Day 25 – The Aftermath, Post WC Trip to Banff

As I was packing my stuff at noon and loading the minivan with Rob, it hit me that this really was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I was having some separation anxiety from the Delta Edmonton that grew to be our home for 3+ weeks. After lingering in the lobby checking email, taking pictures of the aquarium, Rob and I headed to Denny’s for some food to begin our journey. We mapped out our route, bought binoculars and hiking boots nearby, and started the trip south to Calgary. We’ll head to Banff first, then north to Jasper, then back to Edmonton for our flight on Sept 27th, sleeping in our minivan along the way. I’m excited to be in nature and do some hiking, but this means that the rugby experience is over. It was stressful and incredible at the same time. This team won't ever play together again - the pool changes, people retire, injuries, etc. All-in-all, quite an interesting and amazing journey and worth the sacrifice.