Day 26: From town to town to oil well. Pedaling Feat pedals on.

Day 16: Moose Jaw to ???

We set out from Moose Jaw the next morning. We had been having such a great ride on the small country roads that we made a last minute change to our route to avoid riding on the Trans Canada. The route we chose took us south along highway 39. We weren't sure where we would be stopping that night, or where exactly we were going in general (other than East), but in true Pedaling Feat fashion, we pedaled onwards, ready for whatever came our way.

The road was still flat, the fields were vast and increasingly frequently, we were noticing oil well pumps! Being from Ontario, and loving the renewable energy era, I was amazed at the countless number of oil wells there were in the middle of farmers fields throughout Saskatchewan.

That being said, this view became the norm as we rode on and soon I was distracted by the small towns we passed through. Two of my favorites that day: Drinkwater and Rouleau.

The first, Drinkwater, a village with a population of 80, was a reminder to do just that. Drink water.

The second, a bit more exciting, was Rouleau. This town is the former home of the TV show Corner Gas. Lois was in all her glory as I parked her right next to the set and went crazy with the camera.

Rouleau, SK. Hometown of Corner Gas.

My final memory of the ride that day... The route we had chosen followed the Canadian Pacific Railway. Every half hour or so, a train would pass by, the conductor would open the window, give a wave and toot the horn. As with the deer (Roo), I would try to keep up, but without fail, would fall behind. If nothing else, it gave momentum to a rather uneventful ride that day.

We ended in the small town of Yellowgrass, SK where we set up camp at the local campground. There we met an interesting character, who we refer to as Falcon man. Mel and I had gone for a walk around the village when we spotted two, what I originally thought were turkeys, sitting on the front lawn of a home.

Mel, riding towards Yellowgrass, SK.

We soon learned, from Falcon man, that they were (drumroll), Falcons! One of the falcons had a hood on (hence the turkey confusion) so that he was not threatened by the other male who had

just been bathed and was drying his feathers.

Falcon man uses the falcons for hunting small rodents and other birds during the fall and spring seasons. The rest of the year he keeps the falcons tied up on a stoop. While this was a bit shocking to the both us, he seemed to take very good care of them - bathing them regularly and feeding them often.

Feeling as though we had taken up enough of his time, we returned to Lois for the night!