As planning goes, this journey is solely by the seat of the pants… no prep, no itinerary, and really no destination. Just essentials in a cooler (we have a plug in Igloo). Wondering if I should even call it a trip, as “getting lost” or “hiding” may be more appropriate descriptors. We set out at about 3:45 AST after a busy day (Janie had done a return trip to Hlfx and I had closed up camp). Nicely, we embarked on the newly completed divided highway that just fully opened between Antigonish and NG! Off we go…
This trip was always going to be about driving. Janie is strong behind the wheel after a nap/mornings while I’m more of a long haul/late night guy when I tuck in! We’ve done the monster road trip before and do have a bit of a formula… big up front push to create distance from home (and things we’ve seen before). Days 1 & 2 were no exception and plan was hard driving for the first 24 hrs. We did so without real stop (other than gas/washroom/back stretch)… for about 30 hours. Big run but by the end of Day 2 we were 1/2 way across Canada! 🇨🇦
All was as usual to Montréal… split driving through NS/NB/Québec on what are really top notch highways (still lots of construction between Edmunston & Rivière de Loup). Choices for route across Québec/Ontario started outside Montréal, and we selected Trans Canada routes 117 & 17, pushing as far North as Val D’or & culminating at Thunder Bay (see link for pdf). We passed communities we’d heard of forever… Rouyn-Noranda (huge mines), Kapuskasing, Timmins, Nipigon… Thunder Bay!
It’s a massive expanse… no question about it! Forests, lakes, hills and marshlands supplied by a Mother Nature on steroids! All are Uber! Highlights for us included La Vérendrye Wildlife Reserve, a massive wilderness area covering 12,589 square kms of contiguous land and lake area that literally took hours to drive through. We also learned a valuable lesson here as well… gas supply can be sparse. We barely managed, with our range display reading zero, to pass through without getting stranded. So very glad to see Louvicourt, Québec! ⛽️
Another dramatic area, Janie’s favourite of the Ontario leg, proved to be the route along the southernmost bays of Lake Nipigon. Really stunning, with sculpted rock formations and lakeside forests guiding us to an evenings rest in Thunder Bay. We stayed in our comfy, warm sweater on the road, a Hampton Inn & Suites, and settled into showers and bunk for recuperation.
A summation of the Days 1&2 trek might be listed more aptly under a heading that says “Wow, Canada is really #*^=%?! big”. Literally hundreds of miles of Canadian Shield and Boreal Forest (I do remember bits of my Grade 7 Geography) that, when driven, are simply awing! We think of the art of the “Group of Seven”, creation stories of the Anishinaabe peoples, and Lightfoot’s Edmund Fitzgerald.
Jeeze you guys did cover some ground up front. Gotta keep reading these updates.
Pushed hard while we were fresh… will tumble back at a more relaxed pace. Must be some sort of psychological term for that (beyond Jedi mind trick)!