Rest of Manitoba

Though Winnipeg was a bust, we did manage to eek out a few positive experiences on Day 16, our second (and final) full day in Manitoba.

We started to enter semi-prairie territory about a half hour (maybe more) after departing "The Peg."

We took our chances with a place called the Little Red Barn (A on the map) that was advertising fresh produce along the highway. It proved to have been a really nice little shop, with some of the wares from their farm adjacent, and the rest grown or produced locally.

The owner, a lady in her sixties (I reckon), was kind and talkative--but not overly so--and (I can only speak for myself here), but I left the shop not only with some of the best homemade relish I've ever tasted, but a sense of restoration after the debacle the night prior. I needed that stopover to be a win, and the lady at the Little Red Barn (who looked a bit like former Federal Reserve head Janet Yellen, but is clearly a much better person) delivered big-time. Shout out to that lady.

We followed that with a stopover in Gladstone (B), one of the many small towns in the midwest with much more to offer than it seems at first blush. The stopover was meant to be a quick run for eggs at the local Co-op (quick aside: the Co-op, which is basically defunct in Nova Scotia seems to have an empire of sorts in the prairies for groceries, farm goods, and even gas--and their own liquor stores in Saskatchewan, somewhat incredibly).

Like I was saying, we were planning to get eggs and run. The little bakery and restaurant nearby sucked us in, though, and we decided to spring for some lunch. We struck up a conversation with a fellow and his daughter who were settled there from Vancouver. They came there for the bargain real estate prices vs the bubble in Vancouver. Yet again, it wasn't just bread, cookies, and a full stomach we left with that afternoon, but a full heart also. Shout out to that guy and his daughter for being so welcoming.

Classic soup and sandwich with soda crackers for me and some progress and cabbage roll for the missus.

We ended the day at a municipal campsite with a more than affordable offer of $26.25 a night for a lot with electricity and water, plus your bathroom and shower access free of charge--a quality offer for glorified vagrants such us ourselves.

As is his wont, Kenting had a sample of the water before we hooked it up to the RV.

The town, Shoal Lake, was another fine little place, and the park adjacent to the campsite was good for a stroll. There were but a few campers at the site, so we practically had the run of the place.

For dinner we ventured to try the local pizza as well, and it delivered big-time. You'll pay the same amount in Montreal for a pizza that is mostly bread with a few intermittent toppings if they're feeling generous. Small town stopovers continues to have their charms. Shout out to Benny's Pizza.