Things I Find More Amooseing Than Bad Puns

All I wanted was to see one moose.

Is that too much to ask?

I spent eight hours driving across Canada, from Kamloops to Calgary, and my only real goal was to see a moose. If I saw one, I don't care if there was a stopping point or not, I was going to get a picture.

Unfortunately, the closest thing I got to seeing a giant moose was spotting a giant sign that I initially thought was a moose. Turns out it wasn't even a moose sign; it was an elk sign. I'm really glad I didn't stop in the middle of the freeway to take a better picture.

Since wildlife was not out in full force, I had to settle for picturesque views of nature. The Canadian Rockies compare favorably to the Colorado Rockies, with a variety of landscapes ranging from arid and, well, rocky, to tree-laden and covered in snow.

My favorite area came in the middle of my trip, where two mountains came together at a small lake. The surrounding fog gave the area a majestic feel, which was soon ruined by a sign that read, "Welcome to Salmon Arm, Heart of the Shuswap." What a ridiculous combination of letters.

I started to feel indignant towards my Canadian brethren, but then remembered about Weed, California and Bellybutton, Arizona and Intercourse Pennsylvania. I immediately hurled a stone through the nearest glass house.

I then spent the next three hours of my drive pondering how ice could possibly cost twice as much in Canada. This seems completely unreasonable to me. You know that old expression, "He could sell ice to Eskimoes?" Apparently, there are a lot of great salesmen North of the border, because it costs more here than in my hometown of Phoenix, Arizona.

After I am done pondering Canadian supply and demand, I find myself transitioning from British Colombia to Alberta. Almost immediately, my amazing scenic journey turned into a bland drive through Northern Kansas. Alberta is one of the three "prairie provinces" (along with Saskatchewan and Manitoba)and it is considerably less impressive visually than its neighbor to the West.

If provinces were movies (don't question my logic), British Colombia would be The Godfather and Alberta would be The Godfather III. If provinces were characters in those films (seriously, just go with it) British Colombia would be Michael and Alberta would be Fredo. That's right, Alberta, I called you Fredo. Lower your ice prices and then we can talk.

Actually, the more I saw of Alberta, the more I liked it. But I'll save that for future blogs. For now, here are some pictures of moose that I didn't take, but wish I had:
As always, you're welcome.