Saturday morning at 8am a group of 4 Canadian Voyager members met under rain threatening clouds at McDonald’s in Gravenhurst. We were embarking on a ride north named in the above heading and described in Ontario’s Advertising as # 2 of 10 best rides. A short stop at Tim’s in Huntsville we were joined by the 5th and 6 members of our tour.
Our next planned stop was West Nipissing formally known as Sturgeon Falls,,,,,this was a slight departure from hwy 11 to Temagami but hopefully would be more twisty after Hwy 17 through Field and connecting with 11n just above Martin River. It didn’t disappoint.
No this fury guy was not part of our group…..note he has his own set of goggles……he or she was likely a part of THE Southern Cruisers who showed up at Tim’s 100 bikes strong….fortunately we where ahead in the line-up….
it would not be long after these pics that layers would be shed as the SUN came out and it was HOT quickly….
Arriving in Temagami about 1pm, we stopped at a Lodge just outside of town……turned out to be a good choice as the food was good and the surroundings pleasant.
Jim is absent as he had made a bee line upon arrival for the Restaurant or was that the REST……
Believe we are all accounted for…..
A stop at the Temagami Train Station was bust as it is not a museum but the Chamber of Commerce though we had a pleasant chat with it’s sole occupant. On to Cobalt where we toured the mining museum and watched a film on the history of the discovery of Silver and the history of the town……seems the builder of Casa Loma in Toronto made his fortune here as did many others…..still Silver in them hills but it’s not worth mining at current prices……SORRY no pics as they were prohibited …..maybe because the value of these minerals were on display…..next to the speciments,
From Cobalt it was a short and scenic drive along the west shore of Lake Temiskaming to our Hotel, The Waterfront Inn……nice spot with a great BAR and Restaurant. As it was next to the LCBO outlet, we could not pass a visit to view it’s contents…….
Happy Hour ended around 7pm…..then off to the hotels bar and restaurant to continue Happy Hour and a bite to eat…….no one left hungry…..the food was excellent……and required a walk afterward to help loose some of the excess weight gain during the day…….
PARKING OUTSIDE OUR ROOMS…
Thanks Frank and Patsy for picking this spot
A Continental breaky was part of the room and afterwards we again hit the road in bright clear skies at 830am. Rounding the top of the lake we 
rode on new pavement so fresh, they were still paving,,,,SUNDAY YET….As we headed south on the East Side, now in Quebec having missed the Customs and Aduana offices due to 
heavy fog we were greeted by picturesque Farms and sweeping views of the lake.
Coffee break was a little lat, we stopped in Temiskaming and enjoyed some home like baking before crossing back into Ontario, again missing the homeland security aspect of our foray into and out of THE La Belle Province…….don’t tell anyone.
Mattawa was our lunch destination this would take of Hwy 63 and onto #533 which we were told would be terrible and should be doable if we rode single file………hey….they didn’t know that this group was being led by an experienced ADVENTURE RIDER and it would certainly be DOABLE…I am riding dual purpose bike…..Turns out the road was tar and gravel in great shape and the others on the big road bikes had no problems….the twisties and hills made it enjoyable…….I was the only one who had not fuelled up after North Bay and ran out about 20 k from Mattawa……again being an ADVENTURE RIDER I had carried spare fuel and we were soon on our way… Lunch was at Tim’s in a very busy Mattawa location……
Frank took the lead at this point and I dropped to the rear of the pack…Frank had to make a stop at the Hospital his company built in North Bay to address a small water leak…..from here he led us through North Bay along the waterfront which featured a busy beach….miniature train ride and Merry go Round. Shortly upon leaving this area I saw a Black Squirrel laying flat out on the road ahead, likely trying to save itself from certain mayhem as the traffic approached. Charlie was just ahead of me, his line of approach looked bad for the critter and suddenly the squirrel was hurdled through the air as first the front tire then the rear ejected her like a piece of bark from the bite of a chain saw…….I swerved so as not to be involved in any liability suit……
Rather than joining up with hwy 11 at this point, we headed through Calendar and picked up hwy 11 at the exit for Astorville….then on to Huntsville and a short stop at Tim’s where Charlie and Joan headed for the Cabin on Lake Vernon and the rest of us for Gravenhurst……but not before making tentative plans for a September Ride between Kingston and Gravey………..
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