Recognizing Blessings around Us : St. Paul to Spedden

It was already a bright, warm, sunny morning when we followed the trail out of St. Paul this morning.  To our delight we found ourselves walking on a paved pathway beside the gravel track as we wove our way through the green spaces and neighbourhoods of the town.  The cheery songs of American Robins, the whiny complaints of baby Black-billed Magpies, and the gentle cooing of Mourning Doves accompanied us to the edge of town. 

Soon we found ourselves back in the countryside, with rolling green fields extending out in all directions.  The track was bordered on both sides by trembling aspens and other smaller shrubs, creating a corridor of green.  Small ponds dotted the fields, and in many places the ditches on either side of the trail were filled with standing water.  Several pairs of Blue-winged Teals erupted out of these tiny waterbodies as we passed. 

A few kilometres outside of town we were passed by three couples, each in their own ATVs all flying Canada flags as they gently rumbled by.  They slowed down and gave us waves of encouragement as they passed.  So far we've been really impressed with the culture of respect on the trail.  The gates are generally kept closed, the trail is in good condition, there is very little or no garbage on the trail, the rest stops and staging areas are clean and well-kept, and all the ATV drivers we've seen so far have been very courteous and considerate.  The ATV community and Trail Ethic here reminds us a little of the amazing experiences we had along the T'Railway Trail in Newfoundland.  

As we made our way between the fields the buzzy calls of Savannah and Clay-coloured Sparrows filled the air, along with the calls of Bobolinks and Western Meadowlarks.  We were delighted to spot nest boxes on the fence posts that lined the trail for several kilometres in the morning. 

 

The landscape in the first 10 km of our hike today seemed much flatter than it has been in previous days, and the corridor of aspens never seemed to leave us.  However, the morning wasn't without interesting wildlife encounters.  A large, glossy brown mule deer bounded along in the field beside us for a short distance.  Soon after that we crossed a concession and on a hill above us we spotted the bright red and grey coat of a coyote who was watching us quietly.  At the next gravel road crossing a white-tailed deer bounded into the trees ahead of us. 

Just before we reached the tiny settlement of Owlseye we passed a small rest area with a pit toilet.  The grass was neatly mowed in front of the structure, but to actually get inside would have required ploughing through a tall, thick, patch of thistles.  Sadly the pit stop didn't have a picnic table to take a break. As we stood in the shade a few meters farther along the trail for our rest we enjoyed watching a baby American Crow wobbling, flapping, and testing its balance in a nearby tree. 

 

Although I'd been curious about the place named Owlseye, and how it got its name, I've discovered very little in this respect. It turned out to be a very small collection of homes with a charming bright red barn.  There was a greenhouse and nursery that looked closed, and this was followed by a very flat section of land where the crops were planted right up to the edges of the trail on both sides, reminding us of the trails in many parts of Manitoba. 

 

So far the Iron Horse Trail has been somewhat variable in its trail bed conditions.  In the section we walked coming up to Abilene Junction it was wider than the gravel road beside it.  It was a strange feeling area, with the extra wide trail (25-40 feet in places), a gravel road, and a scrapped clean median of dirt in between the two.  Indeed it was so wide that several trucks drove down it as we walked along its edge.  It felt very exposed, and just as we were commenting on this a very young white-tailed deer, who still had white spots and wobbly-legs, made a long dash across the wide open area. We watched in horror as it headed straight for the wire fence on the far side of the road, but instead of getting caught, it dove between the wires with barely a break in its stride.  Happily, its mother was already in the pasture on the far side, and they galloped off into the trees together. 

About 4 hours after leaving St. Paul we came to Abilene Junction, which despite being at the centre of three branches in the pathway was somewhat confusingly labelled 'Mile 0' of Alberta's Iron Horse Trail.  This point marked a choice - we could follow the trail onward to Waskateneau (93 km west) or we could turn north towards Cold Lake (98 km north) or south back toward Heinsburg (our starting point).  Apparently a lot of work has been put into improving the northern spur of the trail, which would be exciting to explore.  However, our route along the Trans Canada Trail took us westward towards Waskateneau instead, so that is where our future adventures will lie. 

At the junction was a large staging area with several picnic tables and fire pits, a covered picnic area, a washroom, and a cluster of interpretive signs.  It was newly mowed and the trail volunteer was having a well-deserved nap in a lawn chair in the sunshine.  If he had been awake we would have thanked him for his hard work. 

After passing Abilene we found ourselves walking in a more hilly landscape where the fields above us looked like they had just been cleared.  Large piles of trees had been cut and left in the fields, which consisted of rich, dark, freshly turned soil. In the distance we could see the forested outline of the Upper Mann Lake Natural Area, with the blue waters of the lake at the bottom of the valley.  Originally Mann Lake was a single waterbody, but construction of Highway 28 in 1961 split the waterbody in two.  There is now an nature reserve and hunting area surrounding the more southerly lake. 

Shortly after passing the treed valley we crossed over Ashmont's Buried Trestle bridge.  The bridge is located on the old homestead of Charles Cheshire, a soldier and settler who arrived there in 1919, after fighting in WWI.  Apparently CNR decided that the trestle bridge wasn't stable enough, and in 1933 they decided to pour sand and gravel on top from the Spring Park gravel pit near Lindbergh.  There were several ATV drivers parked on the trestle, enjoying the view out over the creek and wetland below as we passed by this historic spot. 

As we approached the community of Ashmont the afternoon was getting very hot.  Throughout the day trail conditions varied from relatively hard-packed gravel to very soft patches of sand. The whole trail is very well graded, and it is obviously fantastic for ATVs, but in sections the soft surface makes for really rough going for those cycling or hiking, especially when pulling wheeled carts.  By the time we got to Ashmont we were very hot, tired, and sore from pushing through the soft sand. 

 

 

The treed park and staging area in Ashmont featured a beautiful white gazebo with murals of horses, ATVs, and cowboys.  There was also space to park horses, and a washroom.  Although there were no picnic tables we took a seat in the shade of the gazebo, and enjoyed an enormous ice cream and an iced tea from the nearby convenience store. 

Ashmont began as a farming community in the early part of the 20th century, and was named after Ashmont, Boston where the first settler originated.  At its peak in the 1960's it featured a grain elevator, four general stores, a pool hall, a Legion hall, two gas stations, and a school.  Now only one general store remains, kept alive by visitors to and cottagers on the many lakes that surround the community.

We left Ashmont around 3 pm, walking through a hot, sunny afternoon.  The trail was straight as an arrow, stretching out ahead of us to the horizon.  There was absolutely no shade on the wide gravel trail, which was again wider than some of the country roads we've travelled down.  Aspens lined the trail, creating a green corridor with little variation.  A particularly soft, rutted, and washboarded section of trail left us exhausted, crawling from patch of shade to patch of shade. 

We took lots of breaks and tried to focus on all the things we appreciate about the trail. As the trail traced along beside the highway, which was very busy with traffic returning home from the long weekend, we realized there was a lot to be grateful for.  Although the trail is very soft in places, it is easier going than some of the deep, soft sandy grid roads we've walked in other parts of the prairies. It is a rail trail, so it is relatively flat, and we are able to take breaks when we want to without cars and trucks roaring past inches away or covering us with dust.  The scenery is beautiful, and there are patches of shade, and there is a strong and positive trail culture of friendly ATV users. 

At the edge of Spedden we passed a large ranch, and walked through a section where the cows were at large along the trail.  The lovely white ladies were grazing among patches of white and yellow daisies in the trees at the edge of the pathway.  As we approached they continually jogged ahead of us, until they came to the gate at the end of the concession.  There was a bit of a cattle pileup, until we passed the gate.  Feeling safer, they let their curiosity take over, and stood staring at us in a large group. As we paused in the shade at the gate the same group of three ATVs who passed us leaving St. Paul this morning passed us again, giving us friendly waves and words of encouragement as they went.

When we finally reached Spedden we knew we couldn’t go much further and had to stop for the day.  Having only walked 38 km today we will now have a problem tomorrow, but our pace in the heat and soft sand was simply too slow to manage a bigger distance.  There is a provincial park were we could have camped about 6 km off the trail (12 km return), and another which is 10 km further west down the TCT but which is also then 5 km off the pathway (10 km return) neither of which is ideal to reach tonight.  The next campground after that is in 20 km off trail, which simply felt too far to reach on the soft trail surface in the broiling hot afternoon sun. 

The tiny community of Spedden has a population of 56, and a single gas station with Mr Sub restaurant and a ‘motel’ which is currently being renovated on the highway. Spedden also has a tiny treed staging area tucked away across from a small, modern Ukrainian Church.   It is safe to stay that our exhaustion pushed us to pay for a room with air conditioning and a shower rather than continue on.    As a result Spedden will be our home for the night in a bare-bones half renovated motel room, and we will figure out tomorrow when it comes.

See you on the trail!

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