Day 31: 67 miles. 2300 feet elevation. Weather perfect.
Today, I came into my own town. My name is rarely spelled correctly, but this town in Saskatchewan got it right when they named it after me. I thought it was very thoughtful and a very Canadian thing to do.
Leaving Cypress Hills this morning it was beautiful. The air was clear and crisp, and it felt like the mountains. It was nothing like I expected in the Saskatchewan. Of course, I quickly descended out of the hills and was back on the prairies.
Admittedly, it is a bit daunting to start out across prairies that appear endless and uninhabited. My view for hours was the above picture. I had little idea of where or what I would be riding through as the day progressed. As it turned out, over about a 30-mile distance, I saw maybe two cars and only a few farm houses with no visible people. I always start wondering “what ifs”, but gratefully I have pretty much what it takes to fix most any bike issue and I know something about fixing broken bodies although on the side of the road and treating myself might be a little difficult:-)
As noted, Saskatchewan has been surprisingly beautiful. There are areas they call Coolees, essentially valleys across the Prairies, that are green, lush, and protected from the wind. They’re quite lovely, of course, it does mean some climbing to get out/up the other side.
After about 30 miles, I arrived in the lovely little town of Eastend. I found the grocery store and picked up a few snacks, but I wanted to have lunch since I didn’t have a very long ride today. The grocery store recommended Jack’s Cafe, likely because it was the only place to get lunch in town. Unfortunately, Jack had decided to take Monday and Tuesday off this week. Accordingly, I had to scrounge through my bags and find a lunch of leftovers and ate it while sitting on a bench on Main Street.
While sitting on the bench, my good friend Daryion called. He updated me about his life and some future plans that were exciting. It’s wonderful to stay in touch with family and friends. It’s a bit of a dichotomy to be crossing Canada on a 19th-century machine while enjoying the ability to connect with family and friends using modern-day technology, not to mention find my way.
Walking back from the grocery store to my motel this evening, I came across the local school in Shaunovan. If you look closely at the picture above, you’ll see on the left-hand side giant Teeter totters and many of them. On the right-hand side, there is a hill. Apparently, this area of Saskatchewan is so flat they had to put a hill in for the kids to play on. But what I find even more fascinating are the giant teeter-totters, which are so deadly, at least in my childhood experiences. I guess that’s the advantage of socialized medicine. Tomorrow, I’m off to Gravelburg.
Grumpy Grandpa's Great Bicycling Adventures 