Towards the light

This way is towards where the water will enter the tunnel. We felt very small! 

Inside the tunnel

This is inside the water tunnel at the dam. They will be blasting out a 10 foot wall of rock once the generator is in place but we were able to see what the inside looks like. It was about 300 feet down an adit and it was damp. 

the gang

We toured the Brilliant Dam expansion project. They are adding another generator to increase the power production and have been working since 2003. The project is nearing completion and the production company was delighted to show everyone how things are going. They took us in schoolbuses into the tunnels they have created and had guides present to give information and answer any questions. 

The old train station, now museum

This is the train station that saw many visits by my family. At the time we lived in Flin Flon there was no road out of town, not that we had a car. So when we went to visit, or had visitors come to see us, we always went by train. This station is now in a different location than when we last visited it in January 1957, when we left Flin Flon for Atikokan, Ontario. 

Josiah Flintabattey Flonatin

This is the statue at the tourist park. The statue was designed by Al Capp, creator of the L'il Abner comic strip. From a novel written about 1900 by J.E Preston-Murdock. The prospectors who staked the first claims in the area in 1915 found the novel, The Sunless City, near the trail. "Flin Flon" set out in his homemade submarine to explore a bottomless lake and ended up going all the way to the centre of the Earth, finding all kinds of precious metals along the way. When the prospectors saw that their vein of ore went under a lake they named both the camp and the lake "Flin Flon". In 1929 the CNR telegraphed them, now the Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting Company(HBM&S) that if they didn't hear differently, the new station would be called Flin Flon. And that is how the town where I was born ended up being named after a science fiction character! 

The smokestack and the slag heap

Then we approached Flin Flon and saw the smokestack and the head frames for the mine and the town in the distance. All rock. From the smelter? Or from the Canadian Shield? 

very interesting rock formation

Of all of the interesting rock formations, this was the most interesting - looked just like someone had laid a brick wall along the side of the road with this yellow stone. 

Another jewel of the north

 

One of the zillions of lakes

 

They really aren't bullrushes

When you look from a bit farther away, they really are just tree skeletons 

Another set of tree skeletons

This set of skeletons almost looked like bullrushes in a swamp. 

Northern Saskatchewan trees

We drove to Flin Flon via the Hanson Lake Road. It is practically 300 kilometres of straight road with only a few hunting and fishing lodges. The speed limit is 100 kph but the only thing keeping the speed anywhere near that (and I mean closer to 120) is the thought that an RCMP could just be there somewhere to check on everyone.
As Hezz said, there is nothing but bush for ages and ages;
then bush and hills;
then bush and rocks;
and finally, just rocks. 

The farmers sharing a few words and a beer

 

The tourist gets the ride on the combine

 

Here's the happy farmer welcoming tourists

 

Wanda and Hezz

 

Jan and Keely

The farmers discussing the rest of the day while sharing a refreshment

 

The marker is just beautiful with a hockey player on the left side and an oil rig on the right. 

We went to visit Eric

 

The Ridgedale Village Office

We stopped here on the way to meet Jim and Viola for lunch. Our goal was to visit the graves of Grandma and Grandpa McDiarmid. Hadn't been here since Grandma's funeral - 35 years ago. Such a pretty little cemetery, just like most prairie cemeteries. Our time was limited (couldn't miss lunch!) and we didn't find their graves. Found lots of others who are related to us. So later Mom assigned the task of finding the graves to Jim. He called that evening. He had phoned the village clerk, also related to us, who told him that there are markers, and where to look for them next time we are there. 

Had lunch with Jim & Viola in Tisdale

 

here's a cropped version

 

Christie wanted me to send this photo of Kokanee glacier - here you go!

 

Florence and Christie in the marketplace

 

Florence and Christie at the straw bale house at the Cottonwood Market