You went through my home town. Frobisher. I remember taking pop bottles into Rennie’s store. Mr. Rennie would give us 1 cent per bottle if we wanted cash or 2 cents credit if we wanted candy. And the lady that use to live in the house you showed when you mentioned times being more prosperous, made homemade peanut brittle every Halloween. SOOOO GOOD
@@rockhopperadventures The 2 cents was the deposit that was yours not Mr. Rennie . Mr. Rennie like a lot of corner stores were small time crooks . When i was a little i had this pulled on me by these slime balls too . I lived in Regina 59 to 61 .
Saskatchewan is a victim of corporate farming. As the farming industry became more and more mechanized farmers could farm larger and larger tracts. These larger farms no longer required the manpower per acre that the smaller farms did so there was a reduction in the need for the small towns as the people moved on to areas where there was more work available. The same thing is happening in Manitoba and Alberta to the farm industry. In addition, the automotive industry and the building of better high speed roads has helped to kill small farming. At the turn of the last century it might take a day with horse and wagon to go to town 15 miles away and return home. Today, a pickup truck will go 150 miles and do much the same thing. It is sad but true, small farming is a thing of the past.
@@oh8wingman each homestead was on its own quarter, so housewives in particular were terribly isolated. I imagine that they didn’t visit neighbours more than once a week for mass.
This is a reality. Unfortunately the urban masters in BC believe that small farmers should be forced to farm their one or two acres. They are looking at punishing anyone who lives on designated agricultural land and isn't farming it. They believe that having land with the government designation of "agriculture" means it can be farmed. They forget, or don't care, that farming is a business. They also ignore small facts like water rights, accessibility to markets, extreme restrictions and fees for farming, etc. If one was a conspiracy theorist, one would think they are maliciously trying to force rural folk into cities. I however believe they are just stupid, arrogant, and domineering.
Lol 150 miles. I was putting 1800km per day on my truck at one point moving from Ontario to rural Sask. 2 full tanks I'd burn in a day, 900km each tank. 18 hour shifts. 3-3.5 days straight one way. Drop off a load and turn around for another, or fly back and get another truck and trailer, depending on what number trip it was. I did the trip driving 7 times last year one way. 5 times west bound, 2 times eastbound. Flew back twice. Bought a truck at 340000km, today 18 months later, it has 494000km. Lol.
Almost like Dad is sending you a message to let you know he’s content. I’ve heard that when someone really close to you passes on they communicate in different languages. I truly believe that my dad “talks” to me through music. Especially on those days I’m really thinking about him. So sorry for your loss. Love from Alberta.
@@Cookontherun7391 When my Dad died, every sunny day, especially walking in the forest near my home, reminds me of him, or if I see an older man fishing. I smile and have tears in my eyes at the same time. I love you, Daddy! RIP.
Carnduff! Fast Trucking/General Well Servicing (owned by the same family) are the greatest companies you could ever work for. Salt of the earth people.
Lifelong Sask resident here. There's something about the vast nothingness and desolation that makes it feel so unique. You'll never find a more surreal looking place, especially the skies. There isn't a single day that goes by here without the sky looking like a masterpiece. I'm very proud to be from here and I don't think I'll ever leave
Being as far away from the crazies in the big cities is worth just about any price you might have to pay for it. God bless Canada 🇨🇦 love from the USA ❤️🤍💙
Vancouver here. We used to take road trips to Saskatchewan to visit my dad’s grandparents in a town that no longer exists - Vawn. Vawn was swallowed up and folded into the Turtle Lake municipal area. Sometimes we’d visit Jackfish lake. There is something special about Saskatchewan. .. I think it’s the unpretentious people.
Vawn still exists as a small village. There is a great steak pit restaurant in the basement of an old convent that has been turned into the local hotel
@@jtmachetemy folks knew someone who would rent us a cabin north of Cochin I think. Is Vawn the community that had the brick RC church with a funny name?
My town is Ituna. Was so lively in the 60s, cruising the streets listening to the Beatles and Beach Boys. Those days are long gone. Bar hotel pretty much everything gone.
I’m from Calgary but my mom’s dad grew up in Fort quappelle. Raised my mom and her siblings here south of calgary but went back in the 90s and had a farm just south of balcarres. He just passed away last year sadly I was just out there last year and balcarres fort quappelle katepwa all pretty quiet even compared to twenty years ago I will miss my childhood summer trips out there to see him
Yep , my dad had a farm by Ituna , right by the Catholic Church that is still standing to this day about 8 km out of Ituna by the hall ( if that is still standing ) we lived in Ituna for a few years 69-71.
Souris is for the Souris River ( French for mouse ) . It starts in Saskatchewan, then flows down into North Dakota through Minot , and then up through Manitoba , where it empties into the Assiniboine River not too far from Wawanesa .
I took French in the first two grades of high school. It seems like souris is pronounced soo-ree. But then, that was over 50 years ago, and the memory may be playing tricks.
@Rick-S-6063 Not in Manitoba , it's suriss or souriss . Also , the death of many towns usually follows the loss of the hotel , where you can drink and buy beer , and the curling rink , which is also a gathering social spot .
That river just misses being famous by not going south. Now, only 3 Canadian waters run to the Gulf via the Missouri: Milk River, Poplar River and the Big Muddy Creek.
This video makes me nostalgic for times spent as a child at the family farm outside of Central Butte/SK in the 90’s and early 2000’s. Was in our family for many many decades - eventually was sold off in the 2010’s, and the last stragglers of our farming family moved to the cities. Looking back now - those were special, memorable times. 🙏🏻❤️🌾
My Mom grew up in MacNutt SK.We would go there in summer and for Christmas quite often to see my Grandma. The summers were hot but it would thunder and rain and there would be dew on the tall grass as i walked over to my best friends place. I thought it was the best place on earth as a kid and wanted all of my aunts and uncles to move there. The people were truely awsome and so friendly. I believe this is where the term "salt of the earth" must have came from! I miss it
American truck driver here. Just did my first long haul run to Edmonton, AB, from St. louis MO. I crossed at the North portal SK. Saskatchewan and Alberta were beautiful but truly rural and unpopulated. people here in the states think they live in the country but haven't been to the plains of southern Canada, LOL. I liked that there wasn't really any traffic till I arrived in Edmonton. although the long open roads kind started getting to me., like a hour of driving felt way longer because the scenery doesn't change much for hundreds of miles. few stretches of road in the states are like that. maybe I-10 in western Texas. anyways thats definitly the farthest ive driven in a truck yet.
Scenery changes from Calgary to Edmonton. Mountains and foothills disappear and land become parkland. Guess you must have a ton of stories to tell of all the landscapes you've been through. Cheers.
Estevan resident here. For 2 years I delivered Old Dutch Potato Chips down Highway 18. Gladmar, SK to Gainsborough, SK and all those small towns you listed between. The people I met and their towns were all wonderful. Really enjoyed your take despite still being here. Thanks for passing through.
Back in the late 70s I travelled from Toronto out to Elrose Saskatchewan to drive grain trucks for the harvest. Friend's of my parents had 5 or 6 sections out there. Great experience for me. Really nice folks. Hard work and long hours hauling grain to the elevators day and night. One of those once in a lifetime experiences
Born raised and still live in Saskatchewan. I’d never heard of most of these towns but do remember some. My grandfather was a grain buyer and ran some of these elevators
I was originally a Yorkton-ite myself when I was a pre-teen. Back in the early 1960s my dad built a gas station about 7 miles west of Yorkton at a junction. In the morning I would catch the school bus and it would drop me off at Saint Magnus school which was about a mile west of Yorkton. There was me and another gal who lived close to where I did and she also took the bus home. It was maybe a half or 3/4 hour wait for the bus to arrive, so in the winter we would make a playhouse out of snow, we brought toy dishes that we had at home to our "playhouse" and would keep ourselves amused until the bus came to take us home. Wow, I remember it like it was yesterday. As well the teacher always left the school door unlocked in case it got really cold we could go inside and wait for the bus. But eventually dad sold the gas station and we moved into Yorkton where I attended Burke School, I think I was grade 8 at the time. Then one day my mom packed her suitcase along with one for my sister and I, and soon this car drives into the yard, we loaded out belongings, then got in the car and away we went. I was too young to understand what was happening at the time, but mom explained later that she was leaving dad as he was having all kinds of affairs, so she had put an ad in one of the newspapers that she would housekeep for someone who needed it done, in exchange for room and board for her and us 2 kids. So that was the beginning of our lives in a little town called Carievale in the south east corner of the province. We lived there for about a year before we packed up and moved to Creston, BC where most of mom's family lived including her parents. So here I am now, just over 70 yrs old and STILL in good old Creston. It's definitely a nice place to live, weather is great, winters are mild, Cranbrook is about an hour's drive away with good shopping... not much in Creston for shopping, mainly just essentials. But the move here was good, mom's immediate family lived here including her mother and father and a few of her siblings as well. And things were good then, no more worries. One thing I have always wondered about was if CKOS TV (I think that was the TV station) in Yorkton had a show on Saturdays I think it was, called "Profile" where local talent would perform. Mom and Dad were quite musical back in the days, dad played violin and mom on the accordion and they actually performed on TV one night. Always wondered if that TV station kept copies of the performers then as it would be quite something to see that performance again. Now that would be a real "memory maker!" But wasn't long before dad and mom split up and mom, sister and I ended up living in Carievale, Sask. down in the southeast corner of the province. We lived there for approximately a year before moving to BC and we're still in Creston! Great little town for sure, weather is mild, Creston is a major fruit growing centre, and life is good. Just hope I live long enough to continue enjoying myself and my little town. All is good!
I just moved to rural south east Saskatchewan from the Greater Toronto Area. I absolutely love how empty it is. Never have to deal with traffic again. That alone makes it worth it. I went from Hamilton, approx. 700000 people to Stockholm Sask that has 300 people. Bast decision of my life.
@DanoFSmith-yc9tg :Have you ever spent the weekend out on your boat,blasting down the Detroit river,with the wind in your face,the sun burning and glistening off the water? And dun glare in your eyes! When I was young I did,and when I got home I was windburnt and sunburnt,and it's actually exhausting! But it was a great time! So,the prairies are like being on the river, getting windburnt,and sunburnt,and the wind NEVER STOPS BLOWING ! But the rents a lot cheaper! But buy a case of chapstick,and skin lotion! The other thing about rural life is the loneliness, all by yourself or with your sweet heart! And there's not much to do!
Sweet lord. I live in Hamilton and think its small potatoes with nothing to do past 9pm. I am actively trying to get back into Toronto where there is life and people. I can't even the imagine the sheer boredom I would experience in a village of 300 people. 😂 To each their own.
I lived and worked in Saskatoon for ten years so got to know lots of little towns around the province. Loved seeing this video more that I'm on the Westcoast.
No they're not , I grew up on a Farm by Lumsden and I went back a couple of years ago and half of the fields that I remember my grandparents and their neighbors had under seed are now just Fields it was so depressing I couldn't actually believe it @@Katepwe
@Katepwe how many farms still have animals though... how many mixed Farms are there? In the 70s and the 80s every single Farm was a mixed Farm. You saw cattle grazing in all the fields as you drove down the highway now you hardly see any cattle. 🤷♂️
Everything is fine with farming, I was near Blaine lake 45 mins north of Saskatoon. Farms have just gotten bigger in order to afford farming. 160 acre quarter section like mine was considered a small hobby farm, I leased the farmland out for $10k/yr....it covered all my bills to live there for someone else to "mow my lawn" 😂❤ The reason the small towns are dying is because there was a town every 15-30 mins apart....it was the distance a horse could take grain in a day to the train elevator. The trucks today can go further, so most people now live closer to Saskatoon or Regina. I lived in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan and now New Brunswick. I have many fond memories of Saskatchewan and wished I would've stayed in many ways but dam it's coldest place I ever lived, you need big brass balls to live there in the winter!!!!
During initial settlement, a standard farm was 140 acres. Even a big family couldn't handle any more. Then came the threshing machine, and tractors, and the bigger farms kept buying the small ones, only using the land and the grain bins.
And that was the beginning of the end for the family farm! And the boomers headed for the big city jobs,and only a few stuck around! You can't make a living om 160 acres of land,has to be 1000 acre or more,up into 20,000 acres!
@@davidrussell8795 I leased my farm land for $10k a year and lived in the house and had a huge quonset to could put a big tractor trailer 52' and close the door. It paid all my bills for someone else to "mow my lawn" and it was fun to watch the crops grow. Just darn cold...wow!
My father grew up in Saskatchewan and I had cousins who lived down south near some of the towns you passed through. A few years ago I went on a Cross Canada road trip and made a point to drive through the southern desolate part you showed. It has a haunting nostalgic beauty that's hard to describe until you see it. Thanks for making this video. I really enjoyed it.
My Norway-born grandparents came in the early 20s, bought a farm near Bromhead. Granpa did all he could to hang on during the Depression, but finally he moved his family up to the Weldon area.
@bonnieboulter9486 I used to have cousins living in Lampman Saskatchewan not too far from Estevan . My uncle used to say that he liked living there because he liked to see what was coming down the road . I live in Winnipeg and feel much the same about Manitoba .
Great video I am a first time viewer and you do a great job of telling the stories of these areas I can’t wait to check out your other videos keep up the good work
I know a very hardworking old man named Milton. He told me his family used to own a large farm in Saskatchewan. They moved to Alberta because of the drought decades ago. Sad. Thanks for the video.
I have very fond memories of this part of Saskatchewan, as I worked on Freddie Streit's harvest crew in 1984 - starting out in Vernon, Texas. He had 6 combine harvesters and 6 trucks, and I, as a trucker, got to visit many of these now abandoned towns and elevators. We actually stayed (in our trailer homes) and cut crops at Torquay, which was so amusing to me as through the 1970's my family would holiday every summer in the seaside town of Torquay (known affectionately as the English Rivera) on the South coast of England ! Saskatchewan left a lasting impression on me - the very friendly people, wide open spaces, the heat and dust of our work. It was an amazing experience, of which I am very grateful. Thank you so much for posting this video, and bringing back to me memories of one of the great experiences of my life.
Thanks for this video. I live was born and raised in Yorkton Saskatchewan. My family's been in Saskatchewan since 1920s and immigrated to Mikado Saskatchewan to farm. The log mud house they built still is lived in on the property today. I've travelled thousands of kilometres of abandon Sask roads there are endless time capsules of towns everywhere. Also that's a gopher not a ground squirrel!
Great video, I’m an Albertan living many years in Edmonton. I come from southern Alberta originally and know little about our neighbouring province of Saskatchewan. I didn’t realize how empty the southern part of the province is, my husband has great memories of fishing up in the Canadian Shield of Northern Saskatchewan. A stunningly beautiful and untouched area with the most pristine lakes ever. I have heard many good things about Saskatchewan in general. Interesting how different one province is from the other.
@@rhondathieson1156 Except for the mosquitoes, deer fly and ticks. Spent a night out in the open in Jeannette Lake at camp. Only thing to eat was half burnt/half raw bannock and I was nearly eaten alive all night long by skeeters. Gave the phrase "roughing it" a whole new meaning for me. I like camping, but I need a decent camper to enjoy it.
On summer holidays my family and I would travel from east-central Alberta, first heading south on Highway 21 and on down to the Trans-Canada Highway. I always loved that moment when we reached the crest of a hill and suddenly the Prairies spilled out before us. We were on our way to Calgary and Banff/Lake Louise and yet that moment always stood out more in my memory than first seeing the Rockies rising in the west beyond Calgary. Times change and next generations find their way to places completely opposite to the big sky country. I lived for five months in one of the densest cities in the world - Manila, Philippines - and yet few places, if any, have impacted me more than the Canadian prairies. I wish I could drive over that crest in the hill every single day, my heart full of possibilities and my eyes full of endless hope.
Some family friends from Toronto drove the Trans-Canada Highway to BC back in 1968. I remember them saying the mountains came into view a day or two before they actually got right up to them.
Chuckle. I drive between BC and the Alberta, Sask prairies every year. It doesn't take 2 days. Once spotted, the Rockies are only about an hour on the TransCanada. You can see the mountains from Calgary, Ab a city right on the prairie. It's about an hour to the Rockies from there.
@@bonnieboulter9486 I'll take your word on it, but keep in mind 1968 was many years ago and I was 13 at the time. And, time does play tricks with the memory. ;)
Nice trip along Hwy 18. Souris is the main river in SE Sask running down past Minot ND and back up into Manitoba. If you happened to see (or signs to) Rafferty Dam when approaching Estevan from the west, that's a dam on the Souris. Or Mouse River (French to English) in North Dakota. I grew up a few miles north of Estevan, was back for harvest 6 weeks ago.
Remember certain articles imply that Mr. GATES owns hundreds of acres of Saskatchewan land..I loved Saskatchewan spent 20 years there.stil long for big sky. Thank you
@@Frances-fl5qfSo do the Saudis and the Chinese. Look what they’ve done in Arizona. Regardless, most farms have had to expand to be competitive. Not all farmers children can or want to take over farms so they go up for sale to whoever wants the land. Most farmers back in the day worked hard to give their children opportunities that they didn’t have and many went on to be doctors and lawyers and teachers and accountants etc. Cargill pretty much owns the planet, so what Mr. Gates has invested pretty much pales in Saskatchewan. Check out their Wikipedia page for the parade of horrifying practices.
Born and largely raised in Eatonia, Saskatchewan. Have family in Kindersley area with one cousin still on the original family homestead. Every place I've lived since leaving has had to offer an expanse of sky from my window. I like the straight forward talk and kind, country ways of the folks who choose to live in the prairies and in particular, Saskatchewan.
Look the hydro's still hooked up! Your dream home on the prairies awaits you! No construction permits required! Just needs a few windows and 50 gal of sealer paint! Even comes with a viewing platform to watch the sunsets on real exciting prairie days! Just 76 miles to town!😊 That'd be a realtors listing!
@owenjbrady : When a company in Ontario,or other where sets up a generator using a waterfall ,such as Niagra falls,using water to turn the turbines, it often referred to as hydro power! So it's called either or! But my mother's electricity was a water and electricity bill,but I believe it was considered a hydro bill! Since it's water,that turns the paddle wheels in a generator! Now if you are familiar with hydraulic rams,same principle, some fluid is used to move or propell a device! So..there! Llooll.
I spent the first thirteen years of my life living in a small town in Manitoba and this video brings back a lot of memories. One thing I remember is being able to see a rainstorm with fork lightening from miles away; it was awe inspiring. There's something about quaint little towns in rural areas that warms the heart. I really enjoyed watching this video, but I wish you elaborated more on why these towns have been abandoned. I guess I could just look it up. Anyway, great job, Rockhopper!
Just found your channel, great trip my friend!! I've lived in Alberta for 25 years, trucked western Canada for 17 of them, never got that far south, despite bring all through central and northern Saskatchewan hauling fuel. Not sure where you're from my friend but thank you for showcasing part of Canadian old history that's sadly fading away.....FYI best hockey player from Saskatchewan is Wendel Clark, from Kelvington, Saskatchewan. They call our Canadas hockey factory, 6 nhl players from a town of 800 or so, i have subbed to your channel thanks again for you contribution to our great country
I heard he’s building another sports bar back home in Sask. I’m from Oakville, Ontario where he built his first Sports bar/restaurant (since closed 😢) and his 2nd in the next town west of us (Burlington, Ont) but it closed for renovation during Pandemic, not sure if it’s re-opened yet. Have met him at Sports shows & he signed my selected Hockey card. Great guy.
when i was a kid growing up in southern sk i used to ride my dirt bike to old abandoned homesteads, lots of them looked like whoever lived there just left ... many were still basically fully furnished.
Yup same here. These old farm houses usually had all the furniture, curtains ect all left in the homes, like they shut the doors and just left. All the old cars they owned where parked in the back field when they wore out.
1896-1905…Settlement policy, set by the federal government, the Canadian Pacific Railway, the Hudson's Bay Company and associated land companies encouraged immigration. The key event was the decision to emulate the American Homestead Law by offering, at no cost, 160 acres of farmland to any man over 18 (or to a woman head of family) who settled there. Many Canadian citizens today identify with Saskatchewan as where their family started from over 100 years ago. I’m one of them…..Gravelbourgh.
M y grandfather and grandmother lived in a literal shack for few years(1910+) near Dollard with their quickly growing number of children. I’ve seen the photo. Smaller than today’s desired “tiny homes”. They came up from N. Dakota.
Those truck owners may not know their Mercury trucks are quite valuable. The whole truck, or parts that spell out "Mercury' like tailgates and hubcaps. Mercury trucks were never sold in the USA, and thus, are a novelty for old car owners. Fargo trucks also.
Spent every summer up until I was 13/14 in and around Mazenod, wasn't a lot there except a Co-op and junkyard back then. I could only imagine what's left now. The Hamilton family farm where my grandparents lived was just a few minutes south of it . Awesome place to spend summers as a young kid.
@@johntomiski5719 As usual it’s more complicated than that. The railways realized that they could shut down hundreds of spur lines to small town elevators, save a bunch of money by forcing farmers to truck grain long distances to super terminals, transfer the wear and tear of the traffic on the railways to the roads and hence the taxpayer and it was win for them, lose for the farmer and taxpayer who picks up the tab for road repair due to increased heavy traffic. What used to be a short trip from the farm to the local elevator is now a trek in a Super B on secondary and main roads. So the grain companies taxes were killed by the closing of the spur lines by the railway who is laughing all the way to the bank. As usual, the farmer gets screwed and it was another nail in the coffin of the small town. Lose your grain elevator and you lose so much more.
This was a great watch. My cousin, my brother and I took a road trip out west. I remember looking at the vast skies of the prairies in awe. The old buildings always intrigued me. We didn't go through the smaller towns, unfortunately. I'll have to revisit these small towns. Thanks for documenting this, as these buildings won't last forever.
Currently living in Rockglen, SK. A bustling little village of about 450 people and still going strong. The surrounding terrain is quite hilly with long valleys and lots of coulees filled with mule and whitetail deer, the odd moose and cougar, coyotes, foxes, etc. You took a quick shot of our village sign but didn't stop. Oh well.
Rock Glen is awesome. And the #1 highway--or the railways--were not built to hit the "pretty" spots. It was all about flat, flat, flat easy to build. Of course! Get a few km off highway #1 and Saskatchewan is pretty damn cool. OK--I may be a bit biased but...what I am saying is not wrong. Northern Saskatchewan is a totally different landscape...twice over. We got a VERY "tall" chunk of real estate. Do some research.
@@Buzzkill-wn7tfas a resident of a place 2.5 hours north of the #1 highway, I agree that Saskatchewan is not all flat land with no trees. I go 15 minutes north of me and I am in the forest with amazing lakes and wildlife very different from down there. I grew up south of Swift Current so moving here was a shock 😂😂😂
Souris River runs through this area. And the Rafferty hydro electric dam is I believe on the Souris near Macoun Saskatchewan. Not too far from Estavan. Now I could have some of this not completely accurate, as I am born and raised in Ontario. But my Norwegian Grandfather homesteaded land near Macoun. And my mother told me how he would dig coal from the strip mine,and haul it back to their farm by horse drawn wagon, during the 20’s and 30’s. Beautiful area, I have only visited there twice, but I hope to go again. Thanks for taking us on your road trip
Rafferty is just a few miles west of Estevan - road goes across the top of the dam connecting Hwy 18 and Hwy 39. Not a nice paved road but it's there - the water backs up from the dam to/past Macoun. Rafferty is not hydroelectric - all the generating stations in SE Sask (Boundary and Shand at Estevan, Coronach) are coal-fired gens.
@@johnconrad8796 thanks for clearing this up for me, it’s been quite a while since I was out to visit my cousins in that area . I was quite amazed at the giant dump trucks going from the strip mine to the coal fired generator. I remember being in Macoun in the 60’s and visiting Mainprice Park, and seeing the community pasture, all of which became flooded when the dam was built.
My Ex's Dad was the Economist that made the report Rafferty was not feasible. He got fired, won $250k for wrongful dismissal, bought a house in Vancouver, restored it, flipped it.
I was in the RCAF stationed in Moose Jaw in the mid to late 60’s. I few jets and our training area was south of Moose Jaw. and flew over Old Wives Lake, Mossbank, Gravelbourg, Congress, Assinboia etc. Had to be careful not the cross the border into the US. It was said if we ever got lost fly down to see what name was on the grain elevator. One guy said all these towns are called Pioneer
The locations of the prairie towns were originally decided by the railroads when they first came through. Depending on the topography, they were usually 12 to 15 miles apart as that was a day's work for a team of horses to bring a load of grain in to the elevator. Most farms were a quarter section, meaning 4 families per square mile. These were the folks that supported the local community. Now, one family will have multiple sections of land and 40 tons of grain can be hauled 60 miles in a little over an hour. It's sad, but it's irreversible. Additionally, Souris is the name of the main river in that area. There's also a town in Manitoba with the same name.
Outstanding travel vlog. One of the best I have seen. Excellent narration and camera work. Defined editing and music that fits the scene. Safe travels and keep up the good work and maybe we will see you in Northern Ontario.
I've dreamt about driving alone through the prairies and maybe checking out some of those old buildings myself. I also find the vastness of the prairies so beautiful and serene.
My hometown is Eatonia, SK but I’m in Edmonton now. It’s a thriving little town that is holding its own! My brother still lives back home and I’m always tempted to move back but my adult kids keep me from doing so. I wouldn’t miss this city life tho, especially with construction on the roads 365 days a year!
I'm in Edm too. Yes we're up to our eyeballs in construction aren't we.... lol.. Don't know how old you are but maybe you could retire there? Rural life has always attracted me but wireless coverage is scanty so a deterrent. I miss Sask and I hope to maybe head out next summer. Cheers.
Wow, what a fantastic video. I have a book, Abandoned Alberta, which I look at quite often and imagine the lives of the people who once occupied those old buildings. I wish you had spent more time at each location.
I remember visiting my uncle bob and aunt mabels farm just outside lang. After they retired in the 90s it became another corporate farm, and the house is no longer there. My entire family used to live in that area.
Good video. For future reference, pump jacks are not oil derricks. A pump jack is installed after the drill rig (which has the derrick) has done its job and left.
Thank you for a great video I grew up around a small community in Alberta called Ferintosh on a farm made me miss my small town roots it is a dying community as well!
I was a traveling musician in the late 1970’s and played in NE Montana and south Saskatchewan. Those people were wild. Reminded me a lot of west Texans. Crazy.
Magnificent desolation. I drove from Havre to Fort Walsh (one of the original North West Mounted Police forts) on dusty gravel roads and through Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park. I plan on visiting Grassland National Park one of these days.
Beautifully written, magnificently shot. A legacy video for the ages. Thank you for this incredible gift! And all those Souris streets you ask about are named after the Souris River, which wends its way across the border into North Dakota a couple times. Thanks again!
I grew up in Wynyard in the 60s and 70s and although Wynyard is still alive, so many small towns in the area are not. It breaks my heart when the sun goes down in Elfros, Kandahar and Wishart to name a few communities, they are a piece of my past and I feel a part of me is fading into the void along with this sad reality. When the secondary railway lines were abandoned so was a way of life. R.I.P. fond memories.
I was hoping Wynyard might be mentioned. I grew up on West coast but recall a couple summer road trips in the 60s to return to where my mom was born and raised. The family name was Smith. You probably knew them all!
Have travelled many of those roads on motorbikes and pickup trucks. Friends left Lake Alma in the 1980s after years of drought and moved to the South Peace country in Alberta, where we got to know them.
My dad and his family lived in Oxbow for a while back in the 60s and early 70s. My Grandpa was in Oil and Gas back then. Still would like to go see it someday. Thanks for the video I enjoyed it!
This is the content that I come on youtube for, great job and I just subscribed. - There's just something beautiful about these old town frozen in time.
My grandparents had farms near Grenfell and Peebles I left for the west coast in the late 80s and my parents just after 2000 Not an easy life and harsh weather Should have a capital system with basic income to make it easier to stay on the land Dont know how they did it but had to be resourceful with gardening raising chickens baking own bread doing things not using much money Last year drove from chilliwack to winnipeg return all on secondary highways and was reminded of how large that part of Canada is
Took my family on a road trip from east-central Alberta all the way to Toronto and back. Neither my wife’s car nor my car had air conditioning, so we rented a large sedan with unlimited mileage on offer. I’m sure when I returned the car someone in corporate wondered about the continued feasibility of renting anything with ‘unlimited mileage’. We sure enjoyed the air conditioning and it was more difficult for the kids to hit one another in the large back seat! I’ve always loved driving through the Prairies and fortunately my wife and children slept a lot during those long, flat stretches. There’s something spiritual about those drives.
I used to work on the Great Western Railway down in that area. Nothing like switching cars by starlight out in the very definition of the middle of nowhere.
Sure it's a bit sad seeing towns abandoned. But watching nature reclaim them is beautiful and inspiring too. There's always two ways to look at things, choose the one that most uplifts you,
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
You went through my home town. Frobisher.
I remember taking pop bottles into Rennie’s store. Mr. Rennie would give us 1 cent per bottle if we wanted cash or 2 cents credit if we wanted candy. And the lady that use to live in the house you showed when you mentioned times being more prosperous, made homemade peanut brittle every Halloween. SOOOO GOOD
And oh, those Halloween Firecrackers,BANNED like Our Handguns. Guess we're all Dumbing Down...Less guud people, less upkeep, less interest.
Thanks for sharing those stories!
@@rockhopperadventures The 2 cents was the deposit that was yours not Mr. Rennie . Mr. Rennie like a lot of corner stores were small time crooks . When i was a little i had this pulled on me by these slime balls too . I lived in Regina 59 to 61 .
@@davegommer101 Anyone ever told you you are a sad bitter goof, a$$hole?
Was the store required to take your bottles? No stores do that today so it seems the “cut” was fair business.
Saskatchewan is a victim of corporate farming. As the farming industry became more and more mechanized farmers could farm larger and larger tracts. These larger farms no longer required the manpower per acre that the smaller farms did so there was a reduction in the need for the small towns as the people moved on to areas where there was more work available. The same thing is happening in Manitoba and Alberta to the farm industry. In addition, the automotive industry and the building of better high speed roads has helped to kill small farming. At the turn of the last century it might take a day with horse and wagon to go to town 15 miles away and return home. Today, a pickup truck will go 150 miles and do much the same thing. It is sad but true, small farming is a thing of the past.
I think an appropriate headline would be, “The Iron Age Hits the Prairies!”
@@oh8wingman each homestead was on its own quarter, so housewives in particular were terribly isolated. I imagine that they didn’t visit neighbours more than once a week for mass.
This is a reality. Unfortunately the urban masters in BC believe that small farmers should be forced to farm their one or two acres. They are looking at punishing anyone who lives on designated agricultural land and isn't farming it. They believe that having land with the government designation of "agriculture" means it can be farmed. They forget, or don't care, that farming is a business. They also ignore small facts like water rights, accessibility to markets, extreme restrictions and fees for farming, etc.
If one was a conspiracy theorist, one would think they are maliciously trying to force rural folk into cities. I however believe they are just stupid, arrogant, and domineering.
Lol 150 miles.
I was putting 1800km per day on my truck at one point moving from Ontario to rural Sask.
2 full tanks I'd burn in a day, 900km each tank. 18 hour shifts. 3-3.5 days straight one way. Drop off a load and turn around for another, or fly back and get another truck and trailer, depending on what number trip it was.
I did the trip driving 7 times last year one way.
5 times west bound, 2 times eastbound. Flew back twice.
Bought a truck at 340000km, today 18 months later, it has 494000km. Lol.
Did you see what happened to land prices? $6500/acre.
My dad grew up at the family farm near Carnduff. He just passed a week ago at 89. His sister lives in Estevan. This video was timely.
Almost like Dad is sending you a message to let you know he’s content. I’ve heard that when someone really close to you passes on they communicate in different languages. I truly believe that my dad “talks” to me through music. Especially on those days I’m really thinking about him. So sorry for your loss. Love from Alberta.
My condolences on the loss of your dear father.
@@Cookontherun7391 When my Dad died, every sunny day, especially walking in the forest near my home, reminds me of him, or if I see an older man fishing. I smile and have tears in my eyes at the same time. I love you, Daddy! RIP.
My condolences ❤
Carnduff! Fast Trucking/General Well Servicing (owned by the same family) are the greatest companies you could ever work for.
Salt of the earth people.
Lifelong Sask resident here. There's something about the vast nothingness and desolation that makes it feel so unique. You'll never find a more surreal looking place, especially the skies. There isn't a single day that goes by here without the sky looking like a masterpiece. I'm very proud to be from here and I don't think I'll ever leave
You are absolutely right. The smell is also unique to Sask.
Being as far away from the crazies in the big cities is worth just about any price you might have to pay for it. God bless Canada 🇨🇦
love from the USA ❤️🤍💙
Nothing better than listening to the birds in a Saskatchewan field.
I couldn't agree more. :)
Sounds amazing😊👍
Except the recoil of the 12 gauge and birds dropping for supper.
I remember the sound of crickets at night, so soothing
but you can't leave porch light on or you get literally thousands of them hopping up
@@absunshine6906 and laying down in tge feikd naked all by yourself, and playing with your feel goods!
Vancouver here. We used to take road trips to Saskatchewan to visit my dad’s grandparents in a town that no longer exists - Vawn. Vawn was swallowed up and folded into the Turtle Lake municipal area. Sometimes we’d visit Jackfish lake. There is something special about Saskatchewan. .. I think it’s the unpretentious people.
Im from PA. As a child, we'd go to Jackfish Lake too, not often but a few times.
Vawn still exists as a small village. There is a great steak pit restaurant in the basement of an old convent that has been turned into the local hotel
@@jtmachetemy folks knew someone who would rent us a cabin north of Cochin I think. Is Vawn the community that had the brick RC church with a funny name?
@@annv8360 yes, St. Hippolyte RC church
@@annv8360 I'm from P.A. too. almost 5 decades ago., I dream of taking a road trip and seeing it one more time.
My town is Ituna. Was so lively in the 60s, cruising the streets listening to the Beatles and Beach Boys. Those days are long gone. Bar hotel pretty much everything gone.
I’m from Calgary but my mom’s dad grew up in Fort quappelle. Raised my mom and her siblings here south of calgary but went back in the 90s and had a farm just south of balcarres. He just passed away last year sadly I was just out there last year and balcarres fort quappelle katepwa all pretty quiet even compared to twenty years ago I will miss my childhood summer trips out there to see him
I'm from just down the road in Yorkton. Been in Ituna many times working with my dad and during hunting season!
I’m from Melville. Ituna always had a really cold rink when I played hockey games there
@ new one should be up and running here soon if it isn’t already
Yep , my dad had a farm by Ituna , right by the Catholic Church that is still standing to this day about 8 km out of Ituna by the hall ( if that is still standing ) we lived in Ituna for a few years 69-71.
i rarely watch an entire 20 minute video, well done! :D i enjoyed that
Thank you!
Souris is for the Souris River ( French for mouse ) . It starts in Saskatchewan, then flows down into North Dakota through Minot , and then up through Manitoba , where it empties into the Assiniboine River not too far from Wawanesa .
French settlements sprang up along the railway generations ago, many still remain today.
I took French in the first two grades of high school. It seems like souris is pronounced soo-ree. But then, that was over 50 years ago, and the memory may be playing tricks.
@Rick-S-6063 Not in Manitoba , it's suriss or souriss . Also , the death of many towns usually follows the loss of the hotel , where you can drink and buy beer , and the curling rink , which is also a gathering social spot .
So creepy these places just abandoned?
That river just misses being famous by not going south. Now, only 3 Canadian waters run to the Gulf
via the Missouri: Milk River, Poplar River and the Big Muddy Creek.
This video makes me nostalgic for times spent as a child at the family farm outside of Central Butte/SK in the 90’s and early 2000’s. Was in our family for many many decades - eventually was sold off in the 2010’s, and the last stragglers of our farming family moved to the cities. Looking back now - those were special, memorable times. 🙏🏻❤️🌾
Saskatchewan is so beautiful. It is sad that with mechanization comes death of towns. Thanks for sharing. Love from Alberta.
My Mom grew up in MacNutt SK.We would go there in summer and for Christmas quite often to see my Grandma. The summers were hot but it would thunder and rain and there would be dew on the tall grass as i walked over to my best friends place. I thought it was the best place on earth as a kid and wanted all of my aunts and uncles to move there. The people were truely awsome and so friendly. I believe this is where the term "salt of the earth" must have came from! I miss it
Hello. I almost bought a home in Mac Nutt SK last year. Lived in roblin manitoba. I know the area well.
Had hamburger soup for lunch at the McNutt bar in 2007, was the best I've ever had.
American truck driver here. Just did my first long haul run to Edmonton, AB, from St. louis MO. I crossed at the North portal SK. Saskatchewan and Alberta were beautiful but truly rural and unpopulated. people here in the states think they live in the country but haven't been to the plains of southern Canada, LOL. I liked that there wasn't really any traffic till I arrived in Edmonton. although the long open roads kind started getting to me., like a hour of driving felt way longer because the scenery doesn't change much for hundreds of miles. few stretches of road in the states are like that. maybe I-10 in western Texas.
anyways thats definitly the farthest ive driven in a truck yet.
There's plenty of traffic between Calgary and Edmonton on AB 2, and it's a freeway.
Scenery changes from Calgary to Edmonton. Mountains and foothills disappear and land become parkland. Guess you must have a ton of stories to tell of all the landscapes you've been through. Cheers.
Hey @abctrucker8601, I am in Edmonton you should have called, we could have met for coffee!
Estevan resident here. For 2 years I delivered Old Dutch Potato Chips down Highway 18. Gladmar, SK to Gainsborough, SK and all those small towns you listed between. The people I met and their towns were all wonderful. Really enjoyed your take despite still being here. Thanks for passing through.
Fuck you for not visiting Kenaston.
Which is your favorite Old Dutch flavor? Mine is Ketchup followed by Dill Pickle.
@beyondfossil Old Dutch Dutch Crunch Jalapeno & Cheddar Kettle Chips, but if you're asking classic it would be sour cream and onion :).
@@beyondfossilMexican Chilli is the best. 🌶👌
Nice drive there . Well if there's no blizzard , and no tornados.
Back in the late 70s I travelled from Toronto out to Elrose Saskatchewan to drive grain trucks for the harvest. Friend's of my parents had 5 or 6 sections out there. Great experience for me. Really nice folks. Hard work and long hours hauling grain to the elevators day and night. One of those once in a lifetime experiences
I used to live in Elrose a long time ago, I probably knew your friends parents.
Born raised and still live in Saskatchewan. I’d never heard of most of these towns but do remember some. My grandfather was a grain buyer and ran some of these elevators
My dad was to, for the sask wheat pool in fillmore saskatchewan for 40 years
I grew up in south west Saskatchewan in the 70’s and 80’s. So many of those towns and vehicles bring back so many memories.
Ever party up at Cypress Hills Prov Park? Lotta memories from those days myself.
Absolutely loved this video! Please consider filming more of this overlooked province.
Thanks! I'll keep it in mind!
Despite the empty towns and collapsing buildings, the region seems to be very busy and the birds and animals around the lake are amazing !
You went through my hometown of Carnduff. I really appreciated seeing it and other towns like it, as seen from someone with an outside perspective.
Thanks! I’m originally from Yorkton. Love the historic journey through time. 😊
Thank you very much Brenda!
I was originally a Yorkton-ite myself when I was a pre-teen. Back in the early 1960s my dad built a gas station about 7 miles west of Yorkton at a junction. In the morning I would catch the school bus and it would drop me off at Saint Magnus school which was about a mile west of Yorkton. There was me and another gal who lived close to where I did and she also took the bus home. It was maybe a half or 3/4 hour wait for the bus to arrive, so in the winter we would make a playhouse out of snow, we brought toy dishes that we had at home to our "playhouse" and would keep ourselves amused until the bus came to take us home. Wow, I remember it like it was yesterday. As well the teacher always left the school door unlocked in case it got really cold we could go inside and wait for the bus. But eventually dad sold the gas station and we moved into Yorkton where I attended Burke School, I think I was grade 8 at the time. Then one day my mom packed her suitcase along with one for my sister and I, and soon this car drives into the yard, we loaded out belongings, then got in the car and away we went. I was too young to understand what was happening at the time, but mom explained later that she was leaving dad as he was having all kinds of affairs, so she had put an ad in one of the newspapers that she would housekeep for someone who needed it done, in exchange for room and board for her and us 2 kids. So that was the beginning of our lives in a little town called Carievale in the south east corner of the province. We lived there for about a year before we packed up and moved to Creston, BC where most of mom's family lived including her parents. So here I am now, just over 70 yrs old and STILL in good old Creston. It's definitely a nice place to live, weather is great, winters are mild, Cranbrook is about an hour's drive away with good shopping... not much in Creston for shopping, mainly just essentials. But the move here was good, mom's immediate family lived here including her mother and father and a few of her siblings as well. And things were good then, no more worries. One thing I have always wondered about was if CKOS TV (I think that was the TV station) in Yorkton had a show on Saturdays I think it was, called "Profile" where local talent would perform. Mom and Dad were quite musical back in the days, dad played violin and mom on the accordion and they actually performed on TV one night. Always wondered if that TV station kept copies of the performers then as it would be quite something to see that performance again. Now that would be a real "memory maker!" But wasn't long before dad and mom split up and mom, sister and I ended up living in Carievale, Sask. down in the southeast corner of the province. We lived there for approximately a year before moving to BC and we're still in Creston! Great little town for sure, weather is mild, Creston is a major fruit growing centre, and life is good. Just hope I live long enough to continue enjoying myself and my little town. All is good!
I just moved to rural south east Saskatchewan from the Greater Toronto Area.
I absolutely love how empty it is.
Never have to deal with traffic again. That alone makes it worth it.
I went from Hamilton, approx. 700000 people to Stockholm Sask that has 300 people. Bast decision of my life.
@DanoFSmith-yc9tg :Have you ever spent the weekend out on your boat,blasting down the Detroit river,with the wind in your face,the sun burning and glistening off the water? And dun glare in your eyes!
When I was young I did,and when I got home I was windburnt and sunburnt,and it's actually exhausting!
But it was a great time!
So,the prairies are like being on the river, getting windburnt,and sunburnt,and the wind NEVER STOPS BLOWING !
But the rents a lot cheaper!
But buy a case of chapstick,and skin lotion!
The other thing about rural life is the loneliness, all by yourself or with your sweet heart!
And there's not much to do!
Yep GTA gotta be the worst traffic in the world
Welcome to Saskatchewan
Sweet lord. I live in Hamilton and think its small potatoes with nothing to do past 9pm. I am actively trying to get back into Toronto where there is life and people. I can't even the imagine the sheer boredom I would experience in a village of 300 people. 😂
To each their own.
@@tedlivermore6955I see you’ve never been to Brazil or Philippines. 👍🏼
I lived and worked in Saskatoon for ten years so got to know lots of little towns around the province. Loved seeing this video more that I'm on the Westcoast.
Great meeting you! This is a section of Canada I hope to explore. Abandoned places are always so interesting when they're frozen in time like that.
Great meeting you too! I hope you do explore this place. It's quite interesting!
This is so sad to see this beautiful land empty. I imagine all the great farming that was done
The farming is still great. The farms are just bigger than years ago…..ours is about 5000 acres which is close to average here.
No they're not , I grew up on a Farm by Lumsden and I went back a couple of years ago and half of the fields that I remember my grandparents and their neighbors had under seed are now just Fields it was so depressing I couldn't actually believe it @@Katepwe
@@jimmiematho8082 I’m an active farmer east of Regina, everything is just fine here.
@Katepwe how many farms still have animals though... how many mixed Farms are there?
In the 70s and the 80s every single Farm was a mixed Farm.
You saw cattle grazing in all the fields as you drove down the highway now you hardly see any cattle.
🤷♂️
Everything is fine with farming, I was near Blaine lake 45 mins north of Saskatoon. Farms have just gotten bigger in order to afford farming. 160 acre quarter section like mine was considered a small hobby farm, I leased the farmland out for $10k/yr....it covered all my bills to live there for someone else to "mow my lawn" 😂❤
The reason the small towns are dying is because there was a town every 15-30 mins apart....it was the distance a horse could take grain in a day to the train elevator. The trucks today can go further, so most people now live closer to Saskatoon or Regina.
I lived in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan and now New Brunswick. I have many fond memories of Saskatchewan and wished I would've stayed in many ways but dam it's coldest place I ever lived, you need big brass balls to live there in the winter!!!!
That was a treat!
Thank You.
Thanks for watching!
During initial settlement, a standard farm was 140 acres. Even a big family couldn't handle any more. Then came the threshing machine, and tractors, and the bigger farms kept buying the small ones, only using the land and the grain bins.
160 acres …
And that was the beginning of the end for the family farm! And the boomers headed for the big city jobs,and only a few stuck around!
You can't make a living om 160 acres of land,has to be 1000 acre or more,up into 20,000 acres!
@@davidrussell8795 I leased my farm land for $10k a year and lived in the house and had a huge quonset to could put a big tractor trailer 52' and close the door. It paid all my bills for someone else to "mow my lawn" and it was fun to watch the crops grow. Just darn cold...wow!
@@davidrussell8795
Yup, neighbours are around the 26,000 mark i believe.
160 acres.
My father grew up in Saskatchewan and I had cousins who lived down south near some of the towns you passed through. A few years ago I went on a Cross Canada road trip and made a point to drive through the southern desolate part you showed. It has a haunting nostalgic beauty that's hard to describe until you see it. Thanks for making this video. I really enjoyed it.
You nailed it! There's a haunting beauty that one must experience by being there. Thanks for watching and your comment!
Thanks for taking us along
Thanks for watching!
This was great. very well done.
Thanks so much!
@@rockhopperadventures yes, really well done, and just imagine how many people got a tour of a place they will never go to - thank you.
@@Yowzoe You're very welcome!
I grew up in
Saskatchewan. My mom stiĺl lives there, can't wait to see her at
Christmas. Watching your video just brought back so many memories.
❤
My Norway-born grandparents came in the early 20s, bought a farm near Bromhead. Granpa did all he could to hang on during the Depression, but finally he moved his family up to the Weldon area.
Yup. Especially a Meadow Lark. Thanks for your kind words about Sask. Those BIG skies. Where you can see a storm approaching for miles...
@bonnieboulter9486 I used to have cousins living in Lampman Saskatchewan not too far from Estevan . My uncle used to say that he liked living there because he liked to see what was coming down the road . I live in Winnipeg and feel much the same about Manitoba .
Great video I am a first time viewer and you do a great job of telling the stories of these areas I can’t wait to check out your other videos keep up the good work
Thank you! Will do!
I know a very hardworking old man named Milton. He told me his family used to own a large farm in Saskatchewan. They moved to Alberta because of the drought decades ago. Sad. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for watching!
I lived in Southwestern Saskatchewan as a kid in the mid-90s, and it looks like not much has changed. Feels like time has stood still there.
@@sophiab7368 as are most small towns in Canada and tge USA! And a lot are dead or dying!
I have very fond memories of this part of Saskatchewan, as I worked on Freddie Streit's harvest crew in 1984 - starting out in Vernon, Texas. He had 6 combine harvesters and 6 trucks, and I, as a trucker, got to visit many of these now abandoned towns and elevators.
We actually stayed (in our trailer homes) and cut crops at Torquay, which was so amusing to me as through the 1970's my family would holiday every summer in the seaside town of Torquay (known affectionately as the English Rivera) on the South coast of England !
Saskatchewan left a lasting impression on me - the very friendly people, wide open spaces, the heat and dust of our work. It was an amazing experience, of which I am very grateful.
Thank you so much for posting this video, and bringing back to me memories of one of the great experiences of my life.
Thanks so much for your comment and sharing your memories!
Every August I leave the Australian winter and fly to Canada to explore southern Saskatchewan. Heaven on earth.
Your accent must really turn heads there!
I am curious what caught your attention in southern Saskatchewan?
Yeah, me too.
Wow.. you're not demanding
Thanks for sharing, was a nice, peaceful 'Sunday Drive' for me 😊
The flat lands remind me of the Michigan Thumb, where there are plenty of old roads for taking a drive and catching a break from life in the suburbs.
Great video. The people. The lives that must have been. The laughter. The hardships and the triumphs of lives long ago gone.
The people of Saskatchewan were so, so kind to me when I was hitchhiking through Canada in my younger years
Your narration style reminds me of Dick Proenneke's documentaries. Very cool video, thank you for taking it all in.
Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks for this video. I live was born and raised in Yorkton Saskatchewan. My family's been in Saskatchewan since 1920s and immigrated to Mikado Saskatchewan to farm. The log mud house they built still is lived in on the property today. I've travelled thousands of kilometres of abandon Sask roads there are endless time capsules of towns everywhere. Also that's a gopher not a ground squirrel!
Glad you liked it!
Another Yorktonite!
Yes, gophers. Go for this and go for that
I love exploring those old towns of southern Saskatchewan.
Great video, I’m an Albertan living many years in Edmonton. I come from southern Alberta originally and know little about our neighbouring province of Saskatchewan. I didn’t realize how empty the southern part of the province is, my husband has great memories of fishing up in the Canadian Shield of Northern Saskatchewan. A stunningly beautiful and untouched area with the most pristine lakes ever. I have heard many good things about Saskatchewan in general. Interesting how different one province is from the other.
Yes, but that Canadian Shield landscape goes all the way into Southern Ontario. Less than 100 miles from Toronto!
@@ianstuart5660 It’s truly massive isn’t it!
@rhondathieson1156
Yes, massive, beautiful, and so much water, wildlife and resources! Oh, and snow and ice!
😄😄❤️
@@ianstuart5660 Gotta love what nature offers us up here!♥️
@@rhondathieson1156 Except for the mosquitoes, deer fly and ticks. Spent a night out in the open in Jeannette Lake at camp. Only thing to eat was half burnt/half raw bannock and I was nearly eaten alive all night long by skeeters. Gave the phrase "roughing it" a whole new meaning for me.
I like camping, but I need a decent camper to enjoy it.
On summer holidays my family and I would travel from east-central Alberta, first heading south on Highway 21 and on down to the Trans-Canada Highway. I always loved that moment when we reached the crest of a hill and suddenly the Prairies spilled out before us. We were on our way to Calgary and Banff/Lake Louise and yet that moment always stood out more in my memory than first seeing the Rockies rising in the west beyond Calgary.
Times change and next generations find their way to places completely opposite to the big sky country. I lived for five months in one of the densest cities in the world - Manila, Philippines - and yet few places, if any, have impacted me more than the Canadian prairies. I wish I could drive over that crest in the hill every single day, my heart full of possibilities and my eyes full of endless hope.
@@donskuse2194 I totally understand that “crest of the hill” feeling! Experienced it myself many times.
Yup. Me top almost every year from BC
Some family friends from Toronto drove the Trans-Canada Highway to BC back in 1968. I remember them saying the mountains came into view a day or two before they actually got right up to them.
Chuckle. I drive between BC and the Alberta, Sask prairies every year. It doesn't take 2 days. Once spotted, the Rockies are only about an hour on the TransCanada. You can see the mountains from Calgary, Ab a city right on the prairie. It's about an hour to the Rockies from there.
@@bonnieboulter9486 I'll take your word on it, but keep in mind 1968 was many years ago and I was 13 at the time. And, time does play tricks with the memory. ;)
Nice trip along Hwy 18. Souris is the main river in SE Sask running down past Minot ND and back up into Manitoba. If you happened to see (or signs to) Rafferty Dam when approaching Estevan from the west, that's a dam on the Souris. Or Mouse River (French to English) in North Dakota. I grew up a few miles north of Estevan, was back for harvest 6 weeks ago.
When you go back every year at the harvest to help out? Is it still a family affair or are you working for a big business?
Remember certain articles imply that Mr. GATES owns hundreds of acres of Saskatchewan land..I loved Saskatchewan spent 20 years there.stil long for big sky. Thank you
@@Frances-fl5qfSo do the Saudis and the Chinese. Look what they’ve done in Arizona. Regardless, most farms have had to expand to be competitive. Not all farmers children can or want to take over farms so they go up for sale to whoever wants the land. Most farmers back in the day worked hard to give their children opportunities that they didn’t have and many went on to be doctors and lawyers and teachers and accountants etc.
Cargill pretty much owns the planet, so what Mr. Gates has invested pretty much pales in Saskatchewan. Check out their Wikipedia page for the parade of horrifying practices.
Born and largely raised in Eatonia, Saskatchewan. Have family in Kindersley area with one cousin still on the original family homestead. Every place I've lived since leaving has had to offer an expanse of sky from my window. I like the straight forward talk and kind, country ways of the folks who choose to live in the prairies and in particular, Saskatchewan.
Look the hydro's still hooked up!
Your dream home on the prairies awaits you!
No construction permits required!
Just needs a few windows and 50 gal of sealer paint! Even comes with a viewing platform to watch the sunsets on real exciting prairie days! Just 76 miles to town!😊
That'd be a realtors listing!
most places just call it electricity not hydro we don't have any hydro plants here 😂
@owenjbrady : When a company in Ontario,or other where sets up a generator using a waterfall ,such as Niagra falls,using water to turn the turbines, it often referred to as hydro power!
So it's called either or! But my mother's electricity was a water and electricity bill,but I believe it was considered a hydro bill!
Since it's water,that turns the paddle wheels in a generator!
Now if you are familiar with hydraulic rams,same principle, some fluid is used to move or propell a device!
So..there! Llooll.
Yeah but its coal and NG in sask mostly@davidrussell8795
That's right. Sell the sizzle, not the steak.
@@owenjbrady Gardner Dam slip your mind?
I spent the first thirteen years of my life living in a small town in Manitoba and this video brings back a lot of memories. One thing I remember is being able to see a rainstorm with fork lightening from miles away; it was awe inspiring. There's something about quaint little towns in rural areas that warms the heart. I really enjoyed watching this video, but I wish you elaborated more on why these towns have been abandoned. I guess I could just look it up. Anyway, great job, Rockhopper!
Thanks!
Just found your channel, great trip my friend!! I've lived in Alberta for 25 years, trucked western Canada for 17 of them, never got that far south, despite bring all through central and northern Saskatchewan hauling fuel. Not sure where you're from my friend but thank you for showcasing part of Canadian old history that's sadly fading away.....FYI best hockey player from Saskatchewan is Wendel Clark, from Kelvington, Saskatchewan. They call our Canadas hockey factory, 6 nhl players from a town of 800 or so, i have subbed to your channel thanks again for you contribution to our great country
I heard he’s building another sports bar back home in Sask. I’m from Oakville, Ontario where he built his first Sports bar/restaurant (since closed 😢) and his 2nd in the next town west of us (Burlington, Ont) but it closed for renovation during Pandemic, not sure if it’s re-opened yet. Have met him at Sports shows & he signed my selected Hockey card. Great guy.
Wrong!! The best hockey player is from Floral, Saskatchewan, Mr. Hockey, Gordie Howe.
Thank you very much!
when i was a kid growing up in southern sk i used to ride my dirt bike to old abandoned homesteads, lots of them looked like whoever lived there just left ... many were still basically fully furnished.
Yup same here. These old farm houses usually had all the furniture, curtains ect all left in the homes, like they shut the doors and just left. All the old cars they owned where parked in the back field when they wore out.
1896-1905…Settlement policy, set by the federal government, the Canadian Pacific Railway, the Hudson's Bay Company and associated land companies encouraged immigration. The key event was the decision to emulate the American Homestead Law by offering, at no cost, 160 acres of farmland to any man over 18 (or to a woman head of family) who settled there. Many Canadian citizens today identify with Saskatchewan as where their family started from over 100 years ago. I’m one of them…..Gravelbourgh.
Ah the spoils of racial theft 👍
Mine too, from Mullingar ....now a 'ghost town'.
Wow. I just read the Wikipedia article on “Homestead Acts”, a real eye-opener for me!
M y grandfather and grandmother lived in a literal shack for few years(1910+) near Dollard with their quickly growing number of children. I’ve seen the photo. Smaller than today’s desired “tiny homes”. They came up from N. Dakota.
My grandmother arrived from Scotland as an 18 year old girl in 1921.
This was interesting. Beautiful landscape and i love all these old cars and trucks standing everywhere...👍🙂
Those truck owners may not know their Mercury trucks are quite valuable. The whole truck, or parts that spell out "Mercury' like tailgates and hubcaps. Mercury trucks were never sold in the USA, and thus, are a novelty for old car owners. Fargo trucks also.
Great video. Love the open space and open skies of the prairies.
Thanks!
absolutely beautiful shots, never stop exploring, you've captured abandoned saskatchewan perfectly !
Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Very interesting deserted towns. Beautiful descriptions. Enjoyed the ride.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Spent every summer up until I was 13/14 in and around Mazenod, wasn't a lot there except a Co-op and junkyard back then. I could only imagine what's left now. The Hamilton family farm where my grandparents lived was just a few minutes south of it . Awesome place to spend summers as a young kid.
Manitoba is the same - as soon as the grain elevators were torn down, it changed the prairies forever in a sad way.
They paid the highest taxes in their town. So the grain companies tore down the elevators to save money. But sad to see them go.
@@johntomiski5719 As usual it’s more complicated than that. The railways realized that they could shut down hundreds of spur lines to small town elevators, save a bunch of money by forcing farmers to truck grain long distances to super terminals, transfer the wear and tear of the traffic on the railways to the roads and hence the taxpayer and it was win for them, lose for the farmer and taxpayer who picks up the tab for road repair due to increased heavy traffic. What used to be a short trip from the farm to the local elevator is now a trek in a Super B on secondary and main roads.
So the grain companies taxes were killed by the closing of the spur lines by the railway who is laughing all the way to the bank. As usual, the farmer gets screwed and it was another nail in the coffin of the small town. Lose your grain elevator and you lose so much more.
This was a great watch. My cousin, my brother and I took a road trip out west. I remember looking at the vast skies of the prairies in awe. The old buildings always intrigued me. We didn't go through the smaller towns, unfortunately. I'll have to revisit these small towns. Thanks for documenting this, as these buildings won't last forever.
Thanks for your comment! Glad you enjoyed it!
Our son married a Canadian gal in SK so we camp our way there. Pass through a lot of those towns.
Thank you for taking me back to Govenloch. I remember it when it still had people living in the village.
We lived in Gordie Howe's childhood farm, in a "town" called Floral.
I grew up in Grasswood just down the road…. Saskatchewan was a true gift to me
Love these kind of films, excellently done.
When in one's heart and memory, one wonders if you can go home again, seeing this nice empty land, this makes me feel maybe one could. ❤
Currently living in Rockglen, SK. A bustling little village of about 450 people and still going strong. The surrounding terrain is quite hilly with long valleys and lots of coulees filled with mule and whitetail deer, the odd moose and cougar, coyotes, foxes, etc. You took a quick shot of our village sign but didn't stop. Oh well.
Yeah, SK is flat. NOT! Rode my Harley twice through there.
I grew up in the Alan Hills. Highest point? There is a plaque on a hill.
Rock Glen is awesome. And the #1 highway--or the railways--were not built to hit the "pretty" spots. It was all about flat, flat, flat easy to build. Of course! Get a few km off highway #1 and Saskatchewan is pretty damn cool. OK--I may be a bit biased but...what I am saying is not wrong. Northern Saskatchewan is a totally different landscape...twice over. We got a VERY "tall" chunk of real estate. Do some research.
@@Buzzkill-wn7tfas a resident of a place 2.5 hours north of the #1 highway, I agree that Saskatchewan is not all flat land with no trees. I go 15 minutes north of me and I am in the forest with amazing lakes and wildlife very different from down there. I grew up south of Swift Current so moving here was a shock 😂😂😂
@@rhondahoughton790Canada How do you survive the long winters, though?
I love southern Saskatchewan, especially SW Saskatchewan. My grandparents had a farm near Crichton SK but nothing left of the town or the farm. Sad.
@@davep6278 I remember Crichton. Grew up in Cadillac 1952-1964.
Hey Rockhopper! It’s Scott from the shop in Estevan, how’s your mirror holding up? Was great meeting you that day. Safe travels!
Hey Scott! Good to hear from you! The mirror is still hanging in there, thanks! Great meeting you!
Souris River runs through this area. And the Rafferty hydro electric dam is I believe on the Souris near Macoun Saskatchewan. Not too far from Estavan. Now I could have some of this not completely accurate, as I am born and raised in Ontario. But my Norwegian Grandfather homesteaded land near Macoun. And my mother told me how he would dig coal from the strip mine,and haul it back to their farm by horse drawn wagon, during the 20’s and 30’s. Beautiful area, I have only visited there twice, but I hope to go again. Thanks for taking us on your road trip
Rafferty is just a few miles west of Estevan - road goes across the top of the dam connecting Hwy 18 and Hwy 39. Not a nice paved road but it's there - the water backs up from the dam to/past Macoun. Rafferty is not hydroelectric - all the generating stations in SE Sask (Boundary and Shand at Estevan, Coronach) are coal-fired gens.
@@johnconrad8796 thanks for clearing this up for me, it’s been quite a while since I was out to visit my cousins in that area . I was quite amazed at the giant dump trucks going from the strip mine to the coal fired generator. I remember being in Macoun in the 60’s and visiting Mainprice Park, and seeing the community pasture, all of which became flooded when the dam was built.
My Ex's Dad was the Economist that made the report Rafferty was not feasible. He got fired, won $250k for wrongful dismissal, bought a house in Vancouver, restored it, flipped it.
I can smell this video. Lived there many years ago, as a child.
Me too and I loved the grasshoppers.
Great video, I’m from sask and it’s a great place to grow up in, some beautiful lakes still there and yes south sask, very empty🇨🇦❤️👍
Excellent video
Thank you very much!
I was in the RCAF stationed in Moose Jaw in the mid to late 60’s. I few jets and our training area was south of Moose Jaw. and flew over Old Wives Lake, Mossbank, Gravelbourg, Congress, Assinboia etc. Had to be careful not the cross the border into the US. It was said if we ever got lost fly down to see what name was on the grain elevator. One guy said all these towns are called Pioneer
I have totally heard of pilots getting their bearings by reading the names on the grain elevators!
😂😂
That's funny 😅❤
Yup, old bush pilot trick.
So glad I stumbled upon this video. The footage and commentary are wonderful. Thanks!
Thank you!
The locations of the prairie towns were originally decided by the railroads when they first came through. Depending on the topography, they were usually 12 to 15 miles apart as that was a day's work for a team of horses to bring a load of grain in to the elevator. Most farms were a quarter section, meaning 4 families per square mile. These were the folks that supported the local community. Now, one family will have multiple sections of land and 40 tons of grain can be hauled 60 miles in a little over an hour. It's sad, but it's irreversible.
Additionally, Souris is the name of the main river in that area. There's also a town in Manitoba with the same name.
Outstanding travel vlog. One of the best I have seen. Excellent narration and camera work. Defined editing and music that fits the scene. Safe travels and keep up the good work and maybe we will see you in Northern Ontario.
Excellent video. I love those wide open roads of Saskatchewan! Great narration.
Thank you!
I've dreamt about driving alone through the prairies and maybe checking out some of those old buildings myself. I also find the vastness of the prairies so beautiful and serene.
Loved your video. I live next door in Alberta and didn't know there were so many abandoned towns.
I'm glad you enjoyed it!
My hometown is Eatonia, SK but I’m in Edmonton now. It’s a thriving little town that is holding its own! My brother still lives back home and I’m always tempted to move back but my adult kids keep me from doing so. I wouldn’t miss this city life tho, especially with construction on the roads 365 days a year!
Live your life. Your kids would be happy if you're happy.
I'm in Edm too. Yes we're up to our eyeballs in construction aren't we.... lol..
Don't know how old you are but maybe you could retire there? Rural life has always attracted me but wireless coverage is scanty so a deterrent.
I miss Sask and I hope to maybe head out next summer. Cheers.
I lived in Saskatoon for 8 years, I really enjoyed the lighting-thunder storms.
Wow, what a fantastic video. I have a book, Abandoned Alberta, which I look at quite often and imagine the lives of the people who once occupied those old buildings. I wish you had spent more time at each location.
I remember visiting my uncle bob and aunt mabels farm just outside lang. After they retired in the 90s it became another corporate farm, and the house is no longer there. My entire family used to live in that area.
Glad I found this channel. You strike me as a very pleasant person, and I'm happy you explored our country. Please come back anytime.
Thanks! I hope to come back again and do more videos of your fascinating country!
Good video. For future reference, pump jacks are not oil derricks. A pump jack is installed after the drill rig (which has the derrick) has done its job and left.
Thank you for a great video I grew up around a small community in Alberta called Ferintosh on a farm made me miss my small town roots it is a dying community as well!
Thanks for watching!
Born and raised in Saskatchewan, use to live in a tiny little town called Fisk, Saskatchewan
I was a traveling musician in the late 1970’s and played in NE Montana and south Saskatchewan. Those people were wild. Reminded me a lot of west Texans. Crazy.
Magnificent desolation. I drove from Havre to Fort Walsh (one of the original North West Mounted Police forts) on dusty gravel roads and through Cypress Hills Interprovincial Park. I plan on visiting Grassland National Park one of these days.
Beautifully written, magnificently shot. A legacy video for the ages. Thank you for this incredible gift! And all those Souris streets you ask about are named after the Souris River, which wends its way across the border into North Dakota a couple times. Thanks again!
Thanks for your very kind words! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
I grew up in Wynyard in the 60s and 70s and although Wynyard is still alive, so many small towns in the area are not. It breaks my heart when the sun goes down in Elfros, Kandahar and Wishart to name a few communities, they are a piece of my past and I feel a part of me is fading into the void along with this sad reality. When the secondary railway lines were abandoned so was a way of life. R.I.P. fond memories.
I was hoping Wynyard might be mentioned. I grew up on West coast but recall a couple summer road trips in the 60s to return to where my mom was born and raised. The family name was Smith. You probably knew them all!
My Great Aunt and Uncle lived in Stony Beach. I spent some time there. It was an adventure by train from Ontario. Completely different life.😊
Have travelled many of those roads on motorbikes and pickup trucks. Friends left Lake Alma in the 1980s after years of drought and moved to the South Peace country in Alberta, where we got to know them.
My dad and his family lived in Oxbow for a while back in the 60s and early 70s. My Grandpa was in Oil and Gas back then. Still would like to go see it someday. Thanks for the video I enjoyed it!
Thanks for watching!
This is the content that I come on youtube for, great job and I just subscribed. - There's just something beautiful about these old town frozen in time.
Thanks!!
My grandparents had farms near Grenfell and Peebles
I left for the west coast in the late 80s and my parents just after 2000
Not an easy life and harsh weather
Should have a capital system with basic income to make it easier to stay on the land
Dont know how they did it but had to be resourceful with gardening raising chickens baking own bread doing things not using much money
Last year drove from chilliwack to winnipeg return all on secondary highways and was reminded of how large that part of Canada is
Took my family on a road trip from east-central Alberta all the way to Toronto and back. Neither my wife’s car nor my car had air conditioning, so we rented a large sedan with unlimited mileage on offer. I’m sure when I returned the car someone in corporate wondered about the continued feasibility of renting anything with ‘unlimited mileage’. We sure enjoyed the air conditioning and it was more difficult for the kids to hit one another in the large back seat! I’ve always loved driving through the Prairies and fortunately my wife and children slept a lot during those long, flat stretches. There’s something spiritual about those drives.
Loved seeing your perspective on this simple, yet beautiful part of this country!
I just turned 50.. This video is helping me embrace the next phase of my life.. Cheers bud.
Cheers!
Thinking same❤
Beautiful video love abandoned places❤
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!
I used to work on the Great Western Railway down in that area. Nothing like switching cars by starlight out in the very definition of the middle of nowhere.
Sure it's a bit sad seeing towns abandoned. But watching nature reclaim them is beautiful and inspiring too. There's always two ways to look at things, choose the one that most uplifts you,