The end of the ride yesterday provided a taste of what was to come on today’s ride. However, as I was loading my bike to begin the day’s ride I met a couple who had parked their Harley-Davidsons beside mine. They were from West Kelowna and were headed to Harrisburg, PA for a Blue Knights rally. The Blue Knights is a group of law enforcement people including police, firefighters, jail guards and the like, if I understand correctly. They were headed to Great Falls, MT where they would get on to Highway 2 for part of the ride to the east. They explained that they were taking this route, mainly to avoid Saskatchewan’s terrible roads. I was somewhat sceptical of their reasoning but would see their point later in the day.
As I was on the approach lane to Highway 3 I had an incident that was not a good harbinger for the day. Because I had taken my GPS off my bike to keep it from being stolen, I had to mount it before I left the hotel. Apparently, I did not mount it properly and it fell from its mount at 70kph right in the middle of the two lanes. Stopped immediately and waved done a guy in a truck. He stopped and I was able to reach out and get the device. I had my fears because two semis had rolled past before I got to it, but fortunately they hadn’t run over it. The device was banged up but when I mounted it properly this time, it worked. Somewhat worse for wear, but still perfectly functional.
From Lethbridge to Medicine Hat is is about 170 kilometres and without further mishaps, I made it to Medicine Hat in good time. The next leg of the ride was to Moose Jaw, SK, a distance of almost 390 kilometres, by way of Swift Current, SK, a distance of 209 km.
There are many hamlets along the highway with names that must have some interesting history. Two that come to mind are Seven Persons, Drinkwater, and Manyberries, AB. I am really curious as to how or why these places were named.
The price of gasolins in Alberta came as a pleasant shock to me when I stopped at the first Alberta gas station in Blairmore. I am used to paying about $2.15/litre for premium fuel. In Alberta, I was paying about $1.67 /litre. Regular gas had a standard price of $1.38/litre, Regular gas in Moose Jaw and other places was about $1.56/litre compared with the $1.94 to $1.97/ litre I pay on Vancouver Island. That is one small break in the cost of this trip.
I have had people tell me that the ride across the prairies is boring but I disagree, Several activities seem to dominate this part of Canada, First is agriculture which takes advantage of the vast spaces and good soil. On parts of the ride there were many grain or seed processing facilities. Farmers grow canola, soybeans, grains and other crops. The most striking of these is canola. This time of year the canola fields are in bloom and huge swaths of the prairies are covered in a carpet of yellow.
Canola field east of Lethbridge, AB.
When the ground warms up and a gentle breeze blows across the canola fields it carries a scent that is difficult to describe. For me, the fragrance reminds me of lice rice. I found myself breathing deeply as I rode along the fields because it was such a pleasing aroma I wanted to savour it while I could. The same thing happened as I rode by a large I presume bean field. The fragrance was different, but still very pleasing.
The terrain varies from gently rolling farmland to almost barren badlands. One small detail, but there does not seem to be many, if any rocks in this soil. And while there are very few trees, the advantage is that one can see great distances. This truly is the 'bald prairie'.
For most of the day I rode highways that paralleled the Canadian Pacific Railway. When I think f the distances that I covered today, I find it almost incomprehensible that the original rail line was built in about four years with human and animal labour. The effort must have been stupendous. I saw many trains as I rode along the railway line, and the length of these trains is incredible when one has the opportunity to actually see the whole length of them. And most were pulled by two or at most three locomotives. The power of these machines is difficult to comprehend. In evidence on several occasions were locomotives in the Kansas City Southern livery of red, yellow, and black. These locomotives came with the CPR's acquisition of the American railroad this past spring.
Near Medicine Hat I saw oil pumps that were slowly pumping crude oil from the wells in farmers' fields. On occasion the acrid smell of crude oil wafted across the highway. Not a pleasant smell.
Near a small town named Chaplin there is a sodium sulfate mine quite close to the highway. Beside the highway at the edge of a lake are mounds of the stuff. At first glance it looks like snow. It is used in a variety of chemical processes and the mine here is a large producer.
I stopped to refuel west of Swift Current where I met a rider who had left his home north of Winnipeg early this morning on his 1966 Harley-Davidson FLH. The FLH is the great granddaddy of H-D's big touring machines. This motorcycle was in fantastic condition for a 57 year-old machine. This rider was heading to an old bike rally in a small town to the southwest of Calgary. He hoped to do the ride in one day. It seemed like the Harley would probably go longer than he could, but he was certainly putting in a good effort.
1966 H-D FLH
When I arrived in Moose Jaw, I decided that I could go a bit farther before I stopped for the night, so I reserved a room in Weyburn, 140 km farther on. After spending seven or eight hours in the saddle much posterior needed a rest. When I shut things down for the night, the odometer indicated that the distanced covered today was 758 kilometres. A big day.
Canola field near Weyburn, SK.
Back to a comment made earlier in the day about Saskatchewan highways. I must agree with the couple at the hotel. When I crossed into Saskatchewan the roads became rougher and I hit several bone jarring depressions on the highway. Alberta's roads were in stark contrast to the in this province. There were lots of signs indicating highway improvements, but while there was some construction, it is sadly much less than is needed.
Tomorrow, the plan is to cross the border into North Dakota at North portal, SK, then ride southeast until I reach Highway 2 which will take me east to Sault Ste Marie and back to Canada. How long will that take? I'll have a better idea tomorrow night.
Another scent that was pleasing was the smell of bailed hay that trailed semis loaded with bales of hay. For people who are not fa,I liar with the smell, it is hard to describe, but once you experience you never forget it.
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