12   Thursday, September 11   Fernie, BC

Youth Hostel in Fernie tonight, which is a somewhat
welcome change. First shower I have had since Vancouver,
and also a chance to wash my clothes. Met some people
at breakfast this morning (in Wardner) who reccomended
a restaurant in Fernie. Billed itself as a "Chinese"
restaurant, though its menu offered fare from anywhere
from India to Japan, inclusive. It was good, but not cheap.
I shall go broke very quickly if I do that too often --
stick to McDonalds' and Truck Stops from now on. Fernie
itself is a disappointment, rather a decrepit little
hamlet. Nevertheless, this is where the Hostel is. The
town center, if it can be called that, appears not
dissimilar from Vancouver's Downtown-Eastside in parts.
O well. At least I don't live here. It has started to
rain today. Actually, the weather hasn't been too bad.
Since Osoyoos, it's been pretty much sunny, save for a
20-minute thunderstorm in Greenwood. I'm not sure yet
whether to go to Calgary or not, though that decision will
be coming up tomorrow or the next day. From what the
locals say, the road is good, though it's still a couple
days out of my way. I guess I'll stick to my original
plan: when I get to the junction, take whichever road
looks easier. Let's not burn our bridges 'till we get to
them, eh? I am beginning to think about going only so far
(I don't yet know how far), and then taking the Greyhound
from there. Not that I'm giving up or anything; I just
saw on the Weather Channel that Regina's average first
frost is September 10th, which has already passed. That, I
am not too worried about; my tent and sleeping-bag are
warm enough at night. But it does signal a general change
for the colder, and that does concern me. I can already
feel it at times, though I am admittedly still only in a
T-shirt. But I wonder how prepared I am if caught out on
the prairies when it suddenly turns biting cold, as I am
assured can happen. O well... I'm still thinking about it.