The Pirate Ship

We had an excellent day on the South Sask today! Andrew, Gretchen and Karsten (my nephew, his wife and their son) had set off from Outlook on Friday and timed their return for a family breakfast at the Berry Barn.

Andrew (my husband, not my nephew) and I haven't been avid kayakers this summer so we didn't join them for the whole trip but paddling back into the city from the Berry Barn was manageable. And with other family in attendance, we didn't have to worry about vehicle shuttles. (Thanks Bev & Al!)

A, G & K have a pirate flag on their canoe and could often hear people say, "Hey, they've got a pirate flag!" It seemed like a fun conversation starter.

Captain and crew of the Pirate Ship

Family breakfast at the Berry Barn. Waffles . . . . Mmmmmm . . . . 

Setting off. The Berry Barn is a popular spot for starting or ending a paddling trip.

The Pirate Ship crew

The Captain of the Pirate Ship

Bald Eagle

Watching the Bald Eagle

Taking a break

Approaching the big city

Yay! We made it!

Drayton Valley Flying

We just got back from another short road trip out to Drayton Valley to get some high tows at Air Adventure Flight School. Thermals weren't great but we scratched as best we could. Andrew managed an hour long flight but most of them were 20-25 minutes. More importantly (for me), I was much more confident in my launches and landings than I was when we here a few weeks ago for my first "post-ankle-surgery" flights.

It was awesome to get up high again and take in the views. There's so much colour this time of year with the canola and flax crops. And I really appreciated the farmers who were baling hay which made for some nice big, clear landing zones!

Andrew high in the sky. (Just right of centre.)

Tow launch

As per usual, Andrew way above me.

Blue sky day. No clouds. Very light thermals.

New helmet! You can actually see my face now in my flying selfies. 

Claudio had a couple paramotor students while we were there.

Crazy cloud formation.

June Road Trip (3)

Beautiful terrain near Five Springs Falls in Wyoming

On our way back towards home, Andrew noted a flying site that had been marked on Paragliding Earth. Which often doesn't mean much. Even Mount Blackstrap is marked! But on checking further, it looked promising.

The launch is about a two minute walk from the upper Five Springs Falls campground near Lovell, Wyoming. Fortunately for our low-clearance Prius, the road is nicely paved the whole way up the mountain.

Andrew got some great lift right off launch and had a nice 20-minute flight.

Five Springs Falls launch is about a 2 minute walk from the campground.

More back road travels that meant getting closer to more magnificent wildlife. 

Last summer, Andrew had checked out a few places near Havre, Montana, and he'd gotten some short flights off Otis Peak. There are three directions you can launch from and, sadly, the wind was coming from the fourth direction. Hike, no fly!

But Otis Peak has an amazing number of different types of wildflowers. Fourteen by my count. So beautiful and colourful!

Sticky Geranium

Gaillardia

Groundsel

Bee balm/wild bergamot

Fireweed

Lupin

Fleabane

Yarrow

Harebell

Threadleaf phacelia

Hairy False Golden Aster

Wild rose

Wild rose

Rainfall put an end to our trip a day early but it was fun while it lasted! 

(Thanks to Andrew's sister, Penny, for flower identifications!)

June Road Trip (2)

We meandered through Yellowstone National Park en route to Wyoming -- where Andrew had scoped out a couple more potential flying sites he wanted to check out. 

We saw lots of wild and not-so-wild life in a couple short hikes. Once out of the park, we took roads less travelled and it's amazing how much more wildlife you see on the backroads! 

Food and squawking!

Tourist trail rides in the park.

Small creatures . . . 

And very big creatures!

An osprey mom and one of her babies. We saw a few heads pop up from the nest but it was hard to catch more than one at a time on camera. Papa osprey was hunting nearby.

Baby pronghorn. Mom was keeping a watchful eye on us.

Andrew hiking up a hill near Cody, WY. He ended up walking back down due to high and cross wind.
Good decision making! 

Meanwhile, I took a few photos nearby of wildlife. Love the red rock in the distance. 

There were lots of wildflowers in bloom! 

On one of roads less travelled we came across Legend Rock State Petroglyph Site. They were amazingly well preserved. Definitely some of the most clear petroglyphs I've seen.