(August 17)
Dear Folks,
Greetings from the TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Thunder Bay, ON. We are back in the Eastern Time Zone.
Thé TownePlace Suites are in a Wal-Mart parking lot-seriously. It doesn’t look great from the outside. We have a terrific wheelchair accessible room, though. There is a full kitchen that comes equipped with dishes and pans. We have TWO queen beds. And the bathroom is one of the most wheelchair friendly that we have encountered on our trip. So although this line is not in the top tier for Marriott, it has a lot going for it
They also have three extra-wide accessible parking places with striping next to them.
We wanted to share a few observations. In Canada, when you see a sign with three back triangles next to one another–sort of like the little houses in Monopoly–on either a yellow or orange background, it indicates problems with the road surface–it could be holes, bumps, gravel, heaves, etc., etc.
The signs here for moose show very determined moose in motion__one leg leading off and forward. Our northern Maine moose signs are pretty static in comparison.
We had to stop for gas in Upsala, ON. It is like Watson Lake, Yukon–the only option for many, many miles. We thought you would enjoy the pictures. The gas is full serve–but you have to pay inside. There is a restaurant, convenience store, inaccessible washroom (what everyone here calls a bathroom) and you can get your live bait.
We will send this off and send more after getting the Girls outside.
The Lowman Family
Dear Folks,
We are back from our last walk of the night.
It seems miraculous how the topography can change so remarkably with only a few hours of driving–not even 200 miles. You come into ON and there are hills, rivers, creeks, lakes–and lots and lots of forests. Some are mixed: birch and aspen with conifers. Some are mainly conifers. You don’t see logging trucks right through here. Instead you see lots of signs for wood pulp trucks to check their loads.
The railroad runs right along the Trans Canada. The banks leading to the tracks are covered in wild flowers.
We wish that we could have taken a photo of at least one of the lakes surrounded by forest. They are so beautiful. We wish that you could have all been with us to see.
As we were looking at the lakes, we thought: “beer signs.” Let us explain.
When I was a kid, sometimes, particularly on a Friday night, Dad would take us to eat at our local tavern called The Plainsman. It was not at all western, as the name might make you think. It was located in Plainville, MA. Mom always said that they had the best fish and chips and the worst drinks. But she hated to cook, so this was a treat.
The decor was typical tavern for that time. There were a number of lighted beer signs. These would depict a couple if guys (of course women did not drink beer) out in a boat on a pristine lake, surrounded by trees. It would be summer or fall and incredibly peaceful. The scene would be back lit. And then somewhere discreet but noticeable would be a beer name and logo. There were more beer brands then. Craft beers were not a thing. Our next door neighbor got one of the signs somehow and had it downstairs in her rec room
I hadn’t thought about that in so many years. Seeing those jewels of lakes, it all came flooding back. Those were great memories. We smile just thinking of them.
This text group means so much to us. We feel as though we get to talk with you every night. So we are never lonely. We feel your support.
Hugs and Wags.
The Lowman Family
(August 18)
Dear Folks,
Today is a very special day. Today is Mari’s second birthday. Huge and heartfelt thanks to ECAD–Lu, Jess, Kathleen, Charlie and the rest of the crew–staff members and canines–for raising and training Mari. Hard to believe that in less than four months, she has become a part of me and me of her. Quite simply, I could not function without her. She makes all things possible. I must admit that I had a dream last night that Lu was telling me that I was not keeping Mari’s nails short enough. 😇
I told Mari that I wanted her birthday to be special and memorable. It was, but not exactly as I had planned.
We wanted to visit the Mission Island Marsh, which we did. It is supposed to have a paved loop, which sounded wonderful. The site is not attended. We managed to get up to the payment kiosk and pay the parking fee, using up some loonies and toonies. Thanks again to Teri’s anonymous donor. We had a map, but since we are so vertically challenged, we cannot see signs and markers well. We saw a boardwalk, which, while not exactly “paved,” we thought must fit the bill. We got some lovely views. Then the boardwalk ended at the beach. We thought, well, if this is the accessible route, it must be OK to cut across the beach. Note to self: always trust your gut. All was fine, until we went to turn back to the boardwalk. Karma sank in. We tried rocking her out. She only sank in more deeply.
It is a cold, overcast day in Thunder Bay. At this point, there was no one at the marsh, other than us. The marsh is in Thunder Bay, but cell service is spotty. We had a hard time connecting with 911: the call kept getting dropped. Finally we got through and were able to explain that we were fine: just immobile for then. They sent the fire department.
In the meantime, it began to rain. Luckily, I had my raincoat, a blanket, and a bag to shield Karma’s joystick. The Girls were anxious for Mummy. Mari tried to comfort me. Dusty lay pressed against me.
Then the firefighters showed up: a group of angels in firefighters’ clothing. These are big guys: I think one or two of them could have picked up Karma with me in her. They got us out of the sand and back on the boardwalk. Some had never been to the marsh before. One of the guys is from Edmonton, although he had never been to Maine.
We told them about BEYOND LIMITS and asked if we could have a photo of them by their truck. Jeff took the photo so that we could all be in it. The men in the photo are Ben, Gus (?), and Ryan. To the middle gentleman–we are so sorry. We are sure that we have your name wrong, although we know that we repeated it. It’s hard to explain what a terrible feeling it is to suddenly be unable to move: it messes with your memory for a bit. Our email is on the business card that we gave you. So we will happily correct your name if you advise.
I knew that we would be Ok: more people would come to the marsh. And in a worst case, I would drop from my chair and crawl up the boardwalk. So glad it did not come to that.
By the way–we did find the paved loop after the fact.
We had a couple more stops to make. We needed a few groceries: carrots and yogurt for the Girls and a few more items. So we went to the Real Canadian Superstore. From what I gather, this is a bit like a Sam’s Club (we have never been to one).
We did find our items. There was a nice older couple in front of us who let us go first. Boy, were we lucky. This is a no frills place. No one takes your items out of your basket. And no one bags. The lady of the couple generously did both for us.
Last, we got gas. We had to wrestle with the pump when the hose got wrapped around Karma. But we got free.
So…we think that Mari will never forget this birthday.
We will send a little more later.
Hugs and Wags.
The Lowman Family
