• The Giant and the Mobster

    4. juni 2023, Canada ⋅ 🌙 21 °C

    “Go to Willowbunch, birthplace of Canada’s tallest man,” the camper told Coleen.

    And so yesterday, we were the first, early-morning tourists knocking on the convent door that has swapped out black-robed nuns for prairie relics in this tiny town. A whole room was dedicated to the story of Edouard Beaupre who grew to the fantastical height of 8’ 3 inches. Died at the age of 23, touring as part of the Ringling Brothers freak show. A shortened life for a tall man.

    Down the road, Moose Jaw delighted us with secret downtown tunnels, Al Capone’s Prohibition era connection to the city’s whiskey trade, and dozens of murals in the historic city centre. Gorgeous old brick and stone buildings with dates going back over a century carved into lintels. And of course, an independent bookseller. What’s there not to love?
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  • To Hell and Back

    3. juni 2023, Canada ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Ten kilometres … that’s the distance through The Valley of a Thousand Devils and daring to cross Hellfire Basin, not once but twice mind you.

    It has been a grand and active day — a 24 km cycle through the Badlands in the morning, and the devilish grasslands circuit hike this afternoon to cap the day.

    Thunder roars ominously over the coulee as the sun bakes down on us. What’s next … fire and brimstone?
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  • Back Roads

    2. juni 2023, Canada ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

    In the last few days of driving the back roads of Saskatchewan, we’ve crossed over more cattle guards than met other vehicles. Small towns post billboard-size signs marking their native sons who made it to the NHL. Today it was Val Marie’s turn to celebrate Bryan Trottier, winner of 7 Stanley Cup rings).

    So far, the locals are far friendlier than the tourists.

    Todays quirks included the forlorn carcass of a grand old car abandoned in the corner of a pasture, and cowboy boots on the tops of fence posts.
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  • Saskatchewan Colours

    1. juni 2023, Canada ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    From stands of bright yellow buffalo bean flowers, to spring green Cypress hills, to Canada-red serged Mounties, to the purple of liberated lilacs from Consul, to the deep black head of a lone, roadside buffalo as we entered Grasslands National Park, it is the colours of the day I will remember.Læs mere

  • Land of the Living Skies

    30. maj 2023, Canada ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Crossed the border to the Land of the Living Skies. Day one of our Cross Canada tour began with a stop in Taber to see Rod and ended in the Cypress Hills on the Saskatchewan side.

  • Even a Pilgrim ...

    14. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    ... needs to rest.

    After 35 days of walking, Coleen and I are content to trade out our hiking boots for sandals for the balance of our time here in Spain. We returned to Santiago de Compostella for a second time this morning. Our total mileage on the 3 Caminos we've hiked is just north of 1,000 kilometers by my calculation.

    But truly as one Camino graffiti author wrote "Smiles, not miles, are what counts" and we've had thousands of those.

    Much like the Galician dirt and manure have insinuated themselves into my Scarpa boots, the call of the Camino has resonated deep in my soul. I expect we will return.

    Hasta luego from this side of the Atlantic and I look forward to catching up with all of you when we return to Canada.

    Scott
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  • Misty Galician Morning

    13. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We walked for 4 hours this morning and never saw a single pilgrim on the Camino Ingles. It is much less travelled than the Camino Françes and notwithstanding its name there is very little English spoken on the Camino Ingles. However the solitude and woodland trails for the most part have been delightfully serene.

    The Galcian mists can be spooky in the morning particularly when two cats decide to fight on a tree limb just over your head. I just about jumped out of my hikers!
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  • Camino Ingles ... Never Stop

    13. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ 🌫 12 °C

    Unexpectedly we have a few unplanned days on our itinerary. ... what to do, what to do?

    We chose to walk a section of another Camino called the Camino Ingles. This track will also take us to Santiago de Compostella via another route.

    Coleen was interviewed by a Kiwi pilgrim doing a documentary so perhaps she will become famous on this Camino!
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  • Chasing our Shadows

    11. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    We've come to the end of the world -- Finisterre.

    In medieval times, the pilgrim would strip, jump into the Atlantic and burn his clothes on the beach. He would then find a clam shell, proof of the pilgrimage, and then walk home.

    Coleen and I, no terra firma left to walk westward chasing our shadows, did nothing so dramatic. In a granite rock, we watched the sun set into the ocean while sipping red wine.

    This signaled the official end to the Camino -- a symbolic time of death and rebirth when the sun rises tomorrow. And the two of us will rise and greet that sun with renewed purpose.
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  • The Call of the Sea

    10. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    Walking down a shaded forest track I could hear the Atlantic Ocean gently lapping against the Spanish coast. It was a beautiful sound.

    There is a certain symmetry to this as we began our Camino odyssey by flying from the Irish sea coast to Biarritz on the French side of the Atlantic. Now here in the Spanish resort town of Muxia, the Atlantic Ocean calls out our names as we have one leg left to this pilgrimage.

    Tomorrow we walk along the Coast of Death to the End of the World. Cliffhanger or what!
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  • Humbled ...

    9. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    It never fails.

    Just when Coleen and I are patting ourselves on the back for our Camino efforts we meet someone else who wows us. Over a peregrino supper tonight we met a Belgian man who turns 67 years old this Saturday. Jean-Pierre left his home in Belgium 5 1/2 months ago and has been walking each day since on Camino trails in Belgium, France and Spain. Remarkable.

    Last night we met a man and a woman who have been walking from Paris with their dog and a donkey for months on the Camino.

    Like caffeine the Camino is highly addictive -- but harder on the feet!
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  • He's not getting my shoes ...

    8. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Let me introduce you to John, an Irishman we met on the Way. John was attending a wedding in Paris when he decided to hike the Camino. When advised of this impulsive decision, John's friend asked him what he was going to do with his dress clothes. John did not have an answer.

    Passing a Parisienne homeless person, John's friend gave the unkempt man John's suit, waistcoat, dress shirt, pants and tie. Later that evening they saw the same man -- now transformed and all decked out in John's attire. The bloke called over John's friend and said a few words. John asked his friend what the man had said. He wanted your shoes was the friend's reply.

    John retorted: "He's not getting my shoes!"
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  • I did it my Way ...

    7. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ 🌙 18 °C

    Combine 28 days, 799 kilometers, 3 blisters, one case of shin splints, numerous new friends, three cathedrals and then throw in some octopus, Galician stew, Rioja wine and almond cake and what do you get? An official latin Compostella and congratulations from the Pilgrim Office staff who verifies your credentials. Coleen and I have gone the distance.

    We sleep tonight in Santiago de Compostella at the Last Stamp Albergue under a waning full moon and a warm glow of accomplishment in our hearts.
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  • The Last Stamp

    6. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    When I was a young lad I collected stamps which opened up my world to far off lands and national symbols. Each day on the Way we collect at least one "sello" or stamp for our pilgrim credencial, usually from the Albergue we are staying at.

    The credencial (or passport) is proof of our trip, where we started and stopped along the Way. It is required in Santiago de Compostella if we want to receive an official document written in Latin that says we have completed our Camino.

    Appropriately enough when we reach Santiago de Compostella tomorrow we will be staying at an albergue called The Last Stamp.

    The excitement is building. Only 19.8 km to walk tomorrow morning to reach the Cathedral in Santiago and add some more ink to my credencial.
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  • Feliz Cumpleanno

    5. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    On this fine day in Manitoba, Canada a beautiful baby, now woman, was born. Happy birthday Coleen.

    Greetings from around the world are being sent your way from family, old friends and new Camino friends.

    Have a great day mi amor.
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  • What makes a pilgrim?

    4. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    I still haven't answered that question.

    Some would argue that it involves a measure of sacrifice,. There are those who fall in the "no pain, no gain" camp. For others it is walking every mile of the Camino with your full backpack -- no luggage service and no taxis.

    I've developed shin splints and so incurred a measure of suffering today. That said, I don't feel any more a pilgrim today than I did yesterday when each step was pain free.

    I do know that each pilgrim has the physical and mental resiliency to get up each day to walk 20-30 km. and then do it again the following day. Pilgrims share stories, medical advice and some deeply personal convictions. They help and look out for each other. A remarkable community that reshapes itself around you everyday.
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  • What's in a name?

    3. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    I tried convincing 2 Italian peregrinas that my name was Juan Diego. I said it with gusto and exuberance, and a bit of a bow. They weren't buying it. Eventually when I said my name was Scott, the one woman thought I said "Stop" and so she did.

    While Coleen and I are hiking the Camino Françes, it is also known as the Way of St. James in English, or Jakobsweg in German, or Chemin de Saint Jacques in French. All pilgrims head west to Santiago de Compostella -- the Iago being Spanish for James. All referring to Saint James.

    A disciple of Jesus, James had a short mission to Spain after Jesus' death, returned to the Holy Land and was beheaded by King Herod for his efforts. James' followers send his body out to sea and somehow it makes it way to Spain where centuries later his bones are discovered near present day Santiago de Compostella -- field of stars.

    What's in a name? A wonderful pilgrimage indeed.
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  • Go Your Own Way

    2. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    So I see a Pilgrim today walking down the trail backwards. Perhaps sun stroke ... perhaps just different strokes for different folks. But this peregrino was certainly hiking the Way on his terms.

    And that truly is the case here on the Camino. Do we take the optional route, call over the lone pilgrim to share supper, hike onto the next town? For many this is a profoundly religous pilgrimage. Each decision a pilgrim make shapes and colours their Camino experience. We each go our own way.

    By the way, I tried walking backwards for a bit. Not for me. I'll continue with my face to the West and the breeze at my back.
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  • Look, there's a castle. ..

    1. oktober 2017, Spanien ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    I love castles.

    Yesterday in Ponferrada we walked the castle walls of the former bastion of the Knights Templar. Great medieval castle with a secret tunnel, turrets and pageantry. I could imagine knights on their mounted steeds, their horseshoes ringing out on the cobblestones, riding off out of the castle gates to fight in the Crusades.

    A boy's dream realized.
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  • Cross my heart

    29. september 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    We have left the Meseta, the great plains of Spain, and have headed into the mountains. Crosses everywhere including the famous iron cross at Cruz Ferro where we left a heart stone that Coleen found along the Way.

    Last night we used a Sharpie on that same rock to write Marita's name on it. Always in our hearts and each step of the Camino.
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  • Slow down ... you move too fast

    28. september 2017, Spanien ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Ya gotta make the morning last. Just skipping down the cobblestones. Lookin' for fun and feeling groovy.

    This Paul Simon song has come to mind many times over the past 24 hours. Last night, we stayed at a Spanish albergue that offered yoga, a vegetarian supper, and a few spiritual lessons. After this Zen experience, on our hike this morning we came across a donativo rest stop where fresh fruit and cold drinks were offered amidst some psychedelic backdrops.

    Then we met a Polish expat living in Texas of all places who proudly showed us his silver bracelet that said "Old Hippy".

    Groovy man.
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  • Leon .. like moths to a flame

    27. september 2017, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Medieval pilgrims and modern pilgrims alike are drawn to the Spanish cities for provisions and to be wowed by their cathedrals. Leon is no exception. An elegant cathedral with exceptional stained glass windows. I could take pictures of the stained glass work alone for hours.

    But after the contemplative and peaceful countryside, Leon is a bit unsettling to this Canadian pilgrim. I'll be happy to get back to some solitude and leave Leon and its cathedral to other pilgrims. Buenas Noches.
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  • Sing a Song ...

    25. september 2017, Spanien ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    I've been singing on the Way from time to time. Right now I have the Carpenters' "Sing a Song" on my Camino sing list.

    Last night at an Italian albergue we were treated to a live guitar performance by a Spanish pilgrim who is carrying his instrument, talent and voice on the Camino. His rendition of Simon and Garfunkel's Sounds of Silence was haunting and sorrowful.

    After supper the party continued with the largely Italian pilgrim cohort singing improvisational versions of Bob Dylan's Knocking on Heaven's Door, accompanied by the beautiful strumming of the Spanish pilgrim. Magic.
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