11/29/2025
Every trip has its routine stops, to cafes, galleries, or visits with people. Since I only go every 4-6m now, I really look forward to each stop so much. I’ve mentioned some of the cafes and galleries I go to in Mcbride and Valemount – Well here are some photos from the Whistle Stop Gallery. There are so many things to see at this Gallery, that I made a separate collage of many of the cool ceramics, paintings, carvings there! I don’t have space to list the artists here, so please visit https://www.whistlestopgallery.ca/our-artists to see more. The beautiful horseback painting is on a bench just outside the train station. Bellow that is a photo of the cooler contents at ‘Uncle Marks’, a neat little butcher grocery in Mcbride – this is where I pick up fresh smoked bacon to share with the people I stay with. Both of these stops remind me of how much I wish Grande Cache had a Gallery, a Butcher, and a health food type store! The red building is the church I work out of in Mcbride. They have a lovely little thrift store attached that I always check out. You never know what you’ll find in these tiny secluded towns. The bottom left is a beautiful wide shot of the black burnt forest and the contrasting morning light colouring the fields bellow. Underneath that, are outbuildings a local lady named Kate, has built on her off grid property. Both of these views are part of every morning walk with Larry- again something I strive to find time for every visit! Larry preceded to tell me about the history of some of his families outbuildings in his neighbourhood, and how the Rainbow falls creek irrigates all the properties in his subdivision. Can you see the 2 white swans in the top right photo? Along with every trip in Mcbride, I always stop in to Irene’s for a foot detox, and here you can see how the water gets murky from all the toxins that come out through the skin. In Valemount I mostly stuck to Jans property before and after work. Here’s a photo of Charlie, their Bull, and all his ladies in the field! Seeing beef cows close up is still a novelty for me and worth capturing in a photo. This was the first time in 2 years that I actually made it out to explore the lower perimeter of Jan’s family farm. Every walk-about on her land comes with her personal stories growing up on the farm, and lessons she’s learned over a life time. This indeed, is what I look forward to most when I visit…and of course, the delicious fresh baking that she insists on sharing!