Canadian Thanksgiving = 2nd weekend of October 2012

We passed quickly through Saskatchewan (#8 in peach) and went south to lower Alberta ( #9 in green).

We stayed one night in a very empty, but lovely camping ground along the Old Man River just north of Taber Alberta.  Here is Old Man Watching walking along the path beside the Old Man River.The deer here were again too tame for my liking at this time of the hunting season. 

Taber is famous for its corn cobs in summer, its sugar cane and the Japanese that helped develop the farms and irrigation canals, when they were interred here and forcibly moved away from the coast during World War Two.  

We arrived at the ranch in Cardston Alberta (the Mormon capital of Canada) to rest before Thanksgiving.  We stayed here in the summer on the way east but this time there was snow on the ground.  We also helped prepare for the feast day which was also going to be niece Monica's 60th birthday celebration.  I like to make the devilled eggs and cranberry sauces from scratch. 

On Saturday we drove a few hours north to nephew John's cattle ranch that he manages, on top of running his own.We peeled a lot of potatoes and veggies.  Then we all went on clean-up detail, washing windows and counters and appliances and organizing for the big day on Monday.  I can't believe Monica is 60 as in my head she is still a teenager.    He is Monica's brother.  It is a lovely setting in the foothills.  Many relatives were able to make it for the big day and we fed about 24 people and then some more kids.  These are the rodeo folk in the family who are all, or mostly, involved in ranching.  The barrel racers just made it in time for the meal and socializing.  After everyone left the core group played cards.But we had to leave sweet Auntie Donna (Old Man's sister) and her son John on Tuesday, to try to get over the Rocky Mountains before the snow line got any lower, or horrors, it got right down to the highway level.