Day 14 - Touring Around Saskatoon - Beaver Creek and Ukrainian Museum

When we are up and dressed we hit the road.  Another gorgeous day.  Who would of thought it would be in the high 20s in May in Saskatchewan!

Today we are travelling to Beaver Creek Conservation Area about 20 km South of Saskatoon. 

It is a beautiful area that is really quiet and open plains along the Saskatchewan River.  We decided to hike two of the trails.  One along the river and the other along the prairie.

Lots of wildlife! 

And a s...t load of caterpillars!  What is with all these caterpillars?  Just check out the nest - all the eggs, larvae and caterpillars!  And these nests are all over!  Plus in town the caterpillars are hanging from the trees!  The ground is covered in them!  Gross! 

We spotted a beaver!  Well it is me in a beaver disguise but hey....   

The information center had a very good display with a beaver damn.  So you can all see what they look like.  Also if you look at yesterday's blog you will see a picture of the damn we spotted yesterday.

After hiking for a few hours we head back to the apartment and park the car.  

We are hungry and we both want to try out this Poutine restaurant called Smoke's Poutinerie and we burned a lot of calories so we indulge!  It actually is pretty go and the closest to what we get in Quebec.

We walk to the Ukrainian Museum.  Ukrainians were some of the biggest settlers in the prairies.   Around 170,000 arrived between 1892 and 1914 in search of a new life and land in the prairies.

Those that arrived travelled by ship to either Halifax, Montreal or Toronto then travel by train to central Canada and then wagon ride to their land.  

New settlers were promised 160 acres for a $10 fee if the homesteader lived on the land for 12 months and cultivated at least 30 acres of land.  This helped to settle the vast country with new Canadians.

The museum was very interesting and we learn some things too.

We walk back to the apartment.  It is such a great location and close to everything.

We rest for a few hours before heading out for a lovely evening.

My sister-in-law Karen told us about a chef that has a restaurant here who was in Top Chef Canada winner Dale Mackay.  It is called Sticks and Stones! 

Check out food we ate --- are you hungry now?  Darn good!

Saskatoon has been great.  Not everything has worked out - we had hoped to go the Fort in North Battleford but it is not open yet.  Also Batoche was not open but we at least got to see it.  And all these darn caterpillars!  I am glad we saw it.

We loved our Airbnb, the food scene, the trails, the people and the best was touring Batoche.  

Tomorrow we are back on the road!

Here is our scavenger hunt list today:

• Moose
• Deer
• Hitchhiker
• Eagle/Hawk
• Licence plates from every Province in Canada - but you can not count the province you are in.  So if we see an Alberta plate in BC then it counts, but not if we are in Alberta. British Columbia  Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Yukon, and North West Territory
• Skunk - saw a dead one
• Sheep
• Beaver
• Goslings
• Buffalo
• Goat
• Owl
• Bear
• Loon
• Crane
• Prairie Dog
• Fisherman fishing
• Canoe
• Hummingbird
• Antique car on the road
• Old VW Bug
• Car broken down on the side of the road
• Helicopter on the ground
• Airplane on the ground
• Speeding ticket- hopefully not our own
• Ambulance with sirens on
• Dump truck
• Line painting crew at work
• Mail delivery person walking their route
• Cruise Ship (from Janice and Jim)

If you have any items you think we should add to our scavenger hunt list, let us know.

So Today's Stats 
Driving distance today 40 km  
Total distance 2620 km