October is always an unpredictable month in Alberta Canada.
It can be sunny and warm–or cloudy and snowy-particularly in the mountains that border the west side of the Canadian province.
Alberta is currently enjoying a mild autumn season that has extended the cruising season into October this year, so veteran road warrior Daryll de Souza decided to organize a Sunday drive for like-minded car guys and girls.
The big difference is his idea of a Sunday drive was a trip from Innisfail, Alberta to Longview, Alberta via the Highwood Pass in the Canadian Rockies, a round trip of roughly 350 miles (about 550 to 600 kms) for Daryll and his posse of car people.
The Highwood Pass is the highest paved road in Canada and is closed from December until mid-June because of high snowfall during the winter months, so October is a weather wildcard in the meteorological deck.
Nevertheless, Daryll and his collection of road adventurers decided to tackle the Highwood Pass because of the mild weather in the area, although Daryll has encountered snow on previous trips over the years.
Daryll drives one of the more unusual vehicles in his area, namely a wild creation known as the “Ponti-rat”. He has averaged over 10,000 kilometers (6000 miles) per year since the Ponti-rat was introduced to the road several years ago.
The creative rat rod was cobbled together by Stan Purcell, a talented builder who brought his own unique rat rod along for the Sunday trip. Stan’s mechanical expertise was put to the test on the road trip when a fellow car guy’s vehicle developed electrical issues. Stan found the root cause and was able to bypass the problem.
Fortunately, there were no mechanical problems in the other vehicles during the trip, so Stan was able to enjoy a road trip along one of Alberta’s most scenic routes.
Daryll and his fellow travellers kept a leisurely pace throughout the trip and put little stress on their vehicles, even on the mountain road portion of their excursion. The slower pace gave the car guys and girls a golden opportunity to soak up the scenery along the way.
The road on the other side of the Highwood Pass takes travellers into ranch country, so motorists are rightfully advised to watch for cows on the roads, according to Daryll.
Daryll’s group of car people stopped for gas as well as food along the way and drew a crowd of interested observers because of the unique collection of vehicles in their group.
The entire trip was a massive success because of the participants, according to Daryll. He sums up their road adventure thusly: “I honestly couldn’t ask for anything more…what a great group of people”.
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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