North of Superior When the Trans-Canada Highway was planned in the 1950s, there was debate about the best route to take through Ontario north of Lake Superior. A lumber sup‑ ply route already existed deep in the forest, but polit‑ icians wanted to attract American road trippers, and they eventually agreed to a road that would hug the shoreline of the big lake. It was a challenge to con‑ struct: the area was so swampy that crews would build a road one day and return the next morning to find it swallowed up by the quagmire. In the end, the highway from Sault Ste. Marie to Thunder Bay was completed in 1960, and it is de‑ signed to be enjoyed by drivers and tourists. It takes a long day to complete the 700 kilometres, with the most scenic stretches following the shoreline north to Wawa, and across from Marathon to Thunder Bay. It’s a trucking route, but many truckers cross the American border to take the faster interstate in the United States, so it’s not overrun with heavy vehicles. The road is often high above the water, plunging through rock cuts to open up yet another forested, lakeside vista that reminds you why the area is one of the most beautiful on Earth.
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