Val Marie to Medicine Hat

Before I start the day’s proceedings, I wanted to show you our Bed and Breakfast in Val Marie.  I didn't take pictures of the interior (they were spartan), but there were confessional booths for anyone who needed them.

Another day of warm sunny weather—up to 34C by the afternoon.

Much of the day was spent driving across vast expanses of fields, grazing and badlands, with the occasional sighting of deer, antelopes or hawks.

Southern Saskatchewan has a much more interesting variety of place names such as Drinkwater, Scotsguard, Cadillac, Admiral, Limerick, Big Beaver, Corinne and…..

This is a typical South Saskatchewan rail stop, serving up both oil and grain.

Around Climax we started seeing the classic oil donkeys, bringing back more memories of Alberta living.

I needed to get updated on some Saskatchewan terminology.  My sister-in-law, Val, was commenting on how they had built a new port outside of Regina, and, me, foolish woman, was trying hard to overcome the conviction there was no sea near Regina.  Then, as I looked at the US border on the map, you could see Port of Climax, Port of Coronach, etc etc.  Ah hah!  The border crossings were “ports of entry”, and the Regina port (aka terminal) was a collection/distribution centre for grain and other products.

Val had recommended we stopped in Eastend to see the T. rex Museum, which was well worth the visit.  A building had been erected to display the results of an important Tyrannosaurus find, which had been excavated mere meters away from the museum.  

Displays explained the evolution of dinosaur knowledge as more finds were discovered around the world, and how science has expanded to include a number of disciplines (eg geologists, botanists, bone specialists, asteroid specialists, etc etc) to bring different perspectives to interpreting the findings.

We had wanted to visit Fort Walsh, and the Cypress Hills interprovincial park, but the day had little enough time left.  We’ll stay a couple of nights in Medicine Hat (Gas Capital of Canada!) in a hotel on Boxsprings Road.  Ponder that name.