Truckin’ Canadian Style

In-depth

10 July

I’ve been busy inviting folk to ‘like’ the Truckin With Kermie Face Book page and website and somewhere down the line I invited one Mike Murchison from Canada to join in.

Now, I’m more than happy to have truckie friends from all over the world and it was terrific to hear back from Mike on messenger, saying that he hoped to come on Down-Under one day.

We got to talking and Mike told me a little about himself which is well worth sharing.

Mike owns two rigs – a 2000 Kenworth and a 2005 Peterbilt. He drives one and his wife, Donna, the other. They haul Great Dane stainless and multi temp reefers - refrigerated trailers to you and me.

From Coaldale, Alberta, Canada, Mike and Donna run these trucks from Calgary, Alberta, up over the mountains 1,250km away to Vancouver. They load up with everything from seafood to pasta and then make their way back to Toronto - 4500 km away.

After unloading, they take 2 days off then load up again with ice cream, frozen pasta, soups, etc and head back to Calgary.

Mike has been trucking for thirty years and Donna for fifteen. They have been running their own business, FAITH TRUCKING for the past nineteen years.

As Mike said in our conversation, “winters up here are hell! Storms and white-outs and lots of ice. We get to minus 35c at times. When needed – and that can be often – we have to chain up in the mountains. Conversely, in summer it’s so humid you can cut it with a knife.”

The couple are joined on their travels by the Whiteline Twins - their fur-buddies, Riley and Buddy. They run the Coquihalla highway. At its highest point it’s 1,260 meters. Then there’s 19 kilometres down at 8 percent. “A bloke earns his money,” said Mike.

It sure sounds as though you do mate. We’re just wondering, who does the cooking?

Welcome to the Truckin with Kermie team Mike and Donna. It’s great to have you with us.

Here’s some pics that show what Mike and Donna see on their travels across Canada from the mountains in British Columbia to the flat prairies of Saskatchewan to Ontario.