MUSINGS: NWT OR BUST: A CROSS COUNTRY ROADTRIP

Weekend Edition | Michelle Wright and Caroline Kaszar

Heading out on a road trip is no small decision. Luckily I was not alone, but with my good friend Caroline Kaszar! Caroline and I meet first day of classes and have been friends ever since, we were even roommates on the Montreal trip. Eight days on the road with someone who you are not sure if you are going to love or hate by the end is kind of a nerve-racking thing. We are not doing this trip for nothing. Both of us have been accepted to an internship at the Northern Life Museum and Cultural Centre (NLMCC) in the Northwest Territories, in a small town of 2500 people called Fort Smith. Being so small the flights are very expensive, so we decided to do the 4,661 km drive together. Our stops? Ashland, WI, USA, Winnipeg, MB, Saskatoon, SK, Calgary, AB, High Level, AB, Fort Smith, NWT. Roughly 48 hours over 8 days. Here we go!

Heading out on the Road, ON. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

TORONTO to ASHLAND to WINNIPEG

We decided that the longest days should be at the start when we are freshest. Our goal was 10 and a half hours to Ashland, WI, USA. Apparently, it was a little faster to go through the States but lets also face it - gas is cheaper there. Honestly didn’t see much, other then the bald eagle literally 5 minutes after the boarder. Ashland was basically the middle point, but it was very pretty on Lake Superior. We had a night in a hotel and then drove to Winnipeg the next day to meet up with Sam Kilpatrick, who after recently graduating has gotten an awesome job at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR).

WINNIPEG

Let’s just say Winnipeg was not our city. Picture this: The night we get there, Caroline and I getting ready for bed, me on the phone with my parents, a knock on the door, enter Sam in a towel, asking if we have a first aid kit. She was changing her razor and sliced off the tip of her finger!! We bandaged her up and went to bed… So we started the next day by trying to redress Sam’s wound but let’s just say the blood had clotted to the bandage so time to go to the doctor. They said we did a good job bandaging but just needed some Polysporin. Caroline and I had an awesome breakfast at Stella’s, and googled which museums were open and we settled upon the exhibit on Winnie the Pooh (who was from Winnipeg), so we drove out and guess what… it was under construction. We went and had lunch at the Forks Market, but we couldn’t walk along the river because it was flooded! We then decided to drive out to the middle of Canada. The middle of Canada is just a big sign in the middle of no where, but it is technically the longitudinal middle point of the country. After this we decided to go to the zoo as it was such a nice day, we looked for the Winnie the Pooh Statue but found out it had moved to the park and went to get our photos. For those of you that don’t know about the origins of Winnie check out the link here.

Centre of Canada, MB. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

Winnie the Pooh Statue, MB. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

Sam Kilpatrick.Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

WINNIPEG to SASKATOON

Lastly, we decided to go to the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in the morning before heading to Saskatoon. Because we had limited time we decided to do a tour and it was well worth it! I feel like we saw everything. There are seven floors, each with their own themes, so if anyone is going give yourself lots of time! I was very impressed by the architecture and the various stones used representing different things, for example the alabaster-clad ramps or the basalts in the reflection area. Both of these stones I recognized from my time in Europe and I was interested to learn that the basalts are found on every continent, making them a good representation of something that connects us all. We left around noon and drove on to Saskatoon where we met up with another friend from the program… Ally Forand!

Canadian Museum of Human Rights, MB. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

Alabaster ramp inside the Canadian Museum of Human Rights, MB. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

SASKATOON to CALGARY

Since it was a short drive to Calgary we stayed in the morning to visit where Ally at her internship, the Western Development Museum (WDM). The WDM is similar to an indoor Black Creek Pioneer Village. I found out Caroline has a fear of mannequins, but I like when museums do this type of representation, although at times they can be creepy. After a lovely lunch in the museum’s restaurant we said goodbye to Ally and drove on. We made it to Natalie Heaton’s house! That is something I am very thankfully to our program for giving me all these amazing friends.

The Western Development Museum, Saskatoon, SK. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

CALGARY

We took the day off and wonderful Nat did the driving for us. She took us to Banff and up to see Lake Louise, which Caroline had never been too. On the way, Nat suggested we get a canoe... It never occurred to us that the lake could still be frozen! So no canoe for us. It was still a fun day and maybe if we have time on the way back we will make another stop. It would be worth it to visit the hot springs again too!

Lake Louise, in Banff National Park, AB. Photo Courtesy of Michelle Wright.

CALGARY to HIGH LEVEL to FORT SMITH

We officially crossed the 60th Parallel line and made it into the Northwest Territories! We did stop at the Twin Falls, stopped for some sun tanning on the beach in Hay River, and we saw seven bears along the way and one bison! (To clarify it is a Wood Bison up here, not a Plains Bison) He was just chilling on the side of the road, perfect for photos but we said if he gets up, drive!

Once we arrived we found out that if we had left one day later we would not have made it. A massive fire blocked the roads and High Level was evacuated. Although the fire was put out, we have learned what to do in case of an evacuation. Wish us luck that we are not!