The day is March 17, 2024, St. Patrick’s Day. A beautiful warm Sunday to be out and about, in fact a gorgeous weekend in all. The day before I was at Elk Island with my niece who never seen Bison before. As I was driving out there with her, I was remembering the last time I was on these backroads with no destination planned, how lost I got in those days. So when I dropped my niece off on Sunday, I had asked my mum if she wanted to do a roadtrip towards Vegreville, Alberta. The town known for the giant Pysanka due to its large Ukrainian settlements around the town.

Now we headed out towards Smoky Lake first in the early afternoon to get gas and to wind the backroads from there. With a giant plate of fresh fries between us for lunch, a full tank, and the sun shining bright in the sky, we were on our way. Heading down 855 which is a secondary highway that runs through Smoky Lake and past the Victoria Trail Metis Settlement. Now if you ever get a chance, please take a roadtrip down the Victoria Trail by Smoky Lake as it is filled with such rich history, and don’t forget to stop in at the hotel in the settlement. The Victoria Trail is a story for another day though.

So we travelled down the Highway 855 until we came into Wostok, Alberta which is a ghost town in Alberta with very little left there. We travelled down the twisting backroads from there, going left, then right, then left again. The sun was still way to high in the sky so all the light was flat which made it difficult for photos. With CFCW 840 on the radio, my mum and I were just enjoying our day together. The land around us was flat farmers fields with many very charismatic cows that just had an itch to scratch along the barb wire fences. Little birds dancing around us in the fields which gave the illusion that the field was alive and floating. It was truly a magical time.

As we drove on, the sun began to dip lower in the sky as it began it’s descent into sunset. Now I don’t know where we were when we found this old beauty of a church and if you were to ask me, I doubt we would find it again. We were somewhere between Viking and Vegreville which is all I can tell you now. It had to be around four or five in the afternoon with the sun now at the perfect angle for light. I knew we were around the church belt so when I saw this church off in the distance, something told me to go towards it, thinking it was just part of one of the churches on the belt. As we got closer and closer, we saw it was completely made out of old wood and boarded up with the cross on the steeple gone. It was gorgeous, intact, and just a beauty of a building.

This church was surrounded by trees and was completely boarded up except for a small gap where the door was. Now I figured I could only photograph the outside so much before I got board and wanted to take a peek inside. As I neared that small gap where the door was, I peeked around the board to see this single one window not boarded up and the sun shining through. It was intriguing and I wanted to see what I could get for photos.

So here I am, holding my breath to try and not breathe in the moldy wood, the smell of field mice, and probably so much more toxic elements that were around. Now I wasn’t brave enough to step fully inside so here I am leaning in with my arm stretched out, my ISO up high to get the light, and the photos I got. WOW!

Now I was up until 1AM to get these photos of this church edited and it is not even all of them. I just wanted to get the ones I wanted to share with you today. The colours I got, I never imagined I would get pinks, purples, oranges, and yellows. These colours surprised me when I viewed them in my camera and made my jaw drop. I couldn’t believe the colours and I wanted to try to get more centre with the arch way but was to chicken to step on the boards. They may look sturdy but this church was completely rotten and still standing. I didn’t want to press my luck on stepping in but I am sure I would have gotten even more outstanding photos to add to the collection. If I ever come across it again, maybe I will test the boards and my weight. Be a little gutsy but I would have to be fast as I do not dare breathe in that air inside.

Anyways, I sent this photo to my mum who joined me that day and she said the light from the window looks like a body on the floor. Now that is a morbid thought but now I cannot get rid of that thought when I look at the photo. It gives it somehow a whole new meaning and I love it even more.

Now I didn’t want to leave this building but eventually we had to start making our way home, but not before I ventured around to try and get a few more shots. Now straight on like the image above is a good photo but it isn’t my favorite and not one that is the highlight of this story. You always want some kind of angle to make it interesting especially when the light is hot like the bright white on the side. Now yes I have lines that lead to the subject but my favorite photo of this gorgeous architecture is when I went to the crossroads and took it from the corner. I had my wide angle on and the landscape was beautiful all around this building. I took it in black and white and in colour and I just love the perspective. So without further ado, please take in my black and white and colour image that I love most from this adventure of this building.

Cheers!

The Old And The Abandoned Pt. 1

A Special Piece of Morinville

Crossing Paths With A Fox