Starting my stay in Saskatchewan

Although I didn't plan my first stop to be Saskatoon, I needed to find an RV dealer and a glass repair.  Just before crossing the border from Montana I "took" a rock at the very edge of my windshield, which sent two cracks upward and over.  Eventually, one reached the top of the windshield.  I'm still waiting to see who can make the replacement.  Everyone I called needed weeks to order one.

While I was parked for the night, I took a walk around the coach and discovered my slide cover had a rip (I was concerned that it would get caught in the slide when I brought it in).  I found an RV dealer in town but they have to order the fabric, so I have to come back in a week or so.

Sights from the road so far

I had an interesting border crossing this time (again).  It was a "double" crossing 😀; once on the US side and again on the Canadian side.  The US Border Patrol came into my coach to search for hitchhikers.  He looked into my pantry, but not into the closet or beside the bed, which would have been a great place to hide a body.  Strange.

On the Canadian side, they just wanted to know how long I was staying.  No questions regarding meat or produce or residence.  They did ask about weapons, however.

In the late 1800s, Batoche was a settlement of Metis -- descendants of European fur traders and First Nations people -- and the site of a decisive battle between the Metis and Canadian forces. Included in the National Historic Site are a visitor center, audiovisual presentations, and a church rectory with bullet holes visible above the doorway.




 








The Tepee is Medicine Hat's most visible landmark and is a tribute to Canada's native heritage. It's built entirely of steel and is ringed with ten large circular story-boards depicting native culture and history.

The first place I'm staying is Pasquia Regional Park, home to Big Bert, a 19 ft ancestor of the modern crocodile that hunted its prey when Saskatchewan was an inland sea.  About 6 miles away is Carrot River, named after the wild carrots that grow along the river banks.



After the holiday weekend, Victoria Day, which is this weekend, I'll head for Prince Albert National Park, "PA" to those of us in the know. 😎

Sun with temps in the high 50s.  Bad roads and way too many are dirt/gravel; most of yesterday was spent on some of the worse roads my coach has driven upon (even worse than Alaska!).

I learned that Saskatchewan as a Provence leads Canada in most violent crime and four of the cities I'm to visit are 1-2-3-4 on the list.  The statistics are based on per capita, so it's not as bad as it sounds.  Would I have come if I'd known that?