It has been several years since my last field trip (vacation). My last travels were in 2001 in Turkey to cover old and new ground, having spent one week seeing the western part of Anatolia (Asia Minor) in 1993. Much of what I saw then has and will be material for Saga articles.

For my next outing, I decided to concentrate on material for Sabretache. This time it will be in the form of a road trip or “walkabout” covering several months and several thousand miles. The tour will start in my home base of Ottawa, the capital of Canada and end in Washington, DC. It will be more than a “capitol tour” as my route to Washington is less than direct. I shall be heading west with my mascot, Allie the Wheaten Terrier, who enjoys a nice car ride. We shall head west towards Michigan and points in between before touring across the northern states to Washington. This leg will allow me to visit friends, most of whom are wargamers, and one important site, the Battle of the Little Big Horn.

One of the reasons for making this trip is to allow me to make video clips and still pictures of various historical sites along the route to include in future issues. I really do want to use more multi-media in Sabretache.

From Washington, I shall make a few stops in British Columbia to see family and friends. BC and Washington were the main theatre for a strange little war between the US and Canada referred to as the “Pig War” of 1859. This was a confrontation on San Juan Island and was one of several “wars” of the Anglo-American disputes along the US-Canadian border between 1815 and 1900. Earlier conflicts were avoided in 1837 along the Niagara River, and in 1838 between Maine and New Brunswick (the Aroostock War).

Basically, despite several treaties, the US and Great Britain had several border disputes, which kept military forces garrisoned along the mutual frontiers for many years and saw the construction of several major forts in this period. Even the Fenian raids of the post-civil war period (1866-1870) were a continuation of these territorial disputes. Of note, these were the first military operations of the Irish Republican Army (IRA).

The conflict on San Juan Island was over possession of the Oregon Country, that vast expanse of land consisting of the present states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, parts of Montana and Wyoming, and the Province of British Columbia. That crisis came on 15 June, 1859, when an American settler shot and killed a pig belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company because it was rooting in his garden. When British authorities threatened to arrest him, American citizens drew up a petition requesting US military protection.

The commander of the Department of Oregon responded by sending a company of the 9th US Infantry under Captain George E. Pickett to San Juan. Pickett's unit landed on 27 July and occupied a commanding spot near the Hudson's Bay Company wharf, (the HBC remains one of Canada’s major commercial companies similar to Wal-mart and Sears). The affair continued to escalate into September, when the US and Great Britain agreed to joint military occupation. It was only in 1872, that the matter was finally settled and the island was recognised as American territory.

So my journey will encompass areas where these conflicts (Pig War and Fenian raids) took place.

After sailing about the San Juan Islands (literally), I shall head south to California to visit friends near Sacramento. I do not expect to visit any significant historical sites on this leg, although I have thought about side trips between California and Texas such as the battlefield of Pea Ridge, Arkansas or that of Wilson’s Creek, Missouri. The next major stop that is planned will be the Alamo. I think this is quite fitting, as Buena Vista Pictures will release the next movie in December.

From Texas, I shall head towards the Mississippi River to begin the serious leg of my ACW battlefield tours. I hope to visit Vicksburg, Champion’s Hill, Shiloh, Forts Henry and Donelson, Murfreesboro/Stone’s River, Chattanooga, Chickamauga and Perryville.

I picked these sites as I have read a lot about the western theatre of the civil war and want time to visit the national parks dedicated to these battles. Again, I shall be touring equipped with video and still cameras.

The final leg of the official tour will be Virginia to meet up with a friend and fellow ACW buff near Washington. Hopefully, we can then tour some of the many sites in that state in which the bulk of the battles of the civil war were fought. I would also like to visit Yorktown to see the final battlefield of the American War of Independence. I have not planned anything once this part of the trip is completed. I may just keep driving to more locations… There is no time limit for a return to Ottawa and it may just come down to how long Allie and I can live out of the vehicle (Jeep Grand Cherokee). Allie has already been to Nashville during her competition career, so she is familiar with parts of the route (unlike me).

So that is my wish list for my grand road trip. I consider myself lucky to be able to take the time to travel leisurely from site to site. Look forward to updates posted at the VW discussion group at Yahoo Groups in the coming weeks.