The Road Less Traveled

I am a big fan of the road trip. Pick a destination, pack up the vehicle, choose a playlist and head out. For some the destination is the end goal, pulling into a camp site, a hotel, a float plane base but often the actual journey is most memorable

Our ride from Markham to Nakina, Ontario. Interesting road trip through Ontario's North

I have been a part of many road trips from an early age as I am the son of Road trippers. I vividly remember the big Blue Chevrolet Suburban that was the heart and soul of our excursions. From Markham we hit Myrtle Beach, Florida, Quebec City, Algonquin Park and numerous other places. Some were to get my brother and I to hockey or soccer and others were simply vacations.

Here are few trips that really stand out:

Renting a 12 Passenger van with 5 guys and the equipment to spend a week in the wilderness as part of a fly in fishing trip. To take advantage of another night in camp we left the GTA at 10:00 PM in order to make it to the Leuenberger’s Airbase in Nakina, Ontario by 1:00 PM the next day. Overall, I remember the drive as exhausting but the experience of driving on Highway 11 through Ontario as priceless. Getting confused (lost) in North Bay after stopping for a bite to eat, switching drivers outside of Temagami in a surreal fog that conjured up hounds and baskervilles, driving over Lake Kenogami, scolded at the gas station in Cochrane for driving any further for good fishing, grabbing a bite to eat in Hearst, hometown of Claude Giroux all experiences that I will never forget

Me goofing around at a rest stop somewhere along Highway 11

Flying to New Brunswick, renting a Jeep Wrangler with my wife and daughter and spending the next 9 nights driving from one amazing place to the next. We absolutely loved the East Coast for many reasons. We visited family in Miramichi, spent a day at Parlee Beach, jumped off a pier into the ocean at Brackley Beach, saw whales, seals and jellyfish on the Cabot Trail and ate far too much lobster! I don’t think I could pick one thing as my favourite but the hospitality of almost everyone we met certainly stood out.

Pilot Whale, one of many we saw on our trip with Captain Marks Whale and Seal Cruise on the Cabot Trail

Driving from Markham to Sandy Beach Trailer Court on Highway 48. I don’t believe I can truly count how many times I have done that drive. As mentioned on other posts I grew up spending almost every weekend in the summer at the trailer with my family. My Mom and Dad only recently gave it up, spending over 40 years in the park. I always tell my wife I can make the drive with my eyes closed (which I realize is dangerous, but seriously I think I could!). Overwhelmingly that drive reminds me of family, playing games to keep us entertained (and awake), debating with my brother about fishing or swimming first, listening to my grandparents talk about “home” in Scotland and stopping for burgers at the Country Stop in Ballantrae on Friday nights.

My brother with a nice large mouth bass caught at the docks at Sandy Beach Trailer Court

To me the common elements of the above are straightforward:

• Good company is imperative

• Its about the journey as much as the destination

• Stop when you feel like it

• A road trip is an investment in memories

As always if you have any questions or want email about any specifics spots mentioned above shoot me an email or leave a comment