Obligations

Heading north for the weekend to visit mom. If I am lucky maybe I will run into something interesting along the way. Road trips are lately taking a back seat to other matters.

Bridge hunting September 24, 2016

This is an abandoned rail bridge at Drumheller, Alberta beside Highway 575 crossing the Red Deer River. I was trying out this photography thing once again.

There are concrete blocks on the bridge to prevent people from crossing it.

Osborne School

This was an amazing find that I ran across purely by accident on September 18, 2016. I love finding stuff like this. It is a small one room schoolhouse in good condition. This is south and west of Jenner, Alberta. This is in an empty area of prairie. There is not much in Jenner either which is the nearest town.

I was really excited to see how good the inside is. Someone wrote some miscellaneous stuff on the board. Other than that it is in really good condition, no vandalism at all. 

This was very well built to survive this well. Very small. I would guess about six hundred square feet. There is nothing nearby and it is located off a side road. Finding spots like this are fun and make my day.

An update to today's post

Someone sent me the following link. Very interesting.

orthodoxcanada.ca/Bluffton,_AB,_the_Monastery_of_the_Holy_Protection

This one really has me intrigued

Stumbled across this on September 5, 2016. I am not going to say where it is because it is obvious that this place is meant to be private. It is easy to miss the gate as it is in a heavily treed spot. The grounds are behind a wall of trees.

It is some kind of Orthodox order. I found out it was a monastery in the 1930's and became a convent. That is all I have been able to find out for now. There was "No Trespassing" signs all over and a sign saying there is video surveillance. What photos I did get are from the road. I messaged a contact who researches and writes articles on places like this to see what he can find out. I would love to visit the grounds.

This church really intrigues me. This is as close of a photo as I could get.

There are some other abandoned buildings in the trees. This place might have been fairly busy at one time. I am trying to find out more about it.

Near Finnegan Ferry, Alberta

I just had to record this sign. Spotted September 23, 2016.

Harvest

A few Alberta scenes from my part of the province on September 24, 2016.

Peace Lutheran Church

According to the marker here eight families pledged one hundred dollars each to build a church. The church was completed in 1925 and used up to the 1950's. It was the only Lutheran church in a forty mile radius. I encountered this south of Limerick, Saskatchewan on August 20, 2016.

I managed to get a look inside. Rural Lutheran churches are usually straightforward affairs. This one is very simple. It also needs a bit of restoration which I believe is planned. There was a note on the pulpit making a note of who was buried in the cemetery for future restoration purposes.

No stained glass. I do like the design.

This is really neat and this is new to me. No pews, just chairs secured by a wood plank. Simplicity taken to a new level. It also makes it easier to hold gatherings since they are not secured to the floor.

Now with chickens

I took a side road by some farms in the Strathmore, Alberta area on September 23, 2016 and a flock of chickens literally crossed the road in front of me. 

Why did they cross the road?

So they could end up as a post on this blog.

Signs

I am always on the lookout for interesting and intriguing signs. This one appeals to me. I saw this north of Caroline, Alberta on September 10, 2016.

Twin Cities Hotel

Longview, Alberta August 27, 2016. Many years ago Longview was known for oil as well as ranching.

Old tow truck right out front.

Sometimes you get hungry and want food. So I stopped here. I have driven by here many times and never been inside. The all day special was Eggs Benedict. Since I missed the breakfast cut off I ordered the special. This place is a country establishment. My waitress walked up, gave me a blank look, then sat down at my table and stated she did not know what she was doing. Fair enough. I have had jobs like that in the past.

Sometimes you need coffee with breakfast. The coffee was so good I had two. Its other name is Warthog Ale. By the way the food was excellent. I will return sometime just for the food.

The ceiling tiles are all like this.

As I was leaving a Cadillac convertible pulled up with five identically dressed men in it. I was thinking it was a wedding party or some kind of club. They were all in cowboy hats, sport coats, jeans, and riding boots. The Cadillac had an 8.2l engine. As an aside there was a guy that owned one of these in a town where I went to high school. Identical car except it was purple with a white leather interior. Either way you do not see stuff like this anymore. I love Alberta.

Rural Saskatchewan school marker

Marking the spot where a one room school once stood. Highway 18 west of Mankota, Saskatchewan on August 20, 2016. I really like the way this turned out.

Found an interesting site

For some reason I woke up at four this morning. Not able to get back to sleep I started cruising the internet and found this:

withwonderiwander.com

This is an excellent blog and deserves a look.

Time for a barn post

Near Markerville, Alberta August 7, 2016.

Highway 561 between Cessford, Alberta and Highway 884

Ran across this on August 28, 2016. This is a fairly big house. Traces of any road leading up to it have been erased so it has been abandoned for some time.

From the back.

This is as close as I got. The inside is occupied by birds and looks unsafe. I did not see a pump anywhere and I was concerned about where the old well might be. No other buildings like a barn anywhere on the property.

For the hay bale fans out there

There might be a fan or two. It is that time of year here. Taken south of Medicine Hat, Alberta on September 18, 2016.

Abandoned house

Lonely abandoned house near Readlyn, Saskatchewan on September 20, 2016. 

Across from the house is a very thick healthy crop. Someone is surviving in the farming business.

Manyberries Train Station September 17, 2016

This was on my list for a few years. I got to connect with the owner of the train station in Manyberries, Alberta and managed to get an invite to see the place up close. This is the original train station that served this area. The tracks were torn up long ago. The station is now a private residence. It is owned by a husband and wife and their five year old son has one of the neatest places to spend his childhood. I think a lot of people would be envious. This is a personal highlight to see this. I have seen a lot of the wife's photos of this place that she has posted online and this is a very picturesque spot. 

I am extremely thankful they let me stop by and take some photos of the place. The photos could have been better but I think they had some place to be and did not want to overstay my welcome. It was a very windy and overcast day. The owners even showed me the inside. I did not take any interior photos as I wanted to respect their privacy and I did not ask. They preserved the original ticket window inside. They have a great collection of railroad stuff and local items and sometimes find some more interesting items when they go exploring on the property. I was very happy to get some information on some local history in the area.

They have some of the rail history posted. My reflection makes a bit of an appearance.

I had to walk out into the field to fit this in. The train station has a caboose to go with it on the right. The town of Manyberries is behind the station.

There is enough track set up for the caboose and scooter to sit on. The original tracks were torn up years ago.

I even got to see the inside of the caboose. It is original and cramped.

The lamp on the right is an original railway lantern with red and blue glass.

This caboose was heated by a stove. Note the coal scuttle.

Door to the caboose in the background. On either side are ladders where you can step up to the upper level.

Looking out across the roof of the caboose from inside the top of the caboose. Seating is on the upper level.

Love the bell.

Milk cans, crockery, and insulators which are original and very collectible. The insulator has "CPR" on it which stands for "Canadian Pacific Railway".

Restored luggage cart in front.

Another cart that has not been restored.

Looking out from the platform across the tracks. Lining the wood fence are old insulators that they have found.