I arrived at the conclusion that the James Gang is alive and well along with the Dalton's and all the rest of the old time robbers in the West, only today they are running Canada.
Yep ... I am back home where things are sensible, no Loonies, Toonies, weird money and things are measured in Miles not Clicks. A Loony is a $1.00 coin and a Toonie is the $2.00 coin in Canada. All mileage is in clicks and gas is by the liter.
What a deal on the gas only $. 99 per liter, only problem is that 4 liters make one gallon. OK, I will stop ranting and tell about the trip.
Left here on Sunday, Aug 26.07 and made it to the North side of Macon, GA where I got a motel room because of the heat. A Motel 8 for $54.75 (remember the cost for a while) and spent a nice night enjoying the cold air in the room.
Up in the morning (Monday 27.07) and on the road. Arrived in London, KY for the night and again hotter then heck so a motel room at a Super 8 $52.00 and cold air in the room.
On the road and made it to Windsor, Canada which is just over the Ambassador bridge ($7.50 to cross it) in Canada from Detroit. Tired and hot so I see this motel, super 8 , and pull in for the night, I am in Canada so what could be wrong, YEP, Guess again sucker the room was $99.89 for the same one I paid $54.75 for in Georgia.
To top it off while on the bridge every time a semi would pass me the bridge would move up and down, it was a long ways to the water below and I was one happy person to get off that bridge after going up and down on it for over an hour.
Up in the morning and off to the East on Canada 401 to 403 and down to the Bronte Creek Provincial Park to do some Camping. These are main expressways and they have speed bumps (ridges in the roads from the pavement buckling about every 100 feet) So I bumped my way for a couple hundred miles over those roads to the park turnoff. The roads was even worse, there was a drop off of about 8 inches and then holes that would swallow a Greyhound Tour Bus.
After all of this fun I arrive at the campground and check in.
May I get a camping spot for two nights , They had several available and since it is a Provincial park (sort of like our national parks) the cost is $31.25 per night = $62.50 for two nights. What the heck I am here and want to camp, got my camp site and set up, sweat is rolling off me ( I went threw three "T" Shirts that afternoon) and it is hotter then in Florida, This is Canada ????
My camping spot
During the night a small front moved thru and it did cool down to a livable temperature. The weather did turn nicer and I did enjoy some time at the campsite, watching geese fly overhead, chipmunks playing around the camp, blue jays dropping nuts on the top of the tent camper in the morning to wake me up, all in all it was some nice camping. I meet some nice folks, two French ladies were camping on one side and Irish, Germans and Texas on the other side, what a mixed batch of folks and we all had fun.
These Canadians are fun people and friendly , just good folks.
The camper set up for two nights.
Friday, Aug 31, 07
Up and packed the camper, off on the road around 9 and on the way to the Inn for the wedding. Drove the back roads and there is a lot of corn and soy beans raised in that area, miles and miles of it.
Arrived at St. Mary's and checked in around 1 , the room was ready but I needed to gas up so off to the only gas station in town, the Ford Dealer and they have two pumps.
The Westover Inn , main area.
Checked out the town and it is a nice country town and quite picturest and pleasant, back to the Inn and moved in. Turned on the ac unit to cool the room down. Around 3:30 the wife and the rest of the gang arrived so I helped moving the wife's stuff up to the room which was still hot even with the ac running. Checked the ac out and the fan motor had burnt up the barrings in it so no fan to move the air or one BROKEN ac unit. To make a long story short we opened the windows and thankfully the weather had cooled down so the room did get cooled off.
I am only paying $295.00 per night ( The rate for the wedding party) for this room and we could not move to another since the Inn was packed to capacity for the wedding.
Our area , called the terrace , the left windows were our room.
Sept 1, 07 the wedding went off without a hitch and everyone had a grand time along with some good drinks and great food. "O" by the way the dinner menu at the Inn, if you want scallops and side dishes it is between $48.00 and $52.00 per plate.
I found that in Canada a breakfast will run between $8.00 and $11.00 which we can get down here for about $4.00. Cigarettes are $10.00 per pack, Gas is $4.00 a gallon, Motels are double to triple in price from down here and I never had the nerve to check out the cost of distilled spirits. I can say at the Inn a mixed drink was $9.95 per drink and a Beer (which I had) was $11.50 for two of them.
Camping ... Canada $31.25 per night at a Provincial Park, USA National Park $20.00 or $10.00 with a Gold age pass (Three nights in US or one night in Canada for the same cost ) , State parks $7.50, County parks $5.00 or less.
Gas, Canada .. $4.00 at the least amount, USA..$2.54 to $3.09 per gallon.
I am sure you get the idea and can see why I got up early Sunday the 2nd of September and was back in the states around 10:30 that morning. As far as the roads go it is a toss up between Michigan and Canada for the worse roads but I have to give Michigan the credit for the worse roads.
I did have a lot of fun, meet a lot of really good people and had an experience like never before that is why I said that all the old time outlaws and crooks from the states are running things today in Canada, you feel like you are getting robbed at ever turn. Great folks but lousy prices on things.
Over 3,000 miles and lots of education for me. It was a trip in more then one way. "O" By the way ... NEVER ask for unsweetened tea , I did and had three waitresses and the Manager at the table asking what is it and forget about saying Grits when getting breakfast , all they have is over cooked potatoes called hash browns.
Give me the Good Old South any day.
Chuck.
Yep ... I am back home where things are sensible, no Loonies, Toonies, weird money and things are measured in Miles not Clicks. A Loony is a $1.00 coin and a Toonie is the $2.00 coin in Canada. All mileage is in clicks and gas is by the liter.
What a deal on the gas only $. 99 per liter, only problem is that 4 liters make one gallon. OK, I will stop ranting and tell about the trip.
Left here on Sunday, Aug 26.07 and made it to the North side of Macon, GA where I got a motel room because of the heat. A Motel 8 for $54.75 (remember the cost for a while) and spent a nice night enjoying the cold air in the room.
Up in the morning (Monday 27.07) and on the road. Arrived in London, KY for the night and again hotter then heck so a motel room at a Super 8 $52.00 and cold air in the room.
On the road and made it to Windsor, Canada which is just over the Ambassador bridge ($7.50 to cross it) in Canada from Detroit. Tired and hot so I see this motel, super 8 , and pull in for the night, I am in Canada so what could be wrong, YEP, Guess again sucker the room was $99.89 for the same one I paid $54.75 for in Georgia.
To top it off while on the bridge every time a semi would pass me the bridge would move up and down, it was a long ways to the water below and I was one happy person to get off that bridge after going up and down on it for over an hour.
Up in the morning and off to the East on Canada 401 to 403 and down to the Bronte Creek Provincial Park to do some Camping. These are main expressways and they have speed bumps (ridges in the roads from the pavement buckling about every 100 feet) So I bumped my way for a couple hundred miles over those roads to the park turnoff. The roads was even worse, there was a drop off of about 8 inches and then holes that would swallow a Greyhound Tour Bus.
After all of this fun I arrive at the campground and check in.
May I get a camping spot for two nights , They had several available and since it is a Provincial park (sort of like our national parks) the cost is $31.25 per night = $62.50 for two nights. What the heck I am here and want to camp, got my camp site and set up, sweat is rolling off me ( I went threw three "T" Shirts that afternoon) and it is hotter then in Florida, This is Canada ????
My camping spot
During the night a small front moved thru and it did cool down to a livable temperature. The weather did turn nicer and I did enjoy some time at the campsite, watching geese fly overhead, chipmunks playing around the camp, blue jays dropping nuts on the top of the tent camper in the morning to wake me up, all in all it was some nice camping. I meet some nice folks, two French ladies were camping on one side and Irish, Germans and Texas on the other side, what a mixed batch of folks and we all had fun.
These Canadians are fun people and friendly , just good folks.
The camper set up for two nights.
Friday, Aug 31, 07
Up and packed the camper, off on the road around 9 and on the way to the Inn for the wedding. Drove the back roads and there is a lot of corn and soy beans raised in that area, miles and miles of it.
Arrived at St. Mary's and checked in around 1 , the room was ready but I needed to gas up so off to the only gas station in town, the Ford Dealer and they have two pumps.
The Westover Inn , main area.
Checked out the town and it is a nice country town and quite picturest and pleasant, back to the Inn and moved in. Turned on the ac unit to cool the room down. Around 3:30 the wife and the rest of the gang arrived so I helped moving the wife's stuff up to the room which was still hot even with the ac running. Checked the ac out and the fan motor had burnt up the barrings in it so no fan to move the air or one BROKEN ac unit. To make a long story short we opened the windows and thankfully the weather had cooled down so the room did get cooled off.
I am only paying $295.00 per night ( The rate for the wedding party) for this room and we could not move to another since the Inn was packed to capacity for the wedding.
Our area , called the terrace , the left windows were our room.
Sept 1, 07 the wedding went off without a hitch and everyone had a grand time along with some good drinks and great food. "O" by the way the dinner menu at the Inn, if you want scallops and side dishes it is between $48.00 and $52.00 per plate.
I found that in Canada a breakfast will run between $8.00 and $11.00 which we can get down here for about $4.00. Cigarettes are $10.00 per pack, Gas is $4.00 a gallon, Motels are double to triple in price from down here and I never had the nerve to check out the cost of distilled spirits. I can say at the Inn a mixed drink was $9.95 per drink and a Beer (which I had) was $11.50 for two of them.
Camping ... Canada $31.25 per night at a Provincial Park, USA National Park $20.00 or $10.00 with a Gold age pass (Three nights in US or one night in Canada for the same cost ) , State parks $7.50, County parks $5.00 or less.
Gas, Canada .. $4.00 at the least amount, USA..$2.54 to $3.09 per gallon.
I am sure you get the idea and can see why I got up early Sunday the 2nd of September and was back in the states around 10:30 that morning. As far as the roads go it is a toss up between Michigan and Canada for the worse roads but I have to give Michigan the credit for the worse roads.
I did have a lot of fun, meet a lot of really good people and had an experience like never before that is why I said that all the old time outlaws and crooks from the states are running things today in Canada, you feel like you are getting robbed at ever turn. Great folks but lousy prices on things.
Over 3,000 miles and lots of education for me. It was a trip in more then one way. "O" By the way ... NEVER ask for unsweetened tea , I did and had three waitresses and the Manager at the table asking what is it and forget about saying Grits when getting breakfast , all they have is over cooked potatoes called hash browns.
Give me the Good Old South any day.
Chuck.
