Long abandoned church

Church at Cosine, Saskatchewan. This is sitting in someone's yard, note the "No Trespassing" sign. I would love to get a closer look. I took a photo of this a few years before and posted it. There is nothing at Cosine (I am not sure if there ever was much) now except for this church.

Denzil Elevator, Denzil, Saskatchewan

January 25, 2020. The old one has a lot of character.

Elk School 1914 - 1963

South of Denzil, Saskatchewan. I knew where this was, I had yet to see it. I was surprised to see that it has been restored.

Hearts Hill elevator

Abandoned grain elevator south of Denzil, Saskatchewan. There is no town where this elevator sits. The elevator is abandoned and there used to be a rail line that ran through here.

I made a mad dash on January 25, 2020 to get here, it is about four hours from where I live. I made this a day trip. In the past I had driven on another road about a half a dozen times a few miles to the west of this and never knew this existed. Once I found out about it I had to see it. I believe it is referred to as the Hearts Hill elevator but I did not see a name on it anywhere. A great looking piece of prairie architecture. 

This will be a definite revisit in the summer months.

A tree grows in Saskatchewan

Just a shot to prove Saskatchewan has at least one tree.

Roadtrippin’

Well I tried to get out. The day ultimately ended up being successful enough.

On the road a bit after seven Saturday morning. The highway was shrouded in fog when I started out for about the first hour. A few times I had to slow down to about thirty miles an hour due to the limited visibility. It was much easier when the sun came up.

A few hours later I ran into light rain and light snow. Thankfully it was not freezing rain. Further down the highway I came across an older couple parked at the opposite side of the road with their hazard lights on. I turned around and asked if they needed help. Their fairly new Ford F250 was running like it was fighting for its last gasps of life. While talking to them they shut off their vehicle, turned the key a minute later, it roared to life and sounded perfect. They thanked me for stopping and went on their way.

Later in the day about three and a half hours from home in very rural Saskatchewan my KIA after stopping for a photo started making an unholy squealing from the rear passenger wheel. I had never heard that kind of noise before and I was concerned I had some horrible mechanical issue that I had to deal with. I got to Provost, Alberta and wheeled into a tire shop. The guy on duty determined I picked up a rock in my brakes and got it out for me. I have had a vehicle pick up a rock before, I have never had one produce a sound like that. At that point after fog, snow, rain, overcast skies, the cloud cover disappeared and the prairie sky was nothing but glorious sunshine.

Time to head back. After a stop along the way for baby back ribs and beer of course. I felt I deserved it. 

Compeer Hotel

A rainy day in Compeer, Alberta.

This was the Compeer Hotel.  At one time you could get a room and a meal here.

Look at all the names carved into the siding.

A few pieces have been sawn out...most likely for souvenirs.

A small part of prairie history.

- Michael Truman

Past Presence Website

Abandoned Alberta

Spotted this barn north of Provost, Alberta.

We Are Miles Ahead

This sign is west of Seven Persons, Alberta along the Crowsnest Highway. I've always been a fan of these big wooden signs, especially one that makes a statement.

The pronghorn logo is a nice tip of the hat to the abundant wildlife in the area.

- Michael Truman

Past Presence Website

One mess followed by another

I believe we got five inches of snow today. It stopped about an hour ago and now the sun is out and it is melting creating a slushy mess.

The guy who runs the bottle depot here in town will be happy once this clears up. The highway runs through this town and most of the business are along it including his. He parked in front of his business and was stuck this morning trying to drive off. The local Peace Office blocked traffic while he was being towed onto the road.

Now he is stuck again.

The weather forecast has been lying to me

Last night the forecast was a chance of flurries. This morning I woke up to a minor snowpocalypse. It looked like there was at least a few inches on the ground, if not more. I think it caught the town by surprise, nothing was plowed and a few people were getting stuck in their driveways. The radio said we were under a heavy snowfall warning. It should stop early this afternoon and start melting in the next day or two.

The joys of living in Alberta. 

Tree time

Still playing around with black and white. 

Bowling Balls

A farm sign southeast of Crosby, North Dakota.  Those are real bowling balls and the bowling pin is covered with cat-eye glass marbles.

- Michael Truman

Past Presence Website

Not the end but preparing for it

Sometimes you have to put the fun activities aside and be responsible and look after personal matters.

During the cold snap it was too cold to explore the countryside so I turned my attention to some things that needed to be done, one of those was updating my will. It will be very simple. I am single and have no dependents. Executor and beneficiary will be one and the same, which is my only sibling. I want it to be simple and straightforward.

I made an appointment with a lawyer. I emailed everything beforehand then met with him in person. After he asked me his questions and took his notes I was informed it would take two weeks to get a draft done. Two weeks to get a very simple draft done. Thankfully I am in fine health (that I know of) and I am not terminal, otherwise I could die before I got it updated. I could complain however I did not feel like shopping for another lawyer. The service could be worse with a different one. The lawyer I did get is one of those older types that looks like he should be retiring any day which is good. If you are in need of professional services get someone who has a lot of experience.

I would like to get everything set up so that when I do drop dead all anyone has to do is open an envelope and all the information, including the will, will be there. No hunting for bank account information, credit card information, vehicle information, or anything else for that matter. I say this because I have had some exposure to some estates where people have died and no one knows where anything is and stuff is scattered all over the place. There will be no service and cremation will be the order of the day. A friend of mine already has his headstone and a burial plot with a start date and a blank end date. I have seen the spot that he has picked out, it is a lovely spot. I have to admire his planning.

The only flaw in this plan is that I would like my ashes scattered in a certain place. Trying to find someone to do it is another matter. The person has to outlive you. If they predecease you then you have to find someone else to do it. Then you have been be certain they will follow through and not just put you up on a closet shelf and forget about you or just dump you anywhere. Hopefully I can find someone to fulfill a future last request.

A bit of wishful thinking

Met up with a friend on Saturday and went to the Edmonton Motorcycle Show. I think all of the manufacturers were out. I do not usually do this sort of thing. I dislike paying for parking, walking across a parking lot in temperatures in the minus twenties in Celsius, and then paying to get in. I can go to a dealer and see everything for free. 

Saw a few things I liked. The Kawasaki Vulcan 650 caught my eye as well as the Kawasaki V Strom 650. I do not need a new bike but it never hurts to look. I like bikes 750cc and under because they are easier for me to move. The BMW R1200RT got a couple of looks from me. My friend went back to look at the Indian Roadmaster (photo courtesy of the internet) and had a hard time walking away from it after going to look at it five times. Beautiful motorcycle. Personally I cannot justify paying close to $40,000 Canadian for a motorcycle. 

Sometimes I need to pay closer attention to my photos

I recently took a photo of hay bales set up to look like a teddy bear earlier this year and posted it. I took several photos of it. I was going back through photos of that trip and noticed there were two bears. I do not know how I missed that. Here it is. 

Good Vibrations

The old service station in Jedburgh, Saskatchewan.

"Good Vibrations" by The Beach Boys playing on the AM radio of a Volkswagen bus or beetle covered with "flower power" stickers would fit right in here. Groovy!

It is cheery as it is.

- Michael Truman
Past Presence Website

Anthony Hill revisited

This is an old abandoned one room schoolhouse near Usona, Alberta. I have posted this one before. If I am near certain places I usually take a detour to see if some old buildings are still standing. A favourite barn that I would drive past at St. Francis, Alberta - and that I liked to photograph - was burned down by the landowner a couple of months ago. It was kind of odd to see an empty space where a grand old barn once stood. So sometimes I like to check on other places to see if they are still there. This is one of them.

North of Grande Prairie, Alberta May 19, 2019

Time for summer reminder with the added bonus of bales.

No more words

Sometimes it gets cold in Alberta

It is supposed to -30C tomorrow in the daytime. The weather will break next week and daytime  highs will be closer to zero. Posting will be light in the meantime. I do not feel like doing much when temperatures are like this. Not to mention that the heater in my KIA produces next to no heat when it gets this cold.

Amity School revisited

Not far from Strome, Alberta. I have been here before, stopped for a quick photo op.

Random Jasper National Park photo

Cold snap

Experiencing the kind of weather where you hunker down and keep warm. The cold weather will break in a week. For now I am am warm in my humble abode enjoying “The Shootist” starring John Wayne. Not a bad way to get through a cold spell. 

Autumn Sunrise

Autumn sunrise near the boat launch in Strathcona Island Park in Medicine Hat, Alberta.

If you're here early you get to watch the geese and ducks, some deer wading in for a drink and maybe a beaver or two swimming by.  Nice place for early morning coffee.

- Michael Truman

Past Presence Website

Rosenheim School

South of Provost, Alberta. I could not find any information readily available on this one.

Visited January 4, 2020.

Fading away

This barn along Highway 16 west of Entwhistle, Alberta finally collapsed. I kind of kept informal track of it whenever I drove by. I was wondering how long it would hang on. Time gets us all.

For some reason I found the window interesting.

The spam-bots are at it again

Minor nuisance. I have had to spend a bit of time lately marking some comments as spam.

I really wonder why a blog like mine gets targeted.

Does anyone ever fall for this?

Little Log House

A little log house near Springside, Saskatchewan.

No one has lived here in a very long time.

- Michael Truman
Past Presence Website

Jasper National Park road hazard

Art post

I did a little editing to a photo and made a print. I just have to find a place for it. 

The ultimate bale post

Near Provost, Alberta. 

Case

The old Case farm implement dealership in Dodsland, Saskatchewan.

There is a "Chevrolet" sticker on the window.

Now that's a truck! My best guess is it's from the mid-50's and of course it's a Chevy.

- Michael Truman
Past Presence Website