Tipis and Unicorns
Tipi time. So, it’s six o clock in the morning. I’ve been awake most of the night. But that’s not a complaint. My bed for the night is a relatively uncomfortable wooden thing with a minimal plastic mattress. A sleeping bag and a fluffy unicorn coloured blanket we bought in Wal-Mart to cheer up the cold Canada camping nights.
And did I mention I’m in a tipi? In the woods. Deep in black bear territory in Alberta, Canada. How can you be anything but awed by the experience? Sleep or no sleep.
While in Chile, drinking much red wine, we were booking up campsites for Canada when I happened to read a travel post which listed the tipis in the Sundance Lodges in Banff.
So, we booked up a tipi in Kananaskis, Alberta and here we now are!
There’s bears in them woods
Yesterday, we had our first bear encounter. I was so excited I was buzzing for about an hour afterwards. There it was just snuffling around in the woods doing its own bear thing. Admittedly this made this morning’s early trip to the outdoor tipi toilet in the woods all the more terrifying. However, I did manage not to scream when a squirrel shrieked at me from the trees. I had no idea squirrels made this noise.
Moreover, have you seen how fast they eat? Squirrels on speed.
But – would I ever have imagined a year ago that I would be doing this? Indeed, when I lay awake at night wondering if lions could climb ladders, I never considered I’d be sleeping in a tipi in Canada worrying about bears in the woods!
Tomorrow never knows
So how can you sleep with all this going on in your head? Lying awake in the dark listening to the sounds of the woods. Imagining the beauty outside your tipi door. Wondering what tomorrow will bring. Ahh, the wonders of travel.
Click here to read more about our trip to beautiful Canada.
Leave a reply