Nestled in the decadent comfort of the Manitou Springs Hotel, we slept in the next morning. July 13, for those keeping track. Those Johnston Kids would have liked breakfast in bed, courtesy of room service, but there was none when we were there. We trucked down to the half-empty dining room where we waited an unwarranted amount of time for a very slow waiter to walk us to an empty table. It was just a buffet, so I don’t understand why they didn’t just suggest that we seat ourselves and save all the ceremony. And slowness. The woman moved like Neo in Matrix-time.

After breakfast, we went out to the town beach, a short walk down the road. I mentioned already that the lake is really just a big puddle. Water can’t drain out, so it has to evaporate. It seems that there have been some wet seasons bringing too much water, or cool summers preventing evaporation, or both, because the water level of the lake is rising, encroaching on the town of Manitou Beach. There were several remediation projects underway to dike off the water and pump out water that was threatening lakeside properties. The beachfront that once defined the town is now underwater. The small beach that remains was apparently part of a civic waterfront park. Playground equipment and a gazebo jutted out of a half-meter of water just offshore.

We went for a swim anyway. The water was chilly compared to the heated spa pools, but still extremely salty. I would guess though, that the salinity is down too, with the rising water level. Same amount of salt dissolved in more water, right? I would have thought that nothing could live in the salty water, but there were myriad tiny water beetles, as well as brine shrimp mating up a storm. So many, in fact, that I was reluctant to put my head under water.

With no particular next destination in mind, we left Manitou Beach heading for Lloydminster, Alberta or Saskatchewan, depending on the direction you’re coming from. Lloydminster straddles the border between the provinces. I wonder how that’s handled around tax time? It was a long drive and at some point we pulled over in the middle of nowhere so Short Pants could pee. While waiting, I found some sage growing by the side of the road. I gave thanks and harvested a stalk each from a handful of plants. That way, the plant continues to grow. Unless you’re want the root, you have no need to kill the plant when harvesting medicine.

The 4 primary medicines of the Anishinabek are sweet grass, cedar, sage and tobacco. We had sweet grass and cedar from Ontario. Now we had sage too. Things were looking up.

Lloydminster, we discovered, is an wasteland of industrial services and heavy machinery. I didn’t even take my foot off the gas as we passed through. We stopped in Vegreville, Alberta instead.

Vegreville has a large Ukrainian population and the world’s largest Ukrainian egg. We stopped to take pictures of the massive coloured metal ovoid, and play in the attached park.  We also bought fruit and honey from a small fruit stand in the parking lot. This was also a cultural stop as Mama is half Ukrainian on her mother’s side, and Those Johnston Kids can enjoy that part of their heritage as well.

Our final stop of the day, and campsite for the night was Elk Island National Park. We pulled into just before sunset and had time enough for a hot dog dinner and a long walk on the beach and boardwalk. This was going to be home for a few nights.