Saskatoon to Colonsay

We had breakfast with dear friends, Murray and Gerri Dickson, whom we hadn’t seen for too long. Murray and Gerri have spent many years working on a very successful U of S/CIDA health training project in Mozambique. We had much to talk about and were sad to have to leave. We  pedalled out across University Bridge towards the Yellowhead. The skies were grey, but cleared as we headed east, and the wind, though still easterly, was weaker, at least until later in the day when gusts grew stronger. We passed the 2000 kms mark today, the summer solstice.

We are now travelling through potash/farming country. Saskatchewan’s booming economy has become less dependant on agriculture and more diversified, with potash mining and the energy sectors leading the way.

In a rest area, we came across a plaque dedicated to Dr. Gordon Bicum, a family practitioner in the small community of Elstow for 43 years, until 1967. Colonsay prides itself  as the “isle of the prairies” and all of the streets in the village, apart from Railway Avenue,  are named after islands off the west coast of Scotland. Dinner was Chinese food at Ben’s Place, where Ben prepared a tofu dish for us, not on the menu.

Wildlife notes: Garter snake, Racoon (road kill).

We are still on the traditional territory of the Treaty 6 First Nations.