Nov 17 to 19th Canada

OUR own bed!!! Ahhh.

Our friends had been given keys and asked to drop in now and again. Thanks, y’all.

The house seems really big.

Now, the tough part. We’d flown our two dogs to Edmonton while we were gone, now we had to go get them. Why not fly them back? Well…

The American side said it was just fine to put two dogs in one appropriately sized crate. Canada wanted two separate crates. The primary reason, though, was temperature. Since they fly as cargo, it can get cold at 40000feet. A month earlier when they went, it was warm enough. So, into the car we hopped.

Google says it’s 915 miles. One way.

Typing in the backseat, trying to find the elusive combination of comfort and being wedged against the cars’ motion.

Caffeine only helping so much, Denise drove the first 400 miles of freeway drone. We crossed the border without incident, the border patrol palpably nicer anywhere away from the huge choke point of Blaine.

Finally made it into Edmonton, after creeping the last 100 miles in dense fog that kept my speed to 40 mph. Alone on the road but for truckers this early in the am, already having had a deer encounter, I crept along until a semi passed me, then tucked in behind so their huge chrome bumper became my “cowcatcher”.

It was 5am. We reached the inlaws. The dogs went crazy. Just getting up, we chatted for a bit, then I crashed on the bed and Bob(2) headed off to work as the girls continued to gossip the way only sisters can.

I awoke just as Bob(2) was returning. Sleep is good.

We went to a local sports bar for dinner, hearing about the poor service endemic in Edmonton, as the oil sands pay well, even for menial jobs, so there’s a chronic shortage of waiters/fast food guys/etc.

Decided to leave that very night, as I was rested and truthfully I just wanted the travelling to be over. Plus, I like driving late at night, where the cars are fewer, distractions are less, and you can usually just set the cruise control.

Rolling away, not looking forward to the next 16 hours, we merged onto the huge highway heading south. Running through a few miles of light slush, the roads were otherwise in excellent shape.

Made it just south of Calgary when the weather had a few tantrums. The highway was three lanes in each direction, virtually arrow straight here in the prairies. Leaving the vestiges of the suburbs behind, the light pollution receding, alone with our headlights.

Odd how being a city dweller precludes the need for high beams, driving with them on for miles is actually a bit surreal, especially since a light snow had started falling, creating the “space warp” effect in the windshield.

Starting to stick now, the snow obscured the lines on the pavement, I navigated by estimating a central position by trying to remain between the ditches. It was getting thick, the 4WD getting a workout as the tires scrabbled through the thickening layer of snow. Again down to 30mph.

It was dark. DARK. No oncoming traffic, and I only saw two other vehicles, one pulled over and one pickup truck blasting through at 30 mph over my speed. Hope he made it.

Just as I was starting to run through the options about hunkering down until morning, the snow lightened.

The roads gradually became clear again, we were able to resume normal speed. Whew.

Then, it happened again. Bare roads, to 4-6 inches deep, back to bare. Then again.

I was tired. The stress of peering through a flake-filled windshield, keeping it on the road, catching lots of tiny slides hour after hour had gotten to me. I could feel the tension in my neck.

Reaching the T intersection in a sleeting rain that would lead us up and over the pass, I was worried that it might be impassable, since if there was snow down here on the flats, there could be a blizzard raging at higher elevations. Not something I’d want to attempt in the dark, alone at 4am.

Right was the pass. Left, Lethbridge, a town where we’d probably find a hotel.

We turned right. It was roughly 100 miles to the pass, My reasoning was that these next 100 miles would be my barometer as to whether we sought shelter or continued on.

It was clear. Amazingly clear. Not a cloud. Dry roads. A bright moon lit the whole mountain.

Made it over the top, then wound down the other side, crossing paths multiple times with several trains who were also descending.

I was creeping down the mountain, because unfortunately the clear night brought out the deer. Saw four in a short section, having to brake to avoid one particularly stupid specimen.

Coming around a corner, I saw a semi pulled off, a lump of mangled carcass under the wheels and one of the headlights pointing crazily skyward, a dark trail of blood delineating his trajectory as he came to a stop.

The driver was ok, out surveying the damage, and already an oncoming truck was pulling over to help, so on we drove. That was the wake up call, though. I hadn’t been paying the proper amount of attention to the road the last few miles.

Over the pass, out of the snow danger zone, I was done. Exhausted. Denise hadn’t slept either, so having her take a turn behind the wheel wouldn’t work either. I found a quiet pulloff spot, and we both tried to get some sleep in the waning darkness, awakening to sporadically run the trucks heater when we got too cold.

Awoke to bright sun, the small puddles glazed over with a thin ice layer. Back protesting, off we went again. The sun and nap rejuvenated me, all was good with the world.

The border crossing was a stressless, pleasant affair, we continued home without any issues, the dogs curled up and appearing happy to be back.

Got home late afternoon, immediately heading to bed to fall into yet another long dreamless sleep.

Home at last.