Those soon-to-be forgotten prairie sentinels — who ever thought they’d find a subtle new purpose? I was cycling with a former high school classmate, Brian Nicholls, and we had turned around outside of Erickson, Man., and were cycling back toward Clanwilliam on the Trans-Canada Trail, more recently renamed the Great Trail of Canada. After a […] Read more
Stories by Mark Kihn
Life lessons from the summer of ’77
One seldom becomes restless about the known; rather, about what you don’t know. So it was with me at age 17 when the summer of 1977 arrived. As one of four Manitoba farm boys, Mom relented and said I could get a summer job. Maybe I could make a few dollars and discover the working […] Read more
On the trail of the real Sam McGee
The subject of the famous Klondike poem immortalized by Robert Service was actually a farmer from Beiseker, Alta.
Robert Service made him famous in his 1907 Klondike poem titled The Cremation of Sam McGee. However, the real Sam McGee was not from Tennessee, he did not perish in the Yukon winter, and he was not cremated on the “marge of Lake Lebarge” in a derelict stern wheeler. William Sam McGee was an actual […] Read more
Toy collector ‘senses’ treasures
Avid toy collectors want details: the vibrant colours, the authentic patina, the actual size, and the price tag — all considerations they obsess about. Don Skretting can do none of these, yet he collects anyway. He is blind. At the Lethbridge Antique & Toy Show, Jan. 18, the 69-year old retired farmer held onto his […] Read more
City boy returns to his combine operator days
A chance meeting with a farmer puts the author back in the seat of a combine after being away from the field for many years
In late October, I found a time machine and jumped in. It sent me back 40 years to my Manitoba farm boy days. I loved it. The machine was a slow-moving red monster that feasted off endless swaths of barley — a Case IH 8230 combine, owned by Darryl Shuttleworth of Balzac, Alta. Darryl was […] Read moreHT wheat approved on appeal
While controversy swirls around the future of Roundup Ready wheat, another herbicide-tolerant wheat has been approved for registration this year. The University of Saskatchewan Crop Development Centre this year presented to the Prairie Registration Recommending Committee for Grains two wheat lines designed for the Clearfield production system. Initially they were rejected, but on appeal one […] Read more
Additional HT wheats in works
Canada might be the first country to approve a Clearfield wheat, but wheat producing states will soon follow. Guy Zummo, global marketing manger for Clearfield cereals, said the company expects a Clearfield wheat will also begin commercial production on a small acreage in Australia this year. “In the United States, we are looking at a […] Read more
Regina bull show and sale
The following are results from the annual Regina bull show and sale, held March 20-22. Listed winners are from Saskatchewan unless otherwise indicated. Angus Grand champion bull: Perryville Holdings, Ltd., Ron & Ruth Perry, Punnichy. Reserve grand champion bull: South View Ranch, Keith, Linda & Shane Kaufmann, Ceylon. Best pair of bulls: Perryville Holdings, Ltd., […] Read more
