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This site documents our Holiday 2010 travels. We were in Canada between 18th May and 25th July 2010. 4/8/2010: Stayed with friends 5 days, motorhome (Canadreams) in Calgary and travelled for roughly 9 weeks across Canada which combined with 1999 meant we have now been from one side to the other. West to East HOLIDAY 2010 Mail Replicated by BLOG 164 or read a quality article on the subject If you enjoy my photography or website design & development , and wish to support it. You can now do so at buymeacoffee.com/khwd , thanks for supporting small local businesses NORTH AMERICA HELLINGER TRAVEL RECORDs for HOLIDAY 2010 Intro WELCOME TO THE HOLIDAY 2010 SITE As an overall introduction to my Holiday 2010 travel website for North America I would say this is split by both country and time, it covers our family trips in Holiday 2010 to both Canada and America. We have been from one side of Canada to the other mostly in our HOLIDAY 2010 travels, which was from Edmonton in Alberta to Labrador and the start of the Trans Labrador Highway, and back in 1999 from Vancouver as far east as Edmonton where our pals live, so joining up from East coast to West. For America we visited in 1997 for the 25th anniversary of Walt Disney World in Florida with our boys when they were 15 and 13, again on this 2010 trip when we crossed over into Upstate New York and Maine briefly, again in 2018 for our 40th wedding anniversary which was a cruise where we visited states Louisiana, South Carolina and Florida , that trip is not featured here on this website but you can read all about it by clicking HERE and finally in 2022 for the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney world again back in Florida but this time with Craig, Leanne and our grandchildren Edie & Tate, 3 generations, finally beginning to look old though I will always like Peter Pan feel young. So all in all we have visited 5 States of the United States, quite a few more to go then eh for us Brits. Right on with the rest of the site, lets initially focus on Canada. Get the rest via the dropdown menu, thanks as always for looking, best KeefH Web Designs x ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 1999 & 2010 Plus USA: Florida,Upstate New York,Maine (2010) and Florida (1997) In 2010 We were in Canada between 18th May and 25th July 2010. Stayed with our friends David & Cathy in Edmonton for 5 days but visited Lesser Slave Lakes, then picked up our campervan / motorhome (Canadreams) in Calgary and travelled for roughly 9 weeks across to the east seeing all provinces (apart from Yukon, North West Territories & Nunavut) plus dropped across the US border into upstate New York & Maine including the wonderful Bar Harbor, so combined with our 1999 trip when we were essentially in British Columbia and the Rockies region as well as Vancouver Island and a brief sojourn to visit our pals in Edmonton, Alberta we have now crossed from one side of Canada to the other (it is the 2nd largest country on earth) At the end of our 2010 trip we flew back from Halifax Nova Scotia One of the comments from David in 1999 when we camped about 300 miles away from his home was "you were just down the road, you should have come here instead of camping there"... just gives you an illustration of how vast the wonderful Canada is when Canadians mentality suggests 300 miles is a hop, step and a jump away, for us Brits thats almost a 1/3 rd of the country. 😉HOLIDAY 2010 was a fun experience. HOLIDAY 2010: 92 Days travel - 18th May - 24th July 2010, 1769 Photos, Approximately 4200 miles Edmonton to Halifax, west to east, including Newfoundland & Labrador, Prairies, Ontario & Quebec, Maritimes. This is also repeated under Blog 164 1999: 25 Days travel - 11th August - 4th September 1999, 1863 miles travelled in our Classic 2000 3 berth hired motorhome. Poor Doug who often said "are we there yet" was only 15 and a better immitation of "Kevin" by Harry Enfield I have not seen 😉. However Doug did love fishing and making real camp fires. So now been across whole of that part of North America if one includes our 1999 trip (also covered by Blog 166 as well as here) covering Vancouver island, British Columbia and into Edmonton, Alberta. We travelled at the time by Air Canada I believe via Iceland to Calgary and then on to Edmonton but I could be wrong, I have some dim and distant memory of an airline called Canada3000. So wish I had taken a picture of the plane. 280510 hard to believe xmas nearly june, high river campsite Alberta keef with the mountie bear Saskatchewan cape canaveral 97 Florida USA 1997 280510 hard to believe xmas nearly june, high river campsite Alberta 1/14 front bar harbor van parked up at red bay united reform church 1/39 120610 camp park resorts niagara falls 070610 camping at elliot lake, ontario 1/28 Provinces Etc Highlights Campsites Flags Full Slideshow Collage Canada Intro Holiday 2010 Site Full Diary For HOLIDAY 2010 part CANADA 2010 we went ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus States New York & Maine in the USA in 2010, it was such fun and quite an achievement. In summary HOLIDAY 2010 consisted of 87 Days travel Canada - 18th May - 24th July 2010, 1769 Photos, Approximately 4200 miles, the Highlights were Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump, Seeing the Harveys (dear friends), Dauphin, Wrestling with the badly sorted Steering wheel on the very windy Prairies, Maid of the Mist on Niagara Falls, Red Bay Labrador, Canada day in Fredericton, Gaspe peninsular, Mounties museum in Regina, Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba, seeing Moose plus potentially more importantly achieving travelling from one side of Canada to the other - all provinces (Canada does provinces, America does states-BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland (Newfie heaven) & Labrador. In sequence during HOLIDAY 2010 we visited Alberta is one of the 3 Prairie Provinces. We spent 11 Days in Alberta, Canada - 18th - 29th May 2010, 219 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, we have now been from one side of canada to the other in a motorhome, BC to Labrador, loved it, fabulous country Medicine hat, head smashed in buffalo jump world heritage site, snow at high river end of may, the campsite said happy christmas (smile) when we arrived, 2 caravans were ruined by falling branches weighed down by weight of the snow, plus cardston, high prairie, staying with dear friends david & cathy and family, west ed mall, dawson bridge, perogies, tyrrell heritage centre, fort ed, winterton lakes np, bow river, border with montana glacial park, red deer, calgary, brand new motorhome, hoo doos at willow creek, blackfoot tribe and many more gems, we have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, BC to Labrador, loved it, fabulous country. Why not have a look at the Prairies Provinces talkies video whilst you are about it, it shows all our spoken word highlights in those 3 provinces. Worth a listen I promise you. Now to the second prairie province, Saskatchewan during HOLIDAY 2010. We spent 5 Days in Saskatchewan, Canada - 29th May-2nd June 2010, 79 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, amongst others we covered saskatchewan landing, saskatoon, regina, visiting the RCMP "mounties" academy, chapel and museum in regina , goodwin house, red river cart, wanuskewin heritage centre, heritage, prairies, railways, swift current, elbow, davidson, we learnt about the cree, matis and lakota tribes, hudson bay company, meewasin park plus we saw bears and we have now been right across canada in a motorhome and we loved it #FACT Then we visited the last of the Prairie provinces, Manitoba, we spent 3 Days in Manitoba, Canada - 2nd-4th June 2010, 67 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective covering macgregor, duaphin, dryden, winnipeg , winnipeg beach, riding mountain national park, clear water (lac) lake, assiniboine river, shellmouth reservoir, steinbach, bears, moose , Mennonite heritage village @ steinbach and all ports in between. In case you missed it haha we have been from one side of canada to the other #fact We then moved onto the central provinces for HOLIDAY 2010, firstly Ontario, including Canada’s capital Ottawa. We spent 15 Days in Ontario, Canada between 4th-20th June 2010, we took 372 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others nipigon, wawa, elliot lake, new liskeard, musselmans lake, toronto, niagara falls – just fab, 1000 islands boat trip from Gananoque and we did learn how to make that famous dressing on board, percy lake, ignace, sault ste marie, wabigoon lakes, agimak lake& beach, rossport, terrace bay, pays plat, thunder bay, the great lakes-superior, huron, ontario & dipping my toe in them, niagara on the lake, Sinclair cove, mounties on horses and foot, ottawa, aguasarbon falls, lake superior national park, Latchford where annie’s uncle and family once travelled as nearby and indeed their street was named such, spanish, temigami, temiskaming shores, bobbie rosenfeld olympian & park, stouffville, niagara botanical gardens, floral clock, devils hole whirlpool, st Lawrence river, gananoque town and harbor, rideau falls, river and canal, byward market and saw some fascinating street food, haileybury the home of Annie's rellies and found some nice folk who had indeed been taught by him at the Hailbury museum (we joined their mailing list for a bit with respect to genealogy) and all ports in between. It may be worth having a look at the HOLIDAY 2010 Central Provinces spoken word videos at this point which act as a type of audiobook. It was then on to that most 17th French speaking province during HOLIDAY 2010 and the final one in the central region Quebec. This is most distinctively THE French Province, the McGarrigle sister are a huge plus as is Celine Dion but they are in our humble opinion somewhat just too parochial, we noted as we crossed the border how it instantly felt like English was verboten. Our pals find it odd as well since it was the Quebecoise who insisted that all road signs are written in dual language yet Quebec is the only province that doesn’t do that tee hee, David said if geographically they were on either edge of Canada they could easily be awarded independence, still that won’t happen. We spent 11 Days on HOLIDAY 2010 in Quebec, Canada - between 10th June & 13th July 2010, taking 178 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others montreal, quebec city, fort quebec, the queen’s governor’s residence, chateau Frontenac, wow what a grand hotel almost a French chateau , saguenay fjord, tadoussac, trois pistoles, gaspe,saw the city bike race, the citadel,the fab st lawrence river, lac timiscaming, les escoumins, bardville, ferry, grande grave, campsite juneau, cap de rosier, forillon national park, camping baie de gaspe where sadly as I dished out our cooked brekkie on the outside wooden table it collapsed and spread hot food over both of us – not good but on reflection funny, it was caused by me sitting on the same side of the wooden bench as Annie and sad to say it couldn’t cope with my extra weight tee hee, riviere au renard, basilica notre dame du quebec, rocking chairs, kayaks, l’heritage 1, light houses, boardwalks, musicians, rooftops, skyscrapers, robbie burns in montreal, maison maillou, point a la recommee, dolphins, possibly whales, sunsets, provisional and national parcs & all ports in between. All very french "trois service sil vous plais" For HOLIDAY 2010 It was then onto the first of our Maritime Provinces, namely New Brunswick which still had in most parts a French feel. We spent 14 Days in New Brunswick, Canada - between 24th June & 25th July 2010, 78 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others alma, campbellton, lighthouses, miscou island, lamere island, kouchibouguac np, bay of fundy np which is world famous for the tidal change in height, fantastic to see, provincial parcs, butland’s lobster (yummy), beaver tails which was a distinctive fast food chain across Canada as indeed is that dead ice hockey player Tim Hortons which is now in the UK along with that other North American stalwart Taco Bells (we always assumed it wouldn’t be long before each invaded our shores haha), art and art galleries, music, arcadians, micmacs, mcadam station, cape jourmain, confederation bridge, sea dogs ice hockey, covered cedar bridge tunnels, hopewell rocks, grand anse, baseball, bog walks, plant life, harbors, sun and rain in equal measures, magnetic hill, magic village, bathurst, val-comeau, cap egmont, moncton, saint john (as opposed to st johns in newfie) looking for Annie’s rellies, petit codiac river, possum in the road kill cafe, fredericton for canada day 1 July, Japanese tourists asking to see inside our van (they were fascinated bizarrely… I guess like China which we do know about from Phoenix’s parents camping is just not a common occurrence) , and lots of places in between. It may be worth looking at the HOLIDAY 2010 Maritime provinces talkies video which acts as a spoken word audiobook of our time in the Maritimes, such lovely provinces, indeed there isn’t a bad one from one side of Canada to the other. Then it was HOLIDAY 2010 time in Prince Edward Island (PEI) the 2nd of the Maritimes, a holiday island, we went twice, Charlotte town is just lovely, it’s the capital. We went once on our touring journet and then returned when David & Cathy were on holiday there, they flew from Edmonton Alberta across. We spent 7 Days on Prince Edward Island, Canada, between 27th June & 25th July 2010, we took 90 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others PEI a holiday resort or as some people unkindly refer to it "spud" island, summerside, anne of green gables house @ cavendish, charlottetown, many heritage buildings, crossing the fab confederation bridge arriving at borden-carleton, meeting up with friends - the lovely Harveys,we made 2 visits here ,saw live music, the bottle house, tigish, cape egmont and lighthouse, north cape, north point lighthouse, victoria, georgetown, spud radio, lobsters, energy institute, queens wharf, lucy maud Montgomery (yes here of anne of green gables fame , huge with Japanese school kids it seems) , sand sculptures and cedar cladding plus saw a lot of other places on the island. Then it was onto the third of the HOLIDAY 2010 Maritime provinces, Nova Scotia, yes it does sound Scottish, and it definitely has a lot of that character, whiskey and highland games being 2 of the times to that ancient mainland origins . Remember many Scots migrated to Canada to avoid crofting law changes and indeed starvation, through out history folks have moved continents for a chance of a better life, including my rellies who escaped from “beyond the pale” or in escaping greater Germany / Russia from Latvia “pale of Settlement” … a quick definition is “From pale (“jurisdiction of an authority, territory under an authority's jurisdiction”), suggesting that anything outside the authority's jurisdiction was uncivilized. The phrase was in use by the mid-17th century, and is a reference to the general sense of boundary (outside of the palisades), but is sometimes understood to refer specifically to the English Pale in Ireland, as well as the Pale of Settlement in Imperial Russia. In the nominally English territory of Ireland, only the Pale fell genuinely under the authority of English law, hence the terms within the pale and beyond the pale. In Russia, Jews were relegated to living in the Pale, and mostly forbidden to live or work “beyond the pale.” We spent 11 Days on HOLIDAY 2010 in Nova Scotia, Canada, between 8th & 25th July 2010, we took 294 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective visiting amongst others the wonderful bay of fundy, many heritage buildings especially at annapolis royal & lunneburg, highland games at antigonish, watching someones awning bend in high winds at the campsite, wolfville, crossing the fab confederation bridge near mayfield (NB) ,cape breton National Park, the truly magnificent peggys cove at st margarets bay inmour humble opinion a place that could join the elite wonders of the world indeed definitely in our book the 1001 places to see before you die, they are listed on the site with all the ones we have been to and the ones we are yet to visit… note to self-please! , halifax and KEITH’s beer (got the t-shirt) ferry from sydney to newfoundland, far too much fizzy pop in fast food joint (free refill - never again!), cap le moine, cheticamp, cape breton, cabot trail with views to die for, pugwash, bog walk, pictou, glenora distillery the only single malt in canada, ingonish, broad cove campground, joe’s scarecrow visited by billy connolly and us (sadly closed in 2011), the highlands national park, louisbourg and the fortress, wolfe and the french, halifax, murray-mackay bridge, pier 21 a very interesting museum which so much about migration to these new lands, prospect, shelburne, port maitland beach, cresent beach, yarmouth, digby, lockeport and more Now onto our HOLIDAY 2010 4th Maritme province and maybe one of the oldest with the weirdest accent derived from the fisher folk who came over from the oh-ah counties of England, i.e. Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, after all Newfoundland is “just across the water” maybe haha. We love the Newfies and their scenery and moose. We spent 6 Days in Newfoundland, Canada, between 11th & 16th July 2010, took 158 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others l'anse au claire, st johns (as opposed to st john in NB) fab harbour views here, moose by the roadside,the wonderful gros morne national park, gander, bonavista, conception bay, st mary’s, icebergs floating past, st anthony museum and the size of a polar bear, just see that picture of annie standing next to one standing on its hind legs and you will see how dwarfed she was, , ferry at st barbe to labrador and a very early morning sailing in rain and mist, we parked in the ferry carpark overnight so as not to miss it, port aux basque,deer lake, grand falls windsor, corner brook, fab whale museum and houses at scilly cove (now winterton) home of annie’s rellie john masters, indian harbour, steady brook,3 mile rock, long beach, pynns brook, springdale, grate cove, gambo, the perlican,nymph island, portland creek,little hearts ease (such a lovely name),red rocks, noddy bay, st lunaire-griquet, the arches National Park ,the ship the SS ethie, bonne & shallow bays, gunners cove, cape ray and wreck house brook. Then onto our final HOLIDAY 2010 Province, Labrador which sadly is mostly impassable except in the height of winter when the perma frost TLH or Trans Labrador Highway allows passage between the many remote and sparse towns and settlements. The capital of Labrador is Labrador City which in fairness is not really a city nor a capital. Labrador and Newfoundland often act as one due to the very low population numbers. We were really only able to go along the coast road as far as Red Bay and the start of the TLH. We spent 2 Days in Labrador, Canada - between 12th & 13th July 2010, 51 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others the ferry apollo departing st barbe newfoundland at an ungodly hour and arriving at blanc sablon, l'anse au clair (where we camped overnight), forteau, travelling the jersey trail, l'anse au covert, l'anse amour, red bay including the museum and look out at old whaling station, saddle & capstan islands, start of the trans labrador highway (gravel and permafrost) oh and black fly galore on the pinware river bridge. That’s all folks for HOLIDAY 2010 Canada 2010 at least but now onto the 2 HOLIDAY 2010 American states we popped over into in 2010 and our earlier visit to British Columbia in 1999 with Doug in a hired motorhome, he was 15, and then our family visit to Florida back in 1997, this was car and motel, no motorhome involved. So to HOLIDAY 2010 Upstate New York , the bit basically around the River Niagara but so glad we did it, crossing Lewiston-Wellesley, we spent 2 Days in Upstate New York (NY), USA - between 14th & 15th June 2010, 28 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others a fraught crossing at lewiston into the states because of the hired motorhome, and on return "mam I've told you to remove those sun glasses, I want to see the whites of your eyes" (smile), niagara falls (both canadian and us sides), rochester, banal local tv about geese "sh***ting on boardwalk", oh and trash can episode at the very nice campsite on the lake edge, watertown, apples & cherries,country stores, hummers plus crossing back to canada near wellesley island, youngstown & the boss i.e. mr springsteen, one of my fave he and the east street band tracks, oneida lake. Maybe have a listen to the HOLIDAY 2010 American state talkies videos 2010 which act as a sort of audiobook of our time there. Then when in HOLIDAY 2010 New Brunswick we crossed over into the US state of Maine, we were naughty and tried to find a completely out of the way border crossing as after the fiasco and hassle at the Lewiston border control, officialdom gone nuts, we wanted an easy crossing, sadly even though we were in the middle of the woods which seemed to be nowhere we were heavily checked again, maybe sensible I suppose with some of the border issues the States faces. We spent 3 Days in HOLIDAY 2010 Maine (ME), USA - between 4th (Independance day) & 5th July 2010, 69 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others bar harbor, lincoln, bangor, crossing the border at a small centre near mcadams, lubec, west quoddy lighthouse, shopping for milk "near the guns, rifles and bullets, sir!", that was a walmart in Lincoln where we also bought some warmer clothing now sadly all gone (2022), the staff were amazingly polite, 4th july at campsite near bar harbor, flags, burgers and beers, plus crossing back to canada , lobster rolls (yummy) from gas stations, miles not kilometres and cheap gas. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in case you didn’t guess haha and visited quite a few states in America. #tick So now back to HOLIDAY 2010 British Columbia, Vancouver Island and Edmonton, Alberta and visiting friends. In summary our trip to Canada in 1999 was between 11 August to 4th September, 25 days in our hired All Drive Classic 3000 3 berth motorhome, we started in Vancouver, went to see the Rockies, then across on the ferry to Vancouver island where we went to Tofino to do some whale watching, actually saw a pod of Killer Whales better known as Orca's, it was just magical, then back to see more of British Columbia eventually travelling up to Edmonton in Alberta to visit our pals David & Cathy & family, magical times with Doug who was 15 at that stage, fishing and chopping logs for our wild camp fire cooking was a true highlight. We stayed in some very remote campsites and managed to avoid the bears! 😉but not the long drop loos. Then it was HOLIDAY 2010 Florida (FL) USA with the boys, including Kissimee, Tampa, the Keys, Everglades, Cape Kennedy Space Station, we returned again in 2018 on our 40th Wedding Anniversary cruise, you can read our motorhome-travels blog https://www.motorhome-travels.net blog number 125 for further details if you are interested. We spent 15 days holiday between 26 July and 9 August 1997, highlights were Family Time at all these, Clearwater Beach, Tampa and West Palm Beach plus of course Disney & Miss Piggy #sigh, we stayed at apartment 126, The Villas of Somerset, Kissimmee, Florida, USA, 34746, and here's a summary Initially stayed in Kissimmee for 2 weeks and visited ALL the theme parks & water parks. Going back into Universal after 7pm is a good call as it saved the queues. Saw central Orlando. We then travelled across to the west, Tampa, Busch Gardens park, clearwater, sanibel, sarasota, venice , naples, then back to the east via the Everglades and down the Keys: Largo, Marathon, Bahia Honda National Park (NP), Key West then back up via Fort Lauderdale, Miami (although didn't go in here in 97 but did in 2018) to Orlando plus Kennedy Space Station , Cocoa beach, River Country, Cracker Barrel, 25 Disney Anniversary, Typhoon Lagoon, Sports World, River Country, Universal, Water World, MGM Studios, Pleasure Island, Blizzard Beach, Tower of Terror, Backlot , giant heavy video cameras & animation tours. So that really is all folks from HOLIDAY 2010. Feast your eyes on all the wonderful You Tube videos and image slideshows that accompanied that wonderful experience we now call a Big Trip holiday. Note there is more inividual diaries available under each Province or State, maybe have a look there as well. Best wishes KeefH Web Designs. Big love, hugs and best wishes to you all hope you enjoyed HOLIDAY 2010 Full Diary Diary Audiobooks Visitors CONTACT KeefH Web Designs, Sandiacre, Derbyshire, UK on +44 (0)7843962729 Please help out by taking our KHWD Survey (less than 1 min), thanks email KeefHWebDesigns@outlook.com Mail Contact KHWD Alberta Maine Saskatchewan Manitoba Ontario Quebec New Brunswick Upstate New York Pre Travel Summary USA 1997 Newfoundland Canada 1999 Labrador USA 2022 SEO Page Links Travel Photography Trailer

2 Days in Labrador, Canada, 12th & 13th July 2010, highlights being the ferry apollo departing st barbe newfoundland at an ungodly hour and arriving at blanc sablon, l'anse au clair (where we camped overnight), forteau, travelling the jersey trail, l'anse au covert, l'anse amour, red bay including the museum and look out at old whaling station,saddle & capstan islands, start of the trans labrador highway (gravel and permafrost) oh and black fly galore on the pinware river bridge. LABRADOR ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus New York & Maine in the USA in 2010, made it all the way to the Trans Labrador Highway, normally traveled on when perma frost 2 Days in Labrador, Canada - between 12th & 13th July 2010, 51 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others the ferry MV Apollo departing st barbe newfoundland at an ungodly hour and arriving at blanc sablon which is 2 kilometers from Labrador's border , cold, wet, foggy, misty and early ha-ha, intra-provincial ferry service, welcome to the big land, driving the Labrador Coastal Drive , l'anse au clair (where we camped overnight), forteau, travelling the jersey trail , l'anse au cotard and its church, the jersey rooms, abandoned tankers rusting, basque fisherman, l'anse au covert, l'anse amour, red bay united reform church, dinosaur feet, tapestry, fishing jetties, whaling museum history, sadly little work now on labrador's coast so many join the army, fishing is not the industry it once was, tracey wicking battery and tracey hill boardwalk, the earliest burial mound and monument in the world at l'anse amour, traditional stone men along the road side, red bay including the museum and look out at old whaling station, saddle & capstan islands, fogo island punt race, trapper and whalemen memorabilia, start of the trans labrador highway (gravel and permafrost) oh and black fly galore on the Pinware river bridge and the Pinware River Provincial Park. We have been from one side of Canada to the other See the Maritimes Talkies Video brekkie on the apollo ferry keef at museum red bay 1/28 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 2 Days and one night in Labrador We took 51 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. As an overview The Strait of Belle Isle separates the combined province of Newfoundland and Labrador into two geographical parts: Labrador, which is a large area of mainland Canada but in fairness so much more remote, and Newfoundland, an island in the Atlantic Ocean. The vast expanse of Labrador is mainly served by the perma frost road the Trans Labrador Highway, which we visited the start of, would love to travel it in winter, what an experience that must be and scary I bet. For Labrador the following were some of the highlights the Apollo ferry departing st barbe newfoundland at an ungodly hour and arriving at blanc sablon which is 2 kilometres from Labrador's border , cold, wet, foggy, misty and early ha-ha, intra-provincial ferry service, welcome to the big land, L’Anse au Clair (where we camped overnight), Loving the UNESCO world heritage township at Red Bay, it is a natural harbour residing in the bay that gives it its name, both names in reference to the red granite cliffs of the region. Because of the sheltered harbour it was used during World War II as a mooring site for naval vessels. In the bay are Penney Island and Saddle Island, which were used by the Basque fishermen for their whaling operations. The location of the sunken vessel San Juan is near Saddle Island. We also remember travelling a small bit of the jersey trail at L’anse au Clair, here are some words about it, the trail follows the shoreline of the small town of L'Anse Au Clair which is nestled against rugged clifftops and benchland sloping down to a beautiful red sandy beach. You can walk between 3 and 6 km along this easy trail of crushed stone as it weaves along boulder fields, tuck more and beach. Interpretation tells the story of 19th century fishermen from Jersey, an island in the English Channel between England and France. Look for the infamous " Bubbling Sands" feature of this trail. We also remember visiting L’Anse au cotard and its church, the jersey rooms, abandoned tankers rusting, Basque fisherman, Forteau, L’Anse au covert, L’Anse amour, red bay united reform church, dinosaur feet, tapestry, fishing jetties, whaling museum history, sadly little work now on Labrador’s coast so many join the army, fishing is not the industry it once was, Tracey wicking battery and the Tracey Hill Walking trail board walk in Red Bay, some history and advice is, at the start of the Tracey Hill Walking Trail in the town of Red Bay, Southern Labrador, a boardwalk and the first of 689 steps lead the way. The climb up the stairs will reach the destination point at the top of Tracey Hill where the scenery is breath-taking. The trail is moderate on a degree of difficulty and runs for 1.5 kilometres, a return trip of 3. The average time along the boardwalk and stairs of the Tracey Hill Walking Trail is about 30 minutes, but many stop for breaks. Picnic tables, telescopes and a resting area makes the journey longer, but this is a day well spent while visiting Red Bay in Southern Labrador. The Boardwalk and stairs at the start of the Tracey Hill Walking Trail in the town of Red Bay, Highway 510, Labrador Coastal Drive also counts as one of the Viking Trail, in the Straits of Belle Isle, Southern Labrador, Labrador, Canada. Maybe give it a go when you ever visit, we just did the start bit and had a mooch around, sadly not the whole thing, not enough time in Labrador. Plus, the earliest burial mound and monument in the world at L’Anse amour, traditional stone men along the road side, red bay including the museum and look out at old whaling station, saddle, Penney & capstan islands, Fogo island punt race, trapper and whalemen memorabilia, start of the Trans Labrador highway (gravel and permafrost) oh and black fly galore on the Pinware river bridge. Although our time on Labrador’s southern coast was short our memories will be long, it was a fascinating place to visit. Diary Audio Diary Trailer

HOLIDAY 2010 This is the Entry page for the Canadian part of our worldwide travel holiday in a motorhome in 2010, enabling us to now say we have been from one side of Canada to the other, #tick Highlights include 4200 miles, visits to Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump, Seeing the Harveys (dear friends and more CANADA 2010 for HOLIDAY 2010 A Travel Blog ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus States New York & Maine in the USA in 2010 HOLIDAY 2010 87 Days travel Canada - 18th May - 24th July 2010, 1769 HOLIDAY 2010 Photos, Approximately 4200 miles, Highlights Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump, Seeing the Harveys (dear friends), Dauphin, Wrestling with the badly sorted Steering wheel on the very windy Prairies, Maid of the Mist on Niagara Falls, Red Bay Labrador, Canada day in Fredericton, Gaspe peninsular, Mounties museum in Regina, Riding Mountain National Park in Manitoba, seeing Moose plus potentially more importantly achieving travelling from one side of Canada to the other - all provinces (Canada does provinces, America does states-BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, PEI, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland (Newfie heaven) & Labrador Welcome Prairies Talkies Map Maritimes Talkies Central Provinces Talkies Overview The Audiobook Trailer

14 Days in New Brunswick, Canada - between 24th June & 25th July 2010 including alma, campbellton, lighthouses, miscou island, lamere island, kouchibouguac np, bay of fundy np, butlands lobster, beaver tails, art and art galleries, music, arcadians, micmacs, mcadam station, cape jourmain, confederation bridge, sea dogs ice hockey, covered cedar bridge tunnels, hopewell rocks, grand anse, baseball, bog walks, magnetic hill, magic village, bathurst,val-comeau,cap egmont, moncton, saint john NEW BRUNSWICK ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus New York State & Maine in the USA in 2010, this is the 1st of the Maritime Provinces we visited 14 Days in New Brunswick, Canada - between 24th June & 25th July 2010, 78 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective,visiting amongst others alma, campbellton, lighthouses, miscou island, lamere island, kouchibouguac national park , bay of fundy national park , provincial parcs, bay of fundy's world leading tidal change in height, butland's lobster, beaver tails fast food and restaurants washed down by Tim Horton coffee, art and art galleries, music, arcadians, micmacs, mcadam station, cape jourmain, confederation bridge , sea dogs ice hockey, covered cedar bridge tunnels, hopewell rocks and cape, grand anse, baseball, bog walks, plant life, harbors, sun and rain in equal measures, shippagan, magnetic hill, magic mountain village , bathurst, val-comeau, cap egmont, moncton , vanceboro st croix border crossing to Maine, st croix river, saint john (as opposed to st johns in newfie) looking for annie's rellies, petitcodiac river, possum in the road kill cafe, fredericton for canada day 1 july, note during Covid lockdown this is what happen on the corresponding day in 2021 and lots of places in between. We have been from one side of Canada to the other There are 131 of these historic wooden structures in Canada and 58 in New Brunswick – almost half the country’s total! See the Maritimes Talkies Video us in bathurst new brunswick arcadian grand anse 1/83 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 14 Days in New Brunswick Maritime Province, Canada in 2 parts, the first being 24 June to the 8th July, and finally just 21st July 2010 We took 78 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. For New Brunswick the following were some of the highlights, alma, campbellton, lighthouses, miscou island and our lovely walk along the peat bog boardwalk here across the bridge to the island, lots of waterlilies and wild flowers, lamere island, kouchibouguac national park, bay of fundy national park, the world beating tidal height changes in the Bay of Fundy, we watched it, it’s just amazing how far it drops down to the mud beds deep below the coastal edge, all New Brunswick’s provincial parcs as well as National ones, butland's lobster, beaver tails resaurants and Tim Horton coffee, art and art galleries, music, arcadians, Micmac’s a native Indian tribe whom the band we saw in France in 2014 took their name from, indeed we liked the band so much we bought their CD, McAdam station and tourist information and museum, cape jourmain, confederation bridge, sea dogs ice hockey, covered cedar bridge tunnels, hopewell rocks, grand anse, baseball, bog walks, board walks, plant life, harbors and now in English harbours ha-ha, sun and rain in equal measures, magnetic hill and taking the van to it and getting a feeling you were going backwards, magic village, Bathurst with its fabulous coastline and viewing platforms and lighthouses plus its fab village hill, val-comeau and its board walk, cap egmont, Moncton – which in fairness we were not that impressed with, sadly another big town / city that just didn’t do it for us, Saint john (as opposed to st johns in newfoundland) looking for Annie’s rellies as well as moving back from the edge of the precipice in its campsite to a somewhat safer pitch although in Keef’s humble opinion the view in the 1st pitch was fab,also we visited the home of the St John Sea Dogs ice hockey team, ice hockey is huge in Canada, witness mr Horton, we back in Nottingham have an English team called the Nottingham Panthers who aren’t bad either, petitcodiac river, possum in the road kill cafe, whose rather worrying catch phrase is “you kill ‘em, we grill ‘em”, keef bought one of their T-Shirts. Fredericton for Canada Day 1 July , it was Canada’s 143 birthday, and was just so nice , it was lucky we were able to get a slot at the campsite for Canada Day as it was incredibly busy and the main celebrations were on in town which was lovely, dogs dressed as Mounties and Anne of Green Gables, live music, food, drink, people with flags and all forms of Canada memorabilia from chairs to jackets and t-shirts, we joined in by waving, furiously, the provided mini Canada maple leaf flags, true patriots that we are. Also, very friendly people at the shindig. We spent a couple of days in Fredericton exploring the town and museums as well as celebrating Canada day. The old Town hall was very interesting. The other thing we remember is a crowd of Japanese tourists at the campsite asking if they could come and have a look inside our motorhome as it is not anything they had ever seen before, hilarious, reminds me of when Phoenix’s parents came to stay with us from China in the UK and asked a lot of questions about our Wendy House motorhome. We returned the second time to pass thru to Prince Edward Island as David & Cathy were on holiday there. Here are some words about the Confederation Bridge, an amazing feat of engineering, that we had the pleasure of traversing 4 times on our Canada holiday in 2010. The Confederation Bridge joins the eastern Canadian provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, making travel throughout the Maritimes easy and convenient. The curved, 12.9 kilometre (8 mile) long bridge is the longest in the world crossing ice-covered water and continues to endure as one of Canada’s top engineering achievements of the 20th century. The decision to replace the existing ferry service with a fixed link followed a heated debate throughout the 1980’s. Farmers, fishermen, tourism operators, and residents of Prince Edward Island had sharply contrasting opinions about how year-round access to the mainland would affect their way of life and livelihood. Eventually, it was decided that the debate would be settled at the polls. The federal department of Public Works and Government Services selected its favourite bridge design out of several proposals from the private sector, and on January 18, 1988, Premier Joseph Ghiz asked Prince Edward Islanders to make the final decision in a plebiscite. At the polls, 59.4% of Islanders voted “Yes” to a fixed link. After four years of construction using crews of more than five thousand local workers, the Confederation Bridge opened to traffic on May 31, 1997. Today, the Confederation Bridge is operated by Strait Crossing Bridge Limited, headquartered in the shadow of the bridge in Borden-Carleton, Prince Edward Island. Diary Audio Diary Trailer

3 Days in Maine (ME), USA - between 4th (Independance day) & 5th July 2010, 69 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective,visiting amongst others bar harbor, lincoln, bangor, crossing the border at a small centre near mcadams, lubec, west quoddy lighthouse, shopping for milk "near the guns, rifles and bullets, sir!", 4th july at campsite near bar harbor, flags, burgers and beers, plus crossing back to canada , lobster rolls (yummy) from gas stations, miles not kilometres and cheap gas #suchfun MAINE ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus Upstate New York & Maine in the USA in 2010, so love Bar Harbor and Lobster Rolls, the last time I ever entered a Maccy D's 3 Days in Maine (ME), USA - between 3rd & 5th July 2010, which included Independence Day (4th) , 69 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others bar harbor, Lincoln , st croix vanceboro bridge and border crossing , highway 4 in NB then highway 6 in Maine from Lambert Lake thru Lee to Lincoln, then travelling the Interstate Highway 95 through to Bangor, then Edinburg & Argyle (notice anything Scottish here ha-ha) down to Bar Harbor, fish warehouses, 6 sailed yacht as sunset, the red sails blending in, cedar clad buildings everywhere, lobster claus xmas humour, state flag, number plates, geddys down under aussie bar, lobster pots and floats, camping at both bar harbor and lubec, Quoddy Head State Park, heritage shops and historic buildings, yummy icecream, envy for airstream motorhomes and harley davidson motorbikes, , welcome to maine, the way life should be, memorial gardens, Sunkhaze Meadows, Holden, Elseworth, Trenton, also spednik lake, lubec town and its harbour and coastline, washington county, endless fish options, clam chowder, eden market, the cat bay ferry from yarmouth nova scotia, west quoddy lighthouse , shopping for milk in Lincoln "near the guns, rifles and bullets, sir!", 4th july at campsite near bar harbor, flags, burgers and beers, plus crossing back to canada , jonesboro, st croix river, blueberries growing wild, lobster rolls (yummy) from gas stations and even Maccy D's , probably the last time we went in one, tee-hee, mentally swapping back to miles not kilometres and cheap gas. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other and visited quite a few states in America. #tick See the American States Talkies Video front bar harbor floats 1/34 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 3 Days and 3 nights in Maine We took 69 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. We dropped over the border twice once into upstate New York around Niagara Falls on Lake Ontario and once into Maine via the Vanceboro- St Croix border crossing over the St Croix River which separates Canada and America. The crossing is sometimes named McAdam. In the early 1900s, this crossing was located at the adjacent lock structure a short distance to the north. At some point in the distant past (at least prior to 1930), a bridge existed to the south of the railroad bridge, extending from Public Crossing Road on the Canadian side. Concrete footings for this bridge remain on the US side at this site. Some of the Maine visit highlights were Independence Day (4th) , bar harbor, Lincoln, st croix vanceboro bridge and border crossing if the truth be known we thought we had found a crossing that would be somewhat less officious after our experience coming into Upstate New York, it wasn’t quite so bad but still a huge number of checks and they came on the van to check we weren’t smuggling anyone across, still they were only doing their job and extremely good at doing it they were, we’d come over on highway 4 in NB then highway 6 in Maine from Lambert Lake thru Lee to Lincoln, then travelling the Interstate Highway 95 through to Bangor, then Edinburg & Argyle (notice anything Scottish here ha-ha) down to Bar Harbor, fish warehouses, 6 sailed yacht as sunset, the red sails blending in which we watched as the sun started to set just fabulous really, cedar clad buildings everywhere, lobster claus xmas humour, state flag, number plates, geddys down under aussie bar, lobster pots and floats, camping at both bar harbor and lubec, Quoddy Head State Park, heritage shops and historic buildings, yummy ice-cream, envy for airstream motorhomes and harley davidson motorbikes, , welcome to maine, the way life should be and who are we to disagree, memorial gardens, Sunkhaze Meadows, Holden, Elseworth, Trenton, also spednik lake, lubec town and its harbour and coastline, washington county, endless fish options, clam chowder, eden market, the cat bay ferry from yarmouth nova scotia which we also saw up in Yarmouth when visiting, west quoddy lighthouse which is the eastern most point in the whole of the United States, shopping for milk in Lincoln "near the guns, rifles and bullets, sir!", 4th july at campsite near bar harbor, flags, burgers and beers, plus crossing back to canada , Jonesboro, st croix river, blueberries growing wild, lobster rolls (yummy) from gas stations and even Maccy D's , probably the last time we went in one, tee-hee but the lobster rolls in Maine were just so tasty and fresh, mentally swapping back to miles not kilometres and cheap gas. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other and visited quite a few states in America. #tick Here is a bit of a write up on the whole area we visited in Maine, namely Washington County Washington County is sometimes referred to as the "Sunrise County" because it includes the eastern most point in the United States, and where many believe the sun first rises on the forty-eight contiguous states. Natural resources comprise a large portion of economic activity in the county. Blueberries play a major role; nearly 85% of the world's supply of wild blueberries comes from Washington County. Lobsters accounted for over $45 million dollars of economic activity in 2014. Washington County was established June 25, 1789, in conjunction with Hancock County. Originally Washington County stretched along the eastern border of New Brunswick all the way to the disputed northern boundary with Canada. Machias was established as the shire town. Named for George Washington, the county encompasses two cities, forty towns, three plantations and two Native American areas. It covers 3,258 square miles (2,563 square miles of land and 695 square miles of water, or 21%). The population is 32, 856 (2010) which works out to about 13 people per square mile. The population is located, for the most part, along the coast. This makes sense historically because water travel brought settlers to the area in the first place. Vast natural resources were the attraction and served to support the establishment of many communities. The more interior half of the county is considered Unorganized Territories and holds about 1200 people. What makes Washington County so special is a question of an entirely different sort and demands a different response. It takes four hours to drive from one end of the county to the other. During that drive the topography changes, reflecting the glacial scouring of 10,000 years ago. Left behind were rock formations, lakes and streams, and wide-open expanses to rival the plains. And in that landscape an independent sort live, work and raise their families. Washington County is a lot of things. It is the most gorgeous, has the deepest cargo port, the longest coastline including the Bold Coast, the highest tides, and produces the most lobster and clam landings. What Washington County does not have is lots of traffic lights (only three in the whole county), an interstate, a Red Lobster Restaurant, or poisonous snakes. Welcome to Washington County. We Liked Maine a lot, relaxed feel , fab sights and lobster so fresh it could almost walk up to your plate. Diary Audio Diary Trailer

2 Days in Upstate New York (NY), USA,14th-15th June 2010, highlights included but not exclusively niagara falls (both canadian and us sides), rochester, banal local tv about geese "sh***ting on boardwalk", oh and trash can episode at the very nice campsite on the lake edge, watertown, apples & cherries growing everywhere,country stores, hummers plus crossing back to canada near wellesley island, youngstown & the boss, oneida lake, just so glad we crossed over at Lewiston despite beauracracy. UPSTATE NEW YORK ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus New York State & Maine in the USA in 2010, this page is the Upstate New York bit basically around the River Niagara but so glad we did it 2 Days in Upstate New York (NY), USA - between 14th & 15th June 2010, 28 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others a fraught crossing at lewiston into the states because of the hired motorhome, and on return via wellesley island Annie was greeted with "mam I've told you to remove those sun glasses, I want to see the whites of your eyes" (smile), kind and welcoming eh? not! niagara falls (both canadian and us sides), stella niagara, US highway 18 better known as the lake ontario state parkway, towers corners, roosevelt beach, wilson, olcott, collins landing, somerset, 4th july flags everywhere, braddock bay wildlife area, syracuse , rochester with its zoo and museum of play, banal local tv about geese "sh***ting on boardwalk", we took interstate highway 490 onto the 90 out of Rochester along to syracuse, via farmington, clifton springs, montezuma (fab name) , weedsport and jordan , oh and the trash can episode at the very nice campsite on the lake edge near syracuse, we were camping by oneida lake shores, watertown, back to canada via cicero & pulaski on state highway 81 (sometimes referred to as the great indian warpath) , apples & cherries, country stores, hummers plus crossing back to canada near wellesley island, youngstown & the boss & 3 time superbowl winner Dallas Cowboy Daryl "The Moose" Johnson who was born here. We have been from one side of Canada to the other and in the states a few times, FACT See the American States Talkies Video about to cross back into canada at collins landing oneida lakes , onondaga county, ny state 1/14 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 2 Days and one night in Upstate New York We took 28 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. We dropped over the border twice once into upstate New York around Niagara Falls on Lake Ontario and once into Maine around McAdam. For Upstate New York the following were some of the highlights, a fraught crossing at Lewiston into the states because of the hired motorhome, they impounded it for a while, presumably thinking we had stolen it, amazingly officious handed us a form to complete which we did but when I tried handing it back to them they purposefully ignored me, not nice, we were there for hours. On return to Canada it was via wellesley island Annie was greeted with "mam I've told you to remove those sun glasses, I want to see the whites of your eyes" (smile), kind and welcoming eh? not! I can only conclude as old hippies we look dodgy ha-ha. Anyhow we also visited Niagara falls (both canadian and us sides), stella Niagara, US highway 18 better known as the lake ontario state parkway, towers corners, roosevelt beach, wilson, olcott, somerset, 4th july flags everywhere, Braddock bay wildlife area, syracuse, rochester with its zoo and museum of play, banal local tv about geese "sh***ting on boardwalk", we took interstate highway 490 onto the 90 out of Rochester along to syracuse, via Farmington, clifton springs, Montezuma (fab name) , Weedsport and Jordan , oh and the trash can episode at the very nice campsite on the lake edge near Syracuse, we were camping by Oneida lake shores, this lake is named after the Iroquois tribe, its 21 miles long by 5 miles wide and is the largest lake in NY state, it feeds into lake Ontario via the river Oneida I believe but could be wrong, we had some nice paddles and walks along the lake shore whilst camping there, then it was onto watertown, back to canada via cicero & pulaski on state highway 81 (sometimes referred to as the great indian warpath) , apples & cherries, country stores, hummers plus crossing back to Canada near Wellesley island, Youngstown & the boss was special one of my fave tracks. It also famous for & 3 times Superbowl winner Dallas Cowboy Daryl "The Moose" Johnson who was born here. So glad we popped over the border despite the hassle of getting there and back, travelling along Lake Ontario’s shore on the Stateside was special. Nice Memories. Diary Audio Diary Trailer

This is the intro page for the 2 US states we visited on our trip across Canada in 2010. 5 Days travel in the USA - 14th-15th June Plus 4th-5th July 2010, 82 Photos, Approximately 538 miles covering Maine & Upstate New York. By 2020 we have been to the following states - Florida, Maine, New York, California, South Carolina, New Orleans, Montana, a very short Talkies video is also referenced from 2010 shot on our veru old and heavy video camera USA 2010 ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus Upstate New York (across the Niagara River and back into Canada) & Maine in the USA in 2010, we did Florida with the Boys way back in 1997 5 Days travel in the USA - 14th-15th June Plus 4th-5th July 2010, 82 Photos, Approximately 538 miles covering Maine & Upstate New York. By 2020 we have been to the following states - Florida, Maine, New York, California, South Carolina, New Orleans, Montana Here is a HIGHLIGHT movie culled from the talkies movies we have here on the site following this movie. It was created in response to You Tube telling us that the very early movie from 2010 trip where there was a thumbnail overlay screen may be in error due to You Tube processing issues pre March 2020. On investigating we found no such issues but decided as we had up ended that movie to create a more up to date one, created and uploaded by KeefH Web Designs in November 2023 (KHWD), enjoy. The total movie is almost 2.5 minutes long and covers Upstate New York and Maine only. America the Talkies Overview The Audiobook Trailer

7 Days in Prince Edward Island between 27th June & 25th July 2010, summerside, anne of green gables house @ cavendish, charlottetown,crossing the fab confederation bridge arriving at borden-carleton, meeting up with friends - the lovely Harveys,we made 2 visits here ,saw live music, the bottle house ,tigish,cape egmont and lighthouse, north cape, north point lighthouse,victoria, georgetown, spud radio, lobsters, energy institute, queens wharf,lucy maud montgomery, sand sculptures PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND (PEI) ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus New York State & Maine in the USA in 2010, the 2nd of the Maritimes, a holiday island, we went twice, Charlotte town is just lovely, its the capital 7 Days in Prince Edward Island, Canada - between 27th June & 25th July 2010, 90 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others PEI a holiday resort or as some people unkindly refer to it "spud" island, Summerside holiday village , anne of green gables house @ cavendish , charlottetown, many heritage buildings, crossing the fab confederation bridge arriving at Borden Carleton , meeting up with friends - the lovely Harveys,we made 2 visits here ,saw live music, the bottle house , tiginish, cape egmont and lighthouse, north cape and park, rollo bay, souris, cap aux meules ferry in the gulf of st lawrence, north point lighthouse, north rustico, PEI's malpeque bay, lennox island, west point, jacque cartier provincial park, government house, victoria, georgetown, spud radio, lobsters, energy institute, queens wharf, lucy maud montgomery, prince edward island national park, Charlottetown sand sculptures and cedar cladding plus saw a lot of other places on the island. We have been from one side of Canada to the other See the Maritimes Talkies Video anne of green gables, geddit, cavendish, pei tea at the harveys holiday cottage, lobster no less 1/46 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 7 Days on Prince Edward Island in in 2 parts, 27-30 June and again 21-23 July 2013 We took 90 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. For Prince Edward Island a true Canadian holiday resort or as some would rather unkindly call it “spud island” the following were some of the highlights, Crossing over the magnificent Confederation bridge we went to Summerside holiday village, it has a little lake , the statutory statue, if you will forgive the repetition, of island heroine, Anne, i.e. Anne of green gables house at cavendish in the wonderful PEI national park, we spent a good part of the day here and were fascinated to see how popular this book is with Japanese students, maybe it is a course text book, who knows, loved the capital Charlottetown, many heritage buildings, crossing the 8 miles of the fab confederation bridge arriving at Borden Carleton, meeting up with friends - the lovely Harvey’s, we made 2 visits here , so basically did 32 miles along the bridge and never luckily encountered any high winds, saw live music at the bridge folk club in the evening, fab fiddle and guitar stuff, visited the bottle house , Tignish at the top end, cape Egmont and its lighthouse keeping watch over the gulf of st Lawrence , north cape and park quite remote, Rollo bay, Souris where the cap aux meules island ferry in the gulf of st Lawrence leaves from, north point lighthouse, north Rustico, PEI's Malpeque bay which is almost an inland bay , Lennox island although we drove over to this so hardly an island nowadays as t has its own bridge, bridge construction in this area is a true marvel especially the length of the confederation bridge and its support against snow, ice and incredible winds, west point, jacque cartier provincial park, government house, shopping with pals in victoria, Georgetown, spud radio, lobsters, energy institute, queens wharf, Lucy Maud Montgomery authoress, prince Edward island national park, Charlottetown sand sculptures including a fab one of the bridge which you can see on our Maritime Provinces Talkies videos and cedar cladding on housing. We liked PEI its history and its relaxed atmosphere and our weather whilst here was quite good. Diary Audio Diary Trailer

15 Days in Ontario, Canada - 4th-20th June 2010, nipigon,wawa,elliot lake,new liskeard,musselmans lake,toronto,niagara falls,1000 islands boat trip from gananoque, percy lake, ignace, sault ste marie, wabigoon lakes, agimak lake& beach,rossport, terrace bay, pays plat,thunder bay, the great lakes-superior, huron, ontario & dipping my toe in them, niagara on the lake, Sinclair cove, mounties, ottawa,aguasarbon falls, lake superior national park, latchford, spanish, temigami, temiskaming shores, ONTARIO ACROSS CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 2010, Alberta to Labrador (we did British Columbia in 1999) plus New York State & Maine in the USA in 2010, this is one of the Central Provinces 15 Days in Ontario, Canada - 4th-20th June 2010, 372 Photos, the summary slideshow is selective, visiting amongst others dryden , wabigoon lake, nipigon , wawa, marathon, heron bay, elliot lake, lake superior pronivcial park, montreal river, echo bay, lion beachfront walk, espanola, sudbury, lake nipissing, parry sound, wabi bay, french river provincial park, white river, old woman bay, mississauga, hamilton, st catherine, katherine cove, sinclair cove, voyageur trail, new liskeard, musselmans lake, camppark resorts niagara falls, toronto, 1000 islands boat trip from gananoque, 1000 Island dressing, johnstown, percy lake, central standard time zone, ignace, sault ste marie, wabigoon lakes, agimak lake& beach, rossport, terrace bay, pays plat, thunder bay , the great lakes -superior, huron, ontario & dipping my toe in them, niagara on the lake, Niagara Falls and the magnificent Maid of the Mist boat trip, Sinclair cove, mounties, ottawa ontario's capital, aguasarbon falls, lake superior national park, latchford, spanish, temigami, temiskaming shores, bobbie rosenfeld olympian & park, whitchurch-stouffville and a potential parking fine, niagara botanical gardens , floral clock, devils hole whirlpool, St Lawrence river , gananoque town and harbor, rideau falls, river and canal, byward market, haileybury the home of Annie's rellies, MacDonald Cartier Bridge to Quebec Province & all ports in between. We have been from one side of Canada to the other, hey did I mention that? 😉 See the Central Provinces Talkies Video taken by a kind tourist after 3 failed selfie attempts, smile 120610 camp park resorts niagara falls 1/188 Slideshows Talkies Images Map Overview Summary: We spent 15 Days in Ontario Province, Canada from 4th to the 20th of June 2010 We took 372 Photos, many of which are included in the summary slideshows. We have now been from one side of Canada to the other in a motorhome, British Columbia to Labrador, we loved it, it is a fabulous country and quite an achievement with memories we shall treasure forever. For Ontario the following were some of the highlights, nipigon, wawa, elliot lake, new liskeard, musselmans lake, Toronto which we are glad we visited although in reality were not that impressed by (along with Montreal in Quebec province, maybe as travellers we prefer being away from the big cities I suspect that is the answer, anyhow we did see the CN tower and surrounds and walked along the river’s edge to see all the restaurants, note the G20 conference was due to be on in Toronto whilst we were in Canada that year, getting up early to watch England get knocked out of the world cup football and flying our flag on the motorhome, tee-hee, Niagara falls which was just magical, we did do the maid of the mist boat trip and put on those flimsy pak-a-maks which in reality afforded little or no protection against the force of that water, we got close and also marvelled at some of the history of the fool hardy who went over the edge into it in a barrel, I ask you would you, we also read and saw how the devil’s hole whirlpool in the accompanying Niagara river was so forceful, we loved the Niagara area, 1000 islands boat trip from Gananoque which was just fantastic and covered that really weird Boldt Castle on route and an amazing number of very small but mostly exclusive islands with yachts etc and either Canadian or American flags proudly displayed and sometimes both, when we returned from the boat trip armed with the recipe Keef made 1000 island sauce to go with our salad, see the recipe below, percy lake, ignace, sault ste marie, wabigoon lakes, agimak lake & beach, rossport, terrace bay, pays plat, thunder bay, the great lakes-superior, huron, ontario & dipping my toe in them – I made a point no matter how cold the water was of taking one sock off and dipping my toe in them so I could say I had “swam” in all of the great lakes which along with the Prairie Provinces I remember studying at school with our Geography teacher the somewhat outlandish Rev Rooney who had spent much time in Africa being a missionary and photographing tribes and showing us schoolkids on the big screen – maybe I learnt my interest in travel from him, maybe it’s just in my DNA, the reality is I did do the toe dipping in all of them bar Lake Michegan, we didn’t go over the US border into that State, maybe another time, you never know, Niagara on the lake, the snow goose, Sinclair cove, mounties, ottawa, aguasarbon falls, entering central standard time, lake superior national park, latchford, spanish, temigami, temiskaming shores, bobbie rosenfeld olympian & park, Wilson island, passport, squirrels Canadian style, white river views, cousins in parry sound, a big welcome to Ontario but sadly not being able to meet up with annies cuz Jamie, bottles in the sewage systems at campsites to prevent odours when using the provided triple services, ha-ha, the lovely Ontario capital Ottawa, stouffville, niagara botanical gardens, floral clock, devils hole whirlpool, st Lawrence river, Gananoque town and harbour, rideau falls, river and canal, byward market, haileybury the home of Annie's rellies and all those kid ex school pupils of Uncle Ralph’s who were now either teachers at his old school or worked in the local museum who helped us locate places of interest and aided our family research. Genealogy is fun, fact! Here are a few words and facts in summary about Niagara Falls. Niagara Falls, city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara, south-eastern Ontario, Canada, a port on the Niagara River opposite Niagara Falls, New York. The city overlooks the Horseshoe, or Canadian, falls cataract of Niagara Falls; the crescent-shaped cataract is 54 M (177 ft) high and carries nine times more water than its United States counterpart. Niagara Falls is an enormously popular tourist destination, and it also serves as a major source of electricity for Ontario. The city is connected to the U.S. side of the falls by several bridges, including the Rainbow, Whirlpool, and Queenston-Lewiston bridges. Principal manufactures include processed food, abrasives, chemicals, automotive parts, metal and paper goods, and wines and alcoholic beverages. Logistics, i.e., storage and warehousing and information technology/call centres are also important to the city's economy. Points of interest include Queen Victoria Park, adjacent to the Canadian Falls and principal site of the annual Winter Festival of Lights; the historical museum at Lundy's Lane, site of a brutal battle between American and British forces in 1814; The Maid of the Mist, Marineland, with Friendship Cove which provides interaction with Killer and Beluga whales, an aquatic theatre and a game farm; Skylon Tower and Pavilion, containing a revolving restaurant and an observation deck overlooking the falls; the Butterfly Conservatory at the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens; Canada One Factory Outlets which features brand name shopping And the accompanying Maid of the Mist, America’s most iconic boat ride since 1846, which was its maiden voyage. See the raging currents. Hear the deafening thunder. And feel the refreshing mist of 600,000 gallons of water falling before your eyes every second. Experience it all aboard the iconic Maid of the Mist. It’s the one and only tour boat fleet whose captains have safely navigated the mighty waters of the Niagara Gorge for over 100 years, taking tens of millions of visitors directly into the centre of the swirling mist. Dress code: blue rain poncho optional. But we highly suggest you wear it, or else… 😉 Before this date, rowboats ferried passengers across the Niagara River below the Falls. By 1846, however, entrepreneurs decided a bigger craft could profit by transporting people, luggage, mail and cargo. So, the first Maid of the Mist steamboat, large enough to carry a stagecoach and horses, was christened. In 1848, construction of a suspension bridge curtailed business and the Maid of the Mist was re-branded as a sightseeing adventure that still operates to this day. Recipe for Thousand Islands dressing, if you’ve been there you have to sue it and we did in the van so here goes, Ingredients List 1/2 clove garlic, minced 1/4 tsp salt plus more to taste 190ml prepared or homemade mayonnaise 60ml bottled chilli sauce 2 tbsp tomato ketchup 1 1/2 tbsp minced onion 2 tsp sweet pickle relish 1/2 hard-cooked large egg, pushed through a sieve or finely chopped Freshly ground black pepper How to make Make a paste with the garlic and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt by crushing them with the side of a chef's knife. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the garlic, mayonnaise, chilli sauce, ketchup, onion, relish, and egg until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Use now or store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Diary Official photo - Maid of the Mist boat trip at Niagara Falls, Canadian side Maid of the Mist Audio Book Trailer

This travel blog page show our trip to Alaska on a cruise ship in 2024 to celebrate our 3 score and 10 together. It has been created by KHWD, see motothome-travels USA 2024 ALASKA for our 70th Birthday celebrations on a Celebrity X Cruise. You can see the full write up on our motorhome-travels blog or continue to view here, thanks for looking ALASKA From Vancouver, in sequence we saw the Inside Passage, Icy Straits Point (Hoonah) , Skagway (amazing), Endicott Arm a long narrow fjord if you like leading to the Dawes Glacier, which the wonderful ship’s Southern Alaska, up to Skagway, is a region rich in natural beauty and history. Here's a quick summary: Geography Southeast Alaska, also known as the Alaskan Panhandle, is a narrow strip of land extending about 500 miles from Misty Fjords National Monument to the base of Mt. Fairweather. The region is characterized by its stunning Inside Passage, a network of waterways, fjords, and islands. Key Locations Juneau: The state capital, accessible only by boat or plane, known for its scenic views and outdoor activities. Ketchikan: Known as the "Salmon Capital of the World," it's famous for its totem poles and rich Native American culture. Skagway: A historic town that was a gateway to the Klondike Gold Rush, offering a glimpse into the past with its preserved buildings and museums. Activities Wildlife Viewing: Opportunities to see bears, whales, and eagles in their natural habitats. Hiking and Boating: Numerous trails and waterways for outdoor enthusiasts. Historic Tours: Explore the Gold Rush history in Skagway and other historic sites. Transportation Alaska Marine Highway: A ferry system that connects many communities along the Inside Passage. White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad: A scenic train ride from Skagway to the Yukon border, offering breathtaking views. captain got as close as he dared, he described it as the most icebergs he had ever seen there, it took a Titanic effort (geddit?) to avoid them #smile then we headed into Juneau , Alaska's capital, Ketchikan and returned to Vancouver on the inside passage past Vancouver Island. Here are the ships daily newspapers delivered each night to our cabin, with chocolates no less, luxury indeed for us Septuagenarians. Here is the ship's log SUNDAY 150924 FIRST DAY AT SEA ON THE SOLSTICE After a hearty breakfast at the Carey centre on Endowment land at UBC Oscar picked us up about 11.05 am and drove us to the cruise ship terminal at Canada place in downtown Vancouver, you know the one that looks a bit like Utzon's Sydney Opera house #justsayin Canadian friends. Getting there in downtown was a nightmare, unbelievable levels of traffic controlled by the cops, if you are in the wrong lane you are going around again, 1 hour maybe, luckily Oscar has been there before. Traffic levels so intense as 4 cruise ships all in together with passengers coming and going. Anyhow we did the customs checks etc. and then much to my surprise but sheer delight because of my walking stick Annie and I were fast-tracked through everything and onto the ship. We were supposed to board 1.30 pm, got on by 12 noon, poor Linda was supposed to be on at 11.30 am but spent almost 3 hours queueing and Ian's legs were killing him. Anyhow Annie and I did the emergency learning stuff and headed to the buffet for an early lunch. Nice it was too. We then discovered our cabin for the next 7 days and our luggage arrived a bit later on in the evening. All very smooth. Great weather so some fab views from our balcony as it left Vancouver. Take a look! MONDAY 160924 KEEF'S THREE SCORE & TEN BIRFDAY! What you can't be 70 I hear you all shout. Mentally I would totally agree, physically however I might have to start agreeing. I seem to be sticking it to the stick much more often these days and I've promised Annie and Linda I will start the knee replacement process. Anyhow enough of the gloom, it was a truly fabulous day. Cheeky Linda and Ian had decorated the outside of our cabin which obviously we didn't notice until coming out for breakfast. Very embarrassing but it meant I got to have a long chat with the Rhinestone cowboy who was celebrating his 25th wedding anniversary , we matched on the same ship’s cakes, but with a different legend. #haha The day was spent relaxing mostly on the balcony with the usual cruise interruption for a top up of food, what's the line , "come on as passenger, go off as cargo" #smile I had pre booked my birthday meal for Le Petit Chef experience and it was certainly memorable. The beef wellington element in terms of food was mouthwatering. See the videos especially those of the little chef in action, memorable and completely different. After the meal in the evening, we went to the theatre which although spectacular was a little confusing. Tired we retired a very very HAPPY and memorable 70th birthday, thanks to all for making it so much fun. And here is a video of Le Petit Chef at my Birthday meal, just so clever TUESDAY 17th SEPTEMBER, ICY STRAITS POINT We completed the inside passage and arrived at the Hoonah collective made cruise ship terminal at Icy Straits point, the 2nd highest location for our trip in Southern Alaska below Skagway however. Beautiful sunshine as we arrived c 1.30pm. After disembarkation and a nice walk across the bridge we exchanged our excursion passes for the red gondola ride to the top of the mountain and the forest excursion tram. We ascended to be afforded some wonderful views and a chat with 2 Americans whilst we waited for our forest ride. A local Klink-it (pronunciation not spelling which was Tsilingit band) elder did some tribal demoes around the fire, all very interesting. The forest tram ride was very informative and asking questions of the Kling-it driver it was totally clear that they would favour independence from the states, which my guess is will never happen, too much rich minerals and oil at stake. The driver also told me that they had started with 4 cruise ships day, they are now up to 260+ per months so a steady stream of profit for them. Anyhow have a look at the slideshows. WEDNESDAY 180924 SKAGWAY, YUKON SUSPENSION BRIDGE & WHITE PASS RAILWAY Arrived whilst it was still dark in Skagway. We had by now mastered the fine art of ordering breakfast and having it delivered to the door on our selected time in the next morning. Luxury, you just leave your order sheet pinned to the cabin door handle, and they deliver, I've tried it since we are home but sadly it didn't work #haha Anyhow as our trips in Skagway started early it was ideal. It was a full day but in our humble opinion the best day in Alaska, truly memorable, nice to share with Linda and Ian. Initially a coach trip up to the Yukon border meaning we crossed back from the States into Canada, initially visiting the Yukon Suspension bridge and as our driver, a resident of Skagway got us their early we had the place to ourselves, as we were leaving the tourist coaches were filling up. We even got our passport stamped; a touristy thing similar to the forgotten world highway in New Zealand. After that he collected us and took us to the Fraser border crossing to board the White Pass and Yukon train back into Skagway, one of the real great train journey, following the gold mining Klondike trail. Have a look at the slideshows, the second of which about 4 minutes in will give you a complete train journey. Hope you enjoy! The coach driver told us that by 20th October more than half the population of Skagway, himself included, would leave Skagway for the winter, no cruise ships, no employment and mostly stuck indoors. They all head off to Whitehorse and way beyond for the winter. THURSDAY 190924 ENDICOTT ARM, DAWES GLACIER, JUNEAU Another early rise but just so worth it, initially dark when we entered the Endicott Arm, which is traditionally a fjord, not naturally associated with Alaska. Some fabulous views and then the first teeny icebergs came floating by, which got more and more intense as we approached the end of the fjord which is the Dawes glacier. The captain did a 360 degree turn as close as he dared to the glacier having already announced that this was the most ice he had ever seen, now was another ship and icebergs but the less said about that the better. Such spectacular views, waterfalls everywhere, some elements of Milford sound as a comparison. We were treated to Dr Ann's commentary to accompany the voyage up the fjord to the glacier which created some wonderful learning points. After the glacier we headed off to Alaska's capital. Linda and Ian did the Mildenhall glacier trip, we walked around, did a bit of tourist shopping, called in at the cultural centre, had a chat with an elder and admired many woven rugs and totem poles. Juneau is fairly cut off but there were still a surprising number of cars there. The road runs out in about 37 miles from downtown. Annie was a little tired so returned to the cabin. I decided to go up Mount Roberts via the Goldbelt Tram, the mist faded, and I got some fabulous views from the top. Sadly we were not allowed out, probably sensibly, because of the presents of a bear at the top a few days earlier. On descending I walked along the board walk past the brewery (no I didn't go in, honest) reading up on the Haida culture as I went. We all met up in the restaurant for evening meal before going to the show. Served ably by Kier who was great and his boss Miguel who was...less good and a little to pushy on "good feedback, I need score 10" FRIDAY 200924 KETCHIKAN, A VERY WET DAY We arrived in a very wet Ketchikan having had lunch with Linda and Ian. After their glacier tour yesterday Linda was feeling exhausted and didn't want to go on the crab fishing trip with Ian, we were asked but passed. Annie and I left the ship for literally 5 minutes, it never stopped pouring down. We had a chat with the ex-harbour master who offered us a free trip on his salmon boat, we declined far to choppy and wet. He told us they were down on visitors in Ketchikan today as 4 cruise ships had decided not to land. Anyhow we all met up for supper in the restaurant later, Ian had been at a crab feast (not their catch I'm afraid as not eco) so only joined us for puddings. SATURDAY 210924 LAST DAY AT SEA, INSIDE PASSAGE THEN DISEMBARKATION The last day was spent at sea, relaxing , watching the Inside Passage views, admiring both the British Columbian coastline as well as that of Vancouver island as we traversed between the two, eating, drinking, chatting and playing trivia games in the observation lounge (guess the Diva music - Hmm the modern ones we really didn't know but Tina etc. were easy) and at about 5am on the 22nd being docked in Canada place, downtown Vancouver. It has been a wonderful trip. Alaska Overview 1st Day at Sea Keef's 70th Birthday Icy Straits Point Skagway Juneau Etc. Ketchikan Last Day at Sea Map

Our canadian travel blog for 2024 covering Vancouver island, British Columbia, Alberta and travelling the Trans-Canada Highway, 70th celebrations, created by KHWD CANADA 2024 WESTERN CANADA for our combined 70th Birthday celebrations on the Rocky Mountaineer train Amongst other adventures i.e. Meeting up with pals David and Cathey in Cordova Bay / Victoria on Vancouver Island, Hiring a car and travelling across British Columbia and Alberta as far as Stettler and noticing just how much Canada has changed, Tsawwassen ferry so different, Vancouver / Raincouver so much more built up than it was back then, and the avelanche covers on the Trans-Canda Highway 1 so much more imroved and pronounced, we did this western end of Canada back in 1999 with Doug as a 15 year old, you can see that trip 25 years ago , you can also see the full write up on our motorhome-travels blog , blog 204 or continue to view here, thanks for looking. It was so nice coming back again NOTE: The sequence is everything that took place in British Columbia first followed by Alberta The drop down however is in strict date order so you can view day by day if preferred Map CANADA This is our 3rd trip to Canada, once in 1999 when we travelled very similar the same path to this trip with Doug aged 15 and then again in 2010 which enabled us to say we have travelled from west to east coast of Canada in a hired motorhome. We say mile 0 of the Trans Canada Highway (TCH) on Vancouver island in the park and we have also been to North Sydney in Nova Scotia where it apparently officially ends but as you can see from the map we have even been further through Newfoundland and Labrador as far as Red Bay. So we have probably travelled most of the TCH's 7476 km's. If you want to see some of our previous Canadian travels on our Holiday2010 site at https://www.holiday2010.co.uk/ please do. This trip was basically Vancouver, Tsawwassen (in Delta), Vancouver Island featuring Swartz Bay, Sidney, Cordover Bay, Victoria, Saanich, Hope, Merritt, Kamloops, Chase, Salmon Arm, Sicamous, Revelstoke, Roger's Pass, Golden, Banff, Canmore, Dead Man's Flats (love that name), Stoney trail around Calgary, Airdrie, Olds, Red Deer, Stettler and back to Vancouver. What a privilege it was to travel on the Rocky Mountaineer. Canada Overview BRITISH COLUMBIA The home of Vancouver Island, we travelled through all of British Columbia (BC) west to east then east to west on this trip firstly by foot, ferry and car, then the Rocky Mountaineer back westward. The border with Alberta is between Field and Lake Louise although the time zone changed around about Golden in BC. Field was a fascinating place but the scenery through BC is spectacular. There is no point in me using words, just look at each individual day’s images. I also learnt a lot not least that Victoria on Vancouver Island is the provincial capital not Vancouver, its biggest city or Raincouver as we learnt to name it. Driving from Vancouver to Kamloops on the TransCanada Highway 1 is a scenic adventure through some of British Columbia's most beautiful landscapes Here's what you'll see along the way: Vancouver to Hope Fraser Valley: Start with the fertile farmlands and charming small towns of the Fraser Valley. Coastal Mountains: As you head east, you'll enter the lush, wet coastal mountains, with dense forests and rushing rivers. Hope to Lytton Coquihalla Highway: This section offers stunning views of the Coquihalla River and the surrounding mountains. Lytton: Known for its hot summers, Lytton is nestled in a narrow valley with the Thompson River running through it. Lytton to Kamloops Lytton Canyon: A dramatic landscape with steep cliffs and the Thompson River winding through1. Desert-Like Terrain: As you approach Kamloops, the scenery transitions to a more arid, desert-like landscape with rolling hills and sagebrush. Kamloops Welcome to Kamloops: A charming city surrounded by mountains and situated on the North Thompson River. This drive offers a mix of lush forests, dramatic canyons, and desert-like landscapes, making it a memorable journey through British Columbia's diverse natural beauty British Columbia FRIDAY 130924 HEATHROW TO VANCOUVER Left from home reasonably early just in case there were any further issues with the car, couldn't afford to miss the plane. Meet and greet at Heathrow terminal 2 was fairly painless once we had paid a fortune being in the lower levels which sign posted M&G, silly us, should have realised its actually on level 4, location row B. Note to self for next time at Heathrow "get it right" smile So, the Air Canada flight was OK, not like the return journey but that is another story. Watched the Amy Winehouse biopic "back to black" but as I had a window seat spent a lot of time enjoying initially the Faroes, then Iceland with a spectacular shot over Isafjordur, then Greenland which seemed to be totally ice, wonder why it was not called Whiteland ? Then it was Hudson Bay and some of those Eastern Canada / Nunavut / Yukon areas until we landed in Vancouver. It was raining hence Raincouver. The scheduled taxi was late but eventually we met Sunny a lovely man whom we grew fond of over the holiday. Sunny ferried us to the Carey Centre, we saw the Coyote in the grounds and eventually jet lagged out slept well. We were in North America keen for the days ahead! Heathrow to Vancouver Carey Centre UBC SATURDAY 140924 WET LOCAL WALK AROUND UBC PLUS JET LAG SNOOZE Slept somewhat erratically, not surprisingly as no idea which time zone we were in. Had lovely, included breakfast in University , such a lovely lady serving and then booked lunch and dinner at the uni, both of which were very good. Went out so a walk around the area, it rained consistently, and some kind ladies advised us not to go down to the beach as steep and slippy steps. Good advice. We did find a coast viewing spot but as Annie's knee was hurting we returned to the campus and read / drifted off to sleep in between meals. Good to catch up before our Alaskan adventure. We also learnt quite a bit about William Carey, the missionary after whom the Carey Centre is named, this area was big theology departments. The next 7 days are the ALASKA cruise Alaska Cruise SUNDAY 220924 FERRY, MEET UP WITH DAVID & CATHY, SIDNEY Sunny picked us up from the cruise ship terminal at Canada Place, well not quite. Our ship had arrived early, and they let us off really early and customs was a breeze, so I had texted Sunny to let him know the pickup time had been bought forward. He couldn't park where we had been dropped off by Oscar, so he asked us to make our way to the front of the Pan Pacific hotel just outside Canada place car park. He drove us through Richmond and Delta plus other areas to Tsawwassen, which was so much more built up than we remembered it for 1999. Quite a long limo journey, probably about 45 minutes. Then we got our ferry tickets, very cheap as foot passengers, weight our bags and sent them on as checked luggage, good stuff. Long queue to get on with lots of sports teams going back to the island, maybe they had been to Kamloops, he capital of mediocre tournaments on a Saturday, who knows. I texted David to say we were on the 10 am ferry, the journey is about 90 minutes. Amazed at the number of islands the ferry traverses around. David picked us up, Cathy was at church. So lovely to see them again. Travelled to Sidney, which I do remember from years back. David showed us a co habiting house set up they had looked at and explained what it was all about, sounds like their future. We then had a coffee and a lot of catch up, Cathy joining us. A stroll around the lovely Sidney and a fab fish restaurant on the sea front, bliss. After that we went to check in at the Air B&B in Cordova bay. Tee hee it was lovely but at the top of a steep hill and the key lock was bust so the front fell into the bushes . David kindly retrieved it #hero We then parted company to settle in, D&C house sitting just down the road. A fun day. Keef bought Annie some Canadian socks in one of the shops the ladies enticed us men to enter Meet Up D&C MONDAY 230924 70th LUNCH IN BC's VICTORIA PROVINCIAL PARLIAMENT After breakfast and sitting out on the balcony reading and admiring the coast , David and Cathy arrived, after a quick catch up we headed off into Victoria. Cathy dropped the 3 of us near the parliament building and went and parked somewhere she knew about. We went through security, were given BC badges having parted with driving licenses as security , waited for Cathy, it what seemed like the dungeon or prison wing of an old Victorian building, in fact the BC parliament building. The Harvey's had kindly booked us in for lunch. It was a lovely lunch even if our waitress was a bit brusque, maybe she had been a prison warder there in a previous life #smile After lunch we had a stroll along the front with a brilliant set of tour guides, D&C, must give great feedback on trip advisor. We saw all the boats, including the bath tubs to Fisherman's wharf plus the front of the Empress, minus it's Virginia creeper after all these years, spruced up by Fairmont hotels which it is now owed by (along with Banff Springs and Le Château Frontenac in Quebec city. We visited the tourist info, spent time in Cathy's favourite Rogers chocolates, saw the floral killer whale display and then had a good nose inside the Empress, to the point where Keef was told he was not a resident and was not allowed out on the roof top garden, shame! Some fab architecture, all exhausted after that we returned to Cordova bay for the evening. BC Parliament TUESDAY 240924 US IN VICTORIA WITH D&C, LINDA IN VANCOUVER David and Cathy picked us up early, wonderful sunny day, for breakfast at a Gluten Free (Cathy is) cafe in the Saanich area called Charlotte and the Quail, food to die for and pretty good coffee. The lady serving us what a little high pitched, but we soon got over that as the food arrived, it was totally yummy. After breakfast we had a good look around the attached formal gardens, manned mostly by volunteers and what a great job they had made of it. David bought a gardening book, and we all strolled around taking endless flower and tree photographs, and quite right too, a fab gardens. After that we drove up and up to the centre of the universe observatory, with spectacular views. You could see the Olympus mountains in Washington State. After this they took us on a fab drive along the truly tremendous coastal road, flash house and hotel viewing, gardens, traditional cemeteries, whale watching in the mist, until it cleared listening to the sound of ship's foghorns, then only the even more wonderful Fisherman's wharf with its quirky housing and residents to match. #superb We had beer , wine and fish (halibut or salmon) and chips on the sea harbour front until such time as the temperature dropped. It being quite late in the eve , about 7.30 pm if memory serves me right, we returned to Cordova Bay, all in all a fab, fun day with many laughs. Victoria, BC WEDNESDAY 250924 A VERY WET DAY IN CORDOVA BAY PLUS BBQ Cathy's cousin and wife had returned late last night so they stayed there today, having to both catch up, pack and tidy up after spending a while in their house both house and cat sitting. Max (the cat) certainly matched his name. I joked that he was a skinny thing before the Harvey's arrived and over fed him #teehee We picked a good day to chill, relax and read, the rain was torrential nearly all day both Vancouver and Victoria get their fair share of "weather". Cathy had given me some halibut and salmon her cousin had caught the night before and they did some shopping kindly for us I did a fish and salad BBQ in the evening, David had bought an apple crumble for pud and Cathy had cheese and bikkies. This was our last night together, we will miss them, we had an extraordinarily good time together, thanks so much for your hospitality, David and Cathy. We stayed in contact via text whilst we each went our separate ways. Cordova Bay THURSDAY 260924 HOP ON HOP OFF BUS VICTORIA & CHINATOWN After showers etc., and a cooked brekkie to keep us going, we noticed a cracked window in the bathroom which was either there before or not? Victoria had had a 4.1 earthquake over night. Anyhow we got an uber to the Empress in Victoria and caught the Hop On Hop off bus , doing a complete circuit first around, much of which we recognised from the Harvey's guided tour. All hugely interesting with commentary on the bus. We were glad we stayed on to take the bus to Chinatown as lots a cruise ships were in later and the bus and place were heaving. Chinatown is very interesting; we visited the free museum down Fan Pan alley (sometimes referred to as tin pan alley) We had a lovely coffee (the best in Canada or Alaska) at a coffee shop just outside Chinatown plus lovely cake and bought a pasty to take back to cottage. It was raining a lot so we called it a day at about 4pm and got a uber back to Cordova Bay. Nice tea, packing for early start tomorrow and earlyish to bed for our onward travels and new adventures. Bus & Chinatown FRIDAY 270924 FERRY BACK TO VANCOUVER, PICK UP CAR, DRIVE TO KAMLOOPS Up early, it was still dark, rang for an uber which annoying always stopped one block away in the main road down the hill. Care when putting the key back in the cottage outside key safe, as pitch black i didn't want to drop it, especially as the battery in my phone was now regularly dying. Wheeled the suitcases to the top of the hill, in the dark. Keef went slowly down to the main road , found the uber guy, and got him to drive up the hill to collect Annie and the suitcase, good driver, took us to Swartz bay. Ferry back to Tsawwassen, Sunny was waiting for us and kindly took us to the Avis office at Vancouver airport in Richmond. Checked in, picked up the keys, loaded the cases and off we went. Bit nerve wracking initially in a very busy Vancouver but soon got used to it and we were on Highway 1 heading towards Hope. After Hope it was onto to Kamloops, we stopped for both refreshments, mediocre coffee and many photo opportunities. A good days travel. We arrived in Kamloops as it was getting dark, some lovely colours on the hills. Kamloops is semi-arid. Kamloops is known as the "Tournament City of Canada" basically because on Saturdays the hotels / motels are free from Rocky Mountaineer travellers, the train comes into Kamloops 6 days a week, 3 journeys in either direction and that was true when we arrived late on a Friday evening and surprisingly found everything initially was fully booked with parents and their young lads for a mini baseball league tournament. As one of the wags on our train journey said you are most likely to end up in conversation with a mediocre lacrosse player #haha We did eventually find accommodation at the Ramada which had a great breakfast included in the price, which was quite high at approx. £175 but nothing in comparison to the extortionate price charged in Canmore the next day at £235 and there was no breakfast Jeep to Kamloops THURSDAY 031024 ROCKY MOUNTAINEER DAY 2 - Kamloops to Vancouver Kamloops back to Vancouver Canadian National Railway (CN) station. We had been delivered to the Canadian Pacific (CP) station in Kamloops the night before, quite late, and after the key fiasco we were a little jaded in the morning, I had had bad cramp in the leg probably from sitting all day the day before, however we were LOVING the Rocky Mountaineer, one of the world's true great train journeys. Todays, scenery was spectacular but different from Day 1 in mostly in Alberta and the Rockies, more lakes that rivers today. Oh, and the food and drink was pretty premium as well, so glad we did this! See the slideshows and videos to get a true feel of the day. We also got to see the famous "last spike" We chatted a bit to our new Australian friends from Penrith. Once we had arrived in Vancouver, not the greatest views in that last hour, we caught a taxi to the Carey Centre, checked in , resorted the bags for flight home tomorrow and exhausted , early mornings on the train had been a bit boot camp. During the Rocky Mountaineer's voyage from Kamloops to Vancouver, you will encounter several magnificent lakes. The main ones include: Enderby Lake: Situated near the beginning of your trip, it provides scenic vistas as you travel westward. Shuswap Lake: This is one of British Columbia's largest lakes, renowned for its beautiful landscape and variety of recreational activities. Little Shuswap Lake: Adjacent to Shuswap Lake, it offers charming views during your journey. Nicola Lake: Further along, you will come across Nicola Lake, cradled in the Nicola Valley. Coquihalla Lake: Near the conclusion of your trip, this lake presents a stunning setting as you near Vancouver. These lakes enhance the spectacular scenery, rendering the journey truly memorable. Rocky Mountaineer Day 2 FRIDAY 041024 CAREY CENTRE THEN FLY BACK HOME Bit of a lie in as no rush today and we were ahead of the game. Lovely extended breakfast in the uni canteen. Checked our just before 11 and waited for Sunny to come and collect us. He took us to terminal 2 at Vancouver airport, we had a bit of time to kill before we could check in at 1.40 pm, but time went quickly. Once thru security we had a meal, the plane left on time, but this was definitely the worst of the flights. Folk were in our seats and had to be evicted , the charger didn't work, the movie wasn't great (a Kevin Costner Cowboy) and the food was even worse. Still, We got back to Heathrow, had to register the fact that they had lost our suitcase , picked up car easily and drive home, stopping for coffee and some minor provisions, tried to stay up as long as we could then crashed at about 8 pm. We were home. What a FAB holiday. Carey Centre to Home ALBERTA After Field on the TCH we entered the Banff National Park and for us the start of our Alberta time. As we were not visiting David and Cathy in Edmonton this time as had a fab time meeting up in Victoria, we travelled around Calgary on the Stoney Trail on up through Airdrie Red Deer, the David Thompson highway , Summer River and into Stettler for 2 days principally to meet up with Annie's cuz Rob, but Stettler itself proved to be a very interesting Prairie town. Traveling from Canmore to Stettler via Red Deer, while bypassing Drumheller, presents a variety of scenic views and quaint towns. Here is what to expect along the route: Canmore to Calgary Bow Valley Parkway: Offers breathtaking views of the Rocky Mountains, including the iconic Three Sisters peaks and the serene Bow River. Canmore: This picturesque town nestled among mountains is ideal for a brief stop to stretch and relax. Calgary to Red Deer Calgary: This vibrant city provides numerous amenities should you need to make a stop for supplies. Highway: Traveling eastward, you'll traverse the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor, characterized by its farmlands and small communities. Red Deer: This lively city boasts a blend of city conveniences and natural splendor, highlighted by the Red Deer River. Red Deer to Stettler. Open Prairies: Journeying through Central Alberta, you'll be greeted by expansive prairies, undulating hills, and pastoral farmland. Buffalo Lake: Located just south of Stettler, the lake features picturesque views, recreational day-use areas, beaches, and opportunities for activities such as fishing and boating. Stettler. Arriving in Stettler: This charming town boasts a deep agricultural heritage, set amidst scenic farmland. The drive offers a rich tapestry of experiences, from alpine panoramas to the vastness of the prairies, ensuring a memorable trip through the heart of Alberta's countryside. Alberta Overview SATURDAY 280924 KAMLOOPS TO CANMORE VIA BANFF After a hearty breakfast in the Ramada Kamloops, shared with a visiting 1st nations excursion group, we packed up checked out and hit the road with a lot of distance to travel today. We saw Salmon Arm (not great), 3 valleys gap, Revelstoke where we stopped for Pharmacy and Post office , Golden for Tim Horton's and lunch and clock change, as well as seeing lots en route. We thought we might stay in Banff for the night but as gridlock struck as we drove in we rapidly changed our minds. Saturday evening, Rocky Mountaineer train in, it was heaving and our budget didn't stretch to the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel. Interesting that Fairmont now own most of these classic Canadian railway hotels, Empress, Banff Springs, Frontenac etc. etc. So we went onto Canmore, filled with fuel and set about finding a place for the night. Wow Canmore is expensive.! See our slideshow. At the ski lodge we saw 2 guys kite surfing if that's the correct term, not something we would ever entertain at 70 Here is the Trip Advisor review I left for the rip-off Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge, we have never been so disappointed or overcharged. "A COMPLETE RIP-OFF! No price list on display when we arrived. Extortionate charges for a one bed queen / no breakfast. As pensioners we were even promised a discount, but I’ve checked my bank statement, and the full price was charged so that was a lie. $420 cad / £229. We could have stayed in a posh London hotel for less, indeed I told the receptionist this. She told us it was high season, and the price dropped when the snow fell , which must be rubbish as it’s a ski lodge and winter will be when they make their money. It feels like they just charge what they like to tourists. Surely a reputable business should have its price list on display. I am even more upset that I could have got the same via the UK if I had pre booked for £75. I will advise my family and friends in the UK and Canada to NEVER use “Rocky Mountain Ski Lodge” Even the car park was a waterlogged dirt track and as disabled we had to lug suitcases upstairs after they got dirty thru the mud bath car park. So, so ripped off and angry." Kamloops to Canmore SUNDAY 290924 CANMORE TO STETTLER We packed up at our hugely overpriced one bed in Canmore, it was pouring at the time so the muddy car park was awash with water and mud. I carefully carried each suitcase over the obstacle course to put each in the boot / trunk trying for as little mudslide as possible but slightly failing. We called in at reception to check out vowing never to return, at least to that establishment. We filled up with gas and had breakfast at one of the fast-food joints. Wendy's I think, perfectly adequate for our journey onto Stettler in the Prairies. Back on Trans-Canada Highway one we made our way around Calgary on the Stoney Trail, up through the outskirts of Red Deer and onto the David Thompson highway, where we stopped for the autumn colours at the Summer river before reaching Stettler where we had a subways for lunch before checking in at the Super 8 motel. One of the most amusing stories was when we arrived in Stettler at the Super8 (ok maybe not so super #smile more Adequate8) and checking in the lady asked us where we were from, we answered with our usual Nottingham, home of Robin Hood and Kevin Costner, and said we were there to meet Annie's cousin Rob Littlejohn, she laughed obviously not believing the coincidence , that was until I told her my real name was Will Scarlet . Driving from Canmore to Stettler via Red Deer, while avoiding Drumheller, offers a mix of scenic landscapes and charming towns. Here's what you'll see along the way: Canmore to Calgary Bow Valley Parkway: Enjoy stunning views of the Rocky Mountains, including the Three Sisters peaks and the Bow River. Canmore: A charming town surrounded by mountains, perfect for a quick stop to stretch your legs. Calgary to Red Deer Calgary: The bustling city offers plenty of amenities if you need to stop for supplies. Highway 2: As you head east, you'll pass through the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor, with farmlands and small towns. Red Deer: A vibrant city with a mix of urban amenities and natural beauty, including the Red Deer River. Red Deer to Stettler Open Prairies: The drive through the Central Alberta region offers wide-open prairies with rolling hills and farmland. Buffalo Lake: Just south of Stettler, this lake offers beautiful scenery, day-use areas, beaches, and opportunities for outdoor activities like fishing and boating. Stettler Welcome to Stettler: A quaint town with a rich agricultural history, surrounded by picturesque farmland. This route provides a diverse experience, from mountain vistas to prairie landscapes, making it a memorable journey through Alberta's beautiful countryside. Canmore to Stettler MONDAY 300924 MEET UP WITH ROB AND SANDY IN STETTLER Up early we had a really good breakfast at the Super 8, chatting to the lovely receptionist who was amazingly friendly. It is worth noting that 2 nights at the Super 8 and breakfasts was still vastly cheaper than 1 night in Canmore, you can tell I don't like getting ripped off! Anyhow after brekkie we drove around to discover Stettler especially the grain stores on the outskirts and surrounding the main downtown. Stettler has a mini stampede to rial Calgary, well when I say rival I clearly don't mean it. We liked Stettler , it had a lovely feel to it, to call it a one-horse town is unfair, I saw 2 #smile We went shopping in Dollerama and Walmart then returned to our room and waited for Rob & Sandy to arrive, what nice people. Annie had not met her cousin before. We had coffee in the cafe (lots of it and various interruptions from an over attentive lady waitress) however I did earn something about CFL Canada's equivalent of gridiron. We then had some drinks and a meal, the afternoon was a delight hatting about just about everything under the sun, with a lot of humour chucked in for good measure. So glad we made the effort to meet up, too good an opportunity to miss. Meet Up R&S TUESDAY 011024 STETTLER TO BANFF We had breakfast with Rob and Sandy, got the receptionist to take some photos, said our goodbyes , packed our cases and set off back to Banff taking a slightly different route back to the Queen Elizabeth Highway, cross land as directed by the Jeep's satnav, sadly because there were lots of road works (or construction as it is know in Canada). One back on the main highway it was full steam ahead, past Airdrie, Stoney Trail around Calgary, back onto the TCH 1 and into Canmore having first pulled into various tourist spots on route for some Fuji moments. Filled up the car in Canmore as had to return it full of gas. In Banff it was still raining but we stopped in front of the mega Banff Springs hotel, then checked in at the Bow View Lodge hotel, our refuge for the night prior to our well awaited Rocky Mountaineer train ride tomorrow. With time to spare until 4 we called in at the Avis office who said not here, all very confusing for car returns #recommendation You have to drop off in the bottom 2 floors of the local car park, shame Avis did not mention that, oh well, sorted we walked back to the hotel in the rain, it was not very far. After 4 we went and did the Rocky Mountaineer guest formal check in in the local mall, they gave us both a pin badge and sadly a load of irrelevant drivel, but hey the trip was magnificent. So it was early to bed for pick up in the morning. Cases would go straight onto the Coast hotel in Kamloops by coach and we passengers would be ferried to the train. Nice views of the Bow river outside our window. In the eve we ate at splendid Italian Lupo Restaurant in Wolf Street, and it was good. Stettler to Banff WEDNESDAY 021024 ROCKY MOUNTAINEER DAY 1 - Banff to Kamloops Up early at the Bow View Lodge hotel. Suitcases packed and downstairs in the lobby with quite a few other folk waiting to be transported to the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) line station at Banff. Now we knew the guy at check in last night had lied when we said we had booked that hotel because it was where the coach picked you up from. He promised if we had to walk around the corner their staff would wheel our suitcases , clearly that didn't happen, not great service from Rocky Mountaineer, but in fairness the luxury of being promoted from Silver leaf service to Gold leaf service for no extra cost was brilliant. We were now in an observation car and our luxury food and drinks was served directly at our seat for us #luxury There was even a light dusting of snow in the Rockies getting down to ground level at times, such a romantic journey, the Christmas tree effect with snow was spectacular. We passed over / alongside 5 rivers. Loved every moment of this trip. See the slideshows of images and the movies taken whilst the train was rolling! Due to numerous reasons, mostly the hold ups due to cargo which has priority on the CP lines our train was running very late, so the chef prepared an evening meal for us (normally taken in Kamloops) and very nice it was to. We arrived at the CP station in Kamloops (not the one the train would leave from tomorrow) and were coached to our Coast hotel, which after a fiasco with room keys meant we got to bed about 10pm, a very satisfying day. On the Rocky Mountaineer train journey from Banff to Kamloops, you'll cross several beautiful rivers1. Here are the five main rivers you'll see: Bow River: This iconic river flows through Banff and offers stunning views as you start your journey. Kicking Horse River: Known for its turquoise waters, this river is a highlight as you travel through the Canadian Rockies. Yoho River: As you pass through Yoho National Park, you'll see the Yoho River winding through the stunning mountain scenery. Columbia River: This river marks the border between British Columbia and Alberta, offering breathtaking views. North Thompson River: As you approach Kamloops, you'll cross the North Thompson River, which flows through Kamloops and is a key feature of the landscape. These rivers contribute to the breathtaking scenery and make the journey an unforgettable experience. Rocky Mountaineer Day 1

This page covers our trip to Canada in 1999 11 August to 4th September, 25 days in our hired All Drive Classic 3000 3 berth motorhome, we started in Vancouver, went to see the Rockies, then across on the ferry to Vancouver island where we went to Tofino to do some whale watching, actually saw a pod of Orca's just magical, then back to see more of British Columbia eventually travelling up to Edmonton in Alberta to visit our pals David & Cathy & family, magical times with Doug who was 15 then CANADA 1999 CANADA IN A MOTORHOME 1999, Britsh Columbia & Vancouver Island Plus Alberta to Edmonton to stay with Friends. This Family Trip is also replicated on the motorhome-travels blog as BLOG 166 Introduction This page covers our trip to Canada in 1999 11 August to 4th September, 25 days in our hired All Drive Classic 3000 3 berth motorhome and initially a hire car, we started in Vancouver, went to see the Rockies, also across on the ferry to Vancouver island where we went to Tofino to do some whale watching, actually saw a pod of Orca's just magical, also saw the magnificent Pacific Rim National Park, then back to see more of British Columbia eventually travelling up to Edmonton in Alberta to visit our pals David & Cathy & family, magical times with Doug who was 15 at that stage, fishing and chopping logs for our wild camp fire cooking was a true highlight. We stayed in some very remote campsites and managed to avoid the bears! 😉 In summary some of the highlights and places visited were Victoria , Vancouver Island, Vancouver City, West Vancouver, Cypress Provincial Park, Inside passage by ferry, Prince Rupert, Highway 16, Prince George, the BC ferry Tsawwassen thru US waters and various Islands to Swartz Bay, on Vancouver island we visited Nanaimo, Sidney, Cassidy, stayed in Duncan, Crofton, Swartz Bay, Lake Cowichan, Port Renfrew, Nanoose Bay, Port Alberni , Beaver Creek, Sooke, Long Beach, Tofino and then returned to the Islands Capital Victoria which is just such a lovely place with the historic Empress Hotel (by 2022 known as the Fairmont Empress), plus Patricia Hotel, North Saanich, Cordova Bay, Thetis Lake Regional Park, Esquimalt, Millstream, Squamish, Whistler, Banff , Pemberton, Mount Currie, Yoho National Park, Radium Hot Springs, Ice Explorer on the Columbia Ice field, Athabasca Glacier, Lillooet, 70,100,150 mile house, Quesnel, Fraser Lake, Burns Lake, Gitnadoiks River Provincial Park, Hazelton, Seven sisters provincial park, McBride, Jasper National Park, Kamloops , Kelowna , Vanderhoof , Moose Highway 99, Capilano suspension bridge, Sulphur Mountain, Calgary and a whole lot more. Overview Calendars Family Time in a Motorhome with Doug aged 15 August 1999 calendar created by KeefH Web Designs colourful calendar to show 1999 month of August Canada 1999 trip plan for August mostly British Columbia created by KeefH Web Designs Day by Day August 1999 travels with Doug Canada 1999 trip plan for September mostly British Columbia created by KeefH Web Designs Day by Day September 1999 travels with Doug August 1999 calendar created by KeefH Web Designs colourful calendar to show 1999 month of August 1/4 Slideshows Images williams lake BC wildlife just outside banff 1/93 Map Canada 1999 Mostly British Columbia , Some Alberta to Edmonton and back Summary: We spent 25 Days in British Columbia and a bit of Alberta We took 185 Photos, all of which are included in the summary slideshows. Our trip to Canada in 1999 was from 11 August to 4th September, 25 days in our hired All Drive Classic 3000 3 berth motorhome combined with a hire car at the beginning for use to get around Vancouver Island and do the Inside passage loop from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert and then back down to Vancouver to swap the car for the camper van, when we had the car we stayed in B&B’s mostly and some motels, clearly once we had the van we stayed at campsites. Initially we started in Vancouver downtown in what was definitely not a nice area but was cheap and afforded us the opportunity to see the City of Vancouver quite easily, then across on the ferry to Vancouver island where we went to Tofino to do some whale watching in the Salish sea, actually saw a pod of Orca's just magical from our boat that left Telegraph Cove, after returning from Victoria, Vancouver Island and picking up the motorhome we went to see the Rockies, then much more of British Columbia eventually travelling up to Edmonton in Alberta to visit our pals David & Cathy & family, magical times with Doug who was 15 at that stage, fishing and chopping logs for our wild camp fire cooking was a true highlight. We stayed in some very remote campsites and managed to avoid the bears! In summary some of the highlights and places visited were Victoria, Vancouver Island, Vancouver City, Burnaby, West Vancouver, Cypress Provincial Park, inside passage by ferry, Prince Rupert, we drove much on the fab remote Highway 16 thru BC back down through some fabulous scenery to Vancouver swapped car for motorhome and then across to friends in Edmonton, plus we saw at various stages and in no particular order, Prince George, the BC ferry Tsawwassen thru US waters, and various Islands to Swartz Bay, Tsawwassen terminal is a 36 km drive from downtown Vancouver and is located at the southwest end of Highway 17 in Delta. Sailings departing from Tsawwassen provide service to Swartz Bay (Victoria), Duke Point (Nanaimo) and the Southern Gulf Islands. Visit the Tsawwassen Quay for shopping and a range of food and beverage options. On Vancouver Island we visited Sidney, Cassidy, stayed in Duncan, Crofton, Swartz Bay, Lake Cowichan, Port Renfrew, Nanoose Bay, Port Alberni, Beaver Creek, Long Beach, Tofino and then returned to the Islands Capital Victoria which is just such a lovely place with the historic Empress Hotel. We returned via the fabulous Shawnigan Lake, we also visited Sooke on the island where our B&B landlady told us a about the replica Captain James Cook ship the Endeavour on its re-enactment voyage, just wonderful especially as Captain Cook is our hero and we have tried on our travels to visit many of the places he went to , from Middlesborough to 1770, big tick, plus we remember the sordid Patricia Hotel, North Saanich, Cordova Bay, Thetis Lake Regional Park, Esquimalt, Millstream, Squamish, Whistler, Banff, Pemberton, Mount Currie, Lillooet, 70,100,150 mile house, Quesnel, Fraser Lake, Burns Lake, Gitnadoiks River Provincial Park, Hazelton, Seven sisters provincial park, Chemainus and all the wall murals, bit like the place in New Zealand called Kati Kati, Giant Sequoias, McBride, Athabasca Falls, White Water Rapids, MacMillan Provincial Park , the Canopy Bridge at Grouse Mountain and the Lumberjack games display there, The Fraser River, Gaslight Jack and Granville island, ferries galore, Moraine Lake, Robson Bight, Banff Springs Hotel, talk about posh, Jasper National Park, We camped in Kamloops where despite the time of year one of the residents in a caravan had their Christmas decorations up, bizarre but very festive, Kelowna , the pacific rim national park on Vancouver island was spectacular, we camped at gold river and visited Campbell River (later we discovered Annie has current rellies living there, shame we didn’t know at the time, Strathcona Park. We then drove up to Port Hardy staying in this old house B&B there before getting up very early to travel on the ferry up to Prince Rupert , this was the famed inside passage, we headed up the coast having set sail from Port Hardy through the magnificent glacial fjords of the Inside Passage to the stunning and wild destination of Prince Rupert. It passes through the Queen Charlotte sound but for us the weather sadly was appalling so we were a bit restricted in what we managed to see. We stayed at the Tall Trees B&B in Prince Rupert run by the lovey Kathy Butterfield who was so welcoming and told us quite a bit about the local area. Travelling back down to Vancouver in the car we stayed at a B&B in 100-mile house having had a quick look around Prince George after leaving Kathy. On the 22nd of August we made our way back to Vancouver having seen Whistler the previous day , remember mountain bikers coming hurtling down the now snow clear mountain sides, frightening, even in my hey day I would never have had the bottle to travel quite so fast, overnight we stayed in a B&B in Squamish, we then swapped the car for the motorhome before heading off to Edmonton. In the motorhome we visited Banff, Lake Louise which is where sadly our water tank came detached from the underside of the hire van, a very kind Canadian stopped and applied a rope he had to it to strap it up enough for us to get back into the town of Lake Louise where we took it to a garage having rung the hire company and had it welded back on, we kept the receipt so we could claim back later, on route we also saw Kootenay, Waterton, Roger’s Pass National Park, Skunk Cabbage Boardwalk, Seaplanes over Vancouver North Harbour, Spray Can Art, Bungee Jumping (not us just watching) near Nanaimo, Yoho National Park where we visited and went for a swim in the Radium Hot Water springs pool, it may have been chilly outside but in the water was heavenly. We also saw the Columbia Icefields Park where we travelled on a snow mobile / coach called the ice explorer out to the Athabasca glacier one of the ice fields 5 toes, do remember them specifically telling us all to stay within the perimeter rope for our safety, folk had died falling down the many crevasses, a foolish tourist in our party didn’t follow this advice and hoped over the fence to get a better picture, he was lucky. We also saw Aspen Grove, Art Ksan at Hazelton, the wonderful Butchart gardens, so loved that what an experience, Cathedral Grove, lots of wildlife along the roadways edge especially in the Rockies National Park, fishing on Nicola Lake outside Kamloops, Glacier National Park, Sulphur mountain which we took a cable car known as the Gondola to the top of , amazing views looking back down at Banff, Keef of course got his Hard Rock Café T-shirt from Banff, why not, smile, we also took the van into Calgary but it was just so busy we decided not to stay long and headed off to Edmonton, remember David clearly saying when we camped some 300 miles down the road, hey you were so nearby, Canadians have a different view of distance, their country is just so huge in comparison to the UK. Also visited West Ed Mall, amazing what was in there, Annie going down the hugely deep-water slide is one memory, the other is denting the side of the van on a bollard in the car park which I didn’t see, oh dear. We eventually drove back to Calgary to hand the van in there and did a deal on receipt against busted water tank and dent in van, so quits no charge for either party, result. All drive hire company gave us a lift to Calgary airport, part of our one way hire agreement and we flew back into Manchester I think via Keflavik in Iceland (but that may have been on the way out, can’t remember) but what I do remember is buying the Reykjavik T-shirt from the Hard Rock Café in the airport tee-hee and then home to Nottingham. A lovely trip with some great memories and shared with Doug in his teenage years, Craig was in Spain with his mates. That’s all folks, I think its quite enough but memories reconstructed in 2022 by KeefH Web Designs, thanks for listening folks. Diary Audio Diary Trailer