May 31, 2014

I now understand why the grain elevator is so indelibly imprinted on the psyche of the prairies. Most obviously is the economic importance it played in agricultural communities and wheat farmers but they are more than places to store grain. Grain elevators dominate the landscape and tower over the towns. The businesses and watering holes sprang up across the street from them. I can only imagine the rich life that conspired in their shadows-the exhilaration and despair of rising and falling wheat prices, gossip shared about so-and-so’s latest scandal, world affairs discussed and solved, and surely more than a few furtive romances.

Cycling in a straight line across a relatively flat horizon, the elevator is the first thing and only thing you see of a town for awhile, about 15 to 20 kilometers away. With the towns fairly evenly spaced, similarly organized across from the elevator, and resembling elevator design, you start to feel like you’re cycling in some cosmic loop. For about an hour you cycle towards the elevator then fairly quietly pass and before you know it you’re cycling towards that elevator again. I’m not complaining as I know this is an experience slowly disappearing with the traditional elevators being demolished for modern steel monstrosities or not replaced at all.

The first elevator on my horizon today was part of the reason why I’m taking this route. It proudly declared I was entering Dog River; the town is actually Rouleau. My Canadian readers, all three of you, will recognize it as the place of the acclaimed tv show Corner Gas. Dog River, supposedly 40km from nowhere, and the prairies generally play an important part in the story line. The presumably empty and boring turn out to be full of life and intrigue, generally to comedic effect as it is a sitcom. It’s a modern version of Stephen Leacock’s Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town, which is to say very Canadian, self deprecating humour. I enjoyed seeing the the different locations and enjoyed taking lunch at what was the bar in the show. I’m sure all of you will be thrilled to hear that a movie is in the offing or so the rumors fly here.

While visiting “Dog River” was exciting, the treasure I unexpectedly came across in the little village of Drinkwater SK kept me going for awhile. I noticed the church from a distance and decided to take a look. It turned out to be abandoned but sadly nailed shut for I’d have loved to see the sanctuary. About to head down the highway again, more buildings that suggested a time of prosperity and optimism caught my attention. As you can see from the pictures fairly grand homes, town hall, and park were built though now falling apart or boarded up. Streets with lofty names like King St and Edward St now dirt roads. The sidewalk on Main St taken over by grass, dandelion, and shrubs. The round barn a bock over is reminiscent of the Shaker barns on the east coast. After further research, I learnt that the round barn was the symbol of efficiency in farming at the turn of the century before large scale mechanization in the Midwest. Clearly Drinkwater was going places. Unfortunately, no historical markers explained the history of this intriguing place though everything suggests a rich history lurks in this place.

Road Report: 157km
The road from Moose Jaw to Weyburn is lovely representation of prairie wheat lands and towns not to be missed. Shoulder conditions are good overall though the section between Rouleau and junction 4 had those annoying breaks in the highway that make it sound like you’re a railcar clacking along, a little rough.