We never got to the end of pavement. We had a great time but driving many miles requires a consumption of vacation time I couldn’t spare. Also it was getting expensive for hotels and gas. We probably would have gotten further if I didn’t insist of stopping to “take the dog for a walk” at every pretty view, neat tree, rock outcrop, and pine cone that piqued my interest. Lucky for me, Mrs. Curmudgeon is all sorts of patient. The dog loved the walks just like I did.
Like I said, I’ve been in (some of) this area before, but long ago and I was mostly canoeing. Part of this vacation’s scouting was assessing costs of a new approach. Staying on pavement saves labor but increases expenses. A decade ago I budgeted $50 a day if I was very super careful. That’s for a fishing license, fuel to get there, bourbon, pipe tobacco, and a hotel at the end and start of at least a week’s camping (with a modest meal at both ends too). Food for the week was dehydrated backpacking meals I’d already purchased and brought from home; reconstituted with filtered lake water… or fish. My budget ignores money pissed away on fishing lures and such. My camping gear (which I used hard) wasn’t free but I’m not uptight enough to figure depreciation. Politicians teach us that things like that are “off budget” and therefore didn’t actually happen.
Incidentally, even if you sit on a rock and eat mud you’ll burn a few bucks. I recall paying a fee for camping on Crown Land. It wasn’t much. It was like $7 or $10 a night. Who knows what it is now? (This is different than campground fees which are much higher but you get a lot more service.) I paid the fee even if all I did was sleep in the dirt under a pine tree. I consider myself a guest and obey the rules of whatever country I’m in.
I’m 99% sure nobody would give me shit if I just camped without paperwork. Nobody in Canada ever asked for “my papers”; unlike Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota(!). BWCAW is run by the Forest Service and I personally experienced douchebags in the middle of buttfuck nowhere asking for my paperwork. (Which I had, but resented presenting.)
America’s various agencies like the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and some State Forests offer free dispersed camping (which is amazing and I can’t imagine how much that pisses off dickheads in DC). I don’t know if you can camp for free on National Park land but your car sure as hell isn’t getting into the Park without them taking a cut.
Another note on budgets; Timmys for the win! We faced “frontier pricing” at various locations and I’m not complaining but one Tim Hortons seemingly broke the pattern. It was about the same price as anywhere. Timmys isn’t my favorite but it won’t kill ‘ya either. Good to know.
We took a different route home, which was just as interesting. There was no sign warning me of “no services” but holy crap was there nothing! You know how college professors (and the kids they’ve indoctrinated) spent the last 50 years bitching about overpopulation? Well drop their ass where it’s 80 km in all directions to find so much as a fencepost and they’ll calm down right quick.
The route was paved and easily driven but super empty. There were stretches of well over 100 kilometers without so much as an outhouse. We’d found ample viewspots with picnic tables (or campgrounds which also have picnic tables and such) on other roads but not this road. Grudgingly we pulled over to make sandwiches on random unnamed muddy logging routes.
Since I was scouting for future adventures, I might as well cover a TMI discovery; call it the “dump index”.
On one of the routes that had absolutely Jack squat in terms of services (specifically there were no outhouses) I stopped to take a dump. No worries, I have a trowel and all that. I hiked a mighty 100 yards off the main route and had the most peaceful of dumps. It was a glorious moment in tune with nature.
I pass without a trace and when I was done a team of trackers would never know I’d been there but that’s me and not everyone. As I was walking back, I spied a little bit of TP just off the logging trail and much closer to pavement. This sparked my interest and I looked for telltale signs whenever we stopped. Here’s my determination:
If you’re on a paved road with no outhouses whatsoever, someone has crapped on every spot where you can park a vehicle.
Now you know.
Nor did fellow travelers do the “pass without trace” method a wilderness weirdo like me employs. I could charitably assume there was three feet of snow over frozen ground when they left their mark, but just as likely they were merely lazy. I’m guessing they took three strides out of their vehicle, dropped trou, and crapped like fuckin’ animals. I’m not making it up. I base my assumption on observation. People suck.
The reason I mention this is they crapped all over places that could be future “not hotels”. I could (if I were so inclined) roll a motorcycle (even a street bike) a bit off the pavement and spend the night without anyone caring. It’s probably even legal if I paid the Crown Land fee. However, if it’s dark and late and one were tired, they might camp too close to the pavement. If so, they’re going to discover the next morning that someone else has been there before and they weren’t so careful to dig a cathole as me. Just at thing to know.
None of this applies if you’re far from the road. Walk 50 yards and it might as well be primordial untrammeled wilderness. I don’t know if dirt roads have less traffic and thus less TP sprinkled about; it seems likely.
I didn’t take any pictures but we saw lots of critters. A porcupine waddled in front of our car and absolutely refused to give way. I swerved and came to a full stop because the little bastard was right in my tire-line. I doubt a porcupine will invariably cause a flat but it’s certainly possible they might.
There were little turtles, must be the right season. Herons and other water related birds too. It makes sense because there were many little pockets of water that probably haven’t been fished in years. Some might freeze down and therefore hold few fish. Others might be plenty deep enough and have a lunker just begging to be caught and cooked.
The dog and I wandered down a snowmobile trail and poked around one area looking for fish (I didn’t have my fishing pole though). All I “caught” were a few ticks. Tick-proof pants wont help if one gets in your beard! They didn’t bite me though.
Even though the ticks were out, the mosquitoes weren’t. It’s still early. I spied a few lingering patches of snow under some shady fir trees.
We saw a nice sleek bear right off the road. I was delighted. Every time I see a bear it makes me happy. The bear wasn’t happy to see us… it hauled ass out of there. Just a black bear. This wasn’t grizzly territory and far too south for polar bears (which seem riskier than grizzlies). I wasn’t armed. I’ve no idea what the rules for that are in Canada but the paperwork probably makes death by bear seem the easier choice. I’ve personally never worried about grizzlies anywhere east of Manitoba. YMMV.
We crossed the American border with no hassle at all. When the guy asked us if we’d bought anything I held up a Tim Hortons cup. I suppose nobody’s making much off my tourist expenditures. Once again, the dog was pissed off that the border patrol didn’t have a dog treat like Starbucks.
All in all it was a nice uneventful trip. I needed the chill and salute our northern neighbor for being (relatively) mellow.
You read my mind – I was going to ask you if mosquitos were a problem you were not going to mention. But you did mention and thanks for answering an unasked question. 8^)
I wonder how dark that unpopulated section of road is at nighttime. I imagine the night sky has an awesome view as well as the Northern Lights.
I can vouch for that, having seen northern lights in the area. The absence of light pollution is total. On the new moon, it’s very dark and clear and you see vastly more stars than in “normal” areas. It’s never dark like a cave though, the stars are always there.
My house is remote but not like these places. When I turn off the pole light on a clear night the sky is glorious, but there is still a little light pollution near the horizon in two directions. It’s not awful but you can indeed see it.
Hi AC,
I have been walking the Camino Frances for the last 60 days (I’m still on the way, sitting in an albergue as I peck at my phone). I have experienced the feral TP hazard for the entire 700 km so far.
There is a golden rule of the Camino for the ladies – NEVER WALK PAST A BANO. There can be considerable distances between toilets. For men, there are no issues but I have seen women literally panicking because they have never had to wee outside before. Let alone drop a number 2.
As a consequence, behind almost every bush or slightly secluded spot within 10 feet of the track, there will be disgusting piles of rotting TP. It’s disgusting. Yet so easily solved by simply burning it. They won’t pack it out, even though they will lecture you at length how every one should. Yet they won’t burn it because that’s how fires start dontcha know !!!!!!! Seriously, sometimes you just can’t win.
It’s frustrating! Dudes like me go on wilderness outings and gain the basic hygiene and “leave no trace” skills as second nature. We get in the habit of burying TP & stuff so well that even future archaeologists won’t find it. (I don’t burn TP but that’s more a matter of climate / water table / environment than anything opposed to a match.)
It’s not hard to get with the program and no hiker has ever died from the weight of a hand trowel or even a personal wag bag. It’s ironic that people in places where it doesn’t matter to anyone but the occasional moose are more careful than folks adjacent to “civilization”. For that matter I wonder if there’s overlap of people who clean up their dog’s shit in the yard but not their own near a trail? What would that mean about humanity in general?
This is hilarious. There is a song by a Canadian group about driving across Canada describing what they’ve seen. The refrain is “rocks and trees and risks and trees …”
Driving across the prairies and the Rockies offers beautiful scenery. Driving across the Canadian in Ontario can be beautiful especially around Lake Superior but it’s two days of rocks and and rocks and trees interspersed with lakes and bugs.
My wife and I have driven across Canada 5 times in our camper during Covid
It’s amazing how huge it is! Everyone who’s freaked out about overpopulation or urban crowding should drive across Canada (or America for that matter). If I were King I’d decree it’s a requirement to graduate from High School that you drive across the continent solo without your cell phone in a car with no AC. It would be a lesson that can be learned no other way. Once you see how immense the continent really is you tend to put things in a different perspective too.