That Rainy Day Feeling

I’ve got that rainy day feeling again.  When the weather is cold, indeed just a bit above freezing and the sky dark and the air filled with driving rain one’s location isn’t all that important.  As it happens I’m parked overlooking Lake of the Woods in Anicanabe Park in Kenora, Ontario but once the curtains are drawn not much else matters.  In my last entry I was leaving Brandon, Manitoba.  On the advice of my neighbour at Turtle Crossing Campground I made the right turn at Carberry, Manitoba and drove down to Spruce Wood Provincial Park.   The drive seemed to take a long time especially given the broken pavement on which I was driving.  When I got to the Kiche Manitou Campground Office I found 3 people ready to sign me in—as it transpired I was the sole occupant of the park that night.  With or without the added attraction of Spirit Sands nearby this is a great place to camp.  Free showers, a large laundry room and ample free firewood stacked at every campsite make it a welcoming environment—especially given the firewood was so dry kindling was barely needed to light it.  The tank range at Shilo a few miles west does make for an uneasy neighbour.  Feeling the need for rest I put off exploring the parks attractions.  Alas, that night a thunderstorm brought in heavy rains and cooling temperatures. 

 

Travelling in the driving rain is not a particularly inviting prospect but my campground lacked internet access so I decided to relocate.  Taking Hwy 5 south to Hwy 2 I drove east by-passing Winnipeg.  I had thought to visit Whiteshell Provincial Park on the Manitoba/Ontario Border but when crosswinds added to the tensions of rain-slicked and ponded highways I decided to try out Pinetree Campground at a place not on the map called Prawda.  Some people run campgrounds with mercenary intent finding campers a necessary nuisance in their goal of making money.  This was such a place.  The owner’s attitude and the signs at every turn telling one of something else one shouldn’t do served to make one feel one’s presence was a bother.  The ‘restaurant’ with its over-priced menu of frozen entrees did not look inviting.  The power worked and I wisely avoided the flooded area beside the swollen creek.  The rain which had fallen all day took a turn toward hail and large flakes of snow as the temperature dropped further making me thankful I wasn’t on the highway. 

 

Eastern Manitoba belies the prairie myth with its rolling hills, rocks, and boreal forests.  With Northern Ontario to the east it shares the Laurential Shield.  Save for a slight change in the quality of the highway there is little to mark the crossing into Ontario.  Whereas Manitoba roads were a four-lane divided highway Hwy 17 is a two-lane badly in need of the reconstruction that appears to be in the offing.  Arriving in Kenora I found a tourist bureau beside the harbour downtown with an OPEN sign in the window.  After paying to park I walked in to find they had no info!!!!  The tourist bureau that was ready being on the other side of town I negotiated the construction zone that is Main Street and drove over.  Arriving early in the season may relieve one of the need to make advanced reservations but can also find one’s hosts less than prepared.  When I arrived at Anicinabe Park the overnight frost had frozen up the plumbing, their advertised Wi-Fi was not yet activated, and their credit card approval system was not yet online.  Their electrical system was working however.  In the course of the day these deficits were rectified and a walk about the site proved that Lake of the Woods had recently thawed and the beach looked inviting even if the water was rather high and barely above freezing.  The free shower in an unheated comfort station looked somewhat intimidating.  When the rain resumed last night just being outside was a shower though with the thermometer hovering around freezing not an experience that looked pleasant. 

 

I believe it’s time for a genuine rant but I’ll make it a separate entry.