We are home in Sopchoppy. We were gone exactly 90 days, traveled 9,062 miles in the camper (not counting side trips in the Jeep) and stayed in 42 different campgrounds plus some boondocking and one night on the ferry. Every time we return from a trip we say it was the best but this one was the VERY BEST. I stopped blogging when we left Newfoundland on August 10 because Internet access was difficult and my computer started acting up. I found that it was infected with a ransom-ware scam and stopped using it. For those who are interested the following is a summary of the last weeks of the trip.
Off the ferry and back in Nova Scotia we decided to continue on the Trans Canada Hwy (TCH) across the Atlantic Provinces and into Quebec and Ontario. We would be revisiting some areas but hoped to see new territory as well. Our ultimate destination was Eminence MO near the Ozarks National Scenic Waterway where we were meeting friends on Sept. 8th for a week of paddling on the Current River. On our way south we wanted to complete the Canadian side of the Lake Superior Loop and to to visit Lake Itasca State Park in Minnesota where the Mississippi River begins. If we had time, we thought it would be fun to follow the Mississippi to St Louis MO. To achieve this, traveling west through Canada was more direct and the cost of diesel was offset by the favorable exchange rate.
Crossing Atlantic Canada (the Maritime Provinces) was a series of "one night stands" in terms of campgrounds. To paraphrase that great sage, James Buffet, "some of them magic, some of them tragic". We were rewarded by a constant change of scenery during the day. (An interesting aside, our last night in NFL we camped near a First Nation family from Vancouver BC. The two young children liked to pet Bonnie. We camped right beside them two nights later in Nova Scotia. Four nights later, in New Brunswick, I saw the children in the playground and went to find their mother. We laughed and hugged like old friends.)
Traveling west from Fredricksburg the TCH is 4-laned almost all the way with Maine on one side, with the St. John's River on the other, and the Appalachian Range running south to north. We stayed in the municipal CG at Riviere du Loup where we had camped five years ago. Having reached the St. Lawrence Seaway, we followed it south to Quebec City. Camping near the City is limited and we chose the KOA where Jane Storm and I stayed in 1983 and Butch and I camped with our children in 1986. What a difference 30+ years makes! It is now huge with lots of different loop and sections, and costs $71.00 (C). ! Since we arrived at noon, we set up camp and immediately left to catch the passenger ferry to the City. We spent a wonderful afternoon and evening wandering around being tourists in the Old City. Quebec City is the closest place to Europe you can go without a transatlantic flight.
We continued south for several days through Montreal (horrendous traffic) Ottawa, and Sudbury, winding up at Sault Ste Marie Ontario. It was a lovely drive through rolling hills that became small mountains, lots of rives and streams, lakes and ponds, and finally Lake Huron and Lake Superior. We spent nearly a week at Sault Ste Marie Michigan a few years ago. Our CG was right beside the locks and we had a great time watching the great lakes freighters coming and going. We continued that trip by doing the US side of the Lake Superior Loop. This time we stayed in Canada and drove the loop from the "Soo" to Thunder Bay and St. Francis.
I cannot recommend this trip highly enough. It is like driving through a huge national park. On our first day we drove from the Soo to Wawa on TCH 17. We stopped at one attraction after another. We had lunch at Pancake Bay Provincial Park, walked on the beach at Old Woman Bay, visited High Falls and Silver Falls on the Magpie River and had gorgeous views of Lake Superior. The next day we continued to Nipigon visiting spectacular Aquaslbon Falls and Gorge among other beautiful places. On our third day we made a long stop at Quimet Canyon PP and continued into "Amethyst Country". The low hills here are full of gem mines and folks have blocks of amethyst used as parking stops. We had an off-road adventure finding the Blue Willow Mine and enjoyed seeing the amethyst "in situ" and in such abundance.
Thunder Bay has dramatically since I was there over 40 years ago. It is now a booming community that has developed its waterfront in an amazing way. We were there for Community Night and enjoyed a great meal at a waterfront restaurant, a concert in the amphitheater, vendors along the walking trail, and lots of friendly people out enjoying the lovely weather.
Our last day in Canada was a good one. We left Thunder Bay and continued west towards our border crossing at St. Francis/International Falls. It was another national park day. We stopped at Falls for lunch and drove through miles of beautiful but remote country. This part of Ontario is mostly First Nation or Crown land and borders a series of Provincial Reserves and Parks that have limited or no road access.
We arrived in St. Francis to find a festival in progress and had to make a detour. We had planned to stay in Canada that night and make our border crossing the next day. First, there were no vacancies in either of the CG's, and secondly, we got in the wrong lane and had to cross the border! It was a hoot. I had planned to clean out the fridge but didn't have a chance. Our border agent was very helpful and in no hurry. He couldn't find an agricultural inspector so he and another agent took the fruit and veggies, letting us stay in the camper. By now it was late in the day and we had no plans. Fortunately a nice lady at a gas station directed us to a super little municipal campground in Little Fork Minnesota. It was near Voyagers National Park so we stayed for a few days and checked out the attractions of the Park and surrounding area.
After leaving Little Fork we only drove a few hours to Bemidja MN, near Istaca State Park. We visited the Park the following day and did the "wade across the Mississippi River" thing.
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We researched the Great River Road route through Minnesota and found it involved a lot of secondary roads and even some gravel. We decided to skip this part of the tour and follow the St. Croix River instead, down to the confluence with the Mississippi. So we drove down to Taylor Falls MN and stayed at Interstate State Park on the St. Croix. What a good choice! We took a river boat ride and did one of the most beautiful hikes of our trip, the Glacial Pot Hole Trail.
The St. Croix is a National Wild and Scenic River and the NPS has a splendid Visitor's Center in St,.Croix WI. We got lots of very useful information that helped us to plan our trip south to St. Louis.We went down to Stillwater MN and took the trolley tour to see the magnificent homes of the LumberBarons, now owned by the rich (and sometimes, famous). They were built in a wide variety of architectural styles, sort of the Palm Beach of the North Woods.
On Labor Day, we crossed back into MN and followed the Mississippi to Davenport Iowa. I had heard of the Mississippi Bluffs and thought it was a small area somewhere on the upper part of the river Not So! It is hundreds of miles of stunning bluffs backed by some of the most beautiful farmland I have ever seen. There are few levees on the Big Muddy up here, and it is so different from the southern part of the river. We crossed it again and again on bridges that spanned small islands and even on causeways.
Butch wanted to be in a reasonable sized town for my birthday so we settled on Rock Island Illinois. He made reservations for dinner at a nice restaurant in Moline. We had a super day and a lovely meal. I was concerned about turning 80 far away from family and friends but I got lots of wonderful calls and messages and felt very cherished.
Leaving Rock Island we crossed the Big River again and continued south to Camden Missouri where we camped right beside it at Lock and Dam #20. It was so much fun watching the barges lining up to go through the locks. We were in a little COE/Municipal CG and everyone was super friendly. We even had a day-long visit from a riverboat that had to moor and wait for the river to be dredged.
We went on to Hannibal and then to Eminence where we met up with our gang to paddle for the week. I had a surprise birthday party with cake and everything!
We returned via our house in North Carolina (one day-two nights), arriving in Sopchoppy late on the evening of September 17th.
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions:
No. We almost never make reservations until a few hours before we need to find a spot to camp.
No. We rarely have a set itinerary, just an idea of where we want to go and what we want to see and do.
Yes. We are always open to opportunities for new experiences.
Yes. We seek out local input about almost everything; where to eat, what to see, where to stay, who to talk to.
No. We are almost never disappointed.
Yes. Almost all of the time we happen upon something wonderful.
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| Welsh Springs and the old sanitarium on the Current River in MO |
