July 9, 2018

Well, we did it again.  The host told us when we pulled in that the black flies were bad and asked if we had bug spray. We most certainly do!! It’s been taking three layers some nights!  There weren’t any bugs when we went down to the beach (twice) but when we got up from our campfire to go to bed, holy cow!! Mosquitoes, AGAIN! I swear all of them from the entire came over to check us/me out!  Well, since the wind was blowing so beautifully and there weren’t any we left the window and tailgate open on the truck. DUH!! Beaver River was still the worst as there were TONS of them, but this was just as irritating with a few, hundred?? I don’t know.  What is awful is the high-pitched whining sound they make and then suddenly they’re quiet and you wonder where they are!! I swatted and slapped and killed many. Andrew wasn’t bothered. We tried opening the window for cooler air, but they didn’t want to leave and a few more came in to feast.  After several hours I finally gave up and slept in the front seat. We should know better; and we will never leave the tailgate and window open again, guaranteed!! We are assuming they were in the truck bed and not sneaking in somehow??

We headed towards the USA drove through Sault St. Marie, a city of about 75,000 right on the border.  There is also a Sault St. Marie in Michigan, and they used to be ONE city. But the War of 1812 sort of decided where the border was for sure and the city got split into two.  

Saute St. Marie is apparently French for Saint Mary’s Falls due to the rapids and cascades.  The water drops 20 feet from the level of Lake Superior to the level of the lower lakes. There is an amazing locks and dam system in place, the American Soo Locks, and they are the busiest canal in the world based on the amount of tonnage that passes through it.  

We passed back into the United States in record time. She asked where what we’d been doing (vacationing), where we were going (back home to Indiana), if we were bringing anything back (souvenirs).  That was it! No questions on dirt, firearms, fruits/vegetables, or anything!

We headed to catch a ferry to experience Mackinac Island.  NO motorized vehicles (except emergency ones) are allowed and haven’t been since it has been a tourist attraction since the 1890s!!  Hard to believe! We had to pay for ourselves and our bikes, and to park! The timing was perfect as we paid and walked on shortly after.  The ride was pretty and we were soon riding the streets. Bikes can be rented on the island but they start at $7 per hour per bike. We wanted to bike the perimeter which was 8.2 miles and around and we had them with us the entire journey so we brought them along!  

It is like stepping back in time!!  Horses and carriages carrying people, horses delivering things to hotels and restaurants (ask Andrew to show you how they got beer cases off the wagons and into where they wanted them!).  Horses and wagons hauled trash and it was amazing. They had special crews with carts and brooms to keep track of horse debris and hoses and buckets to help in that regard as well. LOTS of people, many bicycling, many walking.  LOTS of families. The buildings are older Victorian style with bay windows, wooden siding or shingles, colorful, turrets, and porches. The stores and restaurants were in buildings from various time periods of history, but keeping these characteristics in tact.  Only about 500 people are considered permanent residents but nearly 15,000 people swarm in DAILY during tourist season! That is quite a few people!

The island was home to the Odawa before Europeans arrived in the 1600s.  It is conveniently located for commerce and the fur trade. Europeans loved loved loved their fur, especially beaver hats!  Because of its location, a fort was established during the Revolutionary War by the British and two battles were fought here during the war of 1812!

We did pedal the perimeter around the island, 8 miles!  It was lovely and not bad at all. My new bike rides nice.  MOSTLY flat-ish but requiring some shifting for smallish hills (good practice for me!)  and one bigger one but we made it and it was neat to see the sea and islands from all sides.  The water looked like it should have been in a tropical locale, that lovely light turquoise!! It was clear and cool.  There was a yacht parked a bit out but who it was, who knows!

We did stop after only a mile to walk up 207 steps to see Arch Rock.  It once stood over 100 feet above lake level but the latek waters slowly dissolved the softer rocks of the center.  That crumbled away and left the arch.

A movie called “Somewhere in Time” was filmed here in 1972 starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour.  There is a stone with a famous quote “Is it you?” and a store featuring souvenirs!

Fort Mackinac sat high on top of a hill and now overlooks a lovely park.  Back in the day though it was a fabulous garden! It isn't often you hear of fabulous vegetable gardens in history!  We went into a birth “chapel” made like it would have been in the mid 1600s when Marquette actually discovered the island; he was a missionary.  I overheard a young man say, “I never paid attention in Social Studies.” I looked at him and his mom and said, “Oh, you should have.” I then backtracked and explained that I taught Social Studies and it can be fascinating!  WE walked around the area some more and encountered the same family and she came up to me and told me that he was going to pay more attention from now on. He was going into 6th grade and did have U.S. History last year! Too fun.

We encountered a family with FOUR little boys!  They were all dressed in bright orange shirts and they brought their own bikes with them.  Three of the boys rode, the 2nd littlest a balance bike, and the littlest was being pulled in a carrier behind dad.  Dad led and Mom brought up the rear! We saw a big Amish/Mennonite family/families pulling wagons of kids and picnic supplies.  We saw old and young, bicycles built for two, three-wheeled bicycles, and lots of walkers and even a few runners, some wheelchairs and some canes. Some lucky dogs got their own carriers and were pulled or they were riding up front in baskets like Toto!!  Some did get to walk too!

We stopped at a local pub for lunch, splitting a bowl of amazing chicken soup and a plate of the best ever fish and chips.  The bartender said they get it fresh from the lake each day. It was so light and not heavily breaded. GOOD! We popped in and out of shops and had some ice cream and headed back to the ferry.  More people were arriving and more people is a good time to exit!

We backtracked a bit and headed to Whitefish Point.  Why? There is a lighthouse there (the oldest on Lake Superior, commissioned by Abraham Lincoln!), but there is also a shipwreck museum there.  It is called the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum and features exhibits and artifacts salvaged from shipwrecks from the Whitefish Point Underwater Preserve, as well as the bell from the Edmund Fitzgerald. There is some “history” as some of said artifacts may have been obtained from wrecks on state-claimed bottomlands.  Back and forth legal issues prevailed for years. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a long-standing ship with seasoned crew that got caught in an early gale in November of 1975 and sank. We watched a short video of the ship and the incident and how they retrieved the bell and put it on display in the museum and placed another bell with the names of those lost back in its place as a memorial.  This area is narrow and there have been many shipwrecks here. The museum has such a great selection of authentic artifacts; it is very sobering to look over everything they have. While we were watching the movie, a song was being played, a song written and sung by Canadian (Ontario) Gordon Lightfoot called "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald." It was released in August of 1976, not quite a year after the ship sank. I'd heard the song before but never realized it was based on a true story. Andrew knew and wanted to see the bell since we were so close. Haunting.

We toured the lighthouse keepers quarters and it was authentic, complete with amazing wood floors and wainscoting!!  They even had some very life-like wax personas representing a keeper and his wife. I really thought they were going to turn around and say hello to us! I mean she was rolling pie dough and had freckles on her arms!!

While we were in there, a fog rolled in. This part of the lake is notoria for that and it dropped 20 degrees!  With the fog we couldn’t see much past the shore. We did not go up in the lighthouse as I have developed a slight case of vertigo.  It showed up on our return flight to Montreal and is annoying to say the least. I sway like perhaps I’ve imbibed too much and that doesn’t ever happen!!  

I got yelled at today.  Yes. As we were exiting the boardwalk from the beach area, a lady asked us if we knew where the lighthouse tour began.   I replied, “You need a ticket for that.” She replied, LOUDLY, “I KNOW that, ma’am” and huffed off around the corner. Andrew and I looked at each other and shrugged our shoulders.  A little history: this same lady had been in the lighthouse keepers house and interrupted the guide talking to us and another couple to ask if she could go out the in door. The guide said she could.  I was reading something on the wall and heard a comment about the museum and she said, “Where’s that?” and the other couple replied, “Where you bought your tickets.” SO, I assumed that if she didn’t know where the museum was as it was literally 3 feet from the ticket counter, that maybe she didn’t know the the lighthouse tour was a separate ticket from the other one.  I am assuming she was just having a bad day and took it out on us. It happens.

We drove back to Mackinaw City and had a light supper, sharing a couple of simple appetizers, drove to the McGulpin Lighthouse (all brick!) and then headed down the road.  We opted for a hotel this evening vs another battle with the bugs. I know. But even in the parking lot of hte hotel the mosquitoes just pop up out of nowhere and get a taste!!  

Tomorrow we head south and the dunes and a few more lighthouses.  

July 8, 2018

It was a restful sleep with no or few mosquito incidents.  The campground was quiet as most have been in the morning. People, including children are up late and then are not up with the sun! By the time we were packed up and ready to go there was some activity, a couple of little ones on their balance bikes and an older brother on a bike bigger than he was.  We waved and shouted, “Merci!” to our host from last evening. A few were heading to the beach and early swim.

There were still lots of cars parked outside the gates and then had an “ah ha” moment.  We realized that many of the campers parked were just campers, no cars or trucks!! It makes sense I guess.  The campsites looked to be all wooded except for a few up front.

The seasonal camping things sort of gelled too.  Why buy ONE vacation place when you can pull your camper and set it up like home for an entire season.  Then you get to really check out an area and move on to somewhere else the next camping season.

The scenery changed a we drove south, the scraggly spruces and birches replaced by taller spruces and pines and other hardwoods.  The landscape produced mofr farms, herds of cattle, fields of hay, wheat and I believe canola. The reason I think it was canola is a LONG time, after Grandma and I had been at WalMart, we drove 36th street in Jasper so we could drive by Robert and his kids’ arms (Mill Creek?? I can’t remember now) and they were big farms.  One year they tried to grow canola and had to invest in a new seeder as the seeds were erytiny and when we drove by the field was full of yellow flowers that looked like these fields today. I don’t know how long the Hopfs even grew it, if it was a one year trial or not. I do think there was a different way to harvest too. It has been some years ago.  Wow.

We pass through charming little towns, and passed a giant giant dreamcatcher sculpture in someone's yard and were not quick enough for a real picture, but the mental one is vivid.  A motorcade drove by, the lead vehicle featuring a pink bow and the 2nd vehicle a really large pink bus? We were trying to figure it all out and then it was past. These two vehicles were than followed by MANY motorcycles, with their riders wearing pink under their safety vests  One motorcycle had a sidecar in which sat a dog, enjoying the ride, goggles and all. We drove through Bruce Mines, home of Canada’s first copper mine, even though it wasn’t a mine for too long.

Many of the areas we are passing through “belong to FIrst Nation tribes:  Serpent River, Thessalon, Whitefish Lake. There are actually 133 First Nation communities and 220,000 people identify themselves as First Nations.  First Nations are the indigenous people of Canada south of the Arctic Circle (above are called Inuits). They settled and established trade routes across Canada 1000 BC.

We had something PLUNK onto our truck roof when we drove under an overpass on which a golf cart was driving.  We didn’t see any damage when we checked but didn’t climb up there. We are grateful it did hit a windshield! :O  THAT would have been could have been catastrophic!

A general store:  Tony Stewart & Wife, General Store.  I don’t know if we’ve ever seen one devoted to a wife.  Sons, yes, Family, yes, but never specifically a wife. Interesting!

We saw a mailbox set up in a bucket, assuming there was concrete in there??  WE saw one last week that was on top of what looked like a step stool. I guess you can just take them in when you aren't home.  :) Easy for the mail delivery to know not to stop.

We  stopped by a trading post near the Serpent River (part of the Serpent First Nation!) and the sign said, “Open,” but it was darkish inside.  We found something adorable and the lady in charge informed us that they were actually closed. I apologized but wondered then why the door wasn’t locked.  I did tell her that I had worked in retail myself and it was very frustrating when someone came in right before closing and you spend a long time walking with them explaining things (plants and their perfect spot in their landscaping as I worked in that field eons ago) and then they’d leave without buying a thing.  At least I bought my adorable thing! Shhhh. It’s a surprise.

Outside under a grove of trees we saw a bear and her cubs, walking towards the building.  Our first sighting and they were wooden cutouts. We grabbed a picture and whoa and behold, we were barely back on the road when a black bear crossed the road in front of the van in front of us.  It was NOT a big fat momma bear or dainty little baby bear but perhaps a teenager? Sort of on the slim side but a bear not the less. It's a good thing I finally found a bear bell at stop earlier in the day!!  

A GMC RV, a cousin of sunshine or a brother/sister, depending on the year, drove by the opposite direction.  It is amazing how many there are out there, still strong. Sunshine just loves camping at home.

We passed through a town called Espanola, on the Spanish River!  Hmmm. Most of Canada is French or English. So some research was required.  It turns out a LONG time ago, a Native traveled a long distance and brought his bride back, a woman who spoke Spanish.  When the French arrive, they heard the children speaking Spanish and uttered, “Espagnole” and the English version of Espanola stuck and the river as well called the Spanish River.  

There is a big billboard that advertises a book “Minnow Trap 2” on Amazon.  Well, it turns out the author is from nearby Sudbury and the book take place in this area.  Two and ½ stars but maybe I’ll chance it. It is about aliens invading their town??

Glimpses of lots of water, lakes both tiny and huge along with Lake Huron!!  LOts of boats, even on our trip up to and back from Chisasibi. Cars and boats, trucks and boats, campers and boats, trucks with campers and boats.  Mostly the small traditional row boat but some larger ones as well now that we are further south.

I did finish Anne of Green Gables and I really do recommend it.  I laughed, I cried, and I found the ending satisfying.  I will, of course, now have to read the entire series!!

We found a perfect picnic spot for the night.  It is close to the USA border but not quite. We can just make out America from the beach of Lake George (part of Lake Huron!).  It is called the Ojibway Tent and Trailer Park, and located on the lands of the Garden River First Nation reserves. We pulled up, after they’ve closed (of course!), but someone rushed to our truck.  We ask if he has something just for one night and he said, “Yes, cash.” Okay. Since we are close to the border, we must ask, “Canadian? Or do you take American?” His reply, “I prefer American but I will take Canadian.” It is $30 and we don’t have but maybe $5 Canadian left?  He says he’ll take whatever Canadian we have not yet knowing how little that would be. :) But we tell him we’ll be glad to give him American $30, even if the exchange rate is better for him that way. We’ve been taking advantage of their low dollar for nearly a month so this is okay.  We find a spot with a gorgeous view of the water, he finds us to fill out paperwork and then offers firewood, “on the house” which, ironically is usually an extra $10 fee, so it worked out fine. We haven’t had a fire yet, but may have one this evening. We walked the beach a bit and it was pretty quiet considering all the campers nestled in here and there.  Tons of them!! Two even have refrigerators outside of theirs and one has their own little “tiki” bar, complete with bar stools made from pallets! It’s crazy!! But it is most likely their home away from home. The neighbors to us had such a time putting up a tent and finally gave up. One’s voice was loud but we could only make out words here and there. He laughed a lot as did his people he was with.  We went back to the beach to watch the sun set; they are always so pretty over water!! EVen if the clouds snuck in and hid the last 10 minutes! We did have a fire, and it was lovely. There is something about wood smoke!

Tomorrow, USA, and Michigan, and biking Mackinac Island.  

July 7, 2018

These last four days are being published courtesy of a Tim Horton's. Even though my Chromebook gives me fits each and every time I want to log in to someplace!! But we thought we and better get what we can up and out there. Excuse any typos; it happens to the best of us!!

We hoped for a nice quiet and restful sleep, BUT we had company.  How that many got into the camper back we do not know. But we spend an hour swatting and splatting.  I finally gave up and opted to sleep in the front seat as it does recline a bit and, for some reason, the mosquitoes don’t get in as easily up there.   Andrew finally fell asleep amid the whining (He really can’t hear them once his hearing aids are off, and they don’t bite him as much, but they do hover and land, and that is quite bothersome when there are so many.  Since we were further north, the sun didn’t set until after 10. The sun rose early, 4:30 ish and since we couldn’t really sleep, we were on our way a little after 6 one of us covered with lots of red dots, the other with just a few.  

We had to take the same road, just the opposite direction, so nothing really knew.  It was rainy during the night and it rained for a little bit for the start of our journey.  Once it quit, the sun was warm, the sky was bluer than blue and the clouds whiter and cottony looking.  The trees looked refreshed from the rain. The waves, and holes, and cracks and such were still apparent even on the opposite side of the road.  Since the road isn’t busy at all (perhap 1 vehicle every 15 minutes or so??) we could weave around and try to miss some of the big stuff. We noticed some highway workers donned mosquito netting!  Smart!! We will have to put that on our list for future adventures.

We stopped at Rupert River again, just because it is just that awesome.  We stopped at another overlook that required a small hike into the woods but a few downed trees blocked the end. We snuck through on what looked like a new trail and could stand at riverside and look upstream to see those rapids.  Lovely, and a cool breeze to boot!

We stopped by the gas station and their Internet was back up and running so we got gas and had breakfast.  And then drove some more.

We think the sets of “cabins” are perhaps former work camps as most tend to be located near a river, so when they built or rebuild the bridges they had close places to stay.  

Andrew drove most and I did a couple of stints.  Mostly I read Anne of Green Gables, and it is good.  I can’t believe I’ve never read it as it’s been around since 1908!!  Anne is an orphan that is accidentally sent to live with an elderly sister and brother. They “ordered” a boy to help with the farmwork but somehow she was sent instead.  And she talks and talks and talks and imagines such wonderful things. I am not yet finished so I cannot spoil the ending.

We made it to Manigami and stopped by the center to let her know we had made it back out again, took a loop through town and headed to somewhere to camp. We drove through several small towns but not too many campsites. We found one and hoped there would be a site available as now everyone is off of school and vacationing.  The GPS told us to turn right and we did, on a dirt road that seemed to lead into more and more trees. Then cars lined up, and lots of them. We wove through the cars and the GPS told us we’d arrived. There was a French gentleman sitting in a golf cart who meandered over and spoke a “little” English. We explained we needed a site for one night, and he acquiesced.  Something with electric? No, sorry. Take Credit Card? No, debit or cash. Oh, oh. He tried our CC and it worked, thank the Lord. We are running low on Canadian cash as we are leaving tomorrow. This is a really BIG campground and the swimming area/lake are open to the public, explaining all the cars lined up. We got backed into our zone and popped up the canopy and screen (less bugs here but you can’t be too sure, plus it as wet when we put it away).  They had a restaurant near the entrance and we took the Chromebook down there to charge. Oops. I let it get near death so couldn’t type wile Andrew drove. The restaurant only took debit or cash but we had enough for a couple of sandwiches and drinks. I plugged and and plugged on, writing two days worth.

The last 2 days we drove about 1000 miles ---- basically 1 road --- up and then back down.  “Solitude” is the beauty of the area.

We are back at the campsite and a shower sounds lovely.  Andrew already took one and said the Looney (Canadian quarter) was a long shower so hopefully his long and my long match. :)  I organized the back of the truck a bit and we can perhaps swim in the AM or just wander around. We can’t leave until the gate goes up at 8.  :)

There are tons of families here.  Some are permanent sites, lots of them are.  They even have their own decorative fire pits, swings, patio sets.  There are kids of all ages riding bikes, even in French you recognize, “Wait for me!”  The road is dirt and FULL of potholes so it is safe to assume traffic is slow and kids are safe.  It is amazing how many adults are NOT riding bikes. Kids doing their thing together. Lots of dogs are getting walked and there was at least one birthday party, at least that would explain why two grown up men were wearing pointy hats, sort of like unicorns!!  I did see a family walking their dog and a remote control car. Too fun.

The shower was fabulous if not a little disconcerting.  It is unisex. So I walk in and hear men’s voices. I take a quick peek at the door and it does say both!!  There are three and the doors covers nearly all of it, only a few inches on the bottom to check for shoes and feet and a fee inches at the top.  The Looney was indeed very long indeed and hot.

The bike ride back saw me getting second in a race (or at least I passed one boy and followed another and high fived a girl that was at the finish!).  I needed to play close attention as the road is dirt AND sand!! So on the way to the showers I almost took myself out hitting a patch of sand avoiding some young ‘ens.  When you say, “Excuse me,” or “Passing on the left,” they don’t understand English!! I’ll put my bell on it once home, I think bell dings are universal.

Tomorrow brings us closer to home.  Should make it to the USA border into Michigan.. The “U.P.”

July 6, 2018

It rained and rained during the night.  The cooler temperatures and our screen kept bugs at bay and we slept wonderfully.  Fully rested and it is truly grand to sleep in the cool!! We could keep our back window open all night!  

It was still raining when we awoke so we had to break down camp in the rain.  It means having a wet canopy and screen next time we put them up, but it is what it is!  The temperature once we started out was in the mid 40s!! LOVELY! It was also very windy and the trees were just waving and waving as we drove by.

Our journey is a long one as we want to get to the end of the road, two destinations actually, Radisson and Chisasbibi.  It depends on which road you count. Radisson is the end of the James Bay Highway and it literally ended with a sign that says Fin (French for End).  Chisasbibi is a Cree town off the James Bay Highway but you have to go this route if you want to see James Bay, which is part of Hudson Bay, which is part of the Arctic Ocean.  Yes, it is pretty amazing!!

The road we traveled is paved, so to speak.  It was also very bumpy, with “waves” where your vehicle feels like a roller coaster, and holes (OUCH) and cracks and some varying degrees of all of the stated.  There was little traffic and some of it was being “fixed”. We saw more than one highway worker wearing a parka under their bright neon orange/yellow since it was so cold.  We had stoplights so we could wait for no cars, and sometimes cars, we followed pilot trucks since some stretches were bigger than others, we wove around cones on our own as that seemed to be what was expected.  We bounced and bounced and made good time. How bouncy was it? Well, my FitBit said I got in 10,000 steps by the end of the day. We spent most of the day driving! That bouncy!! Our phones also registered steps, not quite 10,000 but up close.  

We saw so many roads tucked into the endless trees. Where were they going on this road?  We saw “cabins” for lack of a better word, sporadically placed. Worker cabins? Hunting or fishing cabins?? Many were definitely not new, but some showed newer windows, so ??  

At the beginning of our journey we had to sign in so they knew we were “out there.”  They gave us a kilometer by kilometer of things to look out for, starting with the campsite for last night.  

We aimed for Riviere Rupert (Rupert River) and my oh my it was very impressive.  The sign, in both French and Cree (more on the Cree later), but the guidebook we picked up said it was a “powerful” river and that it was. The water cascaded down over rocks and into rocks and it is just hard to describe.  It was gorgeous and put out some powerful breezes and mist! The observation decks were actually close to the edge so you could be sort of up close and personal. There were two more decks indicated so we drove across a very old bridge and hiked just a bit on a not often traveled path to those two platforms.  Closer to the rapids. The only curious things was the color of the water. It was brown, like coffee watered down just a bit, or perhaps tea? We have video so you can see it for yourself when you see us.

We gave up our Lupine flowers from the coast and are now entranced with the beautiful orange and yellow ones that are everywhere, even clutching on to rocks and amid gravel roads.  They stand tall but the foliage is close to the ground and the flowers are tiny, about the size of a dime! They are a burnt orange color or a yellow color. Lovely!!

We are driving through the taiga and it is stark and beautiful.  Taiga is the evergreen forests of high northern altitude, and sometimes they are a bit swampy.  There are little tiny swamps and big giant lakes, these trees being more “scraggly” looking. Some parts were recovering from a fire at some point.  The trees were charred and the ground just green, nothing tall yet. Rocks and lichen (lovely light-colored moss) popped up more frequently. Stark but amazing at the same time.  We saw signs for moose and caribou but saw neither.

I was driving at this point, really wanting to drive until the road ended!! I sort of missed a turn (Cheryl took the wrong dam road) , and wound up at the end of a road, just now the right one.  That happens to me a lot. :) From the literature we got, we knew that back in the early 1970s they built a hydroelectric facility. This facility was considered the “the great project of the century.”  It caused a lot of problems originally with the Cree and Inuit Native Peoples as this would have been highly disruptive. The power plant is actually underground!! The entire project is roughly the size of New York State and is one of the largest in the world.  We found a wooden tower we walked up to see the entire area in full scale 360 awesomeness. We then drove back and drove over the dam and looked over the “step” spillway. Each is 10’ tall and is the size of 2 football fields. What a wondrous feat!

Andrew then drove us into Radisson and we got gas first thing  We had planned to get some earlier and there was an area devoted to those driving this long drive.  Gasoline, a restaurant, some accommodations, etc. BUT the facility had been struck by lightning during the storms the night before so didn’t take credit cards!!  To luck our truck has a giant tank so we really didn’t NEED gas but we want to keep it topped off. There were three gas stations in Radisson according to the book.  We found 2 and one didn’t have gas pumps. The other did and the gas was more expensive than usual. But we would need it eventually. After we got gas, we found the true end of the road and then headed back out.  The town boasts about 300-500 people (depending on the source) but it feels like more. During the 70s construction of the plant, it topped out at about 2500. It was established in 1974 to accommodate the workers needed to build the hydro-electric plant and people just stayed.  There were two restaurants as well but opted to head to Chisasbibi as it was back down the road a bit and then an hour drive to the bay.

The road to Chisasbibi wasn’t part of the James Bay Highway but it was paved.  We were thinking how great it was and then we hit some waves, holes, cracks. It is what it is when you leave north!!  We bypassed the town so we could get to the bay. We topped a small little hill and there it was, James Bay. And on the beaches were boats, just tied up ready to go.  Most of them looked like canoes, with the back end squared to support a motor. We stepped in, and it wasn’t cold. We have now stepped into the Arctic Ocean it two parts!!  We talk about the importance of Hudson Bay early in the colonization of Canada, and actually the USA in 5th and 6th grade Social Studies. So it was extra special to step foot here.  

Andrew eyed the island just a little ways out, and thought about getting our kayaks out.  Two reasons, one of which we haven’t been able to get them out yet due to wave and water conditions, and two, that island was in the province of Nunavut!!  But we were on Cree land and almost everything here required permission from the Cree Council. We noticed a small watering hole that had lots of geese in it on our way in.  I thought they looked odd but didn’t give them a second thought until we left. They were fake. Why?? To draw some in (Hey, look geese, land here!!) as they depend on the migrating geese for food or ??  At home we try to get rid of them!! Perhaps the migrating geese thought they looked “off” too and just fly on by.

The Cree have inhabited this area along with several other communities south and north, and some only accessible by boat or plane, for more than 5000 years.  They were a nomadic tribe until the the early 1800s when the Hudson Bay Company founded Fort George, an island in the mouth of the La Grande River. The Cree then abandoned their nomadic way of life and and settle nearby on the island.  There are special laws the protect their (and the Inuit further north) and some areas require strict approval, like hunting and fishing to protect their way of life and survival. Other areas have similar protections but are “looser” so to speak but it is common to ask for permission anyway as it shows respect for their way of life.  We weren’t sure if kayaking across their land was accepted or not. We weren’t hunting or fishing, but….

When the hydro-electric plant was built, part of Fort George island eroded due to the increased water flow, so the Quebec Government offered to move their village mainland, moving some 200 houses.  The village itself hosts 2 restaurants, one we couldn’t find and one closed, a convenience store, where we bought a few supplies, and no campground. Oh. Hmm. Different sources put the population at between 3000-4000 today.  We drove around and, unfortunately, nothing caught our fancy. The Cultural Center looked like a rectangular teepee but didn’t open until later the next morning, after we needed to leave. It really looked like most small towns!

We didn’t want to drive back to Radisson (which was founded by a gentleman who founded the Hudson Bay Company after he was awarded the charter for this land by King Charles II, his name being Pierre-Esprit Radisson.  So we headed on back down the highway from whence we just came!! How far should we drive? That was the big question. There was a rustic campground but it was another 8 km drive from the main road. Most of the roads leading off the highway were rock and not often traveled by the looks of them.  Next stop, a campground next to the Beaver River. Perfect. Outhouses? Check. Andrew pulled in and headed to the river to get a glance while I checked out the facilities. Andrew came walking back quickly, and I noticed at the same time. OMG. HORDES of mosquitoes, AGAIN. Since it was 9:30 we just hopped into the back and didn’t set up the canopy. Long driving days are long days so we were tired.

July 5, 2018

The camping area we huddled down for the night was quite pretty in the daylight.  It, however was a long night as it was hot all night; it never really cooled down.  So we wanted to sleep with the windows open but then the swarms arrived in full frenzy.  If we closed the windows, it felt very oven-like, very sweltering. It my first time at feeling truly claustrophobic in our camper set up.  It would get so hot, so we’d open the window, sometimes just a little to let some air in, and just a bugs, or fully open to let in more as we had to debate what was worse.  Death by heat or death by mosquito. We survived but it was a restless night overall.

Since we arrived at dark it was hard to see what was what.  The lots were big and there wasn’t anyone close. A truck camper but no truck along with a boat sat through the woods, another truck, and another camper in different directions.  A large camper pulled out this AM about when we did. It was called Lac de Vielle and it was a rustic campground (no bathrooms, water, or anything!). We didn’t drive around the campground to explore it further.  We noted they opened at 7 but no one was there when we left about 7:15 and it was locked up tight. So we left. We will get their phone number at some point and mail them a check I guess! There was a tall wooden structure we can only speculate on what its intention is.  It is stairs and a a walled platform at the top. We think maybe to keep bears away from food?? Since there wasn’t anyone there we couldn’t ask.

The drive didn’t take as long as we thought it would , our goal Matagami, the last “real” road before the James Bay Highway.  It was a beautiful drive, LOTS of trees and signs for log trucks. The log trucks are frequent but don’t carry giant logs but smaller ones and the trucks really zoom by.  Canada is a major paper manufacturer!

We also noted signs for snowmobiles; snowmobiling is a big draw anywhere in Canada!  Roads just led off into the trees, some paved, some overgrown, some rock. Some signage of where they went, some not.  We just assumed all trees and logging as you couldn’t see beyond the trees. Val D’Or is a biggish town and there suddenly appeared what looked like a HUGE mining operation. It turns out it was a huge mining operation, but not coal, but rather zinc, copper, and lithium!  Many of these towns are small, and have limited gas stations and conveniences we take for granted!

One sign along the highway stated Maple Mine.  Hmmmm. One, as we got closer to Matagami, boasted Mine Matagami.  The Maple Mine is actually a gold mine! I was surprise at that, and the Matagami one was for zinc and copper.  Northeast Canada especially has a huge mining economy, lots of ore!

We topped off the gas and wondered if we should go ahead and start our “remote” road journey.  This is a paved road and will land at a town called Radisson and it lies above the 53rd parallel. The road ENDS here!  Other towns further north are along the coast and require boats or planes. At Radisson we will take a left to go to Chisasbibii, a small town on James Bay, part of Hudson Bay, part of the Arctic Ocean.  Woo Hoo!!

Since this is so remote and before we started, it is suggested we “sign” in at the information center.  She asked questions and made comments, like, “Do you have a full tank of gas?” “There isn’t cell service after about 40 kilometers, even though some towns may have a little.”  She gave us a list of all the places we could stop, along with their kilometers traveled. We weren’t going to start until tomorrow but we got such an early start we decided to drive a few kilometers this afternoon, to the first and last civilized campground.  It has showers! Bathrooms! Some electricity based on the number of large campers parked here. We got a nice spot and were immediately bombarded by bugs, LARGE flies, tons of mosquitoes, and more! It was hot again today (95 ish) so we opted to put our canopy up to keep us in additional shade. It is a shady spot but not total.  We got to use our screen walls today!! WOW! Great decision to buy those walls! It kept most of the bugs out but some still snuck in, sneaky buggers. We did bring along some yard Off, to spray on ground and that helped, for awhile.

Our site is just up the path from a lake.  When Andrew checked us in, he asked about kayaking on the lake and the host said the lake is pretty big and so the waves were really big.  He said we could wait them out and once they settled down we could go out and fish. We opted for a walk. It has a small tan sand beach along the edge.  We wondered if they bring in sand? Or if it could be natural. It doesn’t seem likely, but we’ll have to ask on our way out. They had picnic tables all along where we walked and you could tell those that called this their second home as there were rubber rafts and kayaks tucked into the trees, as well as lawn chairs and buckets of toys!  The sky grew darker and darker and as we headed back we got rained on. The bug spray worked fine until the rain washed it off and then we were fresh meat again. And we opened up our map app to see where our blue dot was in comparison to the world, and it is not just a big lake, it is a HUGE HUGE HUGE lake, starting now even below Matagami and extending way beyond here!  We are now further north than any state of the contiguous USA.

We had just settled under the canopy when the sky opened up and it poured down!  Hail, too!! The canopy was shifting this way and that, the rain even making its way in through our screen.  We waited it out and then had to spray the ground again. It seems to be holding up for now.

We took showers and did some “wash,” hanging it out on our clothesline since the storms seem to be over for now.  The temperature dropped but the bugs are still rampant. After showers, it took Skin So Soft AND extra DEET Off to keep them a little at bay.  But, if you miss even just one spot, they KNOW!! Jeez!! This will be our world for a few days!!

I was sitting in my chair before the rain when we had a quick visitor.  A chipmunk darted from under the truck and bounced off one side of the screen (Ooops, he didn’t see that!) before heading back from whence he came.  Apparently he also came to visit Andrew while I was showering!! We open our 10 x 10 canopy and put maybe 18” or so over the back of the truck so it is to the ground except right next to the truck.  So the little critter and a few smart flying insects still make their way in. But it is keeping most at bay for now. The temps look great for tomorrow.

And Andrew’s chipmunk friend keeps popping out from under the truck!

Simple supper soon, and perhaps a bike ride or a book!   I’ve never read Anne of Green Gables, ever, and feel perhaps I should.  :)

July 4, 2018

We haven't had cell service or WiFi for days and days. Sorry for the delay!!

Happy Fourth of July!! Canada celebrates Canada Day on July 1st (observed this year on July 2) and we celebrate our independence on July 4th.  While we were taking in Ottawa with a leisurely stroll, we attempted to get near a statue and park, but were stopped by a very nice security guard.  They had their fireworks and celebration and were still tearing down from it! Tons of places were cordoned off yet! It must have been big!

Our campsite was quite big and full.  Many seasonal campers complete with full sets of outdoor furniture, lights, televisions!  We didn’t make it to the pool as it closed when we got back from dinner. They advertised a “big screen” for movies and it was a cute screen, not “big” by Kyana standards.  :) Kids had been swimming and riding their bikes and playing soccer. Adults were out on their golf carts and visiting with one another.

We found surface parking in Ottaway not too far from where we wanted to head.  It was already warm but not to unbearable. There were LOTS of people gathered just ahead of us and our first thought was, “Wow, that must be some building to tour if the lines are that long this early!” BUT, lucky us, we happened upon the changing of the guard for parliament!  I don’t think we missed much but there were bagpipes, and red uniforms and tall furry black hats and men with swords.

The entire area was blockaded off, with guards of varying uniforms keeping watch.  A small group of people were seated in chairs within the blocked off area opposite us.  I would guess the crowd was 3-4 people deep all the way around. The music was awesome (bagpipes!!)  and two men with swords met in the middle and did their magic salutes and then the entire group marched through us (they had opened a section of rope) down the street just a tiny bit and then they turned off again and were gone, except for one member of the band who had passed out and was helped up by a military police and was sitting on the ground).  It brought back memories of the Forest Park Marching Rangers back in the day--we’d march in our wool uniforms regardless of weather, complete with tall white “fur” hats!! It was hot then too but I don’t recall too many of us passing out.

There was also a really cool memorial with flames coming out of the middle of a fountain!  The parliament consists of three buildings, old and beautiful and all getting some kind of face lifts done, and they are active buildings so we couldn't actually enter any of them.  Armed guards made sure of it! We wandered around the grounds towards the back and a really large dome. One of the buildings round window placements made it look like a giant surprised face looking down onto the square and its throngs of tourists.  

We headed for said dome and much of the area was again blocked off. The dome, even thought it looked like the dome of a giant basilica, was actually the parliamentary library!!!  It was opened in 1876 and is actually all that remains of the original parliament building which burned in 1916. The interior was redone in 1956 after a fire and it provides reference, research, and information to the parliament.  That would have been really really neat to see the inside of!! The bell from the clock tower was also dug out from the 1916 fire’s ruins, apparently one of the last things to fall as the bell still tolled at midnight while the flames were raging all around it.

I wanted to see who one of the statues was dedicated to but was politely told I was entering an area tourists weren’t allowed right now due to renovations.  The statue was Thomas D’Arcy McGee, whom neither of us had heard of but was considered the father of confederation, renowned as a historian, poet, and persuasive speaker.  

From our perch at the top of the hill, we could see forever and wondered, “Who is that statue of, perched high on that knoll overlooking the river?”  He was so far away (or so we thought). The Ottawa River was so pretty and blue, with an island or two here and there.

The temperatures started out warm, and by now were nearing 90 or so.  We headed towards the river, passing signs with QR codes on them: Decoding Art.  Love it!! QR codes are those squares (usually) made up of smaller squares that you can scan with your smart phones and it brings up information, sometimes a website, or pictures, or a page of text or an audio clip.  They were strategically placed among the monuments so you could scan the code and hear more about the monument. It is the best way to learn more on the spot! Side note: Cheryl once use QR codes ironed onto t-shirts so her students could learn more about one another!  :)

On our walk towards the river we encountered the engineering marvel known as the Rideau Canal, complete with its own locks!  What we saw was just a small part of a canal built in the early 19th century designed specifically for steam-powered vessels, primarily for strategic military purposes!  Using lakes and rivers from two watersheds, it operates yet today!

As we walked down alongside the canal, we noticed we weren’t that far from the mystery statue, so we headed in that direction.  There was a HUGE flock of geese slowly walking near the trail as well. Andrew makes friends with a little one pretending to have food.  An older one thought about getting closer but thought better of it and joined his flock and waddled away. We were stopped by a very nice security guard and told we weren’t able to go up there yet as they were still removing the fireworks set up.  He didn’t know who the statue represented or anything about the area, which we thought was a bit odd. BUT he said he only had been here for about a month. We did think it was odd that we didn’t see any people around the statue from our perch near the parliament, so now we know way.  

We backtracked a bit and saw the steeples of a nearby church (of course!).   It was the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica, first planned as a parish in 1839, then transformed to cathedral in 1847, and basilica in 1879.  Although a slightly different style from the other Notre-Dames we’ve seen, it was still gorgeous, intricate carvings, gold stars painted on its blue ceiling, lovely!  We lit a candle for peace and good health.

When we were walking back so we could walk across the bridge over the Ottawa River, we noticed people by the statue from which we were turned away!  It was now open! We walked up the path and our mystery man was none other than Samuel de Champlain, discoverer of Canada

We walked across the Interprovincial bridge, constructed in 1900, the river sparkling below!  We were going to just stop and turn around but some large plant “statues” caught our eye. Hmmm.  We discovered the Jacque Cartier Park. Life-size or bigger sculptures made from plants! Some were plants that were creatively trimmed, others wire (perhaps chicken wire?) that held plants of varying sizes and color.  Ships, flowers, animals, dragons, hands---what fun! We didn’t actually go into the park itself as it was very expensive to do so, but we could see much from outside the fence. It does make a person wonder how much more there might have been inside the fence!

At this point we decided we should probably get a drink and perhaps a light light lunch.  It was warmer and warmer! We walked back across the bridge and down the streets and found a restaurant.  We settled under an umbrella on the patio. It was 95 degrees!! But it felt like 95. We checked St. Anthony and it was “only” 93 but it felt like 106. :/  Andrew had cold shrimp while Cheryl opted for their soup du jour, a gazpacho (cold) soup: cucumber mint avocado. It looked green, pale green, but was very cool and refreshing!  

I needed to get some training materials finished before we get back so we hunted for a library.  We found one only a few blocks from where we were parked and checked it out. Hahahaha! Checked it out!!  Anyway, they issued me a card to use the Internet even though I wasn’t a local. We went back to the truck to gather my Chromebook and I went in to work while Andrew explored more of Ottawa --- walked up to the front door of parliament, until guards stopped me…. Had a cold drink in an outdoor pub right across the street --- celebrated the 4th right in front of our neighbor to the north’s seat of democracy.  And took a short snooze on a bench with some of the locals.

I finished my work even though it was tricky getting to the login page and was dropped off the Internet once.  I was shhhhh-ed by a librarian while talking on the phone (I had a question and needed a quick answer.); I had chosen this spot to work as it was the teen section and there was a sign saying we could be loud there!  Not that I planned on being loud but I had thought that just in case I needed to use the phone it would be okay! There some other adults (not teens) that were studying and I guess they hadn’t read the sign.

As I was leaving the library I had to stop and let two security men finish dealing with an irate person who had come into the library.  He was yelling, cuss words and all, and I am not sure what about. Security escorted him out, and he yelled some more and I had to sneak past him (he turned around to come back in!!) so I could leave.  Yikes. Hopefully it ended peacefully. The library was literally a cool place to be today. There were many people there, sitting in chairs, with their backpacks or bags near them, not checking out books but getting a reprieve from the heat outside.  Some were napping, some just sitting.

We hopped into the car and said farewell to Ottawa.  Our next goal is Chiasabiti, a town of about 4000 where the road ends.  More on that tomorrow.

We needed to get gas (long isolated road) and supplies so drove until we reached Maniwaki.  We stopped for dinner and then did some basic grocery shopping before heading out again. Internet searches showed few campsites nearby but a paper map showed one just an hour or so up the road so that is where we headed.  

We got there and no one was home!! Or at the gate. We pulled in and just hunkered down for the night. It was late for us for setting up camp but we didn’t really need to set anything up as we’d eaten already.  We climbed into the back quickly as the mosquitoes noticed we were “fresh” meat.

June 28 & July 3, 2018

June 28 & July 3, 2018

Thursday was a travel day!  We left our campsite not know exactly how long it would take us to get to Montreal.  You just never know with traffic and we were so unsure about parking. We took off from Lake Placid early and in the rain and stopped by the Olympic Arena.  The US Hockey team had an unexpected victory in 1980 and “Do you believe in miracles?” was yelled on national TV as they won! They really were not expected to win!!

We wound through foggy forests and rainy roads and along bubbling brooks and rivers.  Lovely all the way around. We stopped for a coffee and lo and behold there is a “little loaning library” right there in front!!  We’ve been looking for one so we could return the book we took from Concord, MA!! I couldn’t return the Clive Cussler one as I wasn’t quite done yet!!  We didn’t take one either since I felt we should finish first.

We stopped for a restroom break at a visitor’s center but it was not occupied.  There was a truck river with the same goals as us but the center itself needed some major TLC.  There was a coke machine crashed to the floor behind a barred door, and a mess in general. Perhaps they were remodeling??

We found parking after two attempts.  The first was valet and was quite expensive and the second was still secure and not quite as pricey.  The Park and Fly guy picked us up and took us to the airport. It wasn’t that hard of a process, just more steps as we were flying back into the USA.  

We got to our gate really early as nothing really took as long as we thought it would.  Andrew got a text that said our flight was delayed. Hmmm. And delayed enough that we were going to miss our connecting flight in NY.  So he went to a random, non-busy Delta counter and explained and the rep did his magic and got us on the 1 o’clock flight!! Lovely! EXCEPT, it was delayed, and then delayed again, and delayed again.  There were storms in NYC!! We finally got on the plane at about 3 and then the captain comes over the loudspeaker: I am sorry, but we are grounded here until the storms ease up a bit. We sat on the tarmac for 45 more minutes until we could finally take off. And then wait our turn along with zillions of other planes.  We get to NY and then circle. The pilot: I am sorry but a storm just popped up and we have to circle. We circled for 45 more minutes! We landed and sat and sat. The pilot: I am sorry but there isn’t a ramp available, so we will have to wait until something opens up. “Something” was getting us to some buses so they could drive us to the terminal!  Seriously. We finally get to the terminal at Gate 1 and have to get to Gate 42. We couldn’t find Gate 42!! Airports usually put odds on one side and evens on the other. We didn’t notice that these were numbered numerically and so we walked right by our gate as it was on the “left” side and we were racing down the “right!” Side note: The paramedics for the airport ride bicycles!!  

They were on a delay but not a big one.  We got a few snacks as we were starving at this point (7 PM) and had a picnic near the gate.  They finally loaded and we arrived in Indy 1 ½ hours later than planned. Not too bad for all of the delays!!   Since we were coming from Montreal we had to go through customs in NY. I find it odd that we were both only had one backpack and when we were asked what we were doing in Canada and we answered visiting, and he asked how long and we said 28 days, he didn’t raise an eyebrow.  I guess you could visit Canada with one small backpack for 28 days. To be truthful our packs carried our technology. :)

We slid into John-Paul’s so we could get a little grand time in on Friday before heading home.  We have a pretty packed weekend: dinner at Fleig’s, Fireworks and a concert at Celestine, grocery shopping for a family dinner, a wedding (Congrats to Bryce and Lori!!  What a lovely wedding--we danced from start to finish!), a birthday party, and a family dinner. Whew!

July 2

We took off for Indy Monday early so we could get a good grand day in again and that we did!  We played and played and read books and made cobbler and pie and had a lot of fun. They are such amazing kiddos!!  

Tuesday was an early early early morning.  The flight was back to Canada so international and we were boarding a little after 6.  We got up and were out the door by 4. We returned the rental, and were very early to our gate.  I could get some “homework” done that is required for a training when I get back and Andrew did some work as well for his return to work.  Today’s flights were uneventful. We napped and arrived in Montreal to 88 degrees. Yes, it is hot here now. So sad.

Ruby was right where we left her so we drove into the city to explore. It is hard to find parking!!  We found some about a mile from where we wanted to be but that was okay. It was also next to Molson Brewing!!  Montreal is a pretty city, with old and new. The architecture for the old was so pretty, very French. :) We gawked at the city hall in all of its old but gorgeous glory, followed a very small black dog that looked just like Dakota (our doggy “niece”) and stopped at the Notre Dame Basilica.  Pretty! We paid to walk around the inside----old churches are so pretty!! We lit a candle for peace and good health, and listened as they played one long note at a time on the massive organ. Perhaps they were tuning it? At first, I thought there was an alarm of some kind going off but then the tone didn’t quite fit.  

We found “Old Montreal” and hobbled on the brick roads, the old buildings filled with such an assortment of shops and restaurants.  Every building was prettier than the last. We went into the first Marian pilgrimage site of Montreal, founded by Marguerite-Bourgeoys in 1655!!  She is entombed there; it is still an active church!! This building was built in 1771 on the remains of the original one (as with most buildings, it was destroyed by fire in 1678).  The chapel became the birthplace of the English-speaking Catholic community of Montreal. We lit a candle for peace and good health and headed on our way.

We hiked it back to our truck and went to find the memorial to Jacque Cartier, the “founder” of Canada.  It was in a most beautiful little park in a most beautiful neighborhood. He was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of St Lawrence and the shores of the St Lawrence River. He actually “landed” in Newfoundland/Labrador and continued through the Strait of Belle Isle and explore the Gulf of St Lawrence all the way around!  

One more stop, the largest church in all of Canada, St. Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal.   Unbelievably, the GPS took us in the back way, and that dome was huge!!! The church was HUGE!  It felt more modern on the inside than I would have expected, We walked down a bunch of steps and wandered, “Could that be a statue of St. Joseph down there by the street?”  We walked down a ton more steps and, sure enough, it was a statue dedicated to the church’s namesake, St. Joseph. We then had to walk back UP those steps. Andrew counted 288 - in the ¼ mile from the road.  Plus another 30 in the back up to where we parked. That is a lot of steps.

The first church was started in 1904.  The congregation grew too large so a larger church with seating for 1000 was built in 1917.  In 1924 the construction of the present structure was started, and it was completed in 1967.

Andrew  to Cheryl --- Did you know this is the largest church in Canada?

Cheryl to Andrew (inside the church with jaw dropping) --  WOW --- it’s MASS-ive!

We were then ready to head towards Ottawa.  Construction projects in Montreal are EVERYWHERE!  New buildings left and right, and new roads EVERYWHERE!  It took nearly an hour to leave just weaving around barrels, and going on detours and watching orange signs, along with lots of others.  WOW!

Back to camping and we got one of the last two spots at Kittawa Camping-- about 40 miles from Ottawa   It has LOTS of amenities, including a heated pool! We hunkered down between a pop up camper of a family that had their telescope out so they could check out the emerging stars, and a tent of grandparents with their two little grandchildren. We THINK they are grandparents??  To our rear is a row of seasonal campers, complete with golf carts and lighting and tables and decks. We are having a problem with a leaking/gushing faucet that was already leaking/gushing when we got here, so we hope we don't’ have to swim out.

The WiFi is not working at our site (Welcome back!) so we’ll publish when we can. (And get to the remaining homework!). Tomorrow is Ottawa day and getting Ruby serviced before we head north to Hudson Bay.  

Happy Independence Day, USA!! We will miss the fireworks! Hopefully someone will see some and share how awesome they were!!