My Journey

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

We finally made it to Matagami, Quebec yesterday. I will update at some point but the back is still bothering me and I'm having second thoughts about going further north. The town people here tell me that the road is very bad from here on and with an aching back, kayaking is out, and long days driving aggravate the back even more, so it's just not very appealing right now. And the road from Amos, Quebec to Matagami, Quebec wasn't all that exciting anyhow and I'm told it's just another (450) miles of the same thing to Chisasibi........forests ! Anyhow off to hike up a small mountain and then to Paradise Lake for the night......

 

[unkamonkey]

Don't worry about when you get somewhere. After all you are in a better place than being at home in front of the idiot box. My Misu Fuso will nut out at 68 MPH. I worried about it for a while and decided to just say screw it. Drive at 50MPH and I'll get there when I get there. I'm supposedly retired so It really doesn't matter when I get somewhere. Beats flogging my old Volvo(1968 144) across Utah at 98 MPH to meet up with friends at Lake Powell. It didn't matter, the boat we had reserved wasn't ready for another 3 hours anyway.

 

[qwsa010203]

Awsome!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Hiked up a small mountain........wonderful views of northern Quebec.......drove part of the way to Chisasibi on the James Bay Road..........had several mechanical issues........returned to Matagami and then to Amos, Quebec.......ordered a part and waited.......loved the town and hate to leave........will update at some point with a trip report on Canada........headed west today.........

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Drove across Quebec and Ontario on the Trans Canada Route 11 (the northern route)..... it was an excellent choice ....... crossed the border last night and back into the U.S. ....... am currently in Minnesota ......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

This morning I'm posting from a Barnes and Noble in cold, dreary, and damp Duluth, Minnesota. I'm going to try to get my blog updated before I go south to Minneapolis later today. So here we go...........

After my last post in Ogdensburg, New York, I took off shortly after that posting and headed north for Quebec, Canada. My border crossing turned into quite an ordeal as the custom officer said "we think you have guns". While they were always polite and very professional, it's certainly unsettling to be informed of such nonsense. After a long delay and a search of the rig, I was on my way. I later found out that I wasn't the only American that was treated this way and one Canadian explained that it was the start of bear hunting season so they're being very careful right now.

So I continued north, passing non stop through Ottowa, Ontario (what a beautiful city), and then making our first stop at Gastineau N.C.C. Park where we did a bit of hiking. We continued north on Highway 105, passing through Maniwaki, Ontario, and stopping shortly thereafter, camping in a picnic area along the Gastineau River.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Day 2 we continued north on Highway 105 towards Chisasibi, Quebec. Always looking for interesting places to stop and explore along the way, I noticed a long, bright red covered bridge crossing the Gastineau River. So we stopped, walked along the river, and of course, took some photos of the beautiful scenery......







At the end of Highway 105, we took a left on Highway 117 and drove northwest through La Verendrye Provincial Reserve. We passed so many magnificent lakes, streams and rivers, but with the sore back, I elected not to drop a kayak in the cool waters. For our lunch stop we drove down a logging road and had a peaceful meal along a remote lake.......

We passed through Val-d-Or (cool little town) and onto Amos, Quebec where we stayed the night along the Harricana River.......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Day 3 was north to Matagami, Quebec, the last town before the beginning of the James Bay Road. Honestly the road between Amos, Quebec and Matagami, Quebec was fairly boring and far from spectacular. The evening was spent exploring Matagami and the Bell River that runs along the east side of town. There were some amazing rapids here and I thought what fun it would be to run them. But not on this trip.......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Woke up the morning of Day 4 and really questioned if I wanted to continue north and drive to James Bay. We hiked along the river just outside of town and I was unable to decide my next move, so I decided to drive part way, and see what I thought. There's a small mountain (Mount Laurier) with a marked trail just north of Matagami along the James Bay Road. All vehicles driving the James Bay Road must check in at a guard booth before proceeding north, so after logging in we were off for some hiking, and then a drive north. It was a great hike and the views from the summit were fabulous and really inspired me to continue north.......









So we drove north on the James Bay Road. I'd read that it was all pavement but that didn't take long to find that to be false. We encountered a long section, maybe (5) to (10) miles of rough gravel roadway.



I wasn't at all prepared for that and now my Jeep's new windshield has (2) large rock chips in it. What a ***** ! Anyhow, eventually the gravel ended and we drove north on a rough, paved road. At at about (30) miles I stopped for lunch and saw that the bracket holding one of my spare diesel tanks had broken and the tank was held only by the locking cable.......

At about (100) miles up the road I heard a weird sound coming from the back of the truck. I pulled over and saw that the cable from the truck to the Jeep had fallen out and was totally obliterated. No lights on the tow vehicle ! That was it for me. The drive was really boring (as it said on the website......they were right about this part of the drive). We turned around and returned to Matagami for a fill up of diesel, and then further south where we camped at Lac Paradise. I saw this place on the way up and had wanted to stay a night here.......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

We spent a pleasant night at Lake Paradise and I was even able to get my first "bath" in an ice cold lake. Temperatures hit the upper 80's so it was just barely doable. We did an (8) mile hike on a logging road. The day seemed to pass us by and before I knew it it was too late to get back on the road. Therefore we spent a second night at Lake Paradise. It actually felt good to chill in one spot for a few nights.......

Day 6 started with another long hike up a logging road. In Quebec they really seem to totally trash their forests when they log them. I mean there doesn't look to be a blade of grass standing when they're done. Once the logging is done, they plant small pine tress to fill the void. All the seedlings are the exact same size and type, so the new forests have no diversity in the plant types. I don't know.......the forest there weren't all that beautiful to start with but it sure seems a shame what they're doing.......

Later in the day we hooked the rig and returned to Amos, Quebec to do the required repairs. I found a perfect spot in the IGA parking lot. It was so quiet here and the towns people are so respectful that it turned out to be a great stay. I also ordered a new cable for the truck so this would be my spot for the next few days while I waited on UPS.....

Another covered bridge along the way.......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Days 7 & 8 were spent hanging out in Amos, Quebec. This small town really grew on me and I found the people here to be very friendly. I enjoyed my long walks around town and the dogs did daily swims in the river. Probably the hi lite of Amos though was the Hotel Nouvelle Frontier. For $6 Canadian these guys let me use a hotel room / shower. The thing is that it's a very nice place so the showers were the best ! Steaming hot with tons water pressure ! Nothing like hot showers when traveling long term.........

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Day 9........we were packed and ready to go.........but I was having some serious debates with myself as to where to go next. I was thinking Nova Scotia and then west, but the more I thought about it I decided to just go west. My back continues to bother me so I decided I needed to get out west, maybe rent a place for a month or something, and get this healed up. All this driving can't be helping me out. I feel great when I'm walking or lying in bed but sitting up is quite painful.....

Anyhow, we drove west from Quebec into Ontario, getting lost on the way. The scenery was much better as we drove west, although the weather sucked again. This is without a doubt the wettest weather we've encountered in our (12) years of road travel. We passed an observation tower along the way and stopped for some nice views of western Quebec.......





We spent that night at a picnic area along Route 11 (the northern cross Canada route) in Ontario. It wasn't a great spot but at least it was free. Our walks were along the main roadway, which seemed to me to be mostly a truck route across Canada......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Day 10 was spent driving across Ontario. I was prepared for a road that was completely undeveloped but that was not even close for the first half of the day. Lots of farms and roads that departed the highway and led to what I assumed to be more farms. But it was a nice roadway and the weather was finally improving (although it didn't last). We stopped in Kapuskaing, Ontario and the only diesel to be had was at a Flying J truck stop where the prices were 10 to 15 cents per liter more than the other stations. We had lunch here and checked out the town. Then moved on to Hearst, Ontario where diesel was plentiful. After Hearst there were few farms and the scenery greatly improved. It was now what I had expected to see.......



That night we camped at another rest area on Long Lake. Great views from the camper window......

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Day 11.........we continued west through Ontario along Route 11 and had our best day when it comes to scenery. We passed massive cliffs on either side of the road......a total surprise for me. I also saw my first moose and black bear since entering Canada. The moose was small.....the black bear was huge.......

Once we arrived in Nipigon, Ontario, everything changed again. The highway turned from (2) lane to (4) lane and the traffic increased significantly. The road turned south to the U.S. and soon we drove into Thunder Bay, Ontario, located on Lake Superior. Big city with everything you could possibly want, so we picked up some groceries and swapped out our Canadian monies.......

Saw this in Thunder Bay......





Late afternoon I decided to keep moving and we made it a very, very long day of driving. The border crossing into the U.S. went smoothly and soon we were driving south on Route 61 through Minnesota. I found a spot along the roadway, pulled over and we camped right along the shore of Lake Superior.......

 

[chet6.7]

Nice update,too bad about the Jeep's windshield.