Canada Archives - Page 20 of 24 - Our View From The Road

Mid-week excursion to Charleston Lake

Our grand-daughter, Elena, is staying with us for the week and so we thought a quick two day camping get away would be a nice break. However, Mother Nature decided to make the start of our journey a little challenging by delivering a deluge of rain just before we were to head out. In the picture below you can see the Summer shower ‘inviting’ us to enjoy the great outdoors.

Luckily the weather delayed our departure by only an hour and the drive from our home to Charleston Lake Provincial park is only an hour so even with the small delay we still arrived at our campsite well ahead of dinner time.

Setting up the van took a little longer than usual as we had to prepare a 3rd bed for Elena. This is comprised of a board and blankets placed on the swiveled front seats. Really quite a nice space.

After dinner we took a short walk to the beach and then to the playground where Elena had to slide, swing, bounce and teeter-totter before she would allow us to leave and return the campsite. The evening ended with a small campfire.

The campground is quiet and the sites quite large and level as well as shady amongst maple and pine trees. Ours had lots of space for Elena to run around.

On Day 2 we decided to spend some time at the beautiful beach that they have in this park. It is really quite suited to younger children as it’s roped off and quite shallow. The water was warm and clear, and frogs and fishes were spotted.

After lunch it we enjoyed some quiet time at the campsite.

In the evening we had a campfire where marshmallows were roasted and s’mores were made. Sleep came fairly early as we had all really enjoyed the outdoor air.

Day3 started with Grandpa cooking breakfast on the griddle before we all pitched in to pack up our campsite. Time for one last picture before heading out.

Although the camping trip had been fun, we all slept really well in our own beds at home that night. Until the next camping trip, here’s hoping everyone enjoyed seeing and reading about our quick get away to Charleston Lake.

A short trip away…

Late July and we’re off again, this time for a short two-night stay at Farran Campground on the St. Lawrence Seaway. The campgrounds along the St. Lawrence river are fairly close to home being less than an hours drive door to site. As this was a mid-week get away, we made reservations just a few days in advance and managed to snag ourselves a nice flat grassy site in the quiet Western section of the campground.

We arrived in the late afternoon and setup our site. It was breezy and our chairs kept getting blown over (see picture above). This also necessitated using the windscreen around the grill while cooking the burgers we had prepared for dinner. The sites along this section of the park are huge with large level grassy areas for parking. This allowed us to setup with lots of space between us and our neighbors and because the sites are unserviced we didn’t need to worry about hookups, etc. (the van has ample electrical storage and drainage storage that we didn’t need a serviced site for the 2 nights that we were staying).

After dinner we walked around the campground making notes of other possible sites for future trips and observing how others setup and “camp”. Due to the windy conditions we decided to pass on getting some firewood for the first night and will see what tomorrow brings. Returning to camp we enjoyed a drink and settled in for the night. It is so incredibly quiet that it should be a good night for sleeping.

Day 2 of our short trip away was to be cut short. Barb had not had a good night and tested positive for COVID-19 in the morning. She was feeling rather under the weather and so we set aside our plans to cycle along the Long Sault parkway. In fact, after spending the morning and early afternoon lounging, we made the decision to prepare an early dinner and head home for the night rather than spend it in the van. I had not yet come down with any symptoms and therefore going home allowed us to keep some distance between ourselves and possibly avoid my also becoming sick.

Ahead of leaving the campground we (as stated above) spent the day lounging on site. We both did some reading and napping to pass the time. The weather really was amazing.

Arriving home it only took a few minutes to put away things from the van that we would need in the house. The next few days would see myself also test positive for COVID-19. The decision to come home early had been a good one as we both settled into recovering from the viral infection over the next week or so.

As this is being written, we’ve both come through the infection and have both now tested negative. A few more days of staying away from others and we can get back out there again for another trip in our van. Plans are already underway so stay tuned!

July 21, 2022 – Recap and Statistics

Three weeks, yes it’s been that long since we arrived home after our 42 day cross-continent tour. A few friends have asked for some specifics about the trip and so we provide the following for your consideration.

The first question tends to be about where we stayed each night. Did we find suitable camping locations? So, here are the stats for that.

13 nights moochdocking (family laneways). Thank you all.
3 nights at Indianapolis Motor Speedway camping field (no services).
7 nights at Harvest Host locations
3 nights in Walmart parking lots
6 nights at KOA campgrounds (serviced).
3 nights at US state park (Fort Stevens)
2 nights at Canadian National Parks
4 nights at Ontario Provincial Parks

As you can see we mixed it up a bit and tried a variety of places. Favorites?

Harvest Host: Shiloh Winery & Vineyard, Kansas. Quiet solitude on the plains.
KOA: Central City, Colorado.
Parks Canada: Jasper, Whistlers Campground, Alberta.
Ontario Provincial Park: Macleod, Geraldton, Ontario.
Family laneway: Yeah, we’re not picking a favorite as we love you all.

The next obvious question is about where exactly did we go? Here’s a map that shows you the route West from Ontario, across the US Midwest, up to British Columbia and the back across the Canadian prairies.

Lastly, given the current price of fuel, folks have asked how much fuel we used and what it cost. So, here it is all laid out in a table for you to review.

So there you have it, a few statistics about the trip. Hoping you find them interesting.

Day 42: June 30 – Deep River, ON to Home

Slept in today as it will be a short drive home from Driftwood Provincial Park. Had time to cook eggs, bacon & hash-browns and enjoy them outside…. Yes, the weather has finally cooperated to allow us to do this.

Last breakfast on the road for this trip

This being the day before Canada Day traffic between the park and Ottawa was much heavier than we had seen in recent days. However, we enjoyed an uneventful drive and before long we found ourselves driving into our laneway. We are home.

We were greeted by Kyra and an overly exuberant Dublin (Kyra’s dog) both of whom had missed us these past 42 days.

The remainder of the day will be spent unloading the van and settling back into the house.

If you’ve followed our journey from the beginning, thank you. I hope that my writing and our travels have been engaging for you. I plan on posting one or two follow on posts in the next few days that provide some statistics and thoughts after the fact. So, stay tuned!

Day 41: June 29 – Timmins, ON to Deep River, ON

Today we shall complete our Hwy-11 journey and join Hwy-17 at North Bay for the journey down the Ottawa Valley.

We pass through Earlton and wave at ‘Earl’ the bison on the way past. We stop for lunch at a quiet rest area a little North of North Bay and find an amazingly tranquil lake.

North Bay seems overly congested after the past few days of driving. The return to civilization is a little jarring. We leave the Toronto-bound traffic and continue Eastward on Hwy-17 towards Mattawa.

At Mattawa we spot Big Joe Mufferaw and turn towards Ottawa. Our destination for the night is Driftwood Provincial Park near Deep River as it will leave a short drive for tomorrow, our last day.

We snag an amazing waterfront site and settle in for a relaxing afternoon in the sun. The view is incredible across the Ottawa River and the sun is warming but not hot.