenous people of Canada south of the Arctic Circle (above are called Inuits). They settled and established trade routes across Canada 1000 BC.
We had something PLUNK onto our truck roof when we drove under an overpass on which a golf cart was driving. We didn’t see any damage when we checked but didn’t climb up there. We are grateful it did hit a windshield! :O THAT would have been could have been catastrophic!
A general store: Tony Stewart & Wife, General Store. I don’t know if we’ve ever seen one devoted to a wife. Sons, yes, Family, yes, but never specifically a wife. Interesting!
We saw a mailbox set up in a bucket, assuming there was concrete in there?? WE saw one last week that was on top of what looked like a step stool. I guess you can just take them in when you aren't home. :) Easy for the mail delivery to know not to stop.
We stopped by a trading post near the Serpent River (part of the Serpent First Nation!) and the sign said, “Open,” but it was darkish inside. We found something adorable and the lady in charge informed us that they were actually closed. I apologized but wondered then why the door wasn’t locked. I did tell her that I had worked in retail myself and it was very frustrating when someone came in right before closing and you spend a long time walking with them explaining things (plants and their perfect spot in their landscaping as I worked in that field eons ago) and then they’d leave without buying a thing. At least I bought my adorable thing! Shhhh. It’s a surprise.
Outside under a grove of trees we saw a bear and her cubs, walking towards the building. Our first sighting and they were wooden cutouts. We grabbed a picture and whoa and behold, we were barely back on the road when a black bear crossed the road in front of the van in front of us. It was NOT a big fat momma bear or dainty little baby bear but perhaps a teenager? Sort of on the slim side but a bear not the less. It's a good thing I finally found a bear bell at stop earlier in the day!!
A GMC RV, a cousin of sunshine or a brother/sister, depending on the year, drove by the opposite direction. It is amazing how many there are out there, still strong. Sunshine just loves camping at home.
We passed through a town called Espanola, on the Spanish River! Hmmm. Most of Canada is French or English. So some research was required. It turns out a LONG time ago, a Native traveled a long distance and brought his bride back, a woman who spoke Spanish. When the French arrive, they heard the children speaking Spanish and uttered, “Espagnole” and the English version of Espanola stuck and the river as well called the Spanish River.
There is a big billboard that advertises a book “Minnow Trap 2” on Amazon. Well, it turns out the author is from nearby Sudbury and the book take place in this area. Two and ½ stars but maybe I’ll chance it. It is about aliens invading their town??
Glimpses of lots of water, lakes both tiny and huge along with Lake Huron!! LOts of boats, even on our trip up to and back from Chisasibi. Cars and boats, trucks and boats, campers and boats, trucks with campers and boats. Mostly the small traditional row boat but some larger ones as well now that we are further south.
I did finish Anne of Green Gables and I really do recommend it. I laughed, I cried, and I found the ending satisfying. I will, of course, now have to read the entire series!!
We found a perfect picnic spot for the night. It is close to the USA border but not quite. We can just make out America from the beach of Lake George (part of Lake Huron!). It is called the Ojibway Tent and Trailer Park, and located on the lands of the Garden River First Nation reserves. We pulled up, after they’ve closed (of course!), but someone rushed to our truck. We ask if he has something just for one night and he said, “Yes, cash.” Okay. Since we are close to the border, we must ask, “Canadian? Or do you take American?” His reply, “I prefer American but I will take Canadian.” It is $30 and we don’t have but maybe $5 Canadian left? He says he’ll take whatever Canadian we have not yet knowing how little that would be. :) But we tell him we’ll be glad to give him American $30, even if the exchange rate is better for him that way. We’ve been taking advantage of their low dollar for nearly a month so this is okay. We find a spot with a gorgeous view of the water, he finds us to fill out paperwork and then offers firewood, “on the house” which, ironically is usually an extra $10 fee, so it worked out fine. We haven’t had a fire yet, but may have one this evening. We walked the beach a bit and it was pretty quiet considering all the campers nestled in here and there. Tons of them!! Two even have refrigerators outside of theirs and one has their own little “tiki” bar, complete with bar stools made from pallets! It’s crazy!! But it is most likely their home away from home. The neighbors to us had such a time putting up a tent and finally gave up. One’s voice was loud but we could only make out words here and there. He laughed a lot as did his people he was with. We went back to the beach to watch the sun set; they are always so pretty over water!! EVen if the clouds snuck in and hid the last 10 minutes! We did have a fire, and it was lovely. There is something about wood smoke!
Tomorrow, USA, and Michigan, and biking Mackinac Island.
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