Sleeping Spot at Horsethief Canyon
Like many of you, I’m heading to Sedalia, Missouri for the International Rally. Unlike most, I began to meander toward Sedalia in late August. I thought it would be fun to share some of my adventures on the way.
I spent the summer boondocking in the Canadian Rockies. My first stop east of the Rockies was near Drumheller, Alberta. This area is known as the Badlands, and as both “the dinosaur capital of the world” and “Hail Alley.” I arrived on a Thursday and found a clandestine camping spot where sunrise and sunset highlighted the stunning buttes, pinnacles and spires! The forecast called for perfect weather through the weekend, so midday Friday I hiked down into a ravine. As I climbed back up to my trailer, severe thunderstorm and hail warnings flashed on my phone. I packed up quickly and headed east, thinking I’d need to drive a couple of hours to get out of harm’s way.
Horsethief Canyon
Long story short, the storm turned into a monster, chasing me east until after sunset. I nestled into the grass parking lot of a Mennonite Church in a tiny Saskatchewan town. In the morning, I asked the pastor if I could hang out at the church for the weekend. He said yes, and had lots of questions about my lifestyle. He was curious to know what kind of person wanted to hang out in a town of about 100 people.
My drive the next day through Saskatchewan was wheat, wheat and more wheat. So I was relieved to find a sleeping spot beside the metal-trussed Big Orange Bridge over the South Saskatchewan River near Outlook. The bridge was built in the 1930s, and when it was retired, the area was turned into a park. Hole #3 of the town golf course was right outside my bedroom window. The spot was so sweet that I stayed a few days and enjoyed knocking the dust off my clubs.
Camping at a Mennonite Church in Saskatchewan
Sunset at the Big Orange Bridge
After meandering east for another couple of days, I stopped at a small town auto parts and farm equipment store for fuel. “If you’re heading east, you’ve got at least seven more hours of wheat,” the owner said. Sitting on a bar stool, my elbows resting on his parts counter, I thought, Since when is distance measured by hours of wheat? I’m not joking when I say it was wheat for days! And it’s tough to find nice spots to park for the night when there’s nothing but wheat in all directions.
Boondocking at Joe’s Farm
I hadn’t stayed in a Boondocker’s Welcome (BW) spot for about a year, but that seemed like my best shot at finding a nice place to chill for a bit. Low and behold there were farms aplenty offering up several nights of dry camping. The first one I rolled into was in Western Manitoba. Herds of buffalo roamed the farm’s hundreds of acres, delightful horses followed me through the pastures, and farm cats came to greet me. There was even a creek to kayak in. When I asked Joe, the owner, if there was anything I could do to help, he suggested we sort and stack old fence posts for safekeeping. Over my five days on his farm, we had several deep conversations about life.
“Never and always are four-letter words,” Joe said.
Joe Taught Me to Drive His Tractor and Cut Hay
Kayaking the Grasslands of Manitoba
We stood between four silos and a prairie full of grunting bison, I held a fence post made from a rough cut tree limb. Half of a dog-eared ace of spades stuck up through dried mud beside the tire of a rusted red tractor. We were a Western sight, with Joe wearing a brown cowboy style neckerchief, and both of us in T-shirts, dirt smudged jeans, and tattered leather work gloves.
Sage wisdom had been pouring out of Joe all morning. “The wise scratch those words from their vocabulary.” Sun rays peeked through tall trees to the east. A few cotton ball clouds tinged pepto-bismol pink hung over the prairie. “Never and always rarely pass the test of time,” he said as he heaved a half rotted post toward the tractor.
It landed with a thud.
Sunset Over Lake of the Woods
After Joe’s place, I headed to Winnipeg to restock supplies, and stay a night at another BW farm. This one had a swimming pond complete with a five foot waterfall and a floating platform for diving into the cool water!
I continued east into the Lake of the Woods area of western Ontario and boondocked lakeside at two spots I found on iOverlander.com while I worked for a few days. Then I was off to another BW spot on the Rainy River in western Ontario. Betty and Wayne invited me to fish for walleye in the river that bordered their back yard; Minnesota’s tall trees lined the far shore. In the evenings, they shared the history of the area. From prohibition rum runners, to high school dating life in the ‘60s, this broad tea-colored river has seen plenty of international action over the years.
On Sept. 16, I crossed into Minnesota via International Falls. Now I had three weeks to meander south to meet many of you.
This summer was another journey for the ages. The splendor of my Canadian surroundings inspired me to create a 2025 wall calendar featuring the most beautiful places I visited in Newfoundland, British Columbia, Oregon, the Dakotas, Lake Superior, the Appalachians, Florida, and more. Each month features stunning imagery, and stories and facts about each adventure. I’ll have the calendars in Sedalia (my rig will be parked with the Boondockers Intra-club), so find me to get your own and enjoy a year-long pictorial Airstream journey to stunning remote places. If you aren’t going to Sedalia, you can pick up a calendar here: Kristyh.com/shop.
Speaking of meeting each other, let’s do it! At the International Rally, I’ll be giving two talks and a panel presentation:
I’m a Full-Time Solo Traveler, And I Can Back That Sh*t Up
Tuesday, October 8th, 10:30 – 11:30 a.m at Mohler Assembly Hall
This is a discussion about the incredible significance of personal sovereignty, whether backing up, traveling to distant lands, or completing roadside repairs. How can we be comfortable in the unknown, exercise our creative muscles, trust ourselves, ask for help, and be a helper?
Intro to Coddiwompling: The Art of Intuitive Living and Traveling
Thursday, October 10th, 2:30– 4 p.m. at MO-Ag Theatre
If you are up for moving around, you’ll have a chance to do that in this session (you’ll also be free to sit and relax too)! We’ll play a little to help us experience the joy and freedom (both mental and physical) of winging it in travel and living.
Boondocking Adventures Panel Discussion
Tuesday October 8th, 2:30-3:30pm at MO-Ag Theatre
Join us for an engaging discussion of the joys and challenges of boondocking. A panel of seasoned boondockers, will share their experiences, tips and best practices for enjoying off-the-grid camping.
