Day One: Winnipeg to Wawa

I’m not one to make plans set in stone.. I knew I was leaving today…but really didn’t have much of a plan…(that might make some people insane-but I like the flexiblity!) I knew I was heading EAST, whether I stop on the other side of Thunder Bay, or get to Wawa.. I really didn’t know… I was just playing it easy!! I got up UBER early for me.. (my alarm went off at 6:40am and showered, packed up the last of the essentials, had something to eat… walked to my car)… So here’s Milo.. all packed and ready to go!! (he’s parked at a friend’s house..because I don’t have parking right now..bc of construction!)

Yes, you are lucky blog readers to get this wonderful “morning” shot of me…

 it was taken at 7:37am (Central) … (hopefully I didn’t scare anyone!!)

Milo has never been to Ontario before.. so he asked me to take a photo of him..

(yes, at some point Milo started answering back to things I was telling him!! hehehee)

My first gas stop was in Vermillion Bay… I knew that Gas prices had risen due to the STUPID err HST but it still was a shock that I had to fill up… at this PRICE… (as the day wore on.. this actually was the cheapest I found the rest of the day!!!)…

It makes me chuckle that ‘southern’ Canadians have embraced and used Inuit Symbols and they are EVERYWHERE… (I passed SO many ‘inuksuks’ piled on top of rock cuts… it made me wonder.. do people in the south realize that they are for marking a path? or for locating a cache of food? or a grave marker?)

Vermillion Bay also had this wonderful ‘beautiful’ er.. ‘interesting’ sculpture…

IF ANYONE KNOWS THE STORY OF WHY THIS IS HERE.. PLEASE fill me in….

And if the front view wasn’t enough… I HAD to show you the view from the behind… YIKES! I hope I don’t have nightmares!!!

(Maybe that’s why he’s so angry…because his BUTT cheeks are hanging out there for the WORLD to see!!)

Yes, at some point I crossed into Eastern Standard Time… and I realized that my ’13hours’ of driving time just became 14 hours! lol

Kakabeka Falls, I almost didn’t take a photo… something has changed since I was here last.. (when I was 12 years old).. aparently now you have to ‘pay’ for PARKING.. because it’s a “provincial” park… Which is cool… I understand that they need money for stuff… (and I would have paid… if there was an option for a 15min ticket or a 30min one…) Because literally ALL I wanted to do was STRETCH my legs, walk the 100m to the look out… take a photo.. walk back to my car and well get on with it!! I did do this.. but I ran the ‘risk’ of getting a $30 fine!!! (I’m a risk taker…)

Here’s the ‘list’ of parking fees…. I was so NOT paying $5.25 for 2 hours… just for a 5min look at the falls… (maybe next time I’ll pay and bring a picnic or something…) But they need to do a ‘shorter’ and ‘cheaper’ option for those ‘5min’ visitors like ME!!!

Driving thru Thunder Bay was fun… most of it was under construction… I was looking forward to getting some ‘cell’ service… (dont’ worry I had planned to stop for something to eat— txt some people to let them know WHERE I was… perhaps update Facebook…and then get back in my car and con’t to drive)…I kept looking at my phone.. and it didn’t have a single… later I realized that I should have turned it OFF and ON… because after loosing a signal iPhones sometimes can’t FIND it when it’s BACK again… (next time I’ll know!!) 

***DISCLAIMER–ALL photos were taken when I was NOT driving… but SITTING at a RED LIGHT; or waiting for the person to ‘flip’ the sign to SLOW, rather than STOP–most times my car was in neutral and my E-brake was on… (I know how DANGEROUS it is to DRIVE and take PHOTOS.. so don’t worry I DON’T do it!!) end of DISCLAIMER***

At least as I waited I could sit in my AC in my car.. and look at how “hawt” it was outside! 😉

Sleeping Giant in the background… taken at the Terry Fox Tribute!! (it was such a HOT day!) 

Terry Fox… I ‘member being here before… when I was 12… and taking photos.. I so need to find where those are!!

The next gas fill up… (just after the Terry Fox Stop)… this price isn’t so “Sunny”… at $1.169/L!!

While waiting for my turn to go along a construction zone… I took this photo… I luckily didn’t see a MOOSE… (Milo told me he’s really scared of them.. and I agree.. we dont’ really want to see any).. but there are TONS of signs.. talking about how they are ‘out’ there… and there’s “NIGHT” danger etc…

I think I was at this stop for like 15mins… yahoo for CONSTRUCTION!

(at least it means the roads are nice for now–until the winter freeze and melt buckles them again!!?)

This photo has a funny story to it… I was somewhere between Thunder Bay and Nipigon… (not much between those places)… I was driving along the edge of Lake Superior (so pretty!)… and every once and awhile there was a “picnic” stop… with a garbage can and a spot to park off to the side of the road… It wa s a good spot to stretch my legs!!

…The view was nice…

A photo snapped while waiting at a construction flag thingy… (this was before Marathon)

Yes, I got a photo of the ‘flagger’ (is that what they are called?)… the sun was in his eyes… and I thought the photo was well too good to NOT take!! [and well he made us sit there for 25mins… so what else was I suppose to do… other than sing along to some awesome tunes… in my ‘key’ of Sarah.. (and yes I did do that too!)]

Pretty Bridge…

I had dinner in White River… about 8pm..

Perhaps I’ll have to come back on the 3rd weekend of August to go to the Winnie the Pooh Fesitival…

 (I’m not really sure what one would do at a fesitival like this?!)…

This is where the ‘bear’ was found… and named after Winnipeg.. (Winnie for short) then taken all the way to England… (there’s more to the story.. but my brain has slowly started to shut down!!)…google it if you want want more info! LOL

I made it to Wawa tonight at 9:03pm (EST)… the place I’m staying is HILARIOUS.. I’ll have to update you all about that experience tomorrow!! 😉 

One thing I didn’t mention.. I had a couple of friends give me mixed CDs for my trip.. with new music.. (thank you.. because you saved me from Listening to BACKSTREET BOYS on the LOCAL radio!!)…When I entered Dryden… one of Conni’s mixed CDs was playing.. it was ‘classic’.. thanks Justin Timerlake for your song “Sexy Back” it made my drive through Dryden SO MUCH BETTER!!! I totally brought some ‘sexy’ dance moves and singing through Dryden today!!

The STATS of the Trip so far:

Departure: Winnipeg, Manitoba 7:40am (Central)

Arrival: Wawa, Ontario 9:03pm (Eastern)

Total Hours on the Road: 13 hours and 17mins (but with the time change–14 hours and 17mins!)

Total KMs: 1,173.8km so far!

Animals Spotted:

Fox (before the Ontario boarder)

Deer (dead–and also before the Ontario Boarder)

Black bear cub-ran across the road somewhere north of Lake Superior!

That’s all I have to tell you from the road… Who knows what tomorrow will bring? perhaps I’ll be sleeping at my mum’s on a bunk bed tomorrow… or maybe I’ll find another adventure to keep me ..on the road again!