Kid....where in Canada do you live? I have a list of 10 things that I want to do before I die....some of them I have crossed off....one that is still on there is "DogSledding"....I located a wilderness adventure company and received some literature in the mail about a dog sledding adventure in
Algonquin Canada.....I think its in Ontario....do you know the place? You might live on the Western side of the country, I don't know.

Anyway, have you ever done it? I am 57 and want to do it before I get too old to do it.....what are your thoughts?

The adventure company if BlackFeather......just wanted some input if you have any.
Sage

Well Algonquin Park is somewhere between Toronto and Ottawa if I recall correctly. I do live in Ontario but Toronto is about a 12-14 hour drive and Ottawa is about 15-17 hours from my house.

I went to their website on the internet and it looks amazing. The area that they do this in would likely provide great snow levels, but the temperatures are more moderate than where I live. I doubt you would want to camp out in a tent around my house in mid winter. You would freeze your tush off!

From what I know of the fishing trips to Northern Ontario they sure know how to do things right. I imagine these dog sledding adventures are a great time as well. I read the reviews and everyone seemed to think it was a great time.

I say if that is one of the things you have always wanted to do in life then GO FOR IT GIRL! Don't worry if your going alone, you have fun just as easily. I did my cruise alone and it was awesome! At first I was a bit nervous, but nobody even noticed I was by myself and I never ran out of people to hang with. I met many fabulous people just laying by the pool or on excursions. I often go for dinner alone now, to the movies.........if people don't like it and are uncomfortable then the problem is theirs, not mine!!

If you can afford to go play and do what you always dreamed then go for it. One thing I have learned lately is that life and health are too short and too precious.

Sage - goodness that sounds like it would be a wonderful trip for you to make!! I also say 'GO FOR IT!'.

Kid -
>>One thing I have learned lately is that life and health are too short and too precious.<<

That could be one great signature!! You should use it..... I too have found out that same thing. Never again will I take our marriage for granted - things/people ARE affected by every little thing that we do or say and our lives ARE too precious for that.

Remorseful and NOT GIVING UP......

Sage, I've traveled a lot in that part of Canada in the past 30 years. It's beautiful country (in fact, it's my favorite part of North America) but I've never had the gumption to go in winter...always spring, summer, or fall.

I say, cross another item off your list.

Chris.

Thanks all....I think I will do the December 31/January 1 expedition....New Year's Eve in a tent sounds good to me...I will be sure to take my supply of mudslide.....

I don't mind doing things by myself....I do most everything by myself. I spent a month on the coast of Maine in a cottage alone...it was great.

Thanks Kid, for taking the time to investigate it......

Join me, anyone?

Kid...it is in Ontario.....it looks like it is SW of Pembroke and East of North Bay???/ Does any of that ring a bell???? The address is South River ON...isn't that Ontario? So, it's only about 24 hours from where I live...?

Sage, just keep goin' up I-81 until you get to the border. Then it's just a couple more hours beyond that. (From Harrisburg, PA it's probably 8-10 hours, depending on how fast you like to drive.)

Chris.

ps. I'm pretty sure I camped near where you want to go. I'll have to look at a map to be sure.

Not sure if it's in the exact same area, but I have a fellow blindie that live in Arnprior. No Kat, you haven't met this one, he hasn't made it to the last two conferences...

Cory

www.blind-justice-self-defense.com

The Three Rules of Happiness: Friends, Freedom and an Analyzed Life - Epicurus

I go north of North Bay. via..81 N...to canada. queens highway..then single lane roads route 17 ?...55 mph speed limits but nice driving in Canada...a good 12 hrs to North Bay from Harrisburg

Pat

North Bay is where my ex in laws live... lol

Yes that area sounds familiar but is still a good 12-14 hours from me!

Now that I've actually looked at a map, South River is almost straight north from Toronto, south of North Bay, on the west side of Algonquin Park. Probably better to cross at Buffalo.

Or better yet. Fly to Toronto and rent a car. That's a whole lot less driving and a whole lot easier border crossing, and the car will have a km/h speedometer. They don't do miles up north. Or gallons. But pretty much everyone gladly takes US dollars.

Chris.

Wow...it will be a real challenge in a car, won't it? I hate to fly...was in several "near misses"...actually one plane crash...hate the anticipation of the plane falling out of the sky. I think I will take on the 24 hour drive. I hate to drive too....so that will put me in touch with my hating to drive self...I guess I need that since I am the only one who will drive..that seems to be the case when I travel alone lol....

Thanks for all of your input. I can pick up 81 at my front door...I live south west of Virginia border....just stay on it the whole way, I like that. I can't get the directions on map quest because I can't figure out what to type in for the destination..it keeps asking for city and state...I don't have a frame of reference for that in Canada....

Kid...how on earth can you live 12 hours from that place when you live in that place? Is Ontario that big? I guess it is....sounds as wide as the US??? NOt quite, I know.

Hi Sage - Algongquin Park is beautiful any time of the year -- you will love it. If you don't like driving and are unaccustomed to navigating highways in winter conditions (can get nasty), you might want to consider taking a Northlander train from downtown Toronto to South River - I believe they run daily -- here is the website http://www.northlander.ca/newnorthlander/sched.asp Just relax in the dining car and enjoy the scenery! Cheers, MT

I could drive 6 hours west and reach the Ontario border.....or I could drive 16-17 hours east and reach the Ontario border on the other side. YES Ontario is a HUYUGE province!!!

Also, you have to factor in that we don't have interstates. Most of our highways are not even double lane and the speed limit is 90 km/h which translates to around 55 m/h I believe. In bad weather conditions I wouldn't even be tempted to drive that fast. We don't have the 70 m/hr speedways like the states does haha!

I am actually closer to Duluth MN than anywhere else in Ontario. It is only a short 3 hour drive, and Minneapolis is 6 hours away.

Kid...got it. Thanks for the geography lesson. MockTurtle...I grew up LOVING mockturtle soup....is that you reasoning...probably not, I am sure it is a metaphor for something.

I love trains. I just got back from a 19 hour train trip to Providence RI to visit my son. It was relaxing and soothing...19 hours, I have decided, is my limit. I had to drive 2 hours south east just to catch the train...it was an adventure.

Anyway, thanks for the information....I am somwhat experienced in snow driving...not up there, but in Cincinnati...we got snow...of course I have not lived there for 38 years...hum....maybe I don't have experience driving in snow. I will CERTAINLY check out the train schedule. Thanks for your input....

All of you are so kind and so resourceful....wish I could provide the same to you...maybe someone needs a recipe for "comfort" food???? I am "learning" how to cook "beans and cornbread"...I am great with biscuits and gravy....

Have a great day.

Sage, Definitely cross at Buffalo. That's up I-79 through West Virginia and Pennsylvania to I-90 at Erie, then a little east to Buffalo. Then there's a little hook west around the end of Lake Ontario on the Queen Elizabeth Way, then you start heading northeast. As a bonus, you can see Niagara Falls.

Do yourself a favor and buy a Rand McNally Atlas. They do Canada very well. It won't be 24 hours unless you drive like a blue-hair; it's less than 12 hours from Indianapolis or Cincinnati to where you're going.

Kid, on a holiday weekend from TO to Detroit or TO to the Thousand Islands crossing in Northern NY, people drive like maniacs. If you go as slowly as the posted limit on the 401 (100 km/h) you'll get run over. Try 120. The nice thing is that even the 2-lane roads are in good condition compared to 2-lane roads in the states.

Chris.

Hmmmm well I guess that could be.....Northern Ontario gets forgotten about frequently. All they want is our tax dollars to repair their roads! The roads up here are disgusting. There are potholes the size of 10 pin bowling balls and you can't go the speed limit even if you try for fear you will lose a front end or other parts off your vehicle.

But then Thunder Bay and surrounding area has lost almost 5,000 direct jobs in mill closures in the past year and a half and is quickly becoming a ghost town. People are headed out of town in droves and housing prices are falling like mad.

My sister just lost her job. She went to Edmonton because her new house there was closing and the mill was on a temporary seasonal shut down of 2 weeks, she came back to find out that they indefintely shut down one of the paper machines and she was told to clean out her office. Good job she was preparing for this and her husband is already working out in Edmonton. She is moving with the kids between Christmas and New Years.