After a month spent on the road, I'm finally back. I was looking forward to be home, clean everything, have a hot shower, give Dyno a bath and finally sleep on my bed. So much work and effort are required when you live in a car, from getting gas, getting food, doing laundry, getting water, keeping things organized and clean-ish, planning where to sleep and what to do the next day, and before you realize, half of the day has flown by. We don't realize how we have it easy when we have toilets and running water.
Now that I'm back, I can't wait until my next road trip. Dyno really enjoyed it and I find it made him more confident. He's such an agile, vigilant and friendly dog that he's the perfect travel and hiking partner.
I planned the first 3 days of my trip in advance just to slowly ease myself into it. After that, I just went with the flow, things went well and people were really nice. There were so many people who approached and talked to me, mostly because of Dyno of course. It made me less negative and more tolerant in general. I felt the need to smile more, not let the few unpleasant interactions ruin my day, and I feel rewarded for doing nice things when I see the most beautiful sunrise warming up the foggy grassy landscape in my rearview mirror.
There were some rainy days at the beginning of my trip, so I did not see everything I planned to see. Things don't always go as planned, and they are better that way. I trust that life always turns out the way it's meant to be. Ontario's route around the lakes was the longest stretch to me, I was so sick of the twists and turns, ups and downs, the lack of passing lanes and people not driving at constant speed, and the worst is there were not even enough places to get coffee. I've also noticed how people suddenly speed up when you try to pass them. Gas stations with normal modern pumps are not frequent in that region. Usually, after a day of driving in Ontario, I'm mentally drained.
On the last day in Ontario, I skipped every stop due to heavy rain the whole day. I stopped at Pukaskwa National Park after the rain finally stopped. I had to cook something in the parking lot, it was hectic, I was hungry and I kept forgetting things. Then, I couldn't even eat on the trail because there were so many flies and mosquitoes. I did the hike in under an hour and just wanted to get back in my car quickly. When we got to an intersection, Dyno wanted to go the other way, it was another short trail. I feel like Dyno is trying to remind me to slow down and enjoy the view. There is no rush, we're doing just fine. He does this often, he always wants to check out the view. He knows what matters in life.
People always say how boring, long and flat Manitoba and Saskatchewan are, but surprisingly, I really enjoyed the road and the sights. It felt good to just drive straight on a 4-lane highway. It saves so much mental energy. I really enjoyed the landscape as well, the sand dunes, cliffs, badlands, buttes, etc. I also started seeing more wildlife, including a dead bear cub on the side of the highway, jack rabbits that I thought were some kind of mystical creatures from afar, elks hanging outside a hotel, etc.
I couldn't believe it when I finally arrived in the Rockies, the mountains are so beautiful that it made me cry. I woke up around 4-5 am each day to beat the traffic on hiking trails and enjoy some serenity before the crowd woke up because Banff is so busy. I once got to the parking lot of Lake Louise at 5h30am and got the very last spot, just to give an idea of how busy it was. Most tourists don't do anything too strenuous so it wasn't hard to enjoy some alone time either. I end most days early since I wake up so early, and my favorite thing to do is having a cold drink, edit some pictures, read, write or watch a movie in my car while Dyno chews a bullystick and relaxes.
One thing I forgot to pack was bear spray, and being such an early bird, it could've been bad. I did the other things that were recommended, such as talking, which you quickly run out of things to say when you're alone, or just obnoxiously playing some music on my phone. Some mornings I really get scared when I see bear scat right in the middle of the trail. Luckily, I never encountered one, but I will definitely be more responsible next time.
I've noticed how I've become more risk-adverse with age. I used to do some of the most difficult hikes that last 13 hours on some cliffs, in the dark and under the rain, but I now think twice before I do anything that is not even half as hard. I guess courage takes practice and time to build up and you can loose it if you don't practice for a while. I had to look back on my past hikes to give myself some encouragement and confidence. Anyone can be brainwashed after two years of people telling you to stay home, and how unsafe the world out there is.
From Banff, I took the Icefield Parkway to Jasper. I always imagined I needed more time in Jasper, but quite honestly, all the mountains, glaciers and lakes look the same after a while, regardless of how beautiful everything might be. I was ready to move on and do some more driving. From Jasper, I drove to Wells Gray, Kamloops, Golden Ears and lastly Vancouver. Perhaps British Columbia is the province I enjoyed the least. The wild fires kept following me everywhere I went, I had the most number of negative encounters, the traffic made me loose my patience, the weather was hot, and the worst of all is that I accidentally ran over a mountain chicken with my car. I had to tell myself that I will have a good day every morning to attract positive energy.
On my way back, I stopped for a few more days in the Rockies before saying goodbye for real. I will miss those mountains. After leaving the Rockies, I drove 8 to 9 hours a day for 5 days, excluding breaks and traffic delays. It flew by surprisingly fast with a redeye iced cap from Tim Hortons and a good audiobook while Dyno relaxed in the back of my car. We managed to get used to that.
After so many hours of driving, there were not too many damages to my car except a chip on my windshield and a bird that flew into my car grille. I took it as warning signs to be more careful, because I have to admit there were times I drove dangerously. I passed a truck in heavy rain when the lanes merged into one. It could've ended badly and I'm not proud of myself. The most important is to be safe.
When I got back home, I was immediately welcomed with a 1-hour traffic delay on the bridge, the houses and buildings look so different, my plants have grown bigger, even the echo in my condo sounds unfamiliar. I can't wait to get back into my routine.
I remember a question that someone asked me a while ago, do I think I'm that different? I didn't say I was back then, but I think I definitely am. I'm anti-tradition, I'm daring and I'm independent. You can't say you met many people like me. As a simple example, when I was travelling in the west, there were no women travelling alone anywhere out there, although I'm sure they are somewhere, but you don't easily come across one. Even men travelling alone were few and far between. How many people can truthfully say they are not waiting for someone to appear in their life because they are busy having the time of their life on their own?
I don't even have a single picture of myself from this trip, I only have pictures of Dyno and he loves posing like a model in exchange for treats. I'm discovering the world through his eyes and I love it. He is always ready for an adventure, knows when it's time to relax and always open for new friendships. Now that I'm home, I miss the road. We need to go on more adventures together and just remind ourselves of that life is all about.