Glorious Views are Good for the Soul!

 Day #2 - Sault Ste. Marie - Thunder Bay, Ontario (700 km)

Today I had the privilege to drive what I think has been the most scenic drive I have ever taken in my life.   Greg 'officially' proposed to me along Highway 17 at a scenic lookout 17 years ago, and that was the last time I had been that far along this stretch of highway.  At the time, I was very busy looking at the sparkle of my new engagement ring to notice the sparkling waters of Lake Superior, but 16 years of marriage and three children later, I am much more oblivious to what was happening in the van and much more willing to become absorbed in the stunning views this time!

When we left 'the Soo' this morning, I was pleased to see more rocky Canadian Shield. It would seem the northern farmland is just south of Sault Ste. Marie.  Although it was neat to see yesterday, I must admit it threw me off.  Today, however, I got what I had been hoping for and more, as the rocky, rugged beauty of the Shield and Lake Superior simply took my breath away!

The Wilson Children in Wawa.

There are particular stops that all motorists must make along Highway 17 between the Soo and Thunder Bay.  The first is in Wawa, just North of Sault Ste. Marie, where a picture or two in front of the giant goose is a necessity for any scrapbooker.  The kids enjoyed being able to stretch their legs a bit early in the trip, and it was really fun reading about all sorts of interesting people who made Wawa their home, including a man who lived many years ago who tamed an orphaned moose!  There were also some people who lived in the area as various forest fires ripped through the area over the years, and it was fascinating to read about how they were able to save various buildings, many of which still exist in the Wawa area.  Most of the people who came to Wawa were interested in mining the gold, and although there are several old and abandoned mines, the area is still full of minerals and there are mines all over.  We could have continued to visit there for a while longer, but the road was calling.  That said, the kids posed pleasantly for a photo by the goose and then we went on our way.

Patrick, Charlotte and James hanging out
with Winnie in White River, Ontario.

As we continued driving, we were seeing more rocks of various colours from greys to pink and beautiful mixtures.  The rock also began to get higher and higher.  From time to time, we were allowed a brief glimpse of Lake Superior and then more trees and rocky shield would obscure the view.  Eventually, we stopped in White River, home of Winnie the Pooh.  Yeah, no kidding!  Apparently, there was a soldier during the War who tamed an orphaned black bear, and he named her 'Winnie' after his hometown of Winnipeg.  She went overseas with him and became the platoon's mascot, and when the war was over, he gave her to the London Zoo, where she lived out the rest of her life quite happily.  Apparently, Milne, the author of the Winnie the Pooh books, got his inspiration from Winnie from White River, Ontario.  The municipality of White River received permission from the Walt Disney Corporation to erect this statue in Winnie's honour, and so, of course, I had to take a picture of my children in front of it.

Once we left White River, we began to get even better glimpses of Lake Superior until finally, she revealed herself to us in all her glory! Breathtaking, marvellous, amazing and stunning are all adjectives which do not give credit to the views I saw today, nor do any attempts to photograph them.

My first full on view of Lake Superior.

There was a stretch along the highway today when I was driving from south of Marathon to Nipigon where the kids were laughing and enjoying themselves in the back, Greg was asleep beside me, my favourite music was playing and I was singing along, enjoying the sun and the view, and I realized that I was totally at peace and, would you believe, happy?  Yeah, there I was singing along to the Rankin Family with my nearest and dearest and our most basic belongings in the van with me, and for the first time in a l-o-n-g time I was completely content and at peace.  That realization just made me smile more, and as I drove, I offered prayers of thanksgiving.

As we approached Nipigon along the highway we ran into lots of construction, and we were delayed.  The traffic was being held on one side of the road while traffic from the opposite direction went through which meant we were held anywhere between a few minutes upwards to ten minutes at a time, and there were several of these along the way. Sometimes it was frustrating because the view wasn't so great, and other times I didn't mind being stopped at all because it meant I could enjoy the view all the more!

St. Silvester's RC Church

Another brief stop we made was for James, who remembered this beautiful old church on Highway 11 just before it joins up with 17 at Nipigon.  When we lived in Longlac and made the three hour drive to Thunder Bay, this was one of the landmarks James learned to look for which would tell him we were getting closer to our destination. We made it through the construction, drove down Highway 11 a few minutes, and stopped so James could see his church.  He took some pictures and we reminisced about life in Longlac for a few minutes and what each kid remembers about our time there.  One thing we noticed in the cemetery was that there was a cross with a gentleman's jacket and a hat on it.  The grave was unmarked but we wondered if they were the deceased's.  We all agreed it was strange.

Terry Fox memorial just outside of Thunder Bay

The construction through Nipigon and along the road as we approached Thunder Bay was just brutal, and we passed the time by talking about Terry Fox, since the road had been named the Terry Fox Courage Highway.  Every year, the kids have spent the month of September raising funds for Cancer research through school-based Terry Fox runs, and so they know of him and his legacy.  We all shared what we knew about Fox and everyone had different facts about him that others didn't know.  It was interesting.  We pulled into the Terry Fox Memorial lookout which is just off the highway and got out to stretch our legs and view the memorial.  Not only is there a very emotional statue of Terry running with his prosthetic limb, but the look of agony on his face is obvious.  He pushed on despite his personal pain and health issues for a lot longer than the average person could have, knowing that his cause had caught on and the money he was raising would aid in necessary research for the prevention and treatment of cancer.  Did you know that with all the recent advancements in cancer treatment, Terry more than likely would have survived his type of cancer nowadays?  We talked about that with the kids, and then let them run around and enjoy the use of both their legs before we arrived in Thunder Bay.

Not the best pic of The Sleeping Giant, but one nonetheless.

In Thunder Bay you can see The Sleeping Giant, which is a rock formation out in Lake Superior. It looks like a giant laying down on the lake sleeping, and it is a family joke that we have to whisper in Thunder Bay so we don't wake the giant.  An Ojibwe legend says that the giant is Nanabijou, who was turned to stone when the secret location of a rich silver mine was disclosed. He protects the mine from any who attempt to mine the silver, and it looks like he is laying on the lake. The rock formation is what creates the actual body of water, Thunder Bay, for which the city is named, and anybody who has attempted to mine the silver has been unsuccessful.

One more thing that anybody who knows Thunder Bay should have while visiting is a persian.  A persian is a cross between a donut and a cinnamon bun.  It looks like a cinnamon bun pastry but there is a rich pink icing on it that is simply delicious!  I have not seen persians anywhere else in my travels, and I haven't had one in years, but the place where we ordered our pizza tonight sold them, so we re-introduced the kids to them, and man - was mine good!!  After a swim and some time in the hot tub, it was time for bed, and everybody is sleeping peacefully while I type.

Today was a day for the memory books...both the blog, my eventual scrapbook of our journey, and most definitely one for my heart and soul.