Northern Ontario to Ottawa: Warm weather at last!

Wawa's Canada Goose

Leaving Brandon, Manitoba, we took a detour through Winnipeg. Michelle had to see "Portage and Main". It was a disappointment... barricaded off to pedestrians so no access except for cars (David warned her). Winnipeg recently voted to keep it this way. So stupid (and ugly) for such an iconic place in Canada.

Off to Ontario. Arriving at the provincial border in the late morning, we find the province's "Welcome to Ontario" tourism office/building closed, with a note saying to drive some 30 km further. We never saw this other office. Later, in Wawa, we find the tourism office also closed. So much for Doug Ford's (new "populist" premier of Ontario, currently cutting services) "Ontario: Open for Business" slogan. They'll learn, eventually.

It's a long, long drive over the top of Lake Superior through northwest Ontario. It is still cold and we sometimes see patches of old snow. There are many very beautiful vistas. And some less beautiful places. We stay in so-so motels in so-so locations. Our route takes us through Thunder Bay (which we detour to drive through), Wawa and Sudbury.

What is Wawa famous for? Some might say its iconic Canada Goose statue (which is repeated everywhere in town). If you were a cross-Canada hitchhiker in the 70s-80s, Wawa was infamous as THE place in Canada where you (didn't want to) got stuck hitchhiking. If you were let off, you waited forever to get an onward ride. We met a French-Canadian kid (at the goose statue and closed tourist info office) who had just been dropped off. He didn't know about Wawa. But he was optimistic he'd prove it wrong. (Ah, youth....) He was headed West and we East, so we couldn't help him (our Subaru is packed to the gills anyways, so no room). We hope he got out of Wawa soon.

More great scenery (think "Group of Seven" landscapes). We camp for 2 nights in Chutes Provincial Park. Warm weather at last! So nice to take a rest from driving. The rapids on the Riviere aux Sables are roaring. The campground nearly empty with great facilities (they better be at $43/night for a camp site... Ontario Parks are hardly affordable for many Ontario families!).

Rapids at Chutes Provincial Park (near Massey, ON)

We decide to head to Ottawa, where David went to graduate school in the early 80s (University of Ottawa/Université d'Ottawa). On the way, we stop in/drive through Sudbury... gotta see the "Big Nickel". Sudbury is greener and nicer than expected for a city with such an industrial past (and present). Then on to the Ottawa river valley, where we see evidence of current extreme flooding, and then down to Ottawa.

We have driven nearly 4500 km to get here....

Sudbury's Big Nickel

Ottawa: Canada's Parliament buildings (undergoing a 10-year restoration)