Take the bus and REALLY see Canada!

We told you about the joys of train travel a few days ago, and how it's one of the most civilized ways to see Canada, right?

WELL, if that's too tame.............., ya can always take the BUS!

By BILL KAUFMANN, QMI Agency

CALGARY - Greyhound passengers say their needs took a backseat when the bus line abandoned them during a 14-hour delay in northern Ontario.

Shortly after finally arriving in Calgary Tuesday morning, Patrick Young and Kevin Hitchin said their odyssey began when they reached the town of White River, Ont., on Sunday afternoon where they were told by their driver the highway to the west was closed due to harsh weather.

After the drivers of the two Greyhound buses left, Hitchin said a police officer told them the road had re-opened but about 100 passengers remained stranded in the small town 380 km east of Thunder Bay.

"They basically left us there for hours and didn't tell us anything," said Hitchin, 30, who was late for a construction job in Calgary after leaving Barrie, Ont. Jan. 1.

The passengers passed the time in nearby coffee shops or on the buses, where the stench from the lavatories increased by the hour.

They familiarized themselves with the buses' heat regulator and other functions while they waited, said the passengers.

Some of the customers paid $80 to sleep at a local motel, said patrons.

Finally, about 14 hours after pulling into White River, new drivers arrived to continue the journey west.

Greyhound spokeswoman Bonnie Bastian said the buses didn't proceed because the highway was closed due to heavy snow.

"We do apologize for the inconvenience but we won't put our buses on the road if it's unsafe for passengers and drivers," she said.

She said there appears to have been a breakdown in communications between Greyhound staff and customers in White River.

But a regional manager had "reached out" to passengers when the buses arrived in Winnipeg, said Bastian, adding compensation would be determined on an individual basis.

Common folks, don't be such a bunch of babies!

At least ya didn't have to go by wagon-train like they did in the old days!

This does remind me of a story told by Kelly Jay of the group Crowbar, (Oh, what a feelin') about how a couple of the guys from the band hitchhiked across Canada in the sixties, and got stuck in Wawa, Ontario for 3 days.

He said they were there so long they ended up; "Tits up on the pavement!"

(They even wrote a song about it that became a regional hit....... especially in Wawa!)