Westward Ho!

A family trip that proves the old adage, it’s not the destination but the journey that counts

- Janice Hamilton-Dicker, Port Perry, Ont.

In July 2016, my hus-band Selwyn, our then 14-year-old son Ethan and I decided to travel out west in our camper, intending to visit the Yukon. Although Selwyn and I had been out west once before, in 1991, it was long before Ethan came along.

We left home on July 3 for our 24-day adventure, beginning our trip by travelling through Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota in the United States before crossing the border back into Canada in Saskatchewan. There, we camped in Buffalo Pound Provincial Park, where we watched young bison suckling on their mothers, as the larger males stood facing us.

Saskatchewan is known for its fields of yellow canola with its overwhelming scent, which is everywhere. The purplish flax fields in the distance were beautiful. It is said that Saskatchewan is known as the “land of the living skies” and no wonder; the storms we encountered created skies full of wild colours and swirling clouds.