22-Jun-2001 -- The weather looked fine today so we decided
to search out another confluence. It turned out to be the
hottest day so far this year with a temperature of 33°C. We
left home about noon and headed north on Highway 6 to
Southey. Along the way we spotted 2 deer bounding out of a
grove of trees to head across a grain field. At Southey we
turned west onto Highway 22 and drove to Dysart where we
took grid roads north then east then a short distance south
on a trail until we were near N51°. Leaving the van at the
side of the trail we set off across the hot windy grain
field to find the confluence. A marsh surrounded by trees
was in our way so we detoured around it to find the spot at
a straight line distance of 560 meters from our van.
At the confluence we took photos of the GPS and of the view
in each direction. Back at our van we posed with our
Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier, Max, on the trail and took a
"timed" picture. A pond with Canada Geese and several ducks,
including a Mallard duck and her ducklings, is to the left
of us on the other side of the trees. In the confluence
photo facing east, five round steel grain bins are visible
approximately 800 meters away in the distance. These same
bins are seen again in the background of the photo taken at
the Ukrainian Catholic Cemetery we found on our way back to
the highway. The well maintained cemetery, with no nearby
church or buildings of any kind, is directly east of the
confluence. The farm in the photo is north of the cemetery
along the same grid road. The farm is approximately 1 km
from the confluence.
We took the long way home following Highway 35 into the
beautiful Qu'Appelle Valley, a long valley that stretches
along much of southern Saskatchewan. At Fort Qu'Appelle,
a town in the valley near Echo Lake, we stopped for ice
cream cones before driving along the lake to admire the
resort area and Echo Valley Provincial Park. Up out of the
valley we were soon on flat prairie land again. At the
Trans Canada Highway we turned west towards Regina and the
end of another successful day. Our trip lasted four and a
half hours and covered 230 km.