On The Road Again

Whew, the last two days have been a whirlwind of activity! Wrapping things up at the farm was a bit sad, but also very busy. After working a full day, I had to finish my laundry, pack my bags, write in Patrick and Colleen's guest book, obtain a few souvenirs, return some borrowed books, clean up my car, wash my water bottle, and probably a few more things I forgot. Also, I helped Graham soak Soleil's foot in an iodine solution--she ran down the street after another dog earlier in the week and tore up the pad of her food. Since Patrick and Colleen are away this weekend, Graham is taking care of this job for the weekend.

Friday evening was also marked by some other excitement--I saw my first black bear! I kept talking about how I wanted to see a bear, especially if I got to see it from the safety of my car. After being in Canada for three and a half weeks, it was starting to look like it wasn't going to happen. However, at the end of the day at the end of my time in Sorrento, Graham and I saw a bear run right out in front of my car as we were driving to Tappen to get ice cream. We were barely 100 yards away from the property when we saw it, so hopefully it isn't interested in the pigs or beehives on the farm. I hit the brakes as the bear barreled across the road, and when I was stopped, I tried to take my camera out of my pocket. Unfortunately, I was just a little too slow and the bear was gone before I could capture it on film. He was a nice looking bear, though. Graham reckons he was 2-3 years old.

After the bear encounter, we continued on to get ice cream at the Tappen Coop convenience store. Patrick and Graham had been talking up how big the ice cream cones were there, but I foolishly doubted them. They said that a single scoop there is more like a triple scoop elsewhere. I ordered a double scoop (sextuple scoop), which was a huge mistake. I think this was basically a pint of ice cream (or more) balanced on a small cone:


I look pretty happy before eating the cone, but I don't think I looked quite so happy as I struggled to finish it. I didn't actually make it through the whole thing, which is rare for me. I was defeated.


I also picked a strange flavor. Apparently, a common ice cream flavor in Canada is called "Tiger Tiger," which is orange ice cream with licorice swirls. The result is an ice cream that is both visually appealing and a culinary disaster. If I tried to make a similar flavor at home, I think I would do orange sherbet with blackcurrant or blackberry swirls. You'd get the same aesthetic, bit it would taste a whole lot better.

And for my last farm picture, here's one from Crannog:


As for my day today--I've been driving for most of it. I got on the road by 5:30 this morning and arrived in Billings, Montana around 10:30 at night. I made really good time, but at the cost of taking a less scenic route than was recommended by everyone at the farm. Instead of going to Revelstoke and going south through the Slocan Valley, I went through the Okanagan Valley. The Okanagan is the main fruit producing region in Canada, but it looks rather arid. Apparently, had I gone through the Slocan Valley, I would have been rewarded with more beautiful mountain views and a free ferry ride across the Upper Arrow Lake. However, it also would have added and hour or two to my drive today, which I didn't think I could afford. After all, Sorrento to Billings is nearly 900 miles as it is:


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