The darkened lake from the night before now shared a different view of it’s beauty as the morning light brought it’s hidden features into view. I brought out my trusty chair and set it up on a rock by the water, settling in to relax and write. Time passed by with little notice, the scene before me washing away the cares of the day.
After a good while at the lake I set off to experience the rest of the day. I started off heading north to Waden Bay. The forsaken roads before me heightened my attention as bumps and pot holes lay scattered about like snares ready to catch the complacent driver. Having weaved my way through the challenging road I arrived at the bay eager to take a look. I hopped out of the car and went directly to the beach where orange sand and pristine water greeted me. I spent some time appreciating the marvel before me, greeting the locals as I walked about on the sandy shores.
It came time to leave, with a long drive ahead of me I hopped in the vehicle and set off heading to to Manitoba. The pavement turned to dirt and gravel, enormous dust clouds tailing the vehicles that drove it’s path. Navigating the road brought its challenges. When vehicles would pass, the dust that followed them would bring visibility to an alarming level, at times shortening the view to maybe ten feet ahead. I carefully navigated my way through the occasional clouds and in time found myself returning to pavement.
The various lakes and rivers spread themselves out in abundance. With so much marshland the bugs came out in abundance as well, causing me to limit how often I set fourth outside the car to take a closer look at something. Rocks began to appear, becoming more common as I drove further east. I looked out my window and saw one of the more interesting welcome signs I’d come across, I had arrived in Manitoba.
Not only had I arrived in a new province, but I had arrived in the town of Flin Flon, a place that sits on top of the podium for the coolest town names I’ve come across. I drove around for a bit, finding some neat rocky perches that looked out over the buildings in the distance.
It was beginning to get dark so I set fourth to a campsite in town. With road construction all over, the route sent me on an odd detour where I got lost down a random road, arriving at a church in passing. I parked and got out to take a closer look when a man who had been mowing the lawn came to greet me. It turns out he was the pastor and we talked back and fourth. He soon invited me into the building as the bugs had been growing in number with the dusk. An incredibly friendly man, we found ourselves chatting for hours. He showed me a tree the church had recently put on the wall, with answers to prayer being the leaves people would place on its branches.
Time had flown by and as we walked outside to say our goodbyes I noticed a lightning storm building up in the distance. As a child growing up in Ontario, I would sneak out of bed late at night to watch the lively lightning storms in the distance, fascinated by bursts of light arcing across the sky. Even as I got older I never lost my interest, often setting up chairs in the garage to watch the storms with my friends and brothers. I guess it’s no surprise I ended up becoming an electrician! With the storms in Vancouver being utterly pathetic I’d found myself craving a good show for years. Tonight that show delivered. As the storm rapidly grew in intensity I drove out of town to a boat launch where I parked my car by the dock. I looked out over the waters with wild excitement as bolts of electricity shot across the sky, illuminating the lake every couple of seconds. Thunder signaled the heart of the storm growing closer and soon a heavy rain began to fall, turning to hail that came crashing down with such intensity I worried my windshield might not hold up. I wasn’t deterred though, I had been craving this for years and I was gonna watch the full show. I sat there for hours. The storm had finally passed and I ventured back to my tent just past 4am. A late night, but worth every second.
