Another Sunday, another day trip.
We discussed the route. My partner got her way again — no trip to Shaunavon.
Instead we settled on Regina Beach along Last Mountain Lake with the aim of dining on the famous fish and chips at the Blue Bird Cafe.
For a while after the Butlers sold the cafe, the fish and chips didn’t seem the same. Last time there the meal was super.
Our appetites whetted, we headed out past Chamberlain agreeing to an ice cream break at the Twisted Sisters on the way back.
On the road to Regina Beach, we spotted a sign informing us of a farmers’ market.
Farmers’ markets often have surprising goodies as well as fresh veggies and crafts so we headed into the valley of the nearby resort village. We drove and drove. No farmers’ market was in sight.
Eventually my partner and wife decided we didn’t want to buy a farmer anyway. We drove to Regina Beach and the Blue Bird Cafe.
The place was crowded as all Saskatchewan resorts are in this travel limited pandemic.
We found a parking spot and walked to the Blue Bird. The cafe was only open for take out and the growing line was long.
We saw nowhere to take a lunch, sit and eat, agreeing to continue to Lumsden.
We did spot a farmers’ market but still didn’t buy any farmers.
The drive to Lumsden was uneventful except for the traffic speeding by us.
Travelling around the neat town of Lumsden with a mixture of new and old houses, we found food at the Pizza One — an uninspired Greek salad and French toast.
On the return drive, Yours Truly suggested a side trip to Dilke. The little village of about 100 souls has a grocery store and something called the Dilke Pickle Inn.
It is a 90-year-old cafe adapted to rural decline as a combined coffee shop, candy store, antique/craft shop, bed and breakfast.
Since this was once a settlement of German homesteaders, I wondered if the cafe served German kuchen or other ethnic food.
Too bad we had eaten. The Dilke Pickle is another excuse for a future day trip, but the place is only open seasonally to benefit from traffic through the village from three or four nearby resort villages.
We agreed to forego an ice cream stop at the Twisted Sisters to stick to our diets. We’re sticking to that story.
Ron Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net
