Day 29 – Sault Ste. Marie, ON to Wawa, ON

This was a day where our morning expectations and reality didn’t come close to matching. The good news is that it was because of some nice surprises.

The Route

We drove 138 miles north on TCH-17 to Wawa.

The Weather

We awoke to gray skies. It started misting by the time we were connected and raining heavily within 30 minutes. It looked like we were in store for a dreary day.

Surprise ... the sun broke through by early afternoon and the rest of the day was delightful.

Observations

The maple leaves are beginning to change.

The route followed the eastern shore of Lake Superior for half of the trip. Low clouds shrouded views of the lake.

We passed towns, rivers and lakes with names we couldn't pronounce. Some like Batchawana Bay were fun to try.

We stopped at Pancake Bay for gas and were drawn to The Canadian Carver. This shop specialized in high-quality artistic works (carving, pottery and photography). We looked longingly, but escaped without buying anything. Whew!

We hadn't seen an Airstream rig for at least 10 days. We saw two today!

34 foot Airstream Cutter ('95-'99)
Had never heard of it before today.

Much like ours.

Here are some scenes along the way.

Heading out on a gray day.

TCH-17 takes us into a wilderness area.

Cuts like this show why the road
was a "bear cat" to build.

We didn't expect mountains.

TCH-17 heads north out of Wawa.

About Wawa

We didn't expect much … and were really surprised.

Here are views from their Visitor Center.

They say a goose picture
is a must do.

Wawa is Ojibway for “Wild Goose”.

Prior to the arrival of the last link of the Trans-Canada Highway in 1960 (between Sault Ste. Marie and Wawa), you could only get to Wawa by rail, boat or bush plane. It’s listed as one of Canada’s “Top Nine Great Drives.”

The Campground

We stopped at the Wawa RV Resort & Campground and had the most enjoyable check-in of the trip. The owner was gracious, helpful and quite funny. Her daughter attends Mercyhurst University in Erie on a hockey scholarship. She knows Boone Jenner’s father. Who is Boone Jenner? Oh, he’s a centerman for the Columbus Blue Jackets … and he’s quite good!

Site #63

Tomorrow

We have a long drive to Thunder Bay.