Polar Bear Migration Tour - 2009
What an Adventure
We started off in Rugby, ND, the geographical center of North America. Naturally we had to have our pictures taken at the post. |
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| On the way to our first stop in Boissevain, MB we stopped at the International Peace Garden on the ND and MB border. The guided tour was fascinating. In addition to all the beautiful flowers and plants they also had some of the steel from the twin towers. |
After our tour of the Peace Gardens we went to Boissevain where we had lunch, visited a beautiful Wildlife Museum and also took a horse a buggy tour of the town.
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Our next stop was Brandon. In addition to the guided city tour we also visited A Commonwealth Air Training Museum. This museum was a training facility for pilots during WWII. Lunch was served by some delightful ladies, some of whom had husbands who trained there. At the Riverbank Discovery Center we had an interesting talk by a gentleman from Ducks Unlimited. |
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Day five found us in Dauphin. We had a very interesting tour of the Fort Dauphin Museum. We learned quite a bit about the fur trade, farming, and how the area was settled. We wandered through
old cabins with sod roofs, a trading pose and old school house. Some of those antiques desks in the schoolhouse looked pretty familiar. |
While in Dauphin we also visited an old Ukrainian Church. This area has a large population of Ukrainians. It was a great tour. When that part was over we crossed the street to the new church were we were treated to a fantastic dinner with entertainment. We sampled many different dishes prepaired by our hosts with food grown in their own gardens. |
Leaving Dauphin was a problem. The rains had mad the ground soft. With the help of some of the guests we finally got out of the hole and were on our way. |
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About the time we got to The Pas it started to rain, then snow and then hail. Naturally it happened while I was fueling the coach. When I finished the weather turned to a light drizzel. We dry camped for two days at the Aseneskak Casino. We were all given the opportunity to spend some money. The Casino provided us with a bit to start with. Some left with more and others less.
We toured the town, Visited Christ Church and then spent some time in the Sam Waller Museum. The museum had many wonderful artifacts including a two headed calf, old costumes and uniforms, and an old jail. |
Leaving The Pas was a heartbreaker. Shortly before we were toleave, Speed Bump, our Torti cat, made her excape. This was about the time people were starting their engines. Apparently it frightened her and she took off. We called and searched but she was nowhere to be found. Finally, heartbroken, we had to leave without her. We left a note on the door of the Casino telling them what had happened and asked if they would keep an eye out for her. |
On the way to Thompson most of us stopped at Pisew Falls. |
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After we arrived in Chruchill we had a great tour of the town, had lunch and then checked into our hotel. The hotel is great and the staff is very friendly. They also rent cold weather gear for those of us who are from warmer places. After a great breakfast the next morning we loaded up and were driven out to load onto our Tundra Buggy.
Perhaps all the guides are knowledgable but we were especially fortunite to have one who, in addition to being well versed in the local area was also a Polar Bear expert.
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| We passed a Red Fox on our tour of the tundra. |
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| Some of us went for a dog sled ride. We had a great talk on mushing and discovered why those who participate are such great athletes. |
| We toured the museum, heard a great lecture on the history of both Churchill and Hudson Bay. The we spent a couple of hours with Myrtle who was born and raised in the area. Her talk was not only entertaining but gave us a better appreciation of what life here was like in years past. Not only is she a valued historian but is also an accomplished artist. |
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This bear was where he wasn't supposed to be. We saw it twice, once going through someones trash and later in a guys back yard. Our guide told the guy and he came outside, secured his dogs, then blew his horn which frightened the bear. They try and keep the bears away from people and vice versa but sometimes it's difficult. |
They also have these "jails" for those who misbehave. |
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Soon we were back in Winnipeg where we toured the town, spent too little time at a fantastic museum, wandered through parks, visited churches and saw a great dinner show.
We were also fortunite to meet with the American Ambassador to Canada. He's the one wearing the suite. |
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If you would like to read the story of "The Cat who came back" click here. |
