Oh, CANADA

7 October 07 - 8 October 2007

On the average Sunday afternoon I would indulge in my preferred leisure pursuit: reading homework assignments of the distant future.
On October 7th 2007 I engaged in another favorite activity: unplanned self-insertion into foreign territory.

I awoke on that drizzly autumn day to await Joy's phone call, which would alert me of her finished shift and the initiation of her drive to Gilbert. She arrived with Carla T Corolla at approximately 3 p.m. and stepped in to meet my dad and see my cozy abode. Shortly thereafter we departed. Our appetites brought us to a halt in Aurora, Minnesota. We ate at a video-pizza place, which served good food (pizza, a calzone, and churro), and provided us entertainment during the wait by virtue of having a pool table (we displayed no surfeit of skill). Forgoing the 7 p.m. showing of Underdog, we proceeded along Highway 15 to the Beaver Bay, on the north shore. We fed Carla and snapped the first photograph of our escapade. Then it was Highway 61 all the way through Silver Bay, Grand Marais, and the boundaray.

Crossing the border was less of a hassle (both ways) than I had expected. The Canadian border patrol official raised an eyebrow at Joy's large bag of shredded paper and her license picture's lack of spectacles, but soon let us through. We were in Canada! And it was Joy's first time in a foreign country. The first signs (literally) we saw to indicate we were there featured a hunkering bull moose silhouette and the words "NIGHT DANGER". We saw many interesting road signs of mysterious import, including ones featuring a vertical road (presumably the one we were traveling upon) and a perpendicular road bearing a large speeding truck. The road lanes are painted differently as well, and can be confusing as lanes appear and disappear quite abruptly and without notice. We reached Thunder Bay at around 11 p.m. and I was surprised at how big the city was, with a population of around 110,000. We drove along 11/17 towards highway 527, long enough so that we thought we may have gone too far so we stopped at a Mac's convenience store for a map and snacks. Upon discovering our location on the map we realized the KOA (Kampground Of America) was still just ahead. We pulled into KOA and filled out a night registration sheet for tent site A-1. A-1 happened to be located in convenient vicinity of the main entrance road/gait, the office parking lot, and a street light. However, we decided we had come to Canada to camp somewhere more appealing than the lawn outside Cina Hall, so we set up our K-mart tent at site T-42, a cozy little nook nestled among some trees (a feature unique to T-42). Joy had bought a book of Lake Superior Ghost Stories that we intended to read, but we were exhausted and fell asleep before I could more than a couple pages.

8 Oct 2007

The morning brought continued drizzle, so we laid in the tent for a while trying to keep warm. We finally clambered out at around 11 and stopped in at the office. After paying for two nights we asked the lady for advice on places to eat and she pointed us to the Hoitu, a cozy restaurant in a renovated Finnish labour temple on Bay Street. Joy and I parked at a meter and went in. Being unsure of what and looking confused we were told to have a seat. The Hoitu reminded me of a dining room one might find attached to a church or an elementary school but it was a good atmosphere. Our waitress was a very friendly person, like all the other Canadians we met. As it was Thanksgiving Day in Canada we both decided upon the Thanksgiving Day dinner, which generously included turkey with gravy, sweet potatoes, stuffing, mashed potatoes, steamed carrots, cranberry sauce, coleslaw and a choice of crème of mushroom soup or a salad. We also got a glass of large milk each and shared a slice of pumpkin pie, which was absolutely delicious. All of this came to less than $16 Canadian!

Feeling well satisfied we drove aimlessly around town through a light rain until we came upon 11/17, which we took back towards KOA. We stopped at the Terry Fox scenic overlook and clicked a few photographs of Fox's statue, a strange plant, a smarties vending machine, a stainless steel toilet, and a Lake Superior Watershed: Binational Forum sign. All made possible by Storm "Dude" Duds, the trusty pink umbrella.

Next we took 11/17 northeast halfway to Nipigon. We stopped at Eagle Canyon Adventures: Home of Canada's Longest Suspension Bridge and paid admission and signed injury waivers. There are two suspension bridges spanning the gorge and we traversed both. The scenery was pretty amazing; the cliff faces dropped off vertically on either side, and a small river ran along the valley floor below. The surrounding trees were a blend of green conifers and yellow-leaved aspens. The rain picked up and we hustled back to Carla.

Next we visited Amethyst Mine Panorama, which had a really rough seven kilometer driveway. There were some pretty cool amethyst bobbles in the gift shop and Joy got some earrings and she bought me a cool little canoeing dude on a block and backdrop of amethyst. Thanks Joy!

On the way down the hill we stopped and took a photo of an unusual sign in an unusual place, but it was a friendly reminder that even in a remote forest one might encounter a middle-aged man chasing a ball. We headed back to KOA and packed up our tent, deciding that it would work best to cross the border that night, since it was still rainy and we had an 11 a.m. geography of soils exam Tuesday morning. Otherwise we would be doing it at 4 a.m. and probably neither of us would have gotten any sleep. So the plan was to stay at my dad's place instead. We asked the KOA lady about places to eat and she suggested The Prospector Steak House. We bought a couple of rabbit fur/coon tail hats, thanked her, and left KOA. We found the Prospector without difficulty but it was closed for Thanksgiving. Fortunately the place across the street was open and we ate there. We each ordered a beer (a first for Joy) and I got a Thai noodle dish and she selected lasagna based on our waiter's honest advice. We also shared a sampler of spinach/artichoke dip and chips. The Thai food was not what I was expecting and was cold, bland, and I failed to eat it, but the rest of the food was delicious. When we were waiting for the food a man sat down at our booth and asked for our advice, as Americans, for he was facing a dilemma. His 14 year old daughter was asking him to sign her passport so that she could go to Six Flags with a school group. He was worried about her getting abducted, stating even that "the last kid that went never came back". Joy and I advised that he look into things more and have a talk with his daughter about staying safe, but that although kidnapping can happen it is pretty rare and his daughter should be alright going with a school group. After eating we paid for the food and chatted with our waiter and a man sitting at the bar about school and drinking ages. The other customer told us some funny crude jokes and then we headed out for home. But first we had to find a place to pee and I do not recommend waiting too long before commencing your search for a public restroom. They are more difficult to locate than one might think, at least late on Thanksgiving Monday.

We drove back to the border and crossed with virtually no delay. The drive back was fine until we turned from the shore towards Gilbert, onto Highway 15 again. It was a spooky drive, and we did not see one, not one, other vehicle the entire 100 mile stretch. There were plenty of deer though. We finally pulled in after midnight and went to bed. Thus concluded our voyage to Canada, but more adventures are sure to come.