Lake Bonavista, Alberta, CanadaCalgary
Not relaxing at the lake – so we go to
the River
Looks like it will be sunny in Calgary
so Paul had the idea to go to Sikome Lake as this is a public lake – that would
have been a great idea if they wouldn’t build a fence around the lake and the
lake is closed – what!!!! What to do now – we decided to go to Fish Creek PP
and find there a nice spot, Gine found a parking lot where it says “picnic
table” ok we didn’t find them, but the sun is shining and we can have coffee
sitting in the sun near the creek and relax, soak up some sun and gine also
walked at one time to the bridge at the Bow river.
We move into Gerry’s place
At 5 o’clock we show up at Gerry’s –
and wow we get the Master suite – this is a huge gigantic bedroom with sitting
area, TV and fireplace and yes our own balcony with lake view – a huge bathroom…
we are living like kings here. And it is Friday – which is an important day
here as they have the carshows – yes we are going.
Car show at A & W
And then we are on the way to A&W
– I thought it is a few cars – but it is like a real car show with lots and
lots of cars – it was super cool to see. And we already recognize some cars
from the car show last year. Wondering around there are a lot of super cool
cars to see – but then sometimes the stories behind are also cool:
- The Marquis Sleeper: it looks not special a black Grand Marquis but when you open the hood you can see 1500 hp underneath it also has gigantic batteries in the back for cooling – some guy talk about what is going on…
- What is it??? From the back it looked like a Pontiac and it said Pontiac, once you walk around the front it looks like a Chevy and says Chevy???? Now we are confused, that is when we learned that Pontiac parts are very difficult to come by and chevy parts fit, so often they use them when they restore them
Pizza and getting settled in
On the way back we pick up some pizza
– and our first evening ends with yummy pizza and wings, then gine brings in
some of our staff, we make sure Mandy is ok and then we settle into our suite.
Next morning we get up and have a
coffee and barely done, Gerry and Paul leave to pick up the judge and give it a
clean, so we can head out to the carshow. No there is no time for breakfast –
we take some muffins along.
And another car-show
In this show are around 160 cars and
they have all from the really old ones, the super chromy from the 50s and 60s,
muscle cars, lots of mustangs like old ones and new ones like the bullet,
German Opel GT – and I think it is cool to talk to the people and get some
stories, let’s not forget in between we get a nice cup of Coffee as well some
burgers….
- Opel GT: there was a row with 6 of them all in yellow and orange, which I thought was super unusual as they didn’t really sold opel here, so gine went to talk to them and yes there are a lot of Opel GT here, and one of the guys even has a Manta like I had and will paint it in silver and it will be the only Manta in western Canada those guys are aware off – and I learned the Opel GT is the cheaper downsize for the guys who can’t afford a Corvette
- An old 1947 Dodge: it is not that we never seen one, but when you talk to the guy and he told me that this car got bought new by his grand parents and is since then in the same family – than that is super amazing
- The Bullet: the same green – and super nice looking is one of the 2019/20 Mustang Bullets – and the guy told us, not every dealer got one, only some and they didn’t exchange them, so he looked around until he found a dealer in Regina and flew there to pick it up – and even cooler there were two of those vehicles here
- Gerry’s Judge: it is amazing on how some of the people are in awe and can’t believe in what a good shape the judge is – by the way there was another white judge here it belonged to a woman
- There was a super old and super nice MG
- The wood Buick: this one was very nicely restored with all the wood work – and we learned that the owner did redo all the wood and a lot of pieces as custom made
- The car quilt: at one car, they had an amazing quilt: they printed different cars on cloth and then it was made into a quilt – it looked so super amazing
- And what was also cool, once the show was over at 2 pm, the cars rolled out and we could watch them all leaving – and discovered there were a few cars we missed earlier.
- Ok what I also thought is interesting that the VW Gold GTI is a collectors item – but then it blew nearly my mind when I saw a Sirocco standing there (I mean really they are the worst looking sports cars out there)
Some relax time at Gerry’s
Coming back we all needed a bit a
break from all the input with the cars and then we had to do some shopping and
moving around cars – yes it is complicated: the judge goes in the garage, the
red one behind the covered one, then the truck back in… it takes a while until
each one is moved to the right spot. Once we wanted to make super we had a
quick set back as the oven wouldn’t want to start so a bit of playing around
and finally we are ready – after the guys also cleaned the balcony and we can
have supper outside with an amazing lake view.
Time for a movie
And how do we end our day: with a
great movie Topgun in the movie theatre – perfect, now we are ready for bed and
for another hot day in Calgary.
A nice breakfast in the sunshine
We woke up to beautiful sunshine and
after a coffee we decided to have a nice breakfast with bacon/sausages and eggs
out on the balcony in the sunshine – I mean what better start can you have for
a day. Sitting in the sunshine with lake view!!!
A lazy day on the lake or in the
garage
And then today we decided to have a
lazy vacation day for Paul that meant he spend the time with Gerry and they
were fixing staff on the GTO and Gine finally could dye her hair, do laundry,
bring out the paddle board and enjoy the lake and check out all the pricy
mansions around the lake front – read, learn Spanish – wow we are now so
relaxed!!!
We were so lazy we didn’t even cook
supper but went to the food court in the Mall!!!
Can our fridge be repaired?
This morning we got up nice and
relaxed and after a lazy start and look out to the smoky sunrise – like at
home, and then first task is to go to the RV repair shop: a lot of checking and
then it get all blown out as it was super dirty and then let’s hope it works. A
few hours later when we checked the fridge is cold!!!! Yeah – it works again
now we are super happy. We will plug it in to check if the electrical part
works too – so far not so promising.
What do you do in the city? Shopping!!
Being here having different Malls –
yes we have to do some shopping. Last
evening we were at the Southcenter Mall – today we head to the Chinook Mall and
we have our fun, but also discover a bit of shopping and a coffee/icecream and
we are ready to head back.
The Gasoline Alley
This morning we decided to head to
check out the Gasoline Alley in the Heritage park. We park and wonder through
the different halls to check out the cars and the gas pumps: they have Canada’s
largest collection of restored gas pumps and restored trucks. One car was open
so we could sit in it and feel like being in the good old days. What was also
super cool as they had a Fort T engine with starting crank and we could try to
start it up – I think I may would rather stay home, then do that much cranking!!
One thing is for sure here we got an education of the beginning of the car
industry and the really early models.
- “Get your motor running, head out on the highway looking for adventure and whatever comes your way”
- “It is not the destination – it is the glory of the ride”
- “You’ve got to ride to live and live to ride”
Some cool facts about the early cars
and driving:
- Until 1920s you could have a car with the steering wheel on either side of the car and each province had their own rules: French controlled territories (Quebec to Lousiana) drove on the right but the british territories (BC, NB, NS, PEI NL) drove left. In the 1920s BC and the Atlantic provinces switched also to the right to conform Canada with the US, Newfoundland only switched in 1947 and then joined Canada in 1949
- At the beginning Fords cars unpainted and if painted they were dark grey or black, black was used because it was the least expensive and dried the fastest. Henry Ford onces said “A customer can have a car in any color he desires, as long as it is black”. But this was not true between 1907-1914 Ford had 5 colors to choose from all were darker shades. The black color allowed Ford to produce one car every 90 minutes
- At the beginning there were no road-rules, in 1906 Alberta passed the Automobile act making licencing mandatory and setting speed limits for in town 10 mph and in the country 20 mph
- The first formal drivers training was offered in the 1920s and by 1929 all drivers in AB required to be licenced, the driving exam got implemented in 1937
- In 1931 Calgary installed its first traffic light on 7th Ave
- In the 1910 they called for the national Canadian highway. The roads were built in the province but did not extend to the borders. In 1949 the government committed to connect all 10 provinces by road and the Trans Canada Hwy opened in 1962 – 8000 km long it is the nation’s main artery
- The Dirty 30s: during the depression life was tough for most, the stock market crashed, the prairies turned into a dust bowl, tens of thousands of people lost their job. In 1933 1 in 3 could barely make a living and 2 of 3 were unable to pay there taxes. While many couldn’t afford to drive it was the era of luxury vehicles like Auburn, Cord and Packard – they were fast and glamerous. Many of those car manufactorers didn’t survive the great Depression like Auburn and Cord. During this time many hitched horses to their cars – as gas was unaffordable, know as Bennett-Buggies
- 1918: Canada’s population was 8.1 Mill, Albertas 510.000 and in Calgary lived 59.340 people. It was the time when Spanish flu hit and 55.000 died in Canada. The average household income was 995 $ per YEAR! A house costs 1100 $, a loaf of bread 6 cents (and the bread law dictated that bread was sold by weight to stop bakers to add gravel or sawdust to increase weight), milk was 8 cents as there was a shortage in 1936 you only paid 5 cents for them milk. Gasoline was 6 cents and even in the old days it could fluctuate by 25 % overnight depending on demand and production.
And lots of cool cars to see – even
most of the vehicles were from before 1950, it is also always interesting to
read some stories and facts about the times:
- Summer vacation: they had a 1956 Plymouth station wagon and an old trailer – both super cute, it was in the 1950s that road trips became popular vacations as it was cheaper to go by car then to use the train and you had the freedom of when to go. Motels with car parks started near the highways and became more popular than hotels, drive-in-stations, service stations, car washes and parkades appeared. The 50s station wagons were the choice for the family.
- Two glamorous vehicles from the dirty 30s a 1932 Auburn and a 1931 Cord (which was the first front wheeled car) it was striking: but a bit pricy with 3000$ compared to the Auburn with less than 1000$ - and the Fort T less than 300$
- 1905 Cadillac, which was still in original condition, they found it in an abandoned gold mine in Northern California and an old 1914 Mitchel
- In the “Garage” we found old tools, old work benches: the early cars needed a lot of repair work, the wooden bodies and frames dried and cracked with the temperature changes, they started to make one-stop Services gasoline sale and repair in one.
- 1915 Locomobile touring car: this one had a brake to stop the car in an emergency instead of only slowing it down)
- 1918 Chevy 490: because it cost 490$ - by the way the electric lights and starter were an extra fee, because it was sold so successfully the chevy owner William Durant could get control of GM
- 1922 Gray-dort: it is Canada’s first domestic built car and was in 1922 the most popular car in the prairies with over 5000 registered vehicles
- 1930 Nash: it was sitting for 50s through the dirty 30s in a Saskatchewan barn, got then mechanically restored and he drove it 2000 miles on Route 66 from Chicago to LA recreating the journey of many dustbowl refugees
- 1907 Brush Model B Runabout: the company advertised it with “the Brush is the simplest car built, the least liable to trouble, the easiest to understand and learn to operate, the safest to run, the most economical to maintain and last but not least the easiest-riding car in the world” – haha even in the early days they went overboard with advertisement for this cute open top red little car
- 1915 & 1916 Fort Model T: this car can’t be missed in an old-car collection of the early days. Henry Ford dreamed to built “a motor car for the great multitude, a car so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one” he achieved his dream with the Model T in 1908, it was mass produced and had production lines, to save costs they were all black. Between 1908 and 1925 they produced 5 Mill: Ford put the world on wheels out-producing all competitors.
- 1910 McLaughlin top buggy: GM traces its roots to a small farm in eastern Ontario, Robert McLaughlin started a small carriage works in 1869 and in its heydays they made over 14.000 horse-drawn carriages. McLaughlin was not eager to built cars as he thought they were noisy, smelly and just a passing fad. But his sons invested in the new technology and built the first McLaughlin-Buick – so near the buggy we could see the 1918 McLaughlin-Buick: which was advertised as Canada’s Standard car (did you know that in alberta those cars were used with the famous rum-running by the famous AB bootlegger)
- 1940 Hudson Traveller Sedan: they were speedy vehicles – 1930 Marmon Roosevelt: in 1911 they won the Indianapolis 500 which was the first car with a rear-view mirror. This model here was only built for two years and this rare one was found in rural alberta.
- 1912 Little Roadster: it is called little after William Litte a Buick manager who pioneered the automobile manufacturer little company, they wanted to rival Ford Model T, they stopped building them in 1913
- 1914 Grand Roadster it was lightweight, cheap, and did 50 mph – but the Grant Motor Car company also went under in the 1920 Recession
- 1908 Reo Autobuggy: REO – Ransom. A Olds left the Oldsmobile company and they were built until the 1930s Depression hit them
The truck collection & Pickups:
Did you know that Henry Ford was the
first one to use the word “pickup truck” in 1925 when he created a new body for
the Model T?
- 1933 Diamond Brewery truck
- 1912 Mack senior truck: the 1st Mack was built in 1900 as a sightseeing bus, and in 1911 the Mack’s brothers built heavy duty trucks, this is the only survivor
- 1912 Benz fuel tanker: yes it got built in the 1894 founded Benz-Gaggenau factory in Germany – which is also the oldest automobile factory in the world – this 5 ton truck had cast iron wheels with solid rubber tires
- 1910 Fuel wagon: I think it was funny that at the beginning the tank wagons were pulled by horses to distribute gasoline and greases to the costumers on rural farms
- 1945 Federal Dump truck, 1920 Autocar Dump truck: they were easy to maneuver through narrow streets, they were used in California to transport fruits from the vineyards to the plants and train stations
- 1941 Tow Truck in Art-deco style and a 1915 Cadillac tow truck: in 1916 Ernest Holmes helped rescue a Fort Model T from a ditch it took a whole day and six men – and he thought there should be a better way: he mounted three poles to the frame and added a pulley and ran a chain through it: the tow truck was born. And there was a 1935 Diamond T Tow Truck: the president of the Diamond company said “a truck doesn’t have to be homely” so they made stylish designs, those trucks were exceptionally quality trucks
- 1922 White Fuel Tanker: the White brothers made originally their steam-powered truck in their fathers sewing machine factory, they soon were world leaders in heavy trucks, and a 1932 Federal Fuel truck: the Federal motor truck company mission was “to build trucks which do a trucks work”
- 1911 Chase Auto delivery wagon: a motorized farm wagon it could be used as a truck or to transport people, the chase company produced around 5000 vehicles from 1907-17, but less than 1 % are still around
- 1913 IHC auto wagon: International harvest company produced around 20.000 high wheel motor vehicles – the precursor of the pick up, they were practical and could handle rough roads
- 1925 Ford Model TT: which was a truck in the States they were one-ton-trucks, as where the Canadian models were more powerful and ton-and-a-half trucks, still they were often found near the road so that the overloaded and overheated engines could cool down. 1928 Ford Roadster Pickup: in the US it didn’t had a door on the drivers side to prevent drivers to step out into the traffic – as they did in Canada, as some provinces drove on the other side of the road
- 1946 Hudson pick up: 1900 of this were made it was their big boy
- 1939 Federal Pick up: Federal made all from a ½ ton to a 7 ½ ton, during the mid thirties they even made a few travel trailers under the name “motorhome” for living purposes
- 1937 Terraplane Big Boy Pickup from Hudson – the company claimed that “driving one was like flying on land”
- 1928 auburn 6-76: this is the only one of this kind still in existence, it was only made for one year
- 1929 Ford Model AA: you could get them for all purposes funeral coaches, Ambulance, dump trucks. Did you know al Capone had one of those? His was a beer truck – the one on display here was bought from Alberta’s original ford dealer Maclin Ford of Calgary (by the way they are still in business today and paul worked there once but not in 1929
- 1927 Star Grain Truck: built by the Star company in Ontario
- 1912 Buick express truck Model 2A: they say it was not very comphy but a work horse, this 2 cylinder chain driven vehicle could haul a one ton load
- 1924 unrestored international truck: this truck was found in a farm: Bringing a vehicle back to their former glory is a labour of love, which takes skill, research and lots of hard work
And that is how we spend time in sunny
Calgary:
Breakfast was mostly cereals (as we
had too much for supper the day before), but at least once we had to have a
nice breakfast…
As it was always a bit sunny – Paul
went to check the fridge: we were not happy when the electrical plug in didn’t
work that well (that goes on the at home to do list), then he cleaned the truck
and camper and waxed it all up – so it’s less work at home, he cleaned and
repaired more on the judge…
Gine went to finish off most of the
diary – nearly there!!! Continued with her Spanish lessons (so we are ready for
the next vacation), planning for the next tirp and relaxed in the sunshine with
a book at the lake or the paddleboard on the lake.
And Mandy: she was sitting watching
Paul, went out to lie in the drive way, went for short walks with Paul (by the
way if another person comes she is so fast to go back, that at one time Paul
had to go the leash that she could rush back to the camper!!!
It was nice to have this downtime
before heading home….-
What’s for supper today???
Paul and Gerry are very similar, they
make a big deal on what’s for supper – so one evening we went to the Cheesecake
factory, one evening we met with Gerry’s sister Katrina and her husband Kurt,
as well the daughter Rebecca at Fatburgers – yes that are yummy and healthy
burgers. One evening they were sitting in the living room to make a plan for
the rest of the week: one evening we met with Carol & Don – so we know them
before staying in their house and one evening we drove down to Okotoks so we
could have some real Texan BBQ – this is so yummy!!! Gerry said Albertans are like Texans: they
like BBQ and eat a lot, they have cattle and oil, and they love their guns….
2025-05-22