One day last week we went off on another adventure, driving down to Conn, about an hour and a half south, to visit the Misty Meadows Market, a large modern Mennonite store. And this year there is a new spectacular sewing centre, Creekbank, that we wanted to visit as well. We usually drive this route at least once a year.
This is one adventure where the drive is as interesting as the destination.
On the drive down, we take the back roads that we have driven for years, this time watching for the growing crops - here a field of corn that's looking good and a light coloured field of wheat or barley in the distance.
This is one of the more unusual crops, oats, often grown for feeding horses. It's a crop that tends to have a slightly bluish colour.
In the ditches we saw lots of summer wildflowers, like these day lilies Some call them 'ditch lilies'; we call them 'flowers of the field'.
A fair number of Brown-eyed susans too.
We were surrised and impressed by the investment in new farmsteads, we think by members of the Mennonite community. This is an entirely new set of barns and a new house. Many of these houses are painted the same light green colour, and the barns, if new, are all red.
Soon we got to the huge grain elevators in the hamlet of Swinton Park.
Swinton Park also has a very interesting church, known for its Strawberry Socials, which we attended once in pre-wheelchair days. Inside the church the pews are all arranged diagonally, facing the back corner of the church. Unusually, the church also has a working bell tower.
Surprisingly, we passed a field of potatoes as we left the village.
Then we came to our favourite mile of the drive, a stretch of road bordered by trees and forest. It's like driving through a tunnel of trees!
Summer is construction season here, and we were stopped for work crews several times. I was struck by the hat this flag person was wearing, complete with bright yellow curtain. We're almost to our destination now.
Also the matching pants in the final photo.
ReplyDeleteThere is a church nearby that is set up like the one you described.
I love that tree lined road. The light is beautiful. We have a working bell in the spire of our local Church of England church. St Jude on the Hill designed by Edwin Lutyens. You might like to google it. It’s an impressive building and can be seen for miles. But the bell has only, to my knowledge, been rung to celebrate the millennium.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful route that is.
ReplyDeleteThose pictures are so nice. Thanks for sharing them.
ReplyDeleteThe tree avenue, the hat, a bit like a beehive person's safety helmet, and then next will be fabric and quilty things!!! A beautiful outlook at those fields, with the corn growing well.
ReplyDeleteAlways love driving the country roads.
ReplyDeleteYou can buy the protective work clothing at Direct Workwear in Edmonton Alberta.
Stay Safe and Enjoy!
It's about time.
The road through the tree tunnel is the best...just like our road.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to hearing about the "new spectacular sewing centre", and hopefully, pictures?
This comment isn't anything to do with this post but it's an answer to your question on my recent
ReplyDelete"How to solve the obesity crisis" when you asked "Have you ever seen info on 'parabelly', the condition paraplegics get?"
I did reply to your question but thought it also a good idea to reply to you here :)
My answer:-
I had not come across this condition but the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation do have an article regarding this:-
https://blog.christopherreeve.org/en/life-after-paralysis/how-to-get-rid-of-the-para-belly
It does seem to have some good tips which hopefully will be helpful.
All the best Jan
A lovely collection of photographs from your drive down to the Conn area.
ReplyDeleteI particularly liked the road with all the trees, it must be a lovely drive along there.
All the best Jan
That was a beautiful route. So nice to see the barn and house looking so nice.
ReplyDelete