Trip to Alberta and Saskatchewan

We're home again from our working holiday to Alberta and Saskatchewan. And once again we experienced God's gracious protection - something we don't take lightly. I wonder how many times we've driven those roads? I only know that God has brought us back home safely many, many times.
We took the Coquihalla and Yellowhead Highways heading through Jasper, Hinton and just before Edmonton we spent the night at the Pembina River Provincial Park. and It was still closed for the season but we were able to find a quiet alcove just beside the main gate and spent the night there. The next day we visited the Sundance Power plant where Harv had a scheduled meeting before heading north to Fort McMurray.

The mountains going through Jasper National Park were spectacular.As we drove north we traveled backwards through spring back to winter. The trees were still in their winter austerity with only a hint of the new life to come.

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There were pockets of snow still piled in sheltered spots and many of the lakes and rivers in northern BC and Alberta were still frozen. In Jasper we drove through a snow shower but after that we only had one or two nights of below freezing temperatures. The sun shone with more warmth each day - even up in Fort McMurray and by the time we got to Saskatchewan, we were shedding our jackets and long pants. Coming home we braved 2 degree temperatures on the Coquihalla and met the inevitable rain that the Lower Mainland believes is necessary to Spring.

Our camping spot beside the Athabasca River in Fort McMurray.

We had some memorable "5 star" meals in our camper.

One of the meetings Harv had was at Syncrude - a huge facility north of Fort McMurray.

These are huge stone sculptures which stand guard on both sides of the highway north of the city.

We had to pull right over several times to let these gigantic loads go by. They take up almost the whole 4 lanes. Everything about the Oil Sands is on an incredibly LARGE scale.

After several days we left Fort McMurray and headed east again. As we traveled the road between Lloyminster and North Battleford, we enjoyed the wide open vistas of fields - some still in their winter dormancy and others being tilled and seeded. Even here, the equipment is large. Farmers till, seed and spread fertilizer all in one go and the tractors and equipment dwarf any other vehicle on the road.

We have passed this little Ukrainian Orthodox church many times. It is in the town of Krydor which we drive past to get to our daughter's home. I love the silver dome and have often wanted to stop and look inside. We have been inside a similar church nearby which stands on a small hill above open prairie. It has not been used now for many years and it stands as a museum and memorial to the many Ukranian families that settled in this area. The doors are open and anyone can go inside where the candlesticks and table linens still adorn the communion table and the priests vestements still hang in an adjoining room.

We spent 4 days at our Daughter's home in Saskatchewan before heading west again. I'll share a few pictures and stories of our time there on my next post.