Dearly Beloved,

I’ve made it as far as Hinton, Alberta.  A few clicks east of Jasper National Park.  Just time for a brief post because I know some of you are probably worried about my continued existence.

I’ve been plagued by hitting the Canadian Rockies during the tourist season….the tail-end of the tourist season, but still roaring along.  In fact, all of Canada seems to be in full tourist mode.  Fruit stands and winery tours in the Okanagon.  White water rafting, ATVing, gondola rides in the Rockies.  RVs and Germans everywhere.  The result has been over-inflated prices everywhere.  I feel like every campsite, fruit stand, convenience store, laundromat, restaurant, library, national and provincial park is a medieval German fiefdom, trying to make it’s living by taxing commerce along the Rhine.

The result, some pretty castles, but slow, expensive travel.

Even the libraries here charge for internet access.  I paid one loonie for fifteen minutes of goodness here.  So if your email goes unanswered, you understand why.  Probably a crucial mistake was not buying a netbook.  Seems there are lots of locations with free Wi-Fi access, but few libraries or anywhere else willing to give out any other internet access.  Unfortunately, I got soaked at the border by Canadian authorities to purchase some worthless health insurance.  So netbooks and/or Canadian cell phones are likely out.  More on this later.

[Aside:  If you think maybe that libraries *should* charge for internet access, let me say this.  In Jasper, earlier today, they wanted CAN$2.50 for 30 minutes of internet delight.  Not that kind of fool, I turned it down.  I then asked them what they had in the way of poetry.  The librarian, after recovering from the initial shock, directed me to their poetry section.  An anthology of poetry which had been read publicly by Dylan Thomas (actually, a pretty good anthology), a couple of Shakespeare's major plays, and the "Idiot's Guide to Shakespeare".....that's it.  So, really, what is the function of a library again?]

Anyhow, I am well, and have many pictures and stories to share.  Hopefully I’ll find an opportunity tomorrow.  I think I might be on the good side of the Tourism office in Hinton, so maybe I can bogart their internet for an extended period tomorrow.  Will take an extra day here and then set out east.