Not much in the way of traffic. Just put the cruise control on and drove. Made it to Swift Current around 11:00am and we headed straight to the Salvation Army Thrift store!
Because we left our motorhome back in Ottawa, and we didn't want to pay for extra luggage on the airplane, we weren't traveling with very many clothes. And we needed some work clothes for the park. Ruth picked up a few things, and I bought a pair of Reef sandals. They're expensive sandals, normally selling for around $40, so when I saw this hardly used pair in exactly my size...I scooped them up...for three bucks! Funny thing is, I already have a pair that I bought on sale last year that I use for traveling. These will be good for using around the park though.
We also bought a cheap backgammon game because our good one is in the motorhome. Spent a total of $22 CAD ($16.50 USD) at the thrift store.
Trans Canada highway through Saskatchewan.
Scenery along the way.
Snow? Nope... it's a salt mine.
Freight train.
Then, it was time to do some groceries. Kinda difficult because we couldn't remember what we left behind. And, of course most of our basics had been left in the motorhome so we had to stock up on a lot of stuff to last the next five months.
We haven't added it up yet, but we think we spent well over $300 on groceries. Yikes. Some things seem to be pretty expensive, even by Canadian standards! Like $5.00 for a small head of cauliflower! But, I think we've said that in past years and somehow Ruth still manages to keep our overall grocery expenses for the five months on the reasonable side of things.
Then, it was another 45 minutes drive to get to the park.
Heading down the entrance road to the park.
Not much greenery here yet this year. Last year at this time, spring was early and when we arrived at the end of April there were already leaves on the trees. This year is back to normal.
Another thing that seems back to normal is the water level at the lake! It's a full meter (three and a half feet) higher than it was last year at this time and that is fantastic news. We'll take some photos for you today and post them on tomorrow's blog.
Got inside our house (mobile home) and there was very little mouse activity. Much less than in previous years. Got the electricity turned on, and the fridge and furnace running.
Went out to the cistern and got the pump running. And this is where there was a problem. We heard an odd noise coming from underneath the house... and sure enough we had a leak!
I went up to the shop to get some work clothes to check things out...
Hmm.
Not impressed.
Last fall we were having a problem blowing out the lines in the house. Seemed like something was blocking the flow, so instead we drained the lines back into the cistern.
I guess some water must have been left behind, and I was afraid of that. Anyhow, we have a leak and it's not going to be the easiest to fix because there's not much room under there. So that will be today's job, along with doing our personal taxes before the end of today's filing deadline.
Otherwise, things are fine. Lots of work to do though over the next couple of weeks getting ready for the park's official opening on May 19th.
Oh, and our owl mommy is back. Haven't seen into the nest to see how many little ones are there yet. We'll try and get some photos for you today.
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Now back to work again and a busy summer season.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the water leak.
Yep back to work and we are ok with that. :-) We sure are hoping that it will shape up to be a good year this year as well.
DeleteKevin isn't having such a good time with the leak though. More on that in today's post.
Are you doing them manually? Or free version of turbotax? Sucks to come home to a leak but I am sure you will get that under control. Things are looking up for a good lake year with higher water, the park will be busier.
ReplyDeleteI use Studio Tax. Been using them for years.
DeleteIt's always fun returning to the park with you! I was going to predict the water level in the lake was higher this year. It's been quite the winter for precipitation in the mts. Hope the water fix isn't too challenging and you can get on to the fun stuff.
ReplyDeleteThanks Lori, I hope that we can keep you entertained throughout the summer. :-)
DeleteYes, it looks like it should be a good year for the water level. The level is already higher and as you said the mountains have a lot more snow in them this year than last and we are also getting more perspiration this spring so we are keeping our fingers crossed.
Not having a good time with our leak though, it is going to be a challenge!
Nothing like hitting the ground running (literally) tracing down that water leak! :cO
ReplyDeleteYeah, and it isn't going so well. More on that in today's post!
DeleteDo you have to buy all your groceries for the full five months? Or do you get to go out occasionally for fresh stuff? Good luck with the leak and best wishes for an excellent season at the park!
ReplyDeleteNo, no, no. We go grocery shopping in Swift Current 45 minutes away and we go once a week. The stuff that I said we needed for the long term was the basics like mustard and olive oil and sugar etc...things that only need to be bought once every couple of months.
DeleteAha! Whew! I was a little worried about you two. :-) Glad you clarified that.
DeleteWelcome home - again!! We enjoy following your travels but also when you settle down in Cabri. Glad to hear mommy owl is back. ;-)
ReplyDeleteThanks Connie and Barry, we are happy to be back as well, at least for now. The hitch itch will start hitting us in another month or two but we always know the time goes by fast here.
DeleteWe are happy to see her back too! Haven't seen any baby/babies yet but we are sure that they are there, maybe they are late this year and still quite small.
Geez, no trees! Wow.
ReplyDeletePesky leaks.
Nice to see the owl(s).
Have a fun summer!
There's lots of trees down in the park itself (all planted) but otherwise there are no trees we are in the prairies after all! :-)
DeleteIt is unfortunately more than a pesky leak, more on that in today's post.
Yes, it is wonderful to see the owl/owls again. We can't wait to see how many babies are there this year, so far we haven't seen any but it is possible that she laid them late this year and is still incubating the eggs.
Too bad about the leak. We just got back yesterday also I paid our taxes last night online.
ReplyDeleteThe leak wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't at such a hard to get at place. Hopefully it will get fixed today.
DeleteSeems none us can avoid paying taxes! :-(
Glad to have you both back in Canada. The summer will fly by and you will be back on the road in no time! Hope to meet you both this year. Good luck with the leak Kevin!
ReplyDeleteYes, we know the summer will fly by but that hitch itch always creeps up on us after 2 or 3 months! ;-)
DeleteWe look forward to seeing meeting you if you stop by this summer. :-)