nature – Page 2 – OldPlaidCamper

Ol’ Beautiful

It took a week or two, but I eventually remembered we meant to try a beer or two from Ol’ Beautiful Brewing, having seen their delivery van at a nearby beer store. As we were making our choices, we learned that the taproom at Ol’ Beautiful was closed after a fire, but they were still brewing. OK, we’d best do our bit to keep ‘em up and running…

The Japanese-style lager came highly recommended, at least by the enthusiastic vendor, who told us it was the brewery’s biggest seller – well, chalk up another sale! It was pretty good, smooth due to the rice added from left over sake production (it doesn’t taste like a Bud) and fine if you’re after a lightish taste on a sunny day. Decent, but I prefer a beer with a bit more edge – and this leads us to beer number two!

The second beer we tried was their American Pale Ale, and, if you’re a fan of hop-forward flavour, then this beer is a winner. Perfect for a hot summer day, or a mild fall day, or a crisp winter day. Oh, I’d probably (definitely) drink it in the spring, too. Yes, I liked this one!

So, where did you sample these ol’ beautifuls, OldPlaidCamper? Glad you asked – we took them with us on our recent trip to Kananaskis, camping near the Sheep River. The beers were just the refreshing thing after lazy days of reading, short hikes along or above the river and deciding if we needed a campfire or not. (Not, too hot!)

Definitely no campfire needed today – too hot

As for Sheep River Provincial Park, a new to us spot in K-country, how could we describe it in a word or two? Oh, beautiful. Perhaps I’ll share more about it another time.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful (long) weekend!

PS As I finish up here, writing on an unseasonably warm late August Wednesday morning, a long V of honking geese has just flown over. It might feel like high summer, but those geese and the occasional rust tinged leaf suggest otherwise… Is this farewell pale linens and hello plaid flannels? Soon, OPC, soon!

South, then west!

But not too far from home – we’re trusting the medium term forecast is accurate, and by the time this is posted we’ll be somewhere down the cowboy trail SW of Calgary and camping in the foothills.

We have a new camera – nothing fancy, a replacement for our old not so fancy one that seems to have disappeared – so expect a few out of focus and wonky photographs with odd framing next time we post here…

I keep saying it, but summer is speeding by – so we’d best get out there and make the most of it? Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Let’s get out there, or here, or somewhere like it!

Elevation!

I’m still not walking any great distances, and certainly nothing with significant elevation gain, but we did take a brief trip into nearby Kananaskis last week. Why? Mountains!

We parked up at what we still call the Delta Lodge (it’s had a makeover or two, a name change and has sometimes hosted the great and not so great and good since we last stayed there – looking at you, G7 1/2) and trotted off at a brisk pace – well, Scout and Mrs. PC managed a brisk pace – to take a turn around the hotel perimeter walk. Hmm, that last one was a messy sentence. Oh well. Let’s look at a photo.

If one has reduced or restricted mobility, then this is a place to come and see many mountains from an already elevated perspective. The pathway is paved and mostly flat. You’re above the river (the Evan Thomas Creek that flows through the golf course and beyond) and beneath the tallest peaks, and it is spectacular! We were quite dizzy…

We couldn’t believe how quiet it was, visitor-wise, and sat on a bench eating our lunch with no more than a few passersby. The sun was warm but not too warm just like our cheese sandwiches, and it felt like a very pleasant way to return to a favourite spot. We aim to be back in the not too distant future and venture down some of the very inviting trailheads we passed heading back to the truck!

“We were snowshoeing last time I was here! Can we do that again?!” Soon enough, Scout, soon enough! (Photo: Mrs. PC)

Let’s leave it here for this week – dizzily optimistic! Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

August already?! The cat and dog days of summer…

Slow down, summer, you move too fast – but it’s been mostly colourful and groovy, at least when it hasn’t been raining!

July has been a relatively wet one for Calgary, one of the five wettest since counting the previous four wettest or something. Definitely damp, I’ll say that.

We have enjoyed a couple of mighty thunderstorms in between the drier days, that’s for sure. Scout doesn’t much like the thunder, tough as she looks. On calmer days she’s been catching up on old p-mail haunts and meeting old friends.

Cat and dog days – two old friends meeting up (photo: Mrs. PC)

“Yeah I’m tough, a top dog! And, erm, you won’t mention the thunder thing, will you?” No, Scout, not one word… (photo: Mrs. PC)

I’ve been slowly (oh so slowly) tottering about our immediate neighbourhood, getting reacquainted with familiar streets and some new scenes. Life is good in Calgary, and often colourful, but I did not know about the beach!

Just beachy! Vibrant sunny yellow! With bonus childhood summer holiday weather!

Here’s some bubbly colour I’ll be enjoying this evening – a first new-to-me Calgary beer since returning home, the beer style a predictably unsurprising choice, and the can design recalling those lovely ski jackets from the late ‘80s. If summer is racing by, it can only mean winter is fast approaching! I don’t need a new ski jacket, but if I did, these colours would look great on me. And grate on everyone else nearby. Sold!

Just my style! Oh, have I been looking forward to this!

I’ll zoom off now, to get ready for a top down long weekend – we’ve never spent August in Calgary before, so we’re excited about what it might bring.

Will it be a top down weekend? Go on, risk it! (It wouldn’t be my first choice colour, but if I had to have a vibrant sunny yellow car…)

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Another cat – I don’t think this one likes rain?

We couldn’t resist…

…the pull of the west!

Yup, we’ve relocated, and you’ll never guess where!

The call of the mountains and wide open spaces was impossible to resist, so we didn’t. Calgary will be our home for the foreseeable future.

You can see our new home from here (it’s near that tree – no no, the other tree)

Irritatingly, I’ve been somewhat unwell the past couple of weeks, so haven’t had much chance to explore and reconnect with favourite people and places. The upsides are we’ve much to look forward to, the healthcare was excellent, the prognosis is all positive (once I get my strength back – I’m as weak as a kitten, or, or, an off colour early middle aged OldPlaidCamper) and I’ve had more time than I would have wanted to go through old photos and (re)use them here!

We’ll be properly out and about again by September. Meanwhile, I’m adding 5 minutes more each day to my walking time (I won’t even say how low the current total is, other than it would be a very short and flat trail), trying to keep up with Mrs. PC and Scout, and lining up a few new AB beers for when the time is right!

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

No, OPC, not yet! Such an impatient patient…

Out west

Out west, Irricana style.

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago how much we enjoyed our stay in Irricana, AB, and that I’d include a bit more, so here it is. I’ll let the pictures do most of the heavy lifting, due to laziness or maybe being too relaxed to scribble very much.

I will say the Irricana campground is a great place to stop a few days. It has a rodeo arena (is that the right term? I’m no cowboy…) and there are a couple of baseball diamonds. Little league baseball on a Thursday night is a big draw locally, and there are often horse boxes turning up with young riders making turns in the arena. One quiet afternoon – no horses – I clambered up above the chutes and snapped a few photos. It’s the closest I’ll get to bronco riding…

Back to the campground. Clean and tidy, it’s run by Norm, former Stampeder and all round good guy. Zipping about on his ATV in sunglasses and Stetson, he couldn’t have been more friendly or attentive. I saw him help out so many campers, be it assisting with parking a large trailer, lending an axe for firewood, or rooting out a water hose if someone had forgotten it. What a guy!

“Hey, Adam, wanna beer?” “Maybe later, Norm – we just had breakfast!” OK, not strictly true, and I jest time wise (it was always after lunch), but an indication of Norm as a great host!

If you’re ever out that way and looking for a quiet (outside of Monster Truck weekend) place to stay, then Irricana might just be for you!

Monster, oops, I mean our modest truck, Irricana, AB

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

No trucks, no monsters, just larks and gophers – a lovely prairie trail to hike or bike

Not just for cowboys – and how hard can it be?! Sadly for them, I can think of one or two who struggle with this…

Rainbows and unicorns?

It should be said it’s not all rainbows and unicorns on a road trip – except, sometimes, when it is!

There wasn’t any explanation, but who needs it? It’s a unicorn!

When it hasn’t been rainbows and unicorns, we’ve enjoyed an old favourite or two, in the form of cafes and parks.

Lina’s Italian Market, Centre St, Calgary – they stock culinary happiness in all shapes and sizes. Go in looking for one item, and leave with a grocery bag full of (all of a sudden) essentials – wonderful!

We had a picnic in Riley Park made up of some of those essential items!

Rainbows and unicorns and coffee and flower beds and, and, and…

I think I’d best stop now, as it appears I’m a little over-caffeinated. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Prairie sky highs

We’re absolutely loving being out west, traveling under (mostly) big blue skies. We spent a week in Irricana, AB, a tiny town northeast of Calgary, and a sparkling prairie gem. I’ll write more about Irricana another time.

Very spotty internet and an unwillingness to hammer my phone plan have combined to keep this very brief. So here are a few photographs that might give you a prairie high – and it’s legal and chemical-free (assuming ranchers and farmers are doing the right thing…)

Thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful weekend! And Happy July 4th to our southern neighbours!

Rockyview County?! (Not in this photo, but on a clear day, you can see the Rockies in the very far distance)

“Can we go to the mountains, cool off?!” Soon, Scout, soon!

This will get you to the mountains – eventually – no rush!

Canada!

It’s Canada Day next week (Tuesday) and, as always (perhaps more so given the recent distressing nonsense from near and far) I’m so happy this is my home. It’s not perfect, but my sense is, as a nation, we are mostly trying to paddle in the right direction (it would need a large canoe, but all are welcome to climb in)…

So, if you’re Canadian and choose to celebrate, have visited Canada, maybe would like to visit one day, or simply like maple syrup and the big outdoors, Happy Canada Day!

Far out places

It’s good to know there is a small town in northern Ontario called Moonbeam. You’ve probably heard of it – it’s known throughout the entire galaxy:

I’d read there was a UFO monument in Moonbeam (we were camping a few kilometres away) and didn’t tell Mrs PC about it, not wanting to spoil the surprise. I think it was probably more than she could ever dream of?

After all that excitement, we had to stop for refreshments.

Oh yeah, and we’ve camped in some lovely spots – this might be my favourite, so far:

Somewhere near Val-d’Or, QC, Canada, the world, the solar system, the galaxy, the universe

It’s big out here! Thanks for reading and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

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