Canada

Aaaaargh another storm last night and i thought the hotel was being hit by lightning.I guess this is thunder bay after all,plus we are on the flight path for the local airport and waking up in a state of shock that the planes are landing on the roof isnt good.The word zombie springs to mind today although not going to bed till 1am then getting woke up at 4am by the storm and then again at 7am by my alarm didnt help.Today was just a long drive to Sault Ste Marie which half of the town is on the canadian side and the other on the USA side.The only thing i wanted to do on arriving here was sleep and after dinner at a local bar i was suprised i was still with it but that could of been because Star Wars III had downloaded on the laptop but eventually after watching most of it by 1.30am it had eventually caught up with me and i was sound a sleep in minutes.

I DID MY WASHING WOOHOO!!

Me at Ouimet Canyon

Ouimet Canyon

Ouimet Canyon

Finally got out of bed at 11am.Went for a look around Thunder Bay first but theres not much her.I was expecting it to be fairly upmarket due to the houses we saw on the way but its nothing like that at all.In the afternoon when it was cooler we drove to Ouimet Canyon and it was great.The views of the canyon were gorgeous and well worth the drive.Yet another highlight of the trip so far.

Kakabeka Falls

Me at Kakabeka Falls

Kakabeka Falls

Kakabeka Falls

Didnt do to much today except drive from Fort Frances to Thunder Bay.The roads were clear after last nights storm which was suprising as a woman in a shop we stopped at said it had caused alot of damage in the area.We did however stop ar Kakabeka Falls which was very impressive,plus we checked into the best hotel of the trip so far called the Valhalla Inn and the staff are very friendly and polite.

Fort Frances storm

Fort Frances storm

Once out of winnipeg the driving was much more enjoyable and the whole countryside and scenery looked nicer.The area is surrounded by lakes and forests and the roads dont go on for miles and miles without a bend in the road.Today is the hottest day so far and at a tourist information building on the way it said due to the humidity it feels like 42 degrees celsuis.Im not sure if its the heat today or something i ate but this morning i feel like shit and i will be glad to get a good nights sleep.We stopped in a beautiful place called kenora on the wayThis is another very nice part of canada and i like it alot more than the area around winnipeg.In the bar we went to that had a view over a lake the food was superb and there was plenty of it and it was very cheap as well.I would of been very happy just eating here for a week.It was a great place i imagine to stay in the winter as it had a huge fire and comfy sofas.Nothing was booked for the night but luckily we found a really nice hotel to stay in called La Place Rendez-Vous and it was very scenic as we had a view from the balcony looking over Rainy Lake.What we didnt realise though was a serious weather warning just 10 minutes after arriving was heading straight for us and the tv station was predicting tornadoes and hail the size of baseballs.People were sitting on the pier and boats were also out on the lake.Within minutes the clouds went really black and the change in the water and wind happened instantly.The people soon came running in and then the rain,thunder and lightening started and it lasted around an hour but things didnt get as bad as they had predicted,although other places had been hit alot worse and trees had been ripped up and power cut off.As i still wasnt feeling to good i didnt join the others for food and instead watched the basketball final between the San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons.

Around 20 differently painted bears surrounded a park in winnipeg

Decided to get up at 7am and head straight for the shower rather than sit in bed sweating like a pig.I just stood under the cold water for about 20 minutes to cool down although i knew as soon as i walked upstairs the heat would soon have me melting again.We had originally planned on walking down the river path but due to the rain a few days previously it was flooded so we walked around the shopping mall before heading down to see how badly the river had flooded and what damage it had done.By then the heat was to much and simon was feeling ill so rather than walk to far we thought about going to the cinema but it wasnt open till 6.30pm.To get out of the sun for abit we found a place to eat in a nice complex called 'The Forks' and sat in there for an hour,although for once it was even to hot for a beer.Straight after that we headed back to the hostel and tried to get some sleep before going out later to watch 'Batman Returns'.I got about 30 minutes but spent an hour talking to a nice canadian guy who was cycling across canada and he gave us some routes he recommended on getting to thunder bay and then on to london.The film later was fantastic and the best ive seen in ages.Later we went out to find somewhere to eat and found a steakhouse that looked nice.Jill and i sat down while simon went to the washroom and as the 2 of us looked at the menu we knew we had to walk straight out as the prices were totally out of our budget,and when we did the waitresses all sat on a table near the exit were staring at us as we briskly headed out the door.After finding somewhere in our price range i was dreading going back to the hostel to try and sleep although luckily it was the last night there.

After a 6 hour drive today and the roads are pretty much the same and so is the weather.We stopped in a small town called Brandon on the way for lunch and it was like a ghost town.The restaurant was like something from the 1960's and it makes you wonder how people make a living in places like this.The owner was very friendly though even if her food was abit on the overcooked side.Once arriving in Winnipeg it looked big although things didnt look great when we found the hostel for starters and then later when we walked around town.The hostel looks very small and once you get inside it seems even smaller and very old and abit untidy.Mind you the worse thing is the heat.No way is it possible to sleep in this and with no decent windows and no air conditioning i found out later how unbearable it was.Of all the places ive stayed in this is the worst so far.Upon walking down the town later i took an instant dislike to this place.The people pestering you for and begging for money was getting to much.We did manage to have a good night though and had a few beers before stumbling into a pizza place for some food and then back to the hostel to dehydrate and get about 3 hours sleep.

Regina

Regina

Phew what a day.The weather is roasting hot.The main objective of the day was trying to find me a laptop.First though we headed into the city for a look around the shops and then after sitting in the sun opposite a nice park having a meal and beer we headed over towards a bigger park next to the river ad sat in the shade listening to some music for a couple of hours.The heat is starting to get unbearable and theres no breeze at all.Everything here still looks so much cleaner and nobody is smoking or throwing litter around and all the parks and streets are kept tidy.We then dropped jill back at the hotel and went in search of a laptop.After looking in 3 shops we headed back into Best Buy (thanks kylie for the recommendation) and i eventually decided which 1 of 3 i liked.The prices compared to the uk are shocking and i picked one up for around half the price it would of been back home.So at least now i can keep everything up to date and the 3 of us are not fighting over 1 laptop.Then it was back to the hotel for a nice swim before some food and yet more lovely canadian beer.

Giant Teepee in Medicine Hat

At last its shorts and tshirts weather.The drive to Regina is another mind numbing road though where you set the cruise control in the car and fall asleep at the wheel (well ok you try not to fall asleep).Every 10 miles you have to steer found a bend then its another 10 miles of straight road with nothing to look at except fields,but at least we are back in a reasonable sized city again and it looks ok so far from the drive through on the way to the hotel.Yes we are living it up in luxury again with a nice double bed,50 tv channels,swimming pool and whirlpool.It actually works out cheaper in some places to stay in a hotel rather than a hostel.After getting to Regina at 4pm i just relaxed reading for a few hours and then we went to the restaurant for some food although to simons disgust the waitress sat us opposite a table of police officers.

Calgary Olympic Park

The Bobsleigh from the film Cool Runnings

A Squirrel

After they predicted thunderstorms for last night and today i never expected to wake up to snow.There was about 2 inches at the hostel at Lake Louise but it didnt take long to melt and the next worry was the severe flood warnings.This was the most rain theyve had in canada since 1902.The road to calgary was flooded so we were sent on a detour.Nobody else wanted to look around calgary except me although it wasnt really worth it as the weather was to bad so i was happy just to look around the olympic park.We went on a tour around the park and it was very interesting but its very rundown and messy and not been looked after really.Without the snow it didnt make it feel like a winter olympics park either.We went up the top of the ski jump to see what it looks like in real life and its strange because on the television they look like they are really far off the ground at the take off point but actually they are only about 2 metres from the ground at all times.It was funny as we walked into the shop though as they had the bobsleigh that was used by the jamaicans in the film 'cool runnings'.After leaving calgary simon got caught speeding by the police and we had to wait around 20 minutes before he got a nice $130 fine for doing 129km/hour in a 110km/hour zone.The roads are so straight and boring though so its easy to get carried away.You can see for miles and theres nothing but grassland and the odd lake or a few animals and farm but then nothing for 10 miles.We stopped for the night in a motel in medicine hut which apparently has the worlds tallest or largest teepee.Something to boast about i guess but hey it could be worse SOMEHOW!!!!

Lake Louise

Lake Louise

Pretty much a lazy day today.The weather started off dry and by the time we went out at 2pm it started raining and didnt stop all day and night.We had a walk around the lake which was pretty impressive and the colour of the water didnt look real at all.Its a clear blue/green colour and looks like its been manufactured.The snow on the mountains looked very deep and 2 weeks ago the lake was frozen over.As the weather got worse we just headed back to the hostel and chilled out.Besides the lake theres nothing really here to see unless you want to relax in a posh hotel.

Got woke up at 7am by a snorting,sniffing,sneezing animal (anyway enough about simon).Today was a long 784kn drive to Lake Louise Youth Hostel.The roads for the first hour or so were very desolate and hilly but the views were amazing.Suprisingly the driving was very easy going and quite relaxing and there wasnt alot of traffic about.We arrived at the hostel at 7.30pm and its very nice here but the rest of Lake Louise seems dead and theres not much here.Hopefully though we will have a good look around tomorrow to see what this place has to offer us,although the mountains with a fair amount of snow on look very appealing.

Whistler

Whistler

Whistler

Ah bliss theres nothing better than the luxury bed and pillows in a hotel compared to a hostels.Jill fancied a chillout day eyeing up the skater boys and after abit of thinking i joined simon for a 6 and a half mile walk around whistler.The path taking us from the hotel past the golf club and following the valley trail through the trees and magnificent scenery.Then past meadow park and sports centre where the park has a nice river flowing past it and every bench has a barbecue stand next to it which would be great in the summer.The green lake and lost lake we passed later were also spectacular and all in all it was a great place to visit with opportunities to run,mountain bike,skateboard and ski.Later that evening i went for another walk around the shops and then we all went to the cinema.

The Big Red Bus

Still buzzing from the night before and even after 3 hours sleep today was time to move onto the next part of the adventure,although i was sad that i was leaving vancouver.But i can look back on the last 5 days and say im happy and glad we did what we did in vancouver and we met lots of great people.We got a taxi to the car hire place at 10am and soon i would experience driving abroad for the first time.Simon drove us out of vancouver and i drove the last few miles just to get in the swing of it.The car is a huge red thing or an impala by make,it feels like the size of a bus but its very comfortable.Whistler is very much a ski resort area and theres a fair amount of snow in the mountains.The hotel is very nice and i have the luxury of a double bed to myself.We also have a gym which simon and i used tonight,a swimming pool,sauna and hot tub.I could also spent a fortune in the shops like nike,helly hansen and solomon and other hiking/cycling shops.Its a very beautiful area with fabulous houses.Not much else happened during the day so i spend it chilling out.

an aussie guy,kayleen,me,kylie,jill,simon and a weird canadian

kayleen and me dancing

kayleen,me and kylie

kayleen,me,kylie and jill

WOW WOW WOW!! And that’s putting it mildly.I shall start from the beginning of the day though.Today was just going to to a quite day waling around the shops which actually did go to plan.We visited Robson Street which is vancouvers answer to Oxford Street in london although truthfully there wasn’t much there.After lunch simon somehow managed to persuade us to visit the Art Gallery and to some it up in 4 words would be ‘Total And Utter Bollocks’.It was without a doubt the worst thing ive ever seen.Anyway things were about to get a hell of a lot better and enjoyable to say the least.I invited kylie and kayleen out to join us for our last meal in Vancouver and we all went back to the same pub that we went to on Friday.All I will say is the night was fabulous with plenty of beers consumed and I really enjoyed it and im sure the photos tell the rest of the story about how the night went.I eventually found my bed at 3.30am and one final note

• kylie and kayleen thank you and I cant wait till we get to cairns to see you both again*