Tommy the Turtle

Tommy the Turtle greets visitors to the border town of Boissevain, Manitoba.  

He gets his name from the Turtle Mountains that span the Manitoba/North Dakota border just south of town.  The "mountains" are much like the Appalachians: expansive, forested, rolling hills.  Quite beautiful.

Say "Hi!" to Tommy when you're in town.

Photographed on September 17, 2023.

Winter at the Witch House

A visit to the witch house is always intriguing.  

Photographed near Dollard, Saskatchewan on January 24, 2022. 

Summerscape

Somewhere near Lothian, Saskatchewan...

I love summer on the prairies.

Photographed on August 4, 2020.

In Good Spirits

Update:  I'm sure anyone who reads this blog knows Dale Stewart and about the bad car crash he was in last weekend.  I'm in contact with him and he is in good spirits.  He'll be undergoing a fourth surgery at a different hospital tomorrow.  I wish him all the luck in the world. 

"Simply Ideal"

Photographed south of Vegreville, Alberta on January 5, 2019.

Some Bad News

Dale Stewart (aka BWBandy on his blog "The view from here") was in a bad car accident this past weekend.  He is pretty banged-up but currently in stable condition in the hospital.  It will be a long road to recovery.  Wish him well.

The accident was no fault of his own.

Saint Aidan and Saint Hilda at Rexboro

Tucked into a dense grove of trees is Saint Aidan and Saint Hilda Anglican Church and Cemetery.

The church was originally constructed of logs in 1910 with a belfry on the front corner of the building.  In 1914 a vestry was added, and three years after that, the original belfry was dismantled and a prominent central porch entrance and belfry was built.  

Also of note in the early years were the addition of horizontal tongue-in-groove boards to cover the interior walls and horizontal drop-siding on the outer walls.  As it now stands, you'd never know is was of log construction.  And something of a personal favourite is the cedar shake roof...a little something that adds a touch of charm to this handsome historical building.  

And last but not least, and as is seldom the case, the church was established before the cemetery with the earliest burial in 1912.

Information courtesy of Canada's Historic Places.      

Photographed at Rexboro, Alberta on February 22, 2021.

Happy Valentine's Day

Johnny Jump Ups may be an understated way celebrate Valentine's Day, but pretty sweet.

Photographed in Medicine Hat, Alberta on May 24, 2020.

Redvers Pool Elevator

One of very few grain elevators still bearing the large "Pool" logo.

I have no idea what that large rectangular object is that's attached to the side of the elevator.  Anyone know what it is?

Photographed in Redvers, Saskatchewan on August 16, 2022.

Wheat Stalks

Out for a drive with Miss Daisy...

It was a warm winter's day and while driving through the Connaught area of town I spotted this metal wheat sculpture.  An unexpected find in suburbia.  Nice!

I think Miss Daisy enjoyed her ride around town.  She had her window open, got a few treats and a tummy rub or two.  A lovely way for both of us to spend a Sunday afternoon.     

Photographed in Medicine Hat, Alberta on February 12, 2023.

Flashback

This winter there's barely any snow at Saint Margaret's... 

...but this is what it looked like fifteen winters ago.  Lots and lots of snow.  Kids would have loved it!     

Photographed by David Carter near Eagle Butte, Alberta.

A Beautiful Place Out in the Country

Saint James Anglican Church at Bluff Creek, Manitoba.

Photographed on August 19, 2022.

Mechanics Keep the World Moving

The Rebillard's headstone in Haga Cemetery.

Mechanics...

...and songbirds.  Nice.

Photographed near Arborg, Manitoba on October 18, 2022.

Early Fall at the Arts Park in Boissevain

Something to brighten up a winter's day...

The Arts Park in Boissevain is a community green space wholly run by volunteers.  And even though it was getting late in the gardening season there was still plenty of greenery and blooms to see.  

A couple out for a walk stopped to say hello while I was enjoying the garden.  They said most of the volunteers were older folks but there had lately been some interest shown by a few youngsters.  Here's hoping all the generations can work together to keep this community garden beautiful for years to come.  

The thought and expression, creativeness, hard work and realisation shown here is above and beyond any expectations.  "Thank you" to all those who make our lives just a little bit brighter.

Photographed in Boissevain, Manitoba on September 15, 2023.

Abandoned Church in Larson

Have stopped in Larson several times over the years.  

This handsome, if neglected, old Lutheran Church is still holding its own.

A young hawk perched on top the spire...learning to fly. 

Photographed in Larson, North Dakota on September 14, 2023.

Holy Ascension at Wasel

The area between Smoky Lake and Two Hills is rich in Ukrainian pioneer heritage.  Holy Ascension Russo Orthodox Church and Cemetery near Wasel is one of many I like to visit when in the area. 

The churchyard is a mile and a half north of the North Saskatchewan River and covers about eleven acres of land, making it one of the larger churchyards I've seen in my travels.  In most cases, the cemetery is directly beside the church but here it is on a raised plateau five hundred feet northwest of the church...just a nice walk on a fall day.  I love the view across the cemetery, past the church and over the vast prairie landscape.    

In past times being a member of a church congregation was an important part of life for most everyone...

...and since there were only monthly services conducted at Holy Ascension, a little girl named Matushka Vasylyna Ungurian would walk barefoot with her family over four miles north to Saints Peter and Paul at Dickie Bush to worship most every other Sunday.

Not many years later and all grown up, she married Vasyl Ostashek at Holy Ascension.  They homesteaded, farmed and raised a family near the church...and later on in life Vasyl became an ordained priest and he and Matushka served Holy Ascension along with several other nearby temples for the rest of their natural lives.  

Then at the age of one hundred and five years, Matushka joined Vasyl, who had passed away twenty years earlier, at her home church of Holy Ascension.  God bless them.  I love a happy ending. 

Walking barefoot all those miles?  That was in order to save her "Sunday best shoes."

Information courtesy of the Canadian Orthodox History Project.

Photographed near Wasel, Alberta on September 19, 2021.