I am under strict orders from Ben not to spread much time blogging, so this will be a mini-blog!
It was a year ago that Hildegard and Matthias proposed we meet in Canada for an RV adventure. These dear friends from Stuttgart were Noah's host parents during his German exchange, senior year. They have hosted us as well and we had a great hiking trip together in the Sierras two years ago. Having never taken out an RV, they are depending on us (gulp!).
Before picking up our RV from Fraserway in Calgary, we have one evening to explore this beefy, cheeky Alberta capitol - the "economic engine" of Canada, with explosive growth, thanks to oil and gas. Stephen's Court is about all that is left of the old town.
They have made room for lots of art in the parks and have a lovely river walk, and are famous for the annual Western Stampede, but it is obvious from the new high rise buildings and new home construction everywhere, that Calgary means business.
Time for a Canadisn beer!
They may be all about oil and gas, but they also have an avid cycling population and we have to beware being run over by the speeding cyclists.
Next day we get our rather luxurious Adventurer 4 RV and with a too-quick introduction they hand over the keys. We will soon find out that having Ben along as our RV engineer is essential.
It doesn't take long to leave the plains of Calgary behind and meet the Canafian Rockies.
Matthias fears not driving the behemoth. Must be that German driver gene. Hildegard and I learn to insist on stops for photos.
Matthias's grandfather taught him to wield an axe expertly and we have a roaring fire, as the Banff parks supply a mountain of firewood.
The smoke from the giant fires have smothered Alberta, but blessed rain after this sunny evening will clear the skies. We meet other travelers who have been choking on smoke for weeks. We will have rain ahead but are grateful to escape the smoke.
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Thanks for following! J