On telling my tale

My mileage for today was zero. Instead, I spent the day in Maple Creek doing laundry, cleaning Leonardo, doing research and seeing the sights. I have told the tale of yesterday's misadventure to a number of people today.

The most useful time was at the tourism office here in Maple Creek. To set the scene, I must tell you that said office is in an old newspaper building which it shares with Service Canada. When I went there in the morning, the building was open but the tourism person wasn't there. As there was a display of assorted pamphlets and the like, I helped myself to some and sat down on a bench to read through them to determine their worth to me. Several people came seeking either tourist advice or Service Canada services. There was a moment of confusion as people sorted themselves in which an older couple revealed that they wanted to know if they could drive through the Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park in their van! I was able to advise them based on recent, firsthand knowledge. The advice, which they accepted, was "no".

In telling my tale to people, I have refrained from actively dissing Saskatchewan roads as they are generally better than those in Quebec. At least, the highways are. However, the locals are quite happy to grumble about the relatively poor roads.

I have noticed that there is an interesting difference in road sign distances on the T-Can. In Alberta, the distances given are those to the junction, whereas in Saskatchewan it is to the location. So from Walsh, Alberta, the distance to Maple Creek is 40 kms. However, the distance on the sign on the Saskatchewan side is 48 kms! I'd say the Saskatchewan way is more honest.