Week 29 was one of the most diverse and mileage intensive weeks getting through western Ontario, driving around Lake Superior’s rugged and curvy terrain and crossing the flat prairie lands of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
After leaving the Sault Ste. Marie Walmart Friday morning (7/11), we continued on Trans-Canada 17 north toward Lake Superior. Soon after passing Pancake Bay, the road remained two-lane and became rugged and twisty requiring full attention. The landscape was beautiful with one pristine roadside lake after another. Since Lake Ontario’s shoreline was flat and uneventful, I was surprised by the intensity of the landscape surrounding Lake Superior. After a previous day’s long drive, I was relieved after only 2.5 hours to pull into Lake Superior Provincial Park located on the east shore of the largest of the five Great Lakes and the largest freshwater lake in the world.
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| Just another beautiful roadside lake somewhere along Trans-Canada 17 |
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| Lake Superior from the highway |
While checking in, I was told that the Coastal hiking trail was closed due to “a menacing bear”. After minimal probing, she explained that a bear had trampled a few tents (fortunately while no one was in them) and the past two nights, the rangers and OPP (Ontario Provincial Police) were called to rescue scared campers. I was content over the next two days to explore the lake’s shoreline trail and stay far away from “menacing bears”. The weather was rainy and chilly, and the mosquitoes were worse than menacing, so after our normal routine Sunday morning, I decided to push on in hopes of drier weather and fewer bugs.
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| Lake Superior campsite with a view of the lake in front of us |
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| Beach time |
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| Lake Superior shore looking north |
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| Looking south |
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| T cornering like he's on rails |
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| One of my favorite shots of T |
The morning drive continuing north on 17 was fogged in for a while but gave way to great little towns like Wawa and Marathon. The drive around the lake was beautiful and continued to be rugged with countless lakes. Around 5:30 p.m., I pulled into Sleeping Giant Provincial park located on the north shore of Lake Superior just east of Thunder Bay. After setting up, we walked around the campground but the rain and bugs forced us to cut it short. While cooking dinner, a buck and fox visited our campsite and even better, I had a great view of the Sleeping Giant (a fellow camper pointed it out explaining how the park was named). The rainy weather and persistent mosquitos were negatively impacting our ability to enjoy the outdoors and were starting to get to me. I couldn’t fight a feeling that perhaps it was time to get back to the west coast.
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| I hope I can see a moose through this fog! |
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| One of the best campsites I've had.. this is Marie Louise Lake |
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| First visitor of the night |
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| Second visitor (he was moving fast so this is the best shot) |
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| Dinner for a few days |
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| The Sleeping Giant (can you see it?) |
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| Beautiful moonrise |
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| Trooper, a duck, and a sleeping giant... not a bad way to end the day |
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| Yoga studio with a view |
Monday morning (7/14), I met a gentleman walking his 11-year old husky and we chatted for a while. A local from Thunder Bay, his recommendation was to drive through the prairies as fast as possible and get into Alberta. This wasn’t the first person who warned me about the prairies of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Trooper and I took advantage of a nice day by hiking two short trails. Even though I don’t like using Deet, I put it on two bandanas; one I tied around my head and the other around Trooper’s neck. That afternoon, I left him in the RV and rode around Silver Islet. What a hidden gem! Silver Islet was once the richest silver mine in the world and some of the original miner homes still stand. The water has a crystal clear silvery color adding to the surrounding beauty. That evening after a full day outside, yoga, a delicious dinner and a cool moonrise, I decided that is was indeed time to put the pedal to the medal and get to the Canadian Rockies. As soon as I made the decision, I could feel joy in my heart and excitement in my soul. It was time and I was ready.
We pulled out of Sleeping Giant Park Tuesday (7/15) around 11 a.m. and headed west on Trans-Canada 1. It took hours to get out of Ontario but I enjoyed the scenery knowing that it would end shortly. I spotted a black bear on the side of the road just before hitting the Manitoba border making my departure from the province a very sweet one. It was almost immediately after crossing into Manitoba (and into the Central Timezone) that the zigzagging mountain driving was replaced with straight, flat and four-lane divided highways. I drove until 9 p.m. and pulled into a travel plaza just west of Winnipeg. I was exhausted but thrilled with my progress.
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| Mile after mile of canola fields |
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| Love this... Manitoba has garbage bins on the side of the highway |
Wednesday (7/16) was much of the same with eights hours on the road. Contrary to what people warned me about, I found the prairies inspirational with their endless horizon and vibrant yellow fields of canola. They were a welcomed change to the intense driving in Ontario. I put PattyWaggin on cruise control, had one hand on the steering wheel, and enjoyed the mindless ride. At a roadside rest area, I met two young men who are doing the reverse of my route. They just left Ontario and were heading for Banff to visit family before dropping into the states to circle back around. The amazing thing is that they’re on motorcycles. I can’t imagine making the journey on bikes. We caravanned for a while then said our goodbyes at the next stop since they needed to stop more often and I was on a mission. That evening, I pulled into a Walmart in Swift Current, Saskatchewan. I saw another RV from the previous night in Winnipeg so I wasn’t the only one pushing through the prairies. Again, I was exhausted and it was hot making a rough evening with Trooper but I was elated to be so close to the Alberta border.
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| Mesmerized or bored? |
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| My caravan buddies |
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| My windshield in the prairies... I hit two birds and countless dragonflies |
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| Saskatchewan starting to show signs of the foothills |
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| Boondocking in Walmart... beautiful Saskatchewan sunset to end a long day |
Almost to the Rockies
Thursday (7/17) was the third day of long hours and a lot of miles, but each mile that passed increased the anticipation of seeing the Canadian Rockies for the first time in my life. We left Swift Current at 7 a.m. and enjoyed a peaceful morning drive into Alberta. I pulled into an RV park west of Calgary to do laundry, shower (3 days is a bit much), fill the tanks, and charge up the RV before getting to Banff. The RV park was a nightmare with very little space and no privacy between rigs but I kept busy with my tasks and looked forward to the morning. Several folks in the campground told me that it would be impossible to find a campsite without reservations. I have “winged it” for 16,000 miles without a problem, but it is summer and everyone’s skepticism (and looking at me like I was an idiot) created concern and a restless evening.
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| NOT my kind of camping, but tasks completed and ready to move on |
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| Quick pic driving through Calgary |
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| Another quick pic from the highway of the Olympic Ski Jumps |
Listen to your heart. Thinking back over the past couple of weeks, there was something tugging at my heart. It’s that classic battle of the mind versus the heart. My thoughts were that I needed to slow down and spend a good bit of time in Ontario but my heart was longing for the west coast. That underlying feeling was undeniable and when I finally decided to follow it, a new sense of excitement swept over me. In my week 27 post, I wrote about “should”. The head focuses on what you should do while the heart focuses on what you really want. When indecisiveness or uncertainty plague you, do whatever you need (walk, run, sit quietly, chat with a loved one) and let your heart’s desire come forward.
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