Another look at White Bear, SK

I thought I'd "paint" the falling icon and give it a look for posterity.

Bladworth impastoed

One of the "paints" that can be applied via software to photos is called impasto. I had to look it up. The link to trusty wikipedia is here. It's essentially a heavy pasting of paints creating a texture that reflects light and can give almost a 3D appearance. I applied it to a Bladworth elevator photo I took this August. I quite like the results.

Pense painted

I "painted" Pense like this using software and liked the effect of the red sky. It could be fire. Some wooden grain elevators burned down when grain got too hot because it wasn't dry enough to store. But many more were burned down intentionally when the grain companies made the decision to get rid of the town elevators. Perhaps this photo symbolizes the demise of the prairie grain elevators.

What if Van Gogh had painted Saskatchewan grain elevators?

Would it have looked something like this one I took of the Mortlach elevator?
 I'm trying out a program called Topaz Impressions. Great fun.

Moose Jaw, SK

I just had to stop, again, and take a photo of the Moose Jaw grain elevator. I stopped at the side of the highway and took it through the window of the car. It turned out to be a good thing we stopped to do this as the RCMP were catching speeding drivers close to where we stopped. IF I'd been speeding, of course.

Mortlach, SK

We drove by the Mortlach grain elevator that, thankfully, was still standing. I'd taken it before but this time there was a large puddle of water nearby offering a great reflection.

Pense, again

I got to wondering what this shiny elevator would look like in black and white. I quite like it.

Pense, SK

 Pense is a village of just over 500 residents, but still maintains its iconic wooden grain elevator.  I took another photo of it as we passed by Pense, which sits just west of the capital city of Saskatchewan.

Bladworth revisited

We drove by the Bladworth elevator during our latest trip in August, 2014. A barley crop was nearby so I included it in the photo. We noticed the absence of at least four of the elevators that I've posted on this blog, namely Hague, Hanley, Morse and Tompkins. Sad, but true.

Waseca, SK "The Little Village With a Big Heart".

We stopped at Waseca last June on our trip to Saskatoon. I'd taken photos of these elevators previously, however, since I like that they aren't painted and showing their age, I wanted to take some more. That's great for photography and shows up best in black and white, I think.

These elevators are privately owned. I ventured into one of the elevators to grab some shots. It seemed to be abandoned or at the very least, neglected. It made for some interesting photos. I'm sharing just a few here.

Wooden grain elevators in Waseca

The weigh station area

The elevator section

The vehicle tracks indicate usage

Memories of Plato 1905-1980

 We remembered Plato from a previous trip through this area and quickly stopped this past June (2013) to take another record shot of the standing elevator. The local residents have a written history of Plato. I've linked the section on grain handling here. If you click on the drop down menu you can go to other sections as well. An interesting read.

Lucky Lake, SK

Lucky Lake is a small village in central Saskatchewan that still has a standing wooden grain elevator. We stopped here on the way to Saskatoon this past June (2013) to take photos of the elevator and look at what the village has to offer. It looks like a village that still depends on the farmers and ranchers in the area for its existence. I imagine that oil workers are another source of income for the motel and restaurant in Lucky Lake. It was good to see another standing wooden grain elevator as so many are being torn down in the name of progress. This one looks like it's well used and in good shape.

Lacadena, SK

On our trip through the southern part of the province in June, 2013, we came across another Saskatchewan grain elevator that we hadn't seen before. This one is situated in the wide open prairies and seems out of place here. Apparently, this area was settled around the turn of the 20th century to farm and to ranch. There's some history online if you go here. It's a remote, tiny community. I took the usual photo of the elevator which shows it in total isolation.

It seems only fair that I also include a photo from further away to show that it is not entirely by itself and does have some life around it.
This is the nature of living in much of Saskatchewan--wide open spaces with much distance between neighbours. There is a sense of togetherness, nevertheless, as their very survival depends on helpful neighbours.

Kyle, SK

We came across another wooden grain elevator that is still standing and in use. It's in Kyle, Saskatchewan. This hamlet has a population of around 400 residents and is situated in the southwestern part of the province. It was a sunny day when we drove through this June (2013). We stopped long enough so that I could grab a few photos. It was a relief to see that another one of these prairie icons is still standing in Saskatchewan.

Birsay, SK

We made a point of exploring some less driven roads in Saskatchewan this past June (2013) and came upon some grain elevators we hadn't seen before--like this one in Birsay. This hamlet near Lucky Lake, SK has a population of about 45 residents. It strikes me as amazing that the grain elevator still stands in this secluded section of the province. When I took this photo it was evident that the elevator was still being used. Wonderful!

White Bear, SK

We just made another trip to Saskatchewan and found some more elevators to add to the collection. This one in White Bear, Saskatchewan, is not easy to get to as it's on a gravel road. The elevator is listing badly and looks like it could fall down at any moment. It represents the dying off of wooden grain elevators. In spite of the decrepit condition of this elevator, it makes a great photo. I've added some effects to accentuate the lines and the vast blue sky.

Rockglen, SK

We stopped at Rockglen this past June (2012) on our way through southern Saskatchewan. We had something to eat and drink and were amazed that a village could survive in such an isolated area. Farming and ranching is likely what keeps the village going. I searched for Rockglen and came across a YouTube video of collected photos and memorabilia of Rockglen. It's 10 minutes long, so unless you're from the area you might find it a bit long. At the 7 minute mark, or so, are some great photos of Rockglen from a distance putting it's location in perspective.
One wooden grain elevator is still standing-- a visual reminder of days gone by.

Neville, Saskatchewan

According to Wikipedia, Neville is a small village of around 70 citizens and is located on Highway 43. Neville remains a viable community renowned for its low cost of living, negligible crime rate, stargazing and bird watching opportunities, clean air and sunshine.

I had to snicker when I read the description of the village, particularly the part about the "negligible crime rate". With only 70 inhabitants it would be hard not to know who did the crime, I'd think.

In any case, a grain elevator still graces the horizon at Neville. It was pouring rain when we found this elevator, so I took the photo out of the car window. Taken in June of 2012.

Limerick, SK

The village of Limerick, Saskatchewan, was named after a place in Ireland. It's population is about 130 inhabitants.
In June, 2012 we drove into Limerick to take photos of the grain elevator that's still standing there. It seems like it's out in the middle of nowhere, but that's typical for much of southern Saskatchewan.
The joke about being able to watch your dog run away from home for days must have originated here somewhere. :>)
It's good to see that the elevator still stands and appears to be in use by the local farmers.

Kenaston, Saskatchewan

 I've posted a blog and photo of Kenaston previously. I thought it worthwhile to take updated photos of the grain elevators in this village of about 250 inhabitants. It looks much the same as it did about ten years ago. The large snowman still stands near elevator row. I'm not sure if that's meant to attract tourists, but each town or village seems to be erecting a large this or that to attract people to the area. Nowadays, with the ever-decreasing number of wooden grain elevators still in existence they, perhaps, will be the tourist draw in the near future. That might be incentive to keep them and convert those no longer being used to restaurants, hotels, or whatever might be an attraction. This may prove to be too costly to build and run, but the idea is worth considering and has been considered, I'm sure. I guess once us older folks are gone, the younger ones won't have the memories we do and it will eventually only be folklore that keeps memories of prairie grain elevators alive.