Just inside Saskatchewan, we saw a point of interest, and decided to turn in. We found...a rock. According to the plaque, it's a buffalo rubbing stone - the buffalo would rub on this rock, to shed winter fur or just scratch an itch. They used it so heavily, a trench has been worn around it, and the rock has been polished to a smooth sheen. John was inspired to try it out, too.

After that, we were off to check out The Great Wall of Saskatchewan, just outside Smiley - a must-see for anyone following this route. It's a rock wall, built from stones pulled by a farmer from his field over the course of 30 years. Now, it's a half-mile long, ranging from 6-12 feet wide and tall. He's built a road along it, so people can see the whole thing. At the end, he built a little sod house that you can go inside, and he's filled it with antique stuff. He has a quest book you can sign, that's just a 3-hole school exercise book. People from all over the counrty had signed it.  It took us a while to find it. There wasn't much signage, but there was one sign directing us to the Johnson's farm, cafe and stone wall. So we headed up and found the Johnson's farm. We went on, but saw no wall. We wound up prowling all over their farm, looking for this thing. In the end, we went back to town and asked a local. She said it was on the left, "you can't miss it," she said. "And if you don't see it, well, there must be something wrong with you all." We went back, and there it was, plain as day - we hadn't gone far enough. It is a real site to see - it's really worth the trip off the beaten track to see it. This guy built this entire thing entirely by hand.

This is inside the soddie he built at the end of his road. The kids thought it was the coolest thing ever.

Exploring the antique kitchen stuff he'd moved in. He had an old ringer washer, too.

He put in an old water pump too. It was non-functioning, but the kids had fun trying to get water out. You can see the soddie in the back - he'd faced it with his stones.