Mitch Cronin Posted July 9, 2004 Share Posted July 9, 2004 .. or: 2 Adults, 2 Kids, and 2 Dogs, in a truck. [The following has nothing to do with aviation. I share it here because I like to, and because I know there are a few people who might enjoy reading it... for those folks, thanks for reading. ] On Monday, June 28th (election day) We headed out for one of two parks on Lake Superior. On the Eastern shore there's both a Provincial park and a National one... We didn't really care which one, having never camped in either, we thought we'd decide when we got there. The plan was to just stay a night or two and head home. I like the drive... the experience we all share riding along while enjoying the scenery. Somewhere along the way, the plan changed.... The last time my wife and I had driven that route was about 1986 or so, in our little 2 seater Fiero, on our way out west. We were now riding in the best vehicle I could imagine having for such a trip - short of a motor home - our diesel Suburban... I began to wish... and so I planted the seed: "What would it take to get you to agree to keep going?" I asked... The kids ears perked up. "To where?" they asked... "To Salt Spring", says I... "Ya Mom! Let's go to Salt Spring Island!" They both said, almost speaking together... "Oh comon," say's my wife, "we have too many commitments." I dropped it for a time... but the seed began to grow in all of our minds. Somewhere near Sault St. Marie, we had to make a dog stop (one of several) and we quickly learned this was a bumper year for the little flying beasties we call mosquitos, but are surely more like tiny little demon vampires... they swarm when they smell you, literally forming clouds around you... thick clouds... impossible to escape from without the aid of a fast moving vehicle. Nasty, nasty little critters! I never heard anyone say it, but I do believe all of us were thinking, "we're going to camp with these things!?" "What would it take?" I again asked.... "We have the kids' dentist appointments, orthodontist appointments, guitar and drum lessons, no phone numbers with us to cancel them...only enough clothing for a few days, not enough dog food..." she was searching for other reasons not to do it... "and how can we afford it?" I had her and I knew it! She'd never have said it that way if she hadn't been at least entertaining the notion! Obviously the appointments could be dealt with... long distance directory assistance could get us the numbers, dog food is a non issue, since people all across the country have to feed their dogs too, the clothing could be washed at laundromats.... the money...? Our son is eleven, Our daughter is thirteen. She'd resisted, at first, even the few day camping trip. Feeling, as many 13 yr. old's likely do, that she'd like to hang out with her friends all summer. The thought that this may be the best -perhaps the only - opportunity we ever get to do such a trip as a family was lingering in my mind and I said so... I said "If I knew this was the only chance we'd ever have, I'd gladly go several thousand in debt to do it." On that point, my wife agreed. ...Soon, with a small bit of prodding from myself and the kids, she agreed on all points and we were off to Salt Spring Island for a weekend visit with 3 of my brothers and their families! YeeeeHaaaw! What a trip! What a great, big, beautiful country we live in! Though this was my 5th such cruise (third time with my wife, including our "honeymoon" in 1980, done in a VW beetle), I could do that trip again and again and never get tired of seeing it all... there's too much to see, of course, and we couldn't stop everywhere (even if the dogs wanted us to), but we took some time to look at a lot. The thickest traffic we ran into was heading west from Calgary on Canada day... We took the Trans-Canada highway all the way west, made it to Salt Spring on the Friday (July 2nd), had a great visit there... left on Sunday and took the southern route through BC (highway #3)... back through to Alberta and then up past Calgary again to take in Drumheller (we probably should have stopped there while heading westbound, but didn't).. and then again all along the Trans Canada all the rest of the way East. Arrived home about 11:30 last night (Thursday) after having left a hotel in Thunder Bay at about 0800. Notes: - BC by far has the overall worst roads on the TC, though most the other provinces also have some sad sections... And what's with the cruise through Ladner? Good grief, could there be any better way to get people lost? Reminds me of the way the shysters have visitors exit the scenic events in Niagara Falls through the "Souvenir" junk shop/rip-off joints. - Ontario needs to consider building bypasses for the many 2 horse towns the highway threads through (population 600 and all traffic is slowed to 50kmh)... - Alberta, not surprisingly, has by far the best section of the Trans-Canada... - What a great, big, beautiful country! - Gas prices are absolutely nuts out west. Salt Spring Islanders being hosed the worst. Still paying over a buck a liter for regular gas... But even Alberta has prices that aren't that much better than we're paying in Southern Ontario.. they seemed to average only about 4 or 5 cents better per l. Funny how the spread in diesel goes... sometimes only a few cents cheaper, sometimes as much as 15 cents cheaper... I guess depending on how much demand there is? I met a man just outside Thunder Bay (at the Terry Fox memorial... A powerfully moving memorial displayed near the spot on the highway where he was forced by his cancer to end his run) ...who was driving the same Suburban with the 454 gasoline engine... He was thrilled to be getting 16 miles per gallon! Man I love diesels! I got about 25 mpg and paid less for the fuel. - We met a man, during a dog stop off the highway somewhere in the lower foothills of Alberta, who may have one of the best jobs on earth... I'd parked the truck just in front of a gate to a huge field, on a small roadway with a tunnel under the highway, in the midst of some of the most beautiful, wide open country I could ever imagine existing... along came a man on a tractor who jumped down to yak while the dogs relieved themselves... He and his father own a herd of Black Angus cattle and eight sections of that land... A section is a square mile, if I'm not mistaken... drive down the road for 4 miles, turn right, drive for another two, turn right and drive for four more, turn right again and drive back to your starting point for the remaining two, and you've just driven 12 miles to circumnavigate your land!! "So what are you up to today?" I asked, just before we parted company. "I'm picking up rocks, wanna help?" he says with a grin... Man, would I ever love to! What a job!... what a place!... - What a great, big, beautiful country! - The ferry we rode on from Tsawwassen to Long Harbour on Salt Spring was the Bowen Queen... why bother mentioning that?, you may ask... Aside from being a silly small vessel for that run, I worked on that ship for a time, about 27 years ago, I think... She was dedicated to the Fulford Harbour - Swartz Bay run at the time... She wasn't new then, and she's looking mighty sad now! Whatever the BC government is doing with it's money isn't clear to this casual observer, but it's clear they aren't spending a lot on decent infrastructure that would be apparent to the highway traveller. - We met a girl pumping gas in some place a couple hours east of Calgary... "What a beautiful place" I said... "What a fantastic view" At first she said prairies were nice, but she'd like to see some trees or some mountains once in a while... I understand that. She said she takes the bus to Calgary sometimes, but had never been any further away than that... After some more conversation she did let out one secret of the lure to the prairies... "Lie out in a field on a clear night and look at the stars, you can see a billion and one of 'em". I didn't get the chance to really appreciate that experience, but while cruising through Saskatchewan later that night, I did get a chance to have a glimpse of what she meant... Wow! You guys that say the prairies are boring are wearing the wrong glasses, or looking for the wrong things, I think... What a great, big, beautiful country! - It's great to see so many places that welcome dogs for overnight stays... Lot's of people can't get away without taking their dogs with them... And for those who may think it's unfair for the dogs, please consider: Staying in a kennel would have them in smaller cages than our truck provided, without us, with fewer releases for a pee or a run, and separated. I know, beyond a doubt, that our two beasts were happy to be with the family... their "pack". They did very well. - I know many people who will think nothing of loading their kids in an airplane and buggering off some place, thinking the kids will benefit from the experience... they're undoubtedly right.... but I can't think of a better way to introduce your kids to their own country than travelling by car. So much is missed when you fly. - A tent and 4 sleeping bags.... a few hundred dollars. - A few weeks off work.... a couple thousand dollars. - A few Hotel/Inn/Motel stays... a few hundred dollars. - A big and comfortable enough vehicle for all of us and capable of the drive... a few thousand dollars. - The chance to turn a small camping trip into a cross country experience.... Priceless! I'd better shut up now... I could go on for eons... Good to see you Canada, we'll be seeing more of each other in years to come. Cheers folks, Mitch P.S. Don Hudson... if you're reading down here, send me an e-mail... I'll still be on holidays this Monday and Tuesday, and I'd love to meet you at Arizona's, or any place else for that matter! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccairspace Posted July 9, 2004 Share Posted July 9, 2004 Thank you Mitch. My smile will last a long, long time. cc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch Cronin Posted July 9, 2004 Author Share Posted July 9, 2004 Happy to have a part in that CC... my smile's gonna last a while too I'll tell you!... My son would have me add: Wildlife seen along the way - 17 and a half deer (you don't want to hear about the half), 5 moose, umpteen prairie dogs, 2 beavers, 1 bear, 1 fox and 1 coyote. ... a note about travelling in Northern Ontario in the wee hours... following a transport truck (hard to avoid anyway, but I had to speed up to stay with a guy I followed westbound between Kenora and Winnipeg) is a good way to keep safe... We passed two moose during that period, who were still waiting on the shoulder after the truck passed while we went by... and if there was one on the road, as long as you keep enough distance between you and the truck, you could still avoid the mess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newgirl Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 Mitch Loved your post. I was getting a bit disappointed with you as you drove thru Sask. without comment . But you redeemed yourself by at least mentioning the stars on your return and how the prairies weren't boring. We have sunsets here that last for hours , stars visible even in the city ( when it's not overcast like it has been for weeks) , thunder storms that are magnificent to watch and the truest,bluest sky! Even Bob Hope when he was here commented on how blue the sky was! I have a family of partridges who winter in my backyard so we have to feed them! We've had black bears and moose wander within 5 blocks of my house. They really aren't supposed to be here as it's not a forested area just wheat fields. However as much as I hate to see the end of summer (brings ugly winters), you missed the best part of Sask. There is nothing more beautiful than harvest season. The fields are golden and the sky so blue. Then when the combines are out in the fields at midnight with a full moon - it's truly spectacular. When I drove my relatives from Sweden out to Victoria as few years back, it wasn't the mountains they were impressed with but the prairies. They just couldn't believe how big they were! Quite an eye opener for them. You are also right when you say a road trip in Canada is priceless. However we are able to take our children on vacations to other countries that are also priceless. Aren't we lucky! My son at age 12 was asked where he was going for Easter break and he said New Zealand. The girl replied Wow , you must be rich! Fact was that I have relatives in NZ and it was the cheapest holiday we could have! Thanks again Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stargazer Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 Wow What a great vacation! I see you discouvered what I learned years ago in regards to following trucks on the highway between dusk and dawn. It's quite the trick to find a truck with a light load going through the Rogers Pass for example, but once in that sweet spot you can relax and enjoy the trip. This also works well when you have those heavy snow storms, just follow the tail lights and hope the trucker dosen't fall asleep and drive over a cliff. My husband and I are starting to mull over where to retire, there are soooo many options. Maybe we'll get one of those mobile mansions and live everywhere! Sure they are hard on fuel, but at least we won't have to pay property tax! Thanks for sharing your vacation with us, that was the best post I've read in a long long time on this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 29chev Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 Mitch, Thank you Many of us , due to the problems at AC have had to leave the country to stay employeed in our chosen field....I'm writing this from a large city in Asia and although it is a great place there is no place like home. I have made the drive you speak of many times as I followed shiny aircraft around the country and you are correct "What a great, big, beautiful country!" But when you mentioned the stars in Sask, I almost cried, I grew up in Sask...and even though it has been years since I lived there I still remember the stars as I waited for Dad to fill the truck with wheat so I could take it to the yard during those long nights at harvest time I have been here over a month and have yet to see the stars (between the lights from the city and the smog) they just don't come out. It'll be OK Just me and a couple of I'll find my happy place but thanks again and thank your wife for ....well just thank her too...a family togther in a car sounds very good to me right now...hope to see mine sometime in Aug. Until then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gpsapr Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 COOL! ....bring a star-chart next time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky High Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 Great post Mitch!!! Glad to hear you enjoyed the trip and from the sound of it i'm betting its something that will enter your mind again. Especially when you consider the mosquitoes in Ontario. lol If I had known you were going to be coming thru Calgary I would have brought you and the crew in for a sim ride and some western hospitality. Canada is unlike any other country in the world and something like makes you realize just how unique we are and how good we have it up here. Thanks Mitch... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch Cronin Posted July 10, 2004 Author Share Posted July 10, 2004 Glad to see such nice responses here... thanks to all... Y'know... I thought of a lot of you folks while near, in, and through Calgary and elsewhere... Mr. and Mrs. P... Malcolm... The WJ folk... Western Hospitality was there in spirit, but to even think of accepting it with dogs present would have been too much for anyone. Saw more teal tails than I'd ever seen before while passing the airport on the way to Drumheller... I'd never paid much attention before to how big the Bow River is... Thought of the Bow River Fishing guided tours our host offers... Wished we'd had the time... Thought of Neo while traversing the grape vine valleys through southern BC... (still don't know where Naramata is... I should have looked at a map!) Thought of a man I know as "Duke Elegant" while we stayed in Chilliwack on our wetbound leg... Don't know him, or his real name, but I sure would like to have been able to meet him... What a pretty little airport that is.... and a fantastic place to fly from! I probably should have waited 'til I was well rested before writing the tale above... I think I could have done a better job of it, but it'll do... Didn't mean to gloss over Saskatchewan, or Manitoba either... Both have as much to offer, in their own beautiful ways, as the rest of the country. Also, I see I left out any mention of the absolutely awesome splendor of the mountains... but what can be said? One spectacular panorama after another! We spent one night in a Travellodge in Fernie BC on our way back east... the "Three Sisters" mountain(s?) visible from the motel... Man, what a sight! For those of you displaced Canadians, the good news is, the country looks just as beautiful now as it did the first time I saw it all back in the early 70's... (when my Dad took my brother and I across the country when I was 13) so no matter how many screwed up governments we get, they can't wreck our country... it'll still be just as fantastic a place when you get back. One more note: Back in Ontario, we spent a night in the Victoria Inn in Thunder Bay... My wife, after confirming they'd accept dogs, being the thrifty little darlin' she is, asked if they offered any discounts to airline employees... they did indeed: about 40% off! And it's a great place, complete with a 3 story indoor water slide for the kids. While loading the truck in the morning I heard a familiar sound and looked up to see a very clean bellied WJ '37 climbing out... y' buggers like teasing me don't you! Cheers All t'the lot of ye! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Darr Posted July 10, 2004 Share Posted July 10, 2004 ...thanks for bringing back the memories of all those wonderful places, Mitch. Great read-along! ~ Ray Darr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jump seat Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Just reading this story after a week of planes, rental cars and a waaaay to busy vacation, I'm envious of your vacation Mitch. Sounds like something I need to do. Thanks for sharing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LEFTY Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Dear Mitch, Having made the drive in anger, or while looking for the first flying job, or with the inlaws(!) or just for fun, I want to thank you for bringing back all the memories of this country and those who live in it. My family and I are some of those "displaced" airline people who had to leave to make it happen. At the moment I don't even know when we'll be back to stay, if ever. It made me a little sad to think that the industry back home is in such a sad state. But then it has been that way for some time. Your travel journal emphasized how tough it can be, even though we have it all as far as a great place to live, the work is elsewhere for more than a few pilots. I'm glad you got out to the coast, my heart lies there and I'll be there soon. I hope that you and your family get to do it again sometime, I'll read that trip too! Isn't it nice to be able to be impulsive and just go? Try that in more that a few countries on this earth and you might not have the same story to tell. I've done the trip on VIA with the family and it's a great way to see the parts you can't see from the highway, but a bit $$$. Worth it to see the kids faces. Great stuff, best of luck, maybe we'll be home one day to take it all in again. Off to the fridge, this has made me thirsty... Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stargazer Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 My family and I are some of those "displaced" airline people who had to leave to make it happen What the hell does that mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 29chev Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Stargazer I think Lefty, like myself had to leave the country to keep flying and providing for our family. Good luck to you and yours lefty. 29chev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LEFTY Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Stargazer, was there any need to be rude? All ya had to do was ask nicely! 29chev...Thanks for getting in there first, I might have said something regrettable Same to you and yours, hope it's safe... Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest 29chev Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Lefty check your PM's 29chev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch Cronin Posted July 11, 2004 Author Share Posted July 11, 2004 Lefty... I hadn't considered the effect of almost rubbing it in the noses of those of you who'd rather still be at home in Canada... but I'm confident that you know that wasn't my intent. Leaving home for work is a concept I've never had to deal with... and I doubt I could. I've worked with many guys over the years, who've had to leave their families behind someplace until they could transfer... I remember one guy just starting out at WD who got hired on in YYZ, just after he'd married a lady in his home town in Calgary... He "commuted" back and forth for the first 5 years of his marriage! I'd never do that. I'd rather adjust my financial needs so I could pump gas for a living, or something. I left my "home" out west to come back east to be with the lady I married, and I'd leave any job to stay with her. -- as a matter of fact, that's how I lost the job with the BC Ferries... She'd come out west for a visit and we just took off for a two week tour through the mountains... (in a '64 Ford Fairlane running on 5 cylinders, with a broken leaf spring, and an exhaust leak blowing on, and burning out starters every 200 miles or so) It was during that trip we decided we'd get married. When we got back, I was fired for being awol. It was worth it! -- But then... I remember the passion for flying I felt once upon a time... if I'd been able to do that for a living, I guess I may feel differently? I wish you, and 29chevy, and all of those in your shoes the very best of luck! I do know that I'm right about one thing... Not one stick of messed up politics in this country can change the incredible vistas available to anyone with the notion to see them. They'll still be there if you ever get the urge to came back to see it again. And I don't care who tells me Westerners, or Easterners, or Quebecers are different than anyone else... I swear that you can talk to strangers anywhere in this country and aside from an accent, we're all essentially the same, basically decent folks. It's damned hard to see any striking differences. It's also not entirely missed on me that I'm speaking to some folks who have some of the best views available to man, on a regular basis in their work! Not too shabby. Some things you don't see from a way up yonder though... as you evidently know, many of them are worth seeing. Cheers, Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LEFTY Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Hi Mitch, Wow... After finding out that you used to work for BC Ferries, I felt some "kinship" with ya! In order for me and the whole family to get to where my retired airline pilot Dad and Mom live, we have to hit the lineup at Horseshoe Bay (along with the new fangled reservation system) to get the Sunshine Coast Experience! In no way did I think you guys were being hard on those who had to go. I only wish we could do what you did on an impulse. We will be back, but really only to visit. Please keep the National news coming, I have no issue living vicariously through your experiences. All the best, from all of us who have to watch from afar. Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stargazer Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 Lefty: Sorry I came across so hard, I just sometimes get so frustrated. I took your comment about "displaced" like you were forced out of Canada. You have a choice, you made that choice, all the best too you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest doogs Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 Mitch, Great Post - Being a Jazz FA this week has been... well enough said! I'll just say it was enjoyable to read about something so totally not related!! It was enjoyable to remember car trips across the country when we were growing up - my Dad was a Navy man and we made the trip between Victoria and Halifax on a number of occasions (and before there were DVD players in the cars too!!) If you can pull the wool over your family's eyes next summer, you should head in the other direction - Quebec, New Brunswick, PEI, Newfoundland and especially we here in little old Nova Scotia could provide you with another memorable tale to tell! You are right - this is one GREAT BIG Country that we live in! Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LEFTY Posted July 13, 2004 Share Posted July 13, 2004 Star...Takes a good person to say sorry. Thank you for that, and whatever seems to be going on between AC and Jazz, I hope you all come out it intact. Good luck... Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AME Posted July 15, 2004 Share Posted July 15, 2004 Here is what a Moose can do to a car the story that came with the picture says the lady involved only suffered a broken wrist I'm thinking she should be buying lotto tickets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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