(Tori Dark and Kevin Nault have embarked on a trip across Canada aboard their newly converted camper van. In doing so they are joining hundreds of other couples who have taken up what is referred to in the culture as “VanLife”. During their trip, the Orléans Star will publish a series of diary pieces from Tori allowing readers to follow the couple’s journey. This is the latest installment in that series.)

Driving across the Canadian Prairies I felt equal amounts of Canadian pride and…well… bore-dom. I hate to say it, but it’s true! The landscape is vast and ever-rolling, but at the same time, there isn’t much to stop and experience in early February.

Despite it being deep winter, the hills were a glowing gold from the leftover canola crop in the fields. Although we were expecting blankets of beautiful snow, we were pleasantly surprised by a full sky of sun and warm 15°C weather. Making the most worrisome part of the drive breeze!

My partner Kevin and I had decided to pass by Winnipeg as we were just there last summer for my cousin’s wedding. We were lucky enough to stay in The Forks, a well-established neighbourhood for tourists with restaurants, shops and home to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights along the beautiful Red River (which is red!).

With such great memories, we decided to take the bypass around the city to keep moving towards Regina. We continued across Manitoba and arrived in Saskatchewan in no time!

I swear the drive to Toronto is longer than driving across all of Manitoba and half of Saskatchewan. We spent the night at a trailhead parking lot overlooking White Butte Park. The golden sunset met the horizon for as far as the eye could see – something neither of us has experienced before.

Luckily for us, my Uncle John lives in Regina and was more than happy to supply us with water for our water tank, laundry and hot meals.

It was nice to take a bit of time away from driving and relax. I had never been to Regina before, so we decided to accompany my Aunt Cathy and her two dogs Anika and Remy, to a barn-hunt agility class. Something I can almost guarantee does not occur in Orléans.

This unique form of agility challenges small breed dogs, such as miniature schnauzers like Anika, to find caged rats amongst a sea of hay bales. Yup, you heard me right. They are pet rats placed into camouflage tubes with breathing holes, hidden in the cracks of stacked hay bales. The event is timed and the contestants have to find all 4 rats as fast as they can. Did I feel bad for the rats? Absolutely! Did Anika and Remy find the rats? Technically yes, but at a leisurely pace. I had a great time spending time with my Aunt Cathy while experiencing an authentic Saskatchewan experience.

As much as this was something I was looking forward to, we are so close to our destination of Canmore, Alberta, I can almost taste it. Eight more hours until we reach the mountains and we can begin the vanlife dream for real. Stay tuned for scenes from our next adventure!

(You can follow Tori and Kevin at www.instagram.com/vanxiety_life/. Tori and Kevin are both former students at Cairine Wilson Secondary School, Class of 2012.)

Past articles...
Vanxiety_life #14: Kevin and Tori spend a month skiing in the Rockies
Vanxiety_life #13: VanLife couple enjoy life in the Rocky Mountains
Vanxiety_life #12: VanLife couple make mid-winter Prairie crossing
Vanxiety_life #11: Local VanLife couple travels across the Superior lakehead
Vanxiety_life #10: Local VanLife couple ready to hit the road again
Vanxiety_life #9: Vanlifers decide to spend a few months close to home
Vanxiety_life #8: Vanlifers return home for a short break before heading west
Vanxiety_life #7: It's never too late to start your own vanlife adventure