Peace River, Alberta

Waking up to beautiful sunny day with low fog hanging through the Peace River Valley, we head out about 9 AM taking in some sites along the way...

Before leaving Peace River we drove to the top of a hillside overlooking the confluence of the Smokey and Peace Rivers where Twelve Foot Davis was buried. Davis was a legendary fur-trader who went head-to-head with the Hudson's Bay Company in the early days. He got his name by staking a 12-foot claim located between two existing claims and mining $12,000 in gold from it; according to some he blew all his money in Victoria and then heading north to the Peace to make his living. Here is a picture of Lynn beside Twelve Foot Davis' grave with the Peace and the Smokey in the background.

Next is a whistle stop through the French Canadian town is Marie Reine ("Queen Marie"). Stopping at a country home on the edge of town, we discover that full preparations are being made for a wedding. One older gent is on the back porch getting a haircut, the sons are up from Red Deer to attend the wedding, children are everywhere. The Papa of the house shares with me his folklore, taken from a book entitled Alberta Names, that Marie Reine was named after Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Makes sense!

And just down the road at Falher, Alberta we come across what is claimed to be the world's biggest bee! Falher and area claims to "bee" the honey capital of Canada with some 60,000 hives producing 7 million lbs. of honey each year. Sweet!



Several hours later we arrive in Edmonton and settle in. Ravan, our daughter, will be visiting tomorrow with her partner, Sean. For tonight, it's off to the observatory at the Telus World of Science where i visit my RASC (Royal Astronomical Society of Canada) friends, followed by our tradition of coffee at Tim Horton's.