At last,,,,,

 Thunder Bay to Wawa

     The KOA in Thunder Bay is just east of the city and is a typical KOA campground.  Nice flat sites with all the amenities, including a swimming pool.  Too many people in the pool for our comfort level, so rather than go swimming we headed back in a westerly direction to go to see the Terry Fox National memorial.  As everyone in Canada over the age of 10 knows who Terry Fox is and what he has, in his death contributed in the search for a cure for cancer.  Every year there are hundreds of “Terry Fox” runs across the country.  Terry’s personal run across Canada ended after 5342 kms almost at the exact spot of the memorial.  The city of Thunder Bay erected a 9 foot high bronze statue of Terry overlooking the most amazing view of Lake Superior off in the distance.  The statue is set on a 45 ton granite base with a foundation of amethyst, which was mined locally.  The below photos do not do justice to either the monument nor the spectacular view. 

Not a great photo but it is the view from the monument.

     Approximately 60 kms east of Thunder Bay is the Amethyst Mine Panorama where you can tour the mine and even dig for your own amethyst.  Many gift shops in the area (including the KOA) sell pieces of amethyst in raw form or set in silver jewelry.  Amethyst is the most popular quartz crystal and considered the most powerful and protective stone.  It is said to relieve the wearer from “stress and strain, it soothes irritability, balances mood swings, dispels anger, rage, fear and anxiety. This precious stone has outstanding healing and cleansing powers”.  For those who follow the chakras, wearing an amethyst is “one of the best ways to ensure the crown chakra and third eye chakra are always inflow”. We of course didn’t visit the mine and is something that I would not want to do as I can’t breathe in enclosed spaces, so it would be a waste of time and money.

     The next morning we left Thunder Bay behind and followed the big lake the Ojibwe named “gichifami”, which means “great sea”.  And it really does look like a sea, because you cannot see to the other side.  You can see islands (like the sleeping Giant) but not to the other side of the lake.  Lake Superior is the largest of the great lakes and is in fact the largest fresh water lake, by surface area (82,000 kms), in the world.  It is 560 km long and 260 kms wide.  The lake spans from Ontario to the north, into Minnesota on the west, and Wisconsin the the upper Michigan on the south.  In 1975 the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sand during a storm on the lake.  Gordon Lightfoot wrote a song about the storm, ship sinking and loss of the 29 souls on board.  

    After about a 5 & 1/2 hour drive we arrived in Wawa, which was an hour short of where we thought we would stop for the night, but Ray was tired and we needed some fuel.  Both for the truck and our own fuel.  We got a campsite on the west side of town and after setting up, drove in to town get fuel and find a grocery store.  After feeling up we drove down the dreary little town to see where we could buy some fresh fruit.  We spotted the grocery store on the opposite side of the street, so driving past it Ray said that he could pull up and park on the side street.  He turned the truck around in a wide circle and driving slowly up to the store, I pointed out there were lots of spots to park in front so no need to go onto the side street.  He said, “how do you think we can park in front with the trailer”.  He had forgotten that we had already dropped the trailer at the campground.  Yes he was very tired indeed!!  And then to top it off, there was no fruit to be had in the store!!

Manitolin Island to Kitchener/Waterloo

     Next morning, after a good nights rest, we were up and out of the campground by 8:30.  We wanted to make it onto Manitoulin Island so we could catch the morning ferry.  After a very long 6 & 1/2 hour drive we arrived at Batman’s Campground on Manitoulin Island.  It is about an hour in from the Trans Canada on the Island and about a 45 minute ride to the ferry.  As you know, we do not prebook anything.  In the campground office we were told that they only had one small site that electric only.  It was $43 or we could take a site in a field with no services at all which would be $40.  We opted for the $43.  The young lady walks us out to where we were going to be camped, we would have to unhook and plug into a building.  I said that our electric cord may not reach, to which she said that we could purchase an extension cord in the office.  Ray said, no we will take a spot in the field.  After “setting up” in the field, I called the Manitoulin ferry to book our passage over to Tobermorey.  They were sold out until the Sunday 7 pm ferry.  This was Friday and I wanted to be at Riki’s on Saturday not late Sunday night or early Monday morning.  Basically we had had enough, Ray said that we were going to leave and head back towards Sudbury.  Of course we could not get our money back!!!  We drove another 2 hours to a campsite in Sudbury.  Once we settled for the night I called a couple of campgrounds in the Waterloo/Kitchener area and found a site for us.  The next morning we drove from Sudbury to Waterloo, another long drive.  Finally we were able to stay parked for the next week and head down to see Riki and the girls.!!!!

We are here until Sunday, when we will head back up to visit with the Mayhew family in Newmarket and then head up to Oro Medonte to visit with Nancy.  

Lori and Ray