Bucket List Bonanza in Canada

 

BUCKET LIST BONANZA

 

                                                                                            OR

 

                                                                   BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR

 

 

 

My sister-in-law, a retired doctor in Atlanta, gave me the very generous gift of a trip which was on my “Bucket List”.  I have always wanted to see the Northern Lights and she sent me there under one stipulation – – – I had to go by myself.  She said it was a way to repay me for taking care of other people my whole life and she wanted me to be free of responsibility and worry.    

 

At age 67, I was mildly intimidated, but became more enticed as the date approached. The thought of being totally on my own, free as a bird, became exhilarating.   Somehow I thought the trip would be in Alaska, in June.  Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would be in the Arctic in March!!!

 

My journey began with a flight from Baltimore, a connection in Chicago and on to Winnipeg, Canada.  I met the tour person who drove me to the Fort Garry Hotel.  It was a grand old hotel, impeccably maintained.  As soon as I checked in, I was taken to the Boots & Parka room to be outfitted from the long johns out.  This gave me yet another 40 pound duffle bag of gear to carry.  We met as a group for the first time at 7:00 for a wonderful dinner.   It appears to be a nice group of 14.  Two were from New Zealand, 2 from Sydney, Australia and the rest from the USA.  Our destination is Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, a town of 800 hearty souls.  It is widely considered to be one of the best places in the world to see aurora activity.  The journey consist of  2 days and 2 nights on a train, 4 days in Churchill, 1 day to fly back to Winnipeg and then to our respective homes the next day.

 

The train ride was even an adventure as my “roomette” was 3’x4 ½’.  I called it a “closet”.  Traveling alone made it easier to adapt to this and future challenges.  We were fortunate to see the Northern Lights both nights on the train, a rarity according to our guide.

 

When we arrived in Churchill it was -40 degrees wind chill, thus we were told to be in “full gear”.  The cold took your breath away, everything crunched under your feet and bare skin ached after 3 minutes.  Snow was up to the roof line, streets packed with ice and snowmobiles the mode of transportation.  Our hotel rooms were a welcome sight after the cramped train accommodations.

 

Lectures, dog sledding in -35 degrees and tours were offered during the day.  After dinner each evening, we “geared up” to drive out on the tundra to watch for the lights which usually started about 1am.  Our group was the first to see lights all 5 nights.  They were breathtaking ribbons of green dancing across the sky in vertical formations.  They floated amongst the stars as though God was stirring cream in his coffee and watching it swirl through the night sky.  Then we saw a full circle of green with pink in the center.  Moments later a long serpentine tail streaked from west to east, horizon to horizon.  It was now -54 degrees, but no one cared for we were truly witnessing a rare phenomenon.  The lights were so active and vibrant that even the guide, the driver and the crew were all outside yelling and dancing around in blissful celebration.   As luck would have it, the dates we were in Churchill were predicted to be the best possible dates for viewing based on all scientific data.  I would like to say that I researched and planned the trip around that data, but it was merely coincidental.

 

Back at the hotel, our warm beds felt especially inviting that night.  We have been going on 4 hours sleep each night for a week now and knowing we would be packing for the flight home the next morning was comforting.  No more cold nights on the tundra and content that we saw a spectacular display of lights.

 

After a smooth 2 ½ hour flight back to Winnipeg, we were treated to a lavish “farewell dinner”.  It’s amazing how 14 strangers can meld into a cohesive team in such a short time.

 

It truly was an ADVENTURE OF A LIFETIME, but I will admit that I was totally exhausted, spent.  I believe that anyone over 65 should take a hard look at any trip with the word “adventure” in it.  How can I ever say thank you enough for such an awesome trip?  My time alone was a chance for reflection, thanksgiving and gauging who I really was.  I truly did hit the “Bucket List Bonanza”!!!

 

 

 

About the Author:    I am a 67 year old retired banker who loves seeing the world and all it has to offer.  I attribute being active and adventurous to being raised on a show horse farm in south central Pennsylvania.

Respectfully submitted by:

Beverly A. Hajek

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