Moose on the loose.

Imperial Campground (2 stars)

We poked around the countryside between Imperial and Last Mountain Lake. First up, the Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Area. Very quiet, but alive with birds. The sight of a flock of pelicans soaring above our heads was amazing.

Next up, we visited Etters Beach and Henderson Beach. Pretty typical prairie cabin resorts with some people having built fairly significant year-round homes. The delight of the afternoon came as we were driving between the resorts. Lez spotted a young moose in the grain field. As she took pictures, it headed towards our road, but behind us. Lee kept backing up until the moose crossed the road right in front of us. Amazing.

We finished off with the elevators in Liberty and Stalwart, followed by a short visit to the gravesite of Lee's father in the Imperial Cemetery. Just as we stood there, it started raining (as predicted earlier in the day). A fitting end.

Lez says: There is good timing and then there is just dumb luck. I don't know where to start! What a great day. We were lucky to get a close-up view of and then photo a moose, a 13 striped ground squirrel, an antelope, a white-tailed deer, avocet and flocks of pelicans! Grain elevators and VERY old vehicles (pre-war). At the info station at Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Park the staff gave us the names of so many natural plants, I lost track. A Moose was running in the grass beside us on the road! A White-tailed deer watched us as we walked the path of the Wetlands walk. Weather threatened rain, but the cloud just kept us cool as we wandered and hiked. We arrive back in Imperial and visit dad Zwaal's gravesite - and it starts to rain. Timing!