DINOSAURS!!!! – Dinosaur Provincial Park and two more provinces

But Moose Jaw First

The departure from Winnipeg was supposed to lead to the flat plains of the prairies… We reached the border of Saskatchewan and were quickly surprised by the rolling hills.  The hills were mostly pasture and some crops. Upon arriving in Moose Jaw we were greeted by ‘Mac’ – the largest Moose in Canada

We checked into the Wakamow River Campground which is located in the heart of Moose Jaw next to the river with the refinery just over the hills.  The campground was conveniently located and had flush toilets and showers.  An added bonus, there was water and electricity at our site.

I’ve always been of the mindset that I didn’t mind not having electricity at a campground because why are we on vacation? Not to check email or anything, but this vacation, I’m finding I really appreciate having the access, in order to keep up to date on emails, do this blog and plan out our next day.  Charging our phones and computers without having to hover around a plug-in a visitor center or comfort station.  Also, since my husband is actually working, we’ve quickly come to appreciate having a good cell signal to allow for calls and communication.

Moose Jaw found us at yet another ice cream parlour, the Snow Hut.  This time, the adults were taken back to our childhoods, when our youngest licked her scoop of ice cream right off the cone.  Who hasn’t gone through that experience? I smiled when it happened cause it instantly brought back that frustration I recalled as a kid.  The situation was quickly rectified by replacing the scoop (thanks to the kind ladies of Snow Hut) and all was happy in the land of little girls.

DISCOVERING DINOSAURS

The next morning we packed up quickly and were on our way to Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta. The drive to Dinosaur Park was fascinating, it was flat plains all around and then we suddenly descended into a canyon made up of the Badlands.  Running 27 km up the Red River, the Badlands start at Dinosaur Provincial Park.

We arrived at our riverside site and quickly were greeted by searing heat! And a quick glance around at the sites in and around the campground found screen tents everywhere which signaled alarm bells to go off in our heads.  A park ranger stopped by and we asked about the bugs to which his deadpanned response was ‘they’re horrid, they’re bad’.  So up went the camper and we attached the screen room out front so that we would have some reprieve from the black flies and mosquitoes…. And they were bad. Poor kids each got quite a few bites even with spraying and wearing long sleeves and pants.

Once dinner was finished, the kids and my husband decided to go by bike along the 3 km trail adjacent to the campground and saw some fossil sites. The bike ride ended with a stop at the Cretaceous Café for some icy treats and a shower for me.

Never have I come across an air-conditioned café and bathroom in a provincial park but it was certainly a welcome in the searing heat.  The facilities at the café/comfort station were great! There was laundry facilities on site too which seemed the hotspot as many people were using them.

Off to bed and for once, my husband and I didn’t sit by the fire, as the mosquitos were just too difficult to sit amongst while trying to enjoy a fire. We sat in the camper and just chilled out for the evening.

Hiccup #2

That evening the rain started.. and didn’t stop until noon the next day which prompted the park staff to cancel our Fossil Safari that was booked months ago. They replaced it with an indoor fossil discovery session. We were taken inside the prep lab where the scientists prepare work and prepare fossils. We learned about the origins of fossils and types of rocks and how to identify them.  The kids got to observe fossils through microscopes and to touch them.  A short scavenger hunt/bingo game of ‘find that bone’ through the museum displays also brought fun into the day.

A quick lunch and some playtime at the campsite and then we were back at the visitor center. The park staff put on “The Secret Life of Pets” in the theatre as the campgrounds were quite wet and access along the trails not ideal.

A drive through the fossil displays along the 3 km trail found more fossils and more exploring of the badlands.

We had dinner and then kids had playtime at the dino playground across the river from our site.  It was great, we could watch the kids from our site while sitting by the fire.  The kids made friends with other kids at the campground and had fun late into the evening playing and running around.

Observations

• 1 hour before our arrival at dinosaur provincial park saw the A/C unit to get a little funny again… oh dear… so we booked another service appointment in Calgary in a few days.
• There are a lot of French folk in Canada. Makes for great reminder for our son why he’s in French Immersion!
• Mosquitos and bugs were by far the worst on the trip so far.
• We hit the 4000 km mark of our trip just before crossing into Alberta.

Kid’s memories: “Seeing fossils!, Everyday!… every day of our cross-country trip has been fun!”