It’s Real

Some days are inherently quieter than others. Today was one of those quiet days. Not because of a lack of things to do in Calgary – in spite of that, actually. Perhaps I shouldn’t admit this but I’m a little surprised as to how much I’m enjoying Calgary – even with my limited exposure to it.

John and Susan have been unbelievably generous hosts during my stay and they’ve given me plenty of tips as to things to see and places to go. Plus, they are interesting and and fun people to talk with. I was left to do my own thing during the day today but the plan was to go to Ranchman’s – an authentic cowboy bar – for dinner tonight.

With things like bike trails, river rafting, Olympic Park, the Stampede grounds (even though the Stampede is over) there isn’t a shortage of things to do in Calgary. Unfortunately the weather forecast has taken a significant turn for the worse today (and tomorrow) so outdoor exploring is a bit less appealing. Plus, I had some work-things to deal with which once again took a bit longer than expected.

I finally left the house around 12:30 and was promptly greeted with a very chilly wind. On the upside, at least the rain had stopped. My first destination of the day ended up being my only destination of the day. John had recommended Smashburger for lunch so that was my first destination of choice. Conveniently, there are cycling trails that led me the entire way. When I told that to John later in the day he was surprised – apparently I was on a trail he didn’t know about.

Smashburger is a smallish burger chain which reminded me a bit of Hero Burger in Ontario – although I preferred Smashburger – especially the chocolate shake. One thing that Smashburger does is they include the metal mixing cup used to make the shake. I’ve always liked places that do that. Throw in a tasty burger and fries and you’ve got a good place for lunch.

Shortly after arriving at Smashburger, the dark clouds once again moved in and heavy rain started to fall. I have to say, despite all the rain, the storm cloud formations have been pretty spectacular over the past couple of days.

With no real urgent (or even not-so-urgent) plan for the day, I opted to sit at Smashburger and wait for the rain to pass. It did. Eventually. But it took almost an hour. With the rain temporarily in remission, I seized the window of opportunity to make my way back to the house. The ride was dry but cold. Very cold. By the time I got back to the house I couldn’t feel my fingers. No, I’m not kidding. It was that cold. In July!

Despite the cold, I did stop at one point to take in my first real view of the mountains. Yes, the view was partially obscured by all the clouds but the view was still spectacular. The mountains are truly stunning. It took 46 days and 4,000 km to get this view and it was definitely worth it.

Fast-forward a few hours and John, Susan, and I were in the car heading to Ranchman’s for dinner. As mentioned earlier, Ranchman’s is an authentic cowboy bar complete with a mechanical bull, live country music, and a vast collection of saddles (from various competitions) hanging from the rafters. The place was clearly still recovering from its Stampede hangover but, despite it being a pretty quiet night at the bar, it was still an entertaining place and an excellent place to end the evening. As the saying on the wall reads, “If it Ain’t Ranchman’s … It Ain’t Real”.

I’m holding out hope that tomorrow’s weather will be a little more conducive to exploring Calgary, although the forecast doesn’t look promising. A such, I’m definitely glad I travelled as many cycling trails as I did during my first day in the city. As I’ve said before, when the weather is good, take advantage of it.