Four Itchy Feet

June 11, 2025. Crowsnest Pass, Alberta. Day 21 of 170

We woke up this morning to an alert from the Canadian Government. An Air Quality Alert was issued for Crowsnest Pass, the town we were staying in. The alert warned of the immediate hazard of heavy smoke in the area. A quick look out the window immediately corroborated the reason for the alert. Apparently, there are a large number of fires to the north, even though it’s extremely early for their wildfire season.

We had to make a very difficult decision, but once we looked at the comprehensive Fire Forecast Website, we knew it was time to abandon our Canadian plans. We had to cancel three weeks’ worth of Airbnb reservations and contact our host to let him know we would be departing immediately. He completely understood, suffering from the smoke at his nearby home, and gave us a 75 percent refund for our stay. This decision certainly made it expensive, as we would pay 25 percent of a 7-night stay for one night, but I was feeling nauseous from the smoke, and Barbara and our young one had a headache.

Our best-laid plans now a waste, we headed southwest, away from the smoke, the fires, and ultimately Canada for now. With no reservations anywhere for the next three weeks, we had a blank canvas, but the priority was to find our next place to sleep. We drove for seven hours; the smoke cleared, we crossed the border, and found ourselves at an Airbnb in Sandpoint, Idaho.

This was the perfect example that when traveling full-time, you can’t plan for every contingency. You have to be willing to pivot and sometimes accept a loss in the process, always putting your safety and that of your loved ones first. We plan to enjoy what Northern Idaho has to offer for the next several days while we plan our next couple of weeks.