Travel Through Ontario

How do you get from Wisconsin to Maine?  Through Canada, of course.

We have friends in Kincardine, ON, whom we have not seen for several years.  We first met Abby when she was 12 years old.  Now she is married to a pastor and the mother of three adorable children, two of whom we had not yet met.  It was definitely time to renew our acquaintance with them.  We made contact and then made plans to stay over with them.

Traveling through Michigan's Upper Peninsula, we often caught site of a placid Lake Michigan off to the right.  Stopping at a rest area, I ran to the beach to catch some pictures of the sunset.  We traveled on until the daylight was gone and we crossed Mackinac bridge in the moonlight.  Traveling on through the darkness, we eventually found a hotel for the night.

The next day was again clear and bright and we headed toward the border. "Welcome to Canada," the signs greeted us.  The immigration officer asked us his questions, and we resumed our journey through the farmland of Ontario. 

"It reminds me of Iowa," Charlie commented.  He was right.  Farm after farm covered the flat lands and gently rolling hills.  Also similar to Iowa were the small towns at each of the major intersections of highways.  The signs were almost all in English, so that did not distract us from the feeling of being else
where.  Only the metric speed limit signs were a constant reminder that we were not in the U.S.  Of course, even though we could not see it, we knew that Lake Huron was just beyond the trees.  This part of the province is surrounded by water.

CA$ 113.9 per liter

The gas station signs were rather startling.  We knew the price reflected the price per liter, but at first glance your mind says, "Wow, gas is cheap."  Of course that quickly changes to a realization of how much more gas costs in Canada than in the US.

After only six hours in the car, we arrived at our hosts' home.  Four-year-old Judah and his father were outside playing and came to greet us.  Soon the rest of the family spilled out of the house and joined us.  Hannah acted shy, but quickly warmed up when she found out I could read to her.

It was a busy day for Judah - swimming lessons followed by soccer practice.  His dad took him swimming and then we headed out together to drop him off for his Tim Bits soccer game.  While Judah got started on his soccer game, Abby took us around town to show us their church and the town.

That night we researched which road to take up to Maine - the southern route crossing over near Niagara Falls, through NY, MA, and up to Maine or the northern route through Ontario, Quebec, and down through Maine?  We went to bed still unsure.

In the morning, Abby fed us breakfast with really good coffee.  We said our goodbyes and were once again on the road. 

Mile after mile, one farm blending into the next, we traveled until we saw the signs, "Welcome to the United States of America."  The wait at the border was longer here, but still not a very long one.  "Anything to declare?" the immigration officer asked.  With a negative answer and the realization that we had only been in the country 24 hours, we were once again back on the familiar roads of New York

Only 673 miles to go.  After traveling more than 2100 miles in less than a week, that does not sound too bad.  Here we come, Maine!