Cruising Canada-east to west

[tantasquit]

Greetings,

I am looking at the map and trying to determine the fastest route from Massachusetts to Vancouver, BC. for next summer. The general overall route is Massachusetts to Bend,Oregon and back again, seeing Canada on the way out and the US on the way back. Google maps keeps directing me through Chicago and Minnesota.

Although that route is not bad, I would prefer to enter Canada sooner, since we will probably see those US places on our return trip.

Taking a ferry is fine with us, if it helps with time.

Is anyone familiar with Canada route 17 through Thunder Bay? I imagine it's a scenic route, but can we make good time on it?



Thanks for your help!

[SgtSlag]

Tantasquit, my wife and I circled Superior back in 2009, two up, on a '79 Honda 750. We rode up to Duluth, then into Canada, through Thunder Bay, on our way East, across the North Shore, to S. St. Marie. We traveled extensively along Trans-Canadian Highway #17. We have also ridden from Kenora, to just outside of Winnipeg, where we turned South, and re-entered the USA, along Route 17 and 12. The town of Kenora is quite something to see. There are lakes with islands in the middle of them, with houses. We were told that Goldie Hawn has a home up there, with $1 million worth of windows in it -- when you see the landscape, you will understand why she spent so much on windows! There is a marked difference just a mile on either side of the border between the USA and Canada -- their terrain is much less refined, and more rugged; the States side is more typical farmland, with fences, and flatter. The differences are actually a bit strange.

All of the trans-Canadian highways are pretty much the same: two-lane blacktop (most are nearly perfect pavement), sweeping curves, with little traffic away from large cities (20 minutes without seeing another vehicle, was common, east of Thunder Bay). I would suggest that if you want to make time, you can, but if making time is important, then you are missing the point of trekking through Canada. It is some of the most beautiful scenery on this planet. To blast through it, would rob you of Canada's greatest treasures.

Once you get to the west of Kenora, into Manitoba, the land flattens out, and opens up -- it becomes downright boring, like SW Minnesota, with little to see. You can make good time there, as long as you don't get caught by the RCMP! Make sure your cruise control is working properly... Then set it, and relax as the miles fly by -- but keep an eye on your gas gauge!

As for fastest routes, they are all about the same, except for distance. Route 17 (between Winnipeg and Thunder Bay -- we've ridden most of that stretch at different times) is a very good road. I don't know that you will find any route to be much faster.

Spend some time on maps.google.com, and explore your proposed routes. Be sure to look at the satellite images, as well as the maps, to really get a good idea of what you are in for. Be careful to observe the roadways on the maps: many of them are dirt, not paved, once you get away from the trans-Canada highways. Cheers!

[SgtSlag]

Some additional tidbits of useful information for your trip...

Trans-Canadian Highway Speed Limit: nearly always 90 kph / 55 MPH.

The weather is almost always raining up there, along the North Shore of Lake Superior, and the Summer temperatures can be in the mid-50's F, in July! Pack decent rain gear, as well as layers of clothing to keep you warm, as you will be experiencing windchills in the 20-30 F range, at 55-60 MPH. With decent quality gear, keeping you warm and dry, it is not a difficult experience; without decent quality gear, you will be suffering hypothermia, and miserable (I speak with the voice of unpleasant experience...).


The locals warned us about the local animals: "Moose will stop, and look both ways before they walk out in front of you on the highway; Black Bears won't bother looking, they will just run right out in front of you!" We never encountered a Moose, but we did have a Black Bear run in front of us, in the rain -- make certain you have good wet traction with your tires!

Be sure to install a full synthetic oil right before you leave, as a full synthetic will last twice as long as conventional oil in the crankcase. Be sure to replace all fluids prior to your trip, to ensure everything is ready to go, as this will be a very long ride.

I would also suggest some sort of seat cushion, or custom seat, prior to departure. Wooden beads help, but they're not the best solution -- inexpensive, and better than nothing, though, by far. Depending upon your relationship, I would also recommend a decent intercom, unless you prefer not to converse along the way.

Last of all, be sure to take lots of pictures, and upload them nightly, when possible. This will be the trip of a lifetime, and you will want to have loads of pictures afterwards, to rekindle the memories. Cheers!

[Skibou]

It's difficult to advise you on a route that allows you to enter Canada sooner and is the fastest route to Vancouver, since the options are almost contradictory. You need to decide for yourself on a balance between speed and sightseeing. There is a huge variety of routes available.
If seeing more of Canada is more important you could, for example, use I89 or I87 (a beautiful highway in in NY) to cross into Quebec. From there you will have four lane highways with 100 kph (64 mph) speed limits most of the way to Sudbury Ontario. The rest of the way will be largely two lane with frequent passing lanes.
The advantage to this route is that you will pass through a lot of beautiful scenery, on well serviced roads and experience some of Canada's French as well as English culture. The major disadvantage is that you will pass through two large cities with extremely heavy traffic, and bridge reconstruction problems.
I understand that navigating this as part of the trip would be time consuming as I used to live in Montreal, and have experienced some of the connections between Quebec and NY, Vermont, and Maine. From my present home in the Niagara region, I've found my quickest way west is to head for the Sarnia/Port Huron crossing into Michigan, following I95 to cross back into Canada at Sault St Marie.
If you wanted to try this, you could cross at Buffalo NY, take the QEW to Hamilton. There are several connecting 4 lanes at this point (The Red Hill Parkway, the Lincoln Alexander Parkway, Hwy 403, Hwy 401, Hwy 402 to Sarnia).
Either way you get to go along the north side of Lake Superior - which is a must see.
Whatever you decide, good luck, and I am deeply envious of you.

[tantasquit]

SgtSlag and Skibou, thank you both for the great information. I will use it all as reference as I study the maps in greater detail.

Not looking forward to the rain, but that's what makes adventures interesting.

We were told in Newfoundland by a ranger that if we see a moose in the daytime, we should buy a lotto ticket because it is so rare an occurence. We happened to see 6 moose on that trip and all were in the daytime.

Any advice on crossing the Rockies?

So many roads, (and diners), so little time.....

Thanks again for the help, guys, it's back to the maps for me.....

[alta drifter]

if you could spare the time, I would not make it the fastest trip to Vancouver.. I would cross into Canada in Montana, head toward the rockies, go to Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper (Banff Jasper hiway is rated in the top 10 world wide for sight seeing)(lots of motorhomes so you do not make great time), then head to Naskup, Nelson area (another great road) , then head west to Vancouver.. if you like the mountains, you will love these roads...but you will not make great time. if time is important, take the trans Canada hiway to Vancouver (4 lane hiway for the most part) and the speedlimit is usually 110 km (70mph). if you want more info, let me know, I will supply more detail

[grayblob]

Banff and Jasper are absolutely fantastic! Definitely see them if you have the chance!

[tantasquit]

Banff and Jasper are definitely on the itinerary, I hope to be booking a room in those areas soon, as I imagine those places fill up quickly in summertime.

Thanks again for the input.

[Tonyvdb]

As I live in Edmonton Alberta and ridden in the mountains often your going to want to plan for all kinds of weather, you can turn a corner and drive right into a rain storm and turn another and have sunshine. Highway 95 that runs between Banff and Jasper is amazing and the ice-fields is spectacular. It is possible to have near freezing temperatures as you near the icefields even in July so again keep an eye on the weather.
The highway between Manatoba and Alberta is very flat and can be a bit boring but once in Alberta it becomes rolling hills again.
There really is many options to travel that rout

[tantasquit]

freezing temperatures in July? Yikes! Maybe I should remove the KAMS mod on the Voyager. (Only kidding)

Thanks for the input, my travel brochures have been arriving, but it makes planning even more difficult: there are too many nice places to visit and not enough time.

[Tonyvdb]

The Columbia icefields is so large it creates its own weather patterns plus the highway it at 7000ft in that area.

[tantasquit]

Plans are starting to firm up a bit and reservations are being made. Can't come soon enough as it has been freezing here for a month, (or so it seems). Along with the new year come new questions, such as:

Is the Canadian continental divide near Jasper?

Anyone experience any problems with the altitude using the stock setup on the Vulcan 1700?

Thanks again....

[alta drifter]

I have had trouble sending you an email..can you send me your email address please
thanks alta drifter

[Skibou]

It seems like you have reconsidered your original idea of crossing into Canada east of Minnesota. That being the case , I would consider taking the I 90 to Butte and heading north to Calgary and Edmonton, crossing to Jasper, and taking the icefields parkway south. After seeing Banff and Lake Louise, (all prone to heavy tourist traffic, but well worth it) one place I find interesting is the Oliver-Osoyoos area - Canada's only designated desert. Hwy 3 from there to Vancouver is a beautiful ride.
We're all anticipating some really good photos after this trip.

[tantasquit]

Thanks to everyone for their input, it is appreciated. Lots of great ideas and suggestions, I wish we had more time.

At the moment, we still have about three feet of snow here sitting outside and it isn't melting much. The good news is that we were able to use our cabin-fever time to make reservations for our trip.

Looks like we will be leaving MA and riding to Ogdensburg, NY and entering Canada there. Afterward, it's off to Sault Ste Marie, Thunder Bay, Manitoba, Moose Jaw, Calgary, Banff, Jasper, down to Kamloops and over to Vancouver.

We have to stop in Blaine, WA since it is one of the '4 corners', (already been to ME & FL).

Down the Oregon coast a bit from Astoria to Pacific City, over to Bend, (for a 3 day visit with family), and then up to Post Falls, ID. From there, it's over to Glacier Park for a night, and then across Montana to Grand Forks, ND. Then it's off to Lake Itasca, MN, (Mississippi head waters), down to Jordan, MN, over to Milwaukee to take the ferry to Muskegon and ride east across MI. We plan to re-enter Ontario and ride as far as the Niagara area, returning to the states and then back home to MA.

There will be plenty to see on our tour of these two countries, but unfortunately we won't be able to see everything there is. We have to keep on schedule as much as possible. Our first few days of riding contain the most miles, then we slow down the pace. We usually take a day off from riding after spending 3 days in the saddle, but since we'll be smack in prairie country around that time, we decided to keep riding, just reducing the daily mileage a bit.

I have looked at the catalogs and brochures so much lately, I almost feel like I have already completed this trip. In reality, my battery is still on the charger while the bike is in the garage, near the snow blower...and the snow shovels.....c'mon spring!

[debron]

Tantasquit, When will you be in Oregon? Maybe we could ride together some and I could show you some of the local roads/sights on your way to Bend.

[tantasquit]

Hi Ron,

Thanks for the offer, (Oregonians are so friendly!)

Our schedule has us leaving Tacoma on July 12 and then meandering to Bend, via Astoria and Pacific City, and arriving later that day.

We are planning on staying in Bend July 12, 13 & 14-departing on the morning of the 15th.

One item on my to-do list in Bend is to get the oil & filter changed while I am there. (it's also a good excuse to get away from the in-laws for a bit, shhh...)

[debron]

Arriving in Bend "later" that day is correct. It's a good 8 hour ride not including stops for gas, lunch, sightseeing, leg stretching, and peeing. Plus a Sunday in the summer, lot's of traffic on the coast and returning to the valley. The route from Pacific City to Bend goes right past our place.

[kjsett]

Arriving in Bend "later" that day is correct. It's a good 8 hour ride not including stops for gas, lunch, sightseeing, leg stretching, and peeing. Plus a Sunday in the summer, lot's of traffic on the coast and returning to the valley. The route from Pacific City to Bend goes right past our place.

First distance ride for Shelley and I (together on my 79 Yamaha XS1100) was from Vancouver, to Tillamook, down to Florence and over to Eugene. Summertime and so long daylight. It took all day (got dark as we got to Eugene).
I don't remember details, but I know that road well enough. Average speed is about 35 to 40mph. As you leave one small settlement, the speed will go to 55, then within 5 miles you will slow back to 45, then 35, then 25. In speed, it is like a roller-coaster.
Love the coast, but if you don't have all day, you won't get off the bike. Beautiful section of coast though (when you see it).
Lived in Eugene from 1980 to 1992. I never took any long rides (over a day long), but rode all over Oregon. Bike went away in 1994.
Enjoy your trip, maybe someday.
Ken