What began as an early start turned into a late arrival.
Before we set out on our journey, we discover that Rhoda had a leaky valve stem and needed some attention from the friendly people at Kal Tire. Three hours later we made a second attempt at getting on the open road. This time we only made it a few more blocks before finding that traffic was at a standstill. Local law enforcement arrived on scene quickly to deal with a minor collision but for the time being, our intended route was completely blocked.
A quick detour through residential streets got us to an alternate highway which eventually reconnected us to our route and got us back on track. One of the most exciting things about traveling in an RV is that even with well laid plans, you never know what adventure you may encounter. The plan for this trip had us heading to the Covered Wagon RV Park in Magrath, Alberta where the owner had generously agreed to keep the office open until we arrived. In the end, that turned out to be 11:00 p.m., 5 hours later than expected.
By this time of night it was dark, it was cloudy, the road into the park was heavily lined with trees that blocked out whatever remaining chance of light there might have been. (A person with a more delicate sensibility might have called it SPOOKY.) The park was full, unlit except for a few dim solar lights and none of our fellow campers appeared to be burning the midnight oil. After taking in the quiet nature of the park we decided that the noise of setting up Rhoda and unhooking Dusty the toad would be best left until morning when there was no risk of waking the neighbours. I really didn’t mind skipping the work and getting some sleep at last.
By 8:00 the next morning, our whole area was bustling with people cooking outdoors, walking their dogs, returning from the shower house and all looking way too cheery for that time of day. I hadn’t even had my second coffee of the morning so really couldn’t help that I wasn’t completely sincere when I smiled back. 1/2 hour later we had everything unhooked, hooked up, plugged in, turned on and I was ready to join the happy camper club.
Having never been to Magrath, the plan to stay there was strictly based on it’s convenient location. It had the potential to make a great base camp for anyone planning to explore Things to do in Southern Alberta and this week, that was me. Need a shopping fix or to stock up on groceries? A 20 minute drive north to Lethbridge provides easy access to all the big name shops you are familiar with. Waterton Lakes National Park is less than an hour away (Map) and the US border crossing is only 45 minutes south. ( Map and port of entry information).
Head north-west and you can visit Historic Fort Macleod or the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump. These are only a few of the many sites and destinations within a 1 hour drive of the RV Park. There is a good chance I will need to make a return trip in order to fit it all in. 🙂
The quiet, family owned park turned out to be the ideal place to just sit and relax at the end of playing tourist all day. It even turned out to be a pretty good place to spend a day exploring close to home. There were trails to hike, a local museum and some very rich history surrounding the installation of irrigation canals that are still in use throughout the area
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If you haven’t had a chance to take in the region, I recommend you add it to your list of future destinations. Maybe we will bump into you somewhere along the way.
Happy Camping Everyone. 🙂
Rhoda Venture
Rhoda Venture 