We did it! We both finished our last days of work (for now anyway) and the next chapter begins.
Day 1 – (September 14, 2019) We decided to travel slowly across the country after Bronwen made the final flight to Calgary from Labrador City. Our first day we headed out to Grasslands National Park in Saskatchewan to stay in an O-tent-ik (with all our remaining possessions in/on the car including our skis).
Day 2 – Exploring Grasslands. We experienced the park by doing several short hikes and the circle drive. We saw some of the bison herd and sooo many prairie dogs, as well as our first badger! The sky was enormous and this is a dark sky preserve. The stars were blunted by a huge bright full moon, but it was still an awe inspiring experience.
Day 3 – An early start to the day rewarded with sunrise and views of bison grazing in the distance. Coyotes calling too. Enroute to Riding Mountain National Park we only met two cars on the road in more than an hour of driving. We ended the day with ice cream on the shores of Clear Lake in the park – a short walk from our MicroCube accommodation.
Day 4 – We spend the day exploring Riding Mountain but only scratched the surface. Great hike at Kinosao Lake, followed by picnic lunch at the Wishing Well. Not tired enough from out Kinosao hike, we walked a long stretch of the Clear Lake south shore.
Day 5 – After an early morning duck observation attempt (we spotted only two ducks in the distance and no beaver sightings either) we completed our drive to Dryden. There was a stretching stop in Winnipeg where we took in the Forks and suspension bridge. And again in Whiteshell Provincial Park where we took a walk along the lake shore just beating the rain back to the car.
Day 6 – Today was driving to Pukaskwa National Park. We had a stop at Kakabeka Falls – pretty impressive – although Ontario parks are all fee-for-use which we aren’t use to as BC’s are free. We are both inspired by Terry Fox and took a few moments for some introspection at the Terry Fox Monument outside Thunder Bay. Just as dusk was arriving we made it to our next O-tent-ik at Pukaskwa.
Day 7 – A loooooong hike! We set off on the 18km hike to the suspension bridge down the lake shore from our campsite. The trail was really nice, albeit difficult in places. Many boardwalks, hills up and down, and rocks. The destination bridge had a great view down into the gorge and didn’t disappoint. It was also at 8km out so the hike was only 16km which we totally appreciated.
Day 8 – Our final cross-country leg to Sudbury to visit family. We managed a couple stops to stretch on the gorgeous section of road between Wawa and Sault Ste Marie.
Day 9 to 35 – Some time to visit family and run around trying to get everything in order for leaving. We squeezed in local hikes, visits to Bruce Peninsula National Park and Point Pelee National Park, and the McMichael gallery. All of our family were super welcoming and the time flew by so fast!
Side bar: In the 2 years since we left Labrador we had the fortune to visit 16 National Parks across Canada. Each one seems to have some special ecosystem, landscape, or feature to draw you in. We will be visiting more and doing repeat visits when we return to Canada – there’s much more to see (and hike!). We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful country.
Parks visited:
- Pacific Rim (British Columbia)
- Mount Revelstoke (British Columbia)
- Glacier (British Columbia)
- Yoho (British Columbia)
- Kootenay (British Columbia)
- Jasper (Alberta)
- Banff (Alberta)
- Waterton Lakes (Alberta)
- Elk Island (Alberta)
- Grasslands (Saskatchewan)
- Riding Mountain (Manitoba)
- Pukaskwa (Ontario)
- Bruce Peninsula (Ontario)
- Point Pelee (Ontario)
- Kejimkujik (Nova Scotia)
- Cape Breton Highlands (Nova Scotia)
Brent And Bron Abroad 