Downhill for the afternoon
I’ve finally seen Superior! Large, wide; an ocean when you are surrounded by trees. I didn’t actually go down and touch the water, but I’ll keep that for a real ocean. Just sayin’.
Anyhow, from campground to campground, we made another seven hundred kilometers of road go by. After a full breakfast in the Soo, we got on the big road with all the big trucks. I hadn’t really thought this through, but there are actually two highways in play. We’re on the “other one”, which finally rejoined with “the longest Main Street in the world” outside of Thunder Bay. Formerly known as Fort William/Port Arthur to those of a certain age.
In between, one long hill. After the first 75 km, I got in touch with my cycling son and mentioned that trying to cross the whole country was for the strong of heart. The descent went on for another 125 km, which meant that we spent hours trying to equalize ear pressure. Pretty country, if you want to paint rugged hillsides and regrowth after forest fires. There were lots of lakes, many still wearing their ice, and in the woods snow galore. This is not summertime.
There was a large range in fuel prices, as well. More expensive than I’ve ever seen, actually. It may calm down once we get to the Prairies, and for now there’s no choice. You drive, you pay. Particularly with the moral equivalent of a small truck. And the fuel stations exist for the trucks. Lots and lots of them, but at one point we had a stack train running nearby, and I remembered that before the companies went “loco”, trains were the thing. Still are, when you don’t want the added cost of several hundred drivers, which is what it would take to derail that big freight train.
