Living in Western Canada, I was raised to understand the importance of big trucks and big fish. A big truck was how farmers got around the fields, how homeowners hauled building supplies for inevitable renovations and repairs and how almost everybody dealt with the wear and tear of cruising on gravel roads. In fact, one of my earliest memories is sitting beside my dad in his old pickup driving down a winding gravel road in rural Saskatchewan.
Big fish, well…those were just for fun. Saskatchewan is an outdoorsy province, so hunting and fishing have always been a popular activity for us. From fishing in the nearby river as a child to heading out on a boat with friends as a teenager to eventually teaching my own son how to cast and reel, the combination of relaxation and pure excitement that fishing provides has always been something I love.

So for me, getting an invitation from Travel Manitoba and Ford Canada to go “Fishing with Ford” wasn’t just exciting; it was pretty much a dream vacation. A day of cruising around Manitoba in a new Ford vehicle on a scavenger hunt followed by a trip to a fly-in fishing lodge for almost three days of fun on the water…what more could this small-town Saskatchewan girl ask for?

The trip kicked off in Winnipeg and after a delicious dinner with my fellow writers and a good night’s sleep in the plush Fairmont Winnipeg Hotel, we were up bright and early to start our adventure. I was put on Team Blue with travel blogger Pam of Savoir Faire Abroad and we couldn’t wait to hop into our Ford F-150 Platinum Edition.
