…is really pretty great!
(That’s how the saying goes, isn’t it?)
A week or two ago (who can tell, what is time) Andrew and I went to La Crete for a few days. Andrew had been invited to be the keynote speaker at the Chamber of Commerce awards banquet, and I was privileged to come along too!
Up until this point, I knew next to nothing about La Crete. I definitely knew it existed; I’d heard it referenced here and there as a bit of an isolated place where there were a lot of Mennonites, but I’m not even totally sure that I even knew which province it was in (Alberta). And I certainly didn’t know how far north it was. (It’s a seven-hour drive north of Edmonton!)
First we flew to Calgary, then to Edmonton, where we spent the night. In the morning, we flew to High Level on a small plane with Central Mountain Air. When we arrived at the small airport, Larry the Chamber Guy welcomed us. He picked us up in a Jeep that was graciously lent to us by Borderlands.
The very first thing Larry decided we should do, was see the ice bridge. I didn’t really understand what this was either, because I’d never heard this term before. But, you know, it is what it sounds like: in the place they would maybe like to have a bridge over the Peace River someday, currently they have a ferry in summer and an ice bridge in winter. I guess in the in-between times like spring and fall it’s trickier. Larry has a website (www.lacreteferry.ca) that lets you know the status of the ice bridge so that you don’t end up driving all the way out there and find you cannot cross.
So, the Peace River is a lot bigger than I expected. And driving across it, with two-way traffic, was a little unnerving. But, hey, they take care to ensure no one drives out there when it’s not safe to do so. It was a pretty cool experience. And this way, when people we met referenced the ice bridge, we knew what they were talking about!
Arriving in town, we met Caroline and were let into her guesthouse at Cozy Corner, our home-away-from-home while we were in La Crete. While that guesthouse has room for many people, we had it to ourselves and were very grateful. We had a very restful time there, and she left delicious baking for us.
We had dinner at Dining Delight, because they have Mennonite cuisine.
Andrew and I spoke at the Heimstad Lodge, just about Mennonite history in general.
We learned that when you shop at the local thrift store, you’re supporting the Heimstad Lodge, and nursing care for local senior citizens, which is quite lovely.
We visited J’s Bakery Cafe and frankly I wish we had done that more than just once on our visit. (I’m still thinking about those butterhorns.) It’s clearly wildly popular, and intriguingly, they serve a Chinese food buffet every Friday and apparently the lineups to get in are very long!
Would you believe, I didn’t visit a single cemetery on this trip? I think this is a first for me. But everything was under a lot of snow, so that was the reason.
I didn’t take pictures of everything we did or ate while in La Crete, but as you might imagine, visiting the La Crete Mennonite Heritage Village was a highlight for us. It is closed for the winter, but we were permitted to explore the grounds.
It was here that we learned that Mennonites in the area first settled at Carcajou, an area tucked into the bend of the Peace River, just about two hours ish south of La Crete. After being there for about two years, there was a terrible flood there, so they left for higher ground: La Crete.
Which they called Reinland. Hence the name of this park:
We also checked out a trail through the woods to Lake Tourangeau.
Another highlight for me was seeing Andrew speak at the Chamber banquet!
On Sunday we figured since we were still in the area, we’d check out Larry’s church, La Crete Christian Fellowship, which is part of the EMC conference. We were not prepared for how huge it was! It was kind of interesting, being from Steinbach where the EMC conference headquarters is located, to see its popularity in La Crete.
And then we headed for the High Level airport. On the way, we passed this sign:
Yes! Soooooo close to the Northwest Territories!
As a Mennonite, La Crete is a really interesting place to visit. It is a shame we didn’t get to see it in all its summertime glory (when the La Crete Mennonite Heritage Village is open!) but we met so many warm, welcoming people, and had so many interesting conversations, that the community really left me with a feeling of coziness… and continued curiosity. Perhaps we will be back someday!
