Blog

Last year Shan and I got away to Sioux Narrows for our Anniversary. While we were there we scoped out some amazing campsites and booked them immediately for this year once they were available. They are both non electrical sites but also both on the lake and one has a little island and private beach with fire pit. We booked five days almost just to see if we could do it.

We arrived on the Monday and had a great day setting up and settling in. We got into the lake and waited for the Morrison’s to arrive. We were also supposed to meet the Ratte’s out there but they just couldn’t make it. We had a nice dinner followed by a sweet fire on the island. Despite the mosquitoes who did everything they could to shut is down. Al and I shut it down around midnight.

Monday night, Tuesday, and Tuesday night it rained like I have never seen before. It kind of hung around Wednesday during the day so we spent some time in town and then drove to Kenora to hang out and have dinner. We ate at Cabin Jack’s and oh by the way they are out of fish and you can make a better nachos at home. Fries and poutine were awesome according to Lexi and Shan said the Quazzi-dilla was a good one.

It was Thursday when Shan noticed we had house guests…or should I say mouse guests. They had chewed through some plastic bags and left a few presents in one of the drawers. Al and I picked up a couple traps in town that afternoon and we set them up to see what we were dealing with and as soon as they were set we had our first kill. Shan and Larissa went to get more traps and somehow I managed to set them up wrong. Seems the little buggers cleaned peanut butter off two traps without them going off. Sadly we didn’t figure this out until I returned from the fire at about 1am. The kids were right freaked out (and I don’t blame them) so they were asleep on the couch beside our bed. I reset the traps and we went to bed listening to the mice munch on our latest investment and it didn’t take long for the first SNAP.

I kept getting out of bed and emptying traps trying hard not to wake up the kids. At about 3am I set our last 3 and went back to bed helpless at this point. We heard the first 2 go off and didn’t budge but about 430am the last one SNAPPED and I could hear it being dragged around under the dining bench where the hot water tank sits. Shan shone the flashlight in there and I could see it looking up at me. He was caught by the tail and was having trouble getting out of there. I couldn’t reach him so Shan went to get me some tongs and while she was away I watched him drag himself and the trap behind the cupboards. That is when we called it and started packing up. We were out of there and on the road by 6am.

We figure the crazy rain we had drove them out of their nests looking for warmth and high dry ground. No idea where they were getting in though. when we got home my dad was here so I asked him to reach in and pull out the moving trap! Thing was still alive too! Dad took care of that one and then we set the traps and caught one more soon after. Nothing overnight and we spent 2 days taking the camper apart and cleaning everything. We did some steel wool and spray foam too so I hope that helps when parked. We will see at Otter Falls this coming weekend!

All in all a great week with great friends. The girls had a blast swimming, catching “crawfish”, just hanging out by the fire.

   Sioux Narrows 2017 Album

Once again I am finding it hard to write. We move so fast in the summer it seems to fly by and I find myself in the last week of holidays before I know it.

We bought a camper this year so we didn’t wait long to test it out. We bought a 2009 Surveyor Hybrid off a really nice couple on Kijiji. It was the nicest one we had seen in our price range and the first time in the history of buying anything that Shannon didn’t try to haggle (that’s how I knew it was a good deal). It took a lot of figuring out and few car mods to make it all work but we are all set now. If you ever need anything hitch or tow related don’t waste you time with anyone other than Mitch’s Welding. They set me up with a brake controller that GNR would have butchered. When I couldn’t get my shank to work with the height of my trailer GNR wanted to add a lift kit to my camper for $1000 and told me that the right shank for my vehicle didn’t exist. I went to Mitch’s and was in and out in 10 mins with a new shank. They even put it together and adjusted for the height of my trailer. They are awesome there.

We started with a close trip to St. Malo just to get the feel for it. I have never towed anything like that before so I wanted to get the feel of it on a short trip knowing that our big one to Sioux Narrows was coming up. There were a few things to learn but for the most part it was smooth. A lot less set up for the hybrid but more crap to take care of like filling up with water and of course the dreaded dump before you leave. I put some strict bathroom rules in place to make sure it was a little more smooth.

As always St. Malo did not disappoint. The beaches were a little murky for the kids liking but we found the east beach a little more clear. We found the best place to play in the water was at the river on the south side of the park where people drop in their tubes. I was there with the dog the night before so on our last day we all went in the morning to play and explore. It was so nice that we decided we would likely just spend our last day down there. That was until we were walking back and Shan noticed Penny fussing over her leg. At first we thought the pests were getting to her and then we noticed the BLOOD. Lots of it running down her leg. I got her to the vet quick in St. Pierre Joly and in less than an hour they had her all stitched up. It looks as though she was impaled on a stick or something but it’s hard to know. The worst part for her is the cone she has to wear for the next 12 days. The worst for us was leaving her behind as we took off for 5 days in Sioux Narrows.

   St. Malo 2017 Album