The Adventure of “Rattletrap”

As of August 2013 we are off on our next adventure. This time though instead of taking motorcycles to some strange place – does the Arctic Circle and Central America seem strange because it used to for us – we are taking a motor home and driving across Canada. And we are bringing the dog !

We decided that instead of heading off to a foreign country or continent that we should really get a chance to see our country first. So Karen spoke to her superiors at VIHA and ended up with nearly 3 months off work this fall. I think they felt guilty for her not getting her holidays in 2012 and wanted to make it up to her.

But instead of doing the normal thing and buying a new or late model RV we purchased a 1988 Toyota motor home. It is small enough to park in a regular parking stall, narrow enough to navigate city streets and just big enough for the 3 of us. It is not what we started off looking to purchase for the trip but in the end we are really pleased with it.

She has been christened, if that is the appropriate term, “Rattletrap”. As any of you who have owned motor homes know they make all kinds of noise from the appliances, wind, personal items stored on board and try as you might you just never seem to get all of them quite at the same time. Therefore we call it “Rattletrap” due to the din she makes when we drive her.

So we leave on August 12 to see friends in Burns Lake, then off to Nakusp for the annual Horizons Unlimited event, then east to Edmonton to see Karen’s brother. After that we will head east to Newfoundland and home again by mid November. There are really no time lines, no reservations other than we have to be at the Miramichi River New Brunswick prior to October 15 because that is when the Atlantic salmon fishing season ends. We have been reviewing the various provincial travel sites, maps etc and have a rough idea of where we are going but as I believe that too much planning ruins a trip we are letting things work themselves out as we go.

We are looking forward to seeing Quebec and the Maritimes in their fall colours and spending time in Ottawa and Quebec City. We are trying to avoid the larger cities like Toronto and Montreal as much as possible just due to their size, complexities and the fact that we are not big city people.

Also we are trying to fish in each province. So if you know a favourite fishing place or someone along the route who might be able to show us a good spot, please let us know.

Keep an eye here on the blog for stories and photos.

Cheers

Kevan, Karen and Ryanne