# Anyone here ever driven across Canada?



## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

For years I've been thinking it would be cool to drive all the way across this great country. I was born and raised on the west coast in the seaside community of White Rock BC and I thought that one day I should drive to the east coast and dip my toes in the Atlantic so I can see the rest of this great nation of ours. 

With that said, according to google maps, it is about 7,400 km from White Rock BC to St. Johns NL and it's about 80 hours of driving, which is daunting. It's about 10 hours less if I take US highways but I want to do the whole drive in Canada. 

The plan I am thinking about involves flying to Halifax sometime in the spring and buying a car because cars look to be a lot cheaper on the east coast and then drive that car back to BC and hopefully sell it for more than I paid, which will hopefully cover some or most of the expenses for the trip. Seems like a good idea...but then I've had lots of ideas that seemed good at the time...lol ;o)

So anyone here ever driven across Canada? Or driven some long stretches - say across the prairies or through Ontario and Quebec? I thinks it's about 20 hours of driving just to get across Ontario. Just looking for any perspective and/or ideas. Should I do it in the spring or summer or fall? Or should I even do it at all? Maybe some of the stretches are too long and boring...

Love to hear your thoughts...

Cheers,
Ron


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## smorgdonkey (Jun 23, 2008)

I live in Halifax Regional Municipality and I don't see cheap cars here...you can go into a dealership and be offered about 2/3 of the value of your vehicle though!! I am almost kidding. When I was T-boned a few years ago I was planning on buying a used car but I seriously couldn't find one that I wasn't worried about for one reason or another so I bought a new one. Lots of salt here...lots of potholes here...lots of people low on cash here (that may or may not translate into good deals on cars which may or may not have been well maintained). 

I have driven to Tomkins, Saskatchewan from about Truro, Nova Scotia in January and from Calgary, Alberta to about Truro, Nova Scotia in March. It was a good experience but I didn't get any tourist stuff done.


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## Shark (Jun 10, 2010)

I've driven from Vancouver to Toronto. Well, actually, I've done Calgary to Vancouver (more than once) and Calgary to Toronto. I've mostly done these trips quickly, though, without any time spent anywhere along the way, other than to sleep and eat. Ontario is beautiful! Once you hit all those lakes the scenery is gorgeous. Not a lot of cell phone coverage between Winnipeg and Sault Ste. Marie, especially between Thunder Bay and Sault Ste. Marie. Winnipeg to Calgary looks so much the same. Albertans tease Saskatchewans for their flat, featureless landscape, but to be honest, it all looks similar. The Rockies are fantastic to drive though. I love that drive. I've done it a bunch of times and enjoy it every time. I prefer the northern route, through Banff, rather than the southern one along the border that goes through Castlegar (I hate Castlegar). I like going through Kelowna rather than Kamloops, but that's because Kelowna is much nicer to look at, rather than for any expeditious purposes. I've done the trip from Calgary to Kelowna a bunch of times. I know the roads in Southern Alberta and B.C. really well, if you have specific questions. I used to travel for work and was away quite a bit. 

As for the time of year, as long as it's not winter or near to it you should be fine. It's much prettier everywhere when it's all green and there are leaves on the trees, too. Spring can be a pain for road construction delays in B.C.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Yes. You absolutely should do it.

I've driven to both coasts a few times, and a year and a half ago, we drove to Yukon and Alaska, then came down the Inside Passage to Tacoma and then home. Took two months. We averaged 250 km a day for a total of just under 15000 km - which is more than we drive in the average year. 

Pick up the Lonely Planet guide to Canada and take it with you. Try to see as many of the attractions that they recommend as you can. If you're on a budget take a campstove and a tent. If you can afford to eat in restaurants, promise yourself that you won't eat in any franchise restaurants.

Cars are cheaper in the East because the road salt corrodes them so they don't last as long.

Edit: When you drive across the praries, stay off the Trans Canada Highway. Both north and south routes are far more interesting.


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## LPBlue (Feb 2, 2006)

I crossed the country many times with bands in the 70s but the best marathon I ever did was in 91...Toronto to LA for an extended stay in 48hrs. Two drivers and we rolled nonstop save for fuel and an oil change in New Mexico. We took my 87 Caprice for the comfort but my bud wanted to take his Pontiac Sunbird to save gas...I'm 6'2" and no way was I sleeping in the back seat of a Sunbird!


J.R.


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

I've been as far west in a car a bit north of Sault Ste. Marie and as far west as Sydney, NS and have driven to Halifax to Toronto many times. I drove from Toronto to just east of Fredericton once on a 350 Honda through about 700 miles of rain. That was not a fun ride.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

I drove from Edmonton through the USA to Detroit up to Montreal, and back. I drove from Victoria,through WA, ID, MO, ND, MN, WI, MI to the Sault and then Ontario, Quebec and NB to Antigonish, the week of the first Gulf War and the Oka Crisis. I drove from Ottawa across Canada to Victoria and back. And I drove from Ottawa to Halifax and Sydney and back.

A cross-Canada drive is an *incredibly* rewarding experience. I highly recommend it to all Canadians. People think they've seen the country if they've flown here and there, but you haven't seen it until you've seen it on the ground, and spoken to folks in small towns across this land. I drove my family out to the west coast and back because I wanted my kids to fall hopelessly head over heels in love with their country...and it worked.

As gorgeous as BC is, when you emerge from Crowsnest Pass, and you're staring out at all those treeless rolling foothills and the windfarms on the way to Fort McLeod, you can't help but be struck by how very different it is. Same thing going the other way, after you leave Kenora and hit Steinbach and the highway into the Peg. A trip across this country will let you know, in spades, that it's not just a country; it's a frigging continent. A trip from Cape Breton to the left coast is essentially a trip from Ireland to Iran, in terms of distance and the variety of geography.

If you want a preview, rent/download the film "Eight Weeks", with Joshua Jackson. It's about a young Torontonian who gets a cancer diagnosis, buys a motorcycle, and just heads west to get his head together, with a lot of great stops along the way. Gord Downie has a brief but memorable cameo in it, as does the town of Tofino, and Canadian Tire.


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## Moosehead (Jan 6, 2011)

Yeppers, drove to BC and back 4 times now. Nothing like the first time driving from Calgary into the Rockies. I've done it in 3 days with another driver(and lots of coffee), other times ive taken my time to see this great country. I usually camp along the way, adds to the experience of,living on the road.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

15 years ago I spent 7 weeks driving across the country and back. Most of the time I didn't have any plans. I was in an old Jimmy so could sleep in the back, fairly comfortably. I mostly stayed in campgrounds, or with friends or relatives. Some days I would just pick up a hitchhiker and go wherever they wanted. It was a blast. I hope to do it again in a few years.
The prairies weren't boring to me, but my step-dad farms so he emailed me every day asking what crops I'd driven past and how they were all doing. Northern Ontario was tedious but that was partly because it rained from Winnipeg to Barrie. If I do it again I think I'll take the Tobermory ferry. My grandparents are in Stratford so I spent about a week there, then a few days in Montreal. I'd been to most of the cities before so was more interested in smaller places. Out of the 7 weeks I spent about 4 weeks just in Nova Scotia and Nfld. I love Cape Breton. Complete strangers invited me to stay in their home. I love all of Nova Scotia. Nfld is bigger and weirder than I ever expected. If I ever get back there I'd like to spend a lot of time hiking in Gros Morne park. That could be a whole vacation just on its own. Definitely book the ferry crossing to Nfld well in advance. It does fill up. That was the best sunset I've ever seen - out on the ocean with an iceberg in the distance and a whale jumping nearby. 
It's a great trip. I'd love to do it again. I met a lot of lovely people, ate some good food, heard some good music. If you can take two months I'd recommend it. If you don't have that much time then maybe just fly and focus on just Nova Scotia and Nfld.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

bw66 said:


> Yes. You absolutely should do it.
> 
> If you can afford to eat in restaurants, promise yourself that you won't eat in any franchise restaurants.
> 
> Edit: When you drive across the praries, stay off the Trans Canada Highway. Both north and south routes are far more interesting.


Lots of great feedback - thanks guys! Keep the ideas coming - this is great! Love this forum 

I am totally on board with no franchise restaurants - great idea! I will Commit to that ... Support the independents!

I will also look into alternate routes to the trans Canada ... Providing it doesn't add too much time.

I was checking car prices and it appears that some prices do look a bit better on the east coast than here...the main reason is I don't want to yo yo the trip and drive both ways so it seems to make sense to buy a car out east and sell it when I get back because the only alternatives are to either rent a car for the return, which would be too expensive, or drive out and back, which is definitely not what I want to do


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## keto (May 23, 2006)

I've lived in (I'll go east to west, rather than chronologically, because we did jump back and forth a bit)
-Montreal
-Toronto
-Thunder Bay
-Winnipeg (essentially grew up there, from 12-21)
-Regina
-Moose Jaw
-Saskatoon (twice)
-Calgary
-Edmonton
-Quesnel (an hour south of Prince George)
-Victoria

And have made long drives, both as a passenger as a kid, and as a driver as an adult, many times in most directions from those places *except* I haven't been north of Prince George (been west to Prince Rupert), or east of Montreal...so the only parts of the country I haven't seen are the Maritimes (which I dearly want to see before I'm gone) and the far north, which I have no real desire to visit.

I did Edmonton -> Winnipeg (15ish hours) this summer, and that's about the only drive where there isn't much to see (same applies Calgary->Winnipeg except even more flat and boring lol). Wheat fields, barley fields, canola fields and pasture land, with a couple of cities to pass through....I admit I've driven so much of Alberta and Saskatchewan that I may be a little jaded. Someone doing it the first time may stare for hours in wonder at the big open spaces, but the 40th time it's just put the hammer down and get there as quickly as possible.

It's been a long long time since I did the Canadian Shield, I wouldn't mind doing that trip (east from Winnipeg) again.

I go Edmonton->Vancouver once or twice a year. I always go Jasper to highway 5 and south along the Thompson River to Kamloops. If there is a more beautiful drive in our country I can't imagine what it would be.

Longest one-trip drive was Saskatoon-Quesnel-Prince Rupert-car ferry to Vancouver Island north tip - Victoria, then back to Saskatoon. Lots of beautiful scenery there, though it was stormy as hell for the ferry ride down the coast so we didn't get out on deck and I feel seasick just thinking about that trip 20 years ago.

Like Mr. Hammer, I am a big proponent of seeing as much of Canada as you can!


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

When I was in Grade 9 our family did that--we drove across quickly to PEI and took our time coming back, although our plans to go to Newfoundland hit a snag, so we didn't make it there.
I've never been to Newfoundland--but that summer I was in every other province as later that summer I was also in BC, backpacking in the mountains.
It was a lot of fun, saw a lot of great stuff, some of the normal touristy stuff, and some off beat places--I used to have a list, but lost it.
I haven't been back to most of the places since (I've been to BC many times, and Ontario a couple more times)

But if you have the time & resources--go for it.


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## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

That would be an epic trip, do it! 8)
It would be time consuming if you toured along the way.

I've flown out to NFLD and went as far east as I could get.
I've driven a lot between Manitoba/BC, and Ontario.
I've driven a bunch through BC too, breathtaking scenery.
I drove from Kimberley BC to Sudbury in one stretch.

It would be nice to set up a few destinations, to break up the monotony of the road.
Stop and smell the roses along the way, rather than just a straight road trip.

Make time to get through the Maritime provinces too.
Newfoundland kicks ass, the scenery and the people.
You'll need some time there, plus a recovery period.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

doriangrey said:


> I was checking car prices and it appears that some prices do look a bit better on the east coast than here...the main reason is I don't want to yo yo the trip and drive both ways so it seems to make sense to buy a car out east and sell it when I get back because the only alternatives are to either rent a car for the return, which would be too expensive, or drive out and back, which is definitely not what I want to do


Sometimes car rental companies have cars that need to be returned to their "home office" which you can rent really cheaply. Or, check kijiji for people who are moving and need a car delivered across country.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

doriangrey said:


> For years I've been thinking it would be cool to drive all the way across this great country. I was born and raised on the west coast in the seaside community of White Rock BC and I thought that one day I should drive to the east coast and dip my toes in the Atlantic so I can see the rest of this great nation of ours.
> 
> With that said, according to google maps, it is about 7,400 km from White Rock BC to St. Johns NL and it's about 80 hours of driving, which is daunting. It's about 10 hours less if I take US highways but I want to do the whole drive in Canada.
> 
> ...


If you drive from The Ontario / Quebec border to the Ontario / Manitoba border it's gotta be around 24 hours or more.

It's 15 hours just from Toronto to Thunder Bay.

I've driven from coast to coast but did it while touring so it took several months.

If I really wanted to see the country I'd take a train.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

You know what we need to do? We need to work out a set of "soundtrack" suggestions for dorian, or for anyone planning a long distance drive across Canada, for that matter. Some music just _sounds_ better in certain parts of the country, and some parts of the country just seem more beautiful with the right music blaring in the background.

For example, Saskatchewan can seem "boring" to some folks (it's not, and I know that). Stick on Joni Mitchell's _Hejira_ or _Blue_ albums, and it magically turns into a....I don't know what to call it, but it's special. The sky becomes just as huge, but full of dreams and images and not quite so empty. Ian Tyson for the foothills (and _Four Strong Winds _to remind one of how work and the vastness of the country pulls people apart). And once you start to hit those places on the prairies where the skin of the city and forests is stripped away to reveal the vast vasculature of trains and tracks that are the lifeblood of this nation, you GOTS to have _Canadian Railroad Trilogy_ on the sound system. And of course some Stompin' Tom and Joel Plaskett for the east coast, and Hip for the rougher parts of the drive through the Canadian Shield.

Train vs car? I understand Milkman's desire to take one's eyes off the lines and signage on the highway and look a bit more off to the side. At the same time, the highlights of such trips are the little stops, the places the train won't/doesn't go.

F'rinstance, we stopped at the Highway Book Shop in Cobalt, ON (sadly, now defunct), a maze of interlinked quanset huts filled with every sort of used book you can imagine ( http://www.highwaybooks.ca/07-02-tour.htm ). We got to go picking blueberries on the trail behind our motel in Fort Vermillion. The beaches along the eastern and northern shores of Lake Superior are the equal of anything you'd find on Vancouver Island. And looking out on Lake Superior from the Terry Fox memorial just outside Thunder Bay is pretty inspiring. Fort Louisburg near Sydney is an absolute jewel of a national historical site. Not to mention all those "world's largest" things in every little nickel and dime place along the way. As fabulous a view of the Fraser Canyon as they'd give you, no train in the world would stop there.

One of my favourite books from my childhood was Paddle-to-the-Sea ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paddle-to-the-Sea ) that traces the journey of a small carved canoe made by a First Nations boy in the Nipigon region, as it wends its way through the great lakes to the ocean, often rescued and assisted by the kindness of strangers who read the message inscribed on the carving and feel compelled to fulfill the boy's dream. We brought the book along on our big trip (our youngest was 8 at the time), and it was a joy to be able to point to places and know we were following the same path.


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## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

I guess the reason I suggest a train as a way to see the country is that if you're driving you really miss a good deal of the scenery (that whole paying attention thing).

It's a different persepctive too. I think both are fun to do. If you've driven as much as I have, letting somneone else have responsibility for getting you there has some appeal.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Absolutely agree. I guess the compromise is to rent a "dome car" and get someone else to drive you. :smile-new:

Well that seals it, dorian. You take the train out to the east coast, and drive back!


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

mhammer said:


> You know what we need to do? We need to work out a set of "soundtrack" suggestions for dorian, or for anyone planning a long distance drive across Canada, for that matter. Some music just _sounds_ better in certain parts of the country, and some parts of the country just seem more beautiful with the right music blaring in the background.


A few years ago, I was planning an express trip to Calgary and a friend burnt me a few CDs that I hadn't heard but he thought I would like. A lot of Canadiana too - Joel Plaskett, Corb Lund, Mellissa McLelland to name a few. It was great and I've since purchased quite a few of them.

When we travel as a family, we take a bunch of Vinyl Café CDs to wile away the hours. Somehow, Stuart McLean's stories seem even better on a road trip.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

bw66 said:


> When we travel as a family, we take a bunch of Vinyl Café CDs to wile away the hours. Somehow, Stuart McLean's stories seem even better on a road trip.


Especially if you can line it up so that the live recordings are those that have taken place in the town that you're approaching. There's a zillion CBC podcasts available for download that are useful for that. I've got hours and hours of _The Irrelevant Show_ and _This is That_.


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## Cartcanuck (Oct 30, 2012)

Do it!!! You'll never regret it. 

When I was 12, my parents drove us from Western Saskatchewan all the way to Cape Breton Island. We pulled a trailer and camped all the way there and back for 5 weeks in end of June, all of July. I've never forgotten it. Ottawa, Quebec City, PEI (before the bridge!), Peggy's Cove and Halifax, Cape Breton Island and the Cabot Trail, then back through Sherbrook, Toronto and the CN Tower (just a few years after it was built), Niagara Falls, etc. I got to see more of the country than I've seen in the past 30 years. All the little roadside stops, the great people to meet, the sites to see that aren't the big destinations. I plan to do the same trip with my kids in about 10 years. It's an education in Canada that you don't get in school. I've stood in the Canadian parliament buildings, on the Plains of Abraham, the Bluenose, the Citadel, swam and fished in the waters off PEI, ate lobster than went off the boat directly into boiling water, stood atop the CN Tower, behind Niagara Falls, and so much more. All when I was 12. 

DO IT and enjoy it!! 

I would suggest doing this during the late spring or early summer months to see the country it all it's blooming glory. 

The nicest time to travel through the prairies for me is later summer when the fields are at their peak. And one of the things I like about the prairies (much like travelling through BC) is to get off the #1 highway and travel through some smaller areas. There are some amazing areas of Saskatchewan that are not on the highway, but are close. Think about the Cypress Hills area of Southwestern Saskatchewan. Believe it or not you will find the highest altitude between Labrador and the Rocky Mountains in SW Sask! Plus a little town of Eastend, Sask is well known for it's dinosaur finds (Scotty the T-Rex for example). it's a quaint little town in a valley and has some cool dinosaur stuff and a cool little cafe called "Jack's Cafe" right on main street. It's like stepping back 40 years. Cruise through southern Sask, hit some little towns, eat at the local cafe and enjoy some of the flavour of Saskatchewan that most people miss when they hit cruise on their car and zone out for 10 hours. If you can time it right, take in a Rider game in Regina. Now THAT's Saskatchewan culture!

I live in Manitoba, and even I'll say there isn't as much to see here or to stop for. Something interesting is Sprucewoods park (just east of Brandon, MB). You can take a very short hike into a desert. Yes, sand dunes 4 stories tall. Even I didn't believe it until we were all out their rolling down the ever-changing landscape of this prairie desert. It's about 25-30 minutes south of the #1 highway south of Carberry. If you want to go south of Brandon, the International Peace Gardens are about 1 hour south and are beautiful in the summer, and there is even an area commited to the memory of the World Trade Centre attack including beams from the World Trade Centre. 

I also lived in Calgary for many years and got to explore many of the mountain drives in southern BC and loved the drive down through Nelson, across the ferry, along Kootenay Lake through Creston, Cranbrook, Fernie and out through the Crowsnest Pass and the Frank's Slide site (one of the most awe inspiring natural disasters in Canadian history). I spent a lot of time in the Nakusp area as well and there are some very cool ghost towns (abandoned mining towns), Japanese internment camps from WW2, and things like that in the small towns all around that area. 

There really is a lot to see between the west coast and the east coast and it is so easy to overlook most of it. Most people who get on a plane don't get to dip their toes in a freezing cold Kootenay lake, visit the old German town feel of Cranbrook, walk the debris from a mountain that covered an entire valley in Frank's slide, see the windmill fields in Southern Alberta, visit the dinosaurs in Drumheller, stand atop an outlook in SW Saskatchewan that gives you a view that is unbelievable, visit Fort Walsh in the Cypress Hills area, see teepee rings as lone remnants of Indian settlements in a farmers field, walk the valley that dinosaurs did in Eastend Saskatchewan, stand in grain/corn/canola fields that stretch as far as the eye can see, walk through sand dunes in Manitoba, swim in incredibly clear lakes in Northern Ontario, catch fireflies in northern Ontario, float the Rideau Canal in Ottawa (and all that political stuff thats there too  ), then there's the history and architecture and culture of Montreal and Quebec City, and all the eastern townships and the beautiful countryside, people, food, and history of the maritimes. 

Too many people fly these days because our lives are too busy. More people need to drive and see some of the "little" stuff.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

And if you go in the summer, make a point of hitting every drive-in theatre you can find. They're disappearing fast. I'm still kicking myself that we missed seeing Spiderman 2 at the drive-in in Wolseley, SK.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

mhammer said:


> Well that seals it, dorian. You take the train out to the east coast, and drive back!


The train would be fun but the train is actually way more money than flying and it would take a lot longer...I am only planning probably 10 days to fly out and drive back. Ideally I would have weeks or even a month to do the trip so I could spend a week or two on the East Coast and go to Gros Morne and PEI and hike parts of the East Coast Trail, etc. but I might have to wait until later in life to have that much time - this first trip will need to be faster...

I like the Canadian song lists idea...I think I would have time to listen to the whole Rush library of CD's driving through Ontario...lol ;o) 

This really is great - I am collecting all kinds of notes from all the posts here - thanks guys !!!


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

It takes about 2 days to get through Ontario, so you'd have plenty of time to do the Rush library.

BTW, it took me 5 days to do Victoria to Fredericton, although that's because I couldn't find anywhere to stay once I left Victoria until 30 miles out of Bismarck ND. So that was nearly 2 days straight with a couple hours rest stop snoozing here and there. From Bismarck, I didn't sleep again until another rest stop somewhere in northern Michigan, just west of Sault St. Marie. But ten days to do Halifax to back home should be feasible. Not recommended,mind you, but feasible.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

mhammer said:


> ten days to do Halifax to back home should be feasible. Not recommended,mind you, but feasible.


I figure I'll need 60 hours to get from Halifax to home so if I build in a day or two to go up to NFLD then with 10 days and a day to fly I'd have to cover 60 hours of driving in probably 6 days...10 hours a day for 6 days straight...hmmm...feasible I guess...but the more I think about it that does sound tough...hmmm... =o/


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Not that Nfld is not worth going to, but it is going to eat up a LOT of your planned time, getting there and back on the ferry. If you're budgeting 10 days to get from the east coast back home, you'd have to forfeit a lot of sights and worthy detours in other parts of the country. I think everybody ought to have the opportunity to be down in the harbour as the sun comes up and watch the fishing boats head out of the Narrows, but you'd need to give up a lot of other things, like the Hopewell Cape Rocks, Louisburg, Cavendish Beach, Old Quebec, the Wawa Goose, Gramma Bep's Saskatoonberry pie in Swift Current, Craigalachie, Drumheller and the Royal Tyrell, "Golden Boy", Georgian Bay, etc. 

Save it for another time and a dedicated trip....like for when they have the Junos there again and you go out to accept your album of the year award. Besides, I think most here would agree that once you woke up from your trip to George St., you'd actually have 3 less days to get home than you were planning on.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

doriangrey said:


> so if I build in a day or two to go up to NFLD


It sounds like you're underestimating Nfld. There are 2 ferry crossings from North Sydney to Nfld. One of them takes about 6 hours, costs around $200, and lands you on the SW corner of Nfld, hundreds of miles from anything. The other one takes 14 hours, costs $400 each way, and at least gets you close to St John's.
I'm not trying to discourage you from going to Nfld, I'm just trying to encourage you to build in more than a day or two for it.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

mhammer said:


> Not that Nfld is not worth going to, but it is going to eat up a LOT of your planned time, getting there and back on the ferry. If you're budgeting 10 days to get from the east coast back home, you'd have to forfeit a lot of sights and worthy detours in other parts of the country. I think everybody ought to have the opportunity to be down in the harbour as the sun comes up and watch the fishing boats head out of the Narrows, but you'd need to give up a lot of other things, like the Hopewell Cape Rocks, Louisburg, Cavendish Beach, Old Quebec, the Wawa Goose, Gramma Bep's Saskatoonberry pie in Swift Current, Craigalachie, Drumheller and the Royal Tyrell, "Golden Boy", Georgian Bay, etc.
> 
> Save it for another time and a dedicated trip....like for when they have the Junos there again and you go out to accept your album of the year award. Besides, I think most here would agree that once you woke up from your trip to George St., you'd actually have 3 less days to get home than you were planning on.





kat_ said:


> It sounds like you're underestimating Nfld. There are 2 ferry crossings from North Sydney to Nfld. One of them takes about 6 hours, costs around $200, and lands you on the SW corner of Nfld, hundreds of miles from anything. The other one takes 14 hours, costs $400 each way, and at least gets you close to St John's.
> I'm not trying to discourage you from going to Nfld, I'm just trying to encourage you to build in more than a day or two for it.


Yup. If you've only got 10 days, then skip Newfoundland... for now - save the best for later. (Second best really, but nobody ever goes to the Yukon.)


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## smorgdonkey (Jun 23, 2008)

Unless you have no schedule and have money to spend, driving across the country is no way to see it. You will see highways.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Yeah, but its the stuff beside the highways that's so great.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

kat_ said:


> It sounds like you're underestimating Nfld. There are 2 ferry crossings from North Sydney to Nfld. One of them takes about 6 hours, costs around $200, and lands you on the SW corner of Nfld, hundreds of miles from anything. The other one takes 14 hours, costs $400 each way, and at least gets you close to St John's.
> I'm not trying to discourage you from going to Nfld, I'm just trying to encourage you to build in more than a day or two for it.


Wow, clearly I was underestimating the time it would take to see Newfoundland .... I didnt realize the ferry crossings were so long...and pricey! I obviously haven't researched it carefully and having never been east of the Rockies I really don't know much abut the east coast, as you can tell  that is why I am so grateful for all of the excellent info in this thread - thanks everyone for all the great info...this has been extremely helpful!!! I really want to do the trip and I know I will do it someday - it's just a matter of when and what the details will be.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

Newfoundland is awesome but it almost needs to be its own trip. Someday I'd love to spend a whole summer there. If you only have 10 days I would honestly just do Nova Scotia to Ottawa. Much more than that and you'll barely have time to get out of the car. The full trip is worth doing but you'll want more time. 

Each province puts out a free tourism guide that lists attractions, festivals, accommodation, and comes with a free road map. Once you start driving it's nice to have paper copies in case you can't get decent wireless signal somewhere. Order them all and start figuring out where you want to spend some time.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Incidentally, you do know that down east, McDonald's serves "McLobster"? Seriously. I'm not saying it's great or anything (though I've never eaten lobster), but it's what they carry instead of McRib.

Other fun facts. The Popsicle company carries different flavours in different provinces, due to regional preferences. For instance, there are some places where you can and _can't_ get rootbeer flavoured popsicles, or blueberry, or chocolate. For reasons I do not comprehend, pistachio ice cream is considerably more popular in Quebec than elsewhere. Heck, it's one of the no-name flavours in Quebec supermarkets, while frequently unfindable elsewhere. There is also a Quebec soft drink flavour that is also totally absent anywhere else in Canada - bière d'epinette (spruce beer) - also available as one of the no-name house-brand pops. Tastes like carbonated Mr. Clean as far I'm concerned, but I imagine enough people like it to keep it around.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

kat_ said:


> Newfoundland is awesome but it almost needs to be its own trip.


I'm starting to think that NFLD may require its own trip...but I don't think I could go the east coast and not see it at all...



mhammer said:


> Incidentally, you do know that down east, McDonald's serves "McLobster"? Seriously. I'm not saying it's great or anything (though I've never eaten lobster), but it's what they carry instead of McRib.
> 
> There is also a Quebec soft drink flavour that is also totally absent anywhere else in Canada - bière d'epinette (spruce beer) - also available as one of the no-name house-brand pops. Tastes like carbonated Mr. Clean as far I'm concerned, but I imagine enough people like it to keep it around.


McLobster? seriously? they use real lobster? 

I lol'd at the carbonated Mr. Clean comment...I kinda want to try spruce beer now... ;oD


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Yes, it's a real thing: http://www.mcdonalds.ca/ca/en/menu/full_menu/sandwiches/mclobster.html

I honestly don't know how they get the flavouring for grocery-store spruce beer, but it has a kind of coniferous rosin scent/taste, and is sweet. I suppose if there can be root beer, there can be spruce beer. I've had it a few times and I'm happy to leave mine on the store shelf for now. Wikipedia indicates it is found in both Quebec *and* Newfoundland http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spruce_beer, although I'm wondering if they don't mean Labrador.

If it's any consolation, most of the rest of Canada has absolutely NO idea about Purdy's ice cream bars that are freshly dipped in chocolate then rolled in crushed almonds in front of you.

I use "no-name"/house-brand availability as an indicator of how normative/normal something is for a region.

Incidentally, I started seeing those plastic buckets of "salt naval beef" in Ottawa supermarkets. They used to be just a Nfld. thing but I guess either the Avalon diaspora has spread here, or else somebody on the Food Network is cooking with it.


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## Morkolo (Dec 9, 2010)

doriangrey said:


> I'm starting to think that NFLD may require its own trip...but I don't think I could go the east coast and not see it at all...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I'll take real live fresh lobster any day over the McLobster... they might call it real lobster but it sure doesn't taste like it.

As for spruce beer I've never seen it before, so it must be in Labrador unless it's a common thing over on the Avalon.


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

I'm not sure when you're planning on travelling, but if I remember correctly late July/early August is crab season in NS.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

kat_ said:


> I'm not sure when you're planning on travelling, but if I remember correctly late July/early August is crab season in NS.


That sounds good! although I'm thinking late spring / early summer would be a good time - everything green and blooming as well as lots of daylight for driving would probably be a good time...although fall would be nice too with the autumn colors and it would probably be less busy then as well...

Any thoughts on the best season to go?


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

Resurrecting my thread here because it looks like this trip might actually happen this year. My wife and I have doing some planning and I think we might actually be able to the drive across Canada in late June.

We're talking about flying from Vancouver to Charlottetown PEI and spending 2 or 3 days there. The plan is to buy a used car in Charlottetown and then drive back to Vancouver. I'm thinking we can do the drive in 10 days - Google maps says it's about 60 hours of driving so an average driving time of 6 hours a day - some days shorter and some days longer - seems manageable. We might have a layover day somewhere in the middle - but we should still be able to do the whole trip in 2 weeks. 

Any suggestions and/or advice is very much appreciated! =)


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## Diablo (Dec 20, 2007)

bw66 said:


> Sometimes car rental companies have cars that need to be returned to their "home office" which you can rent really cheaply. Or, check kijiji for people who are moving and need a car delivered across country.


a few months ago, I came across a site which lists departure and destination cities in Canada/US where cars need to be driven from, and you get paid a small amount to do that...maybe $100 a day. the idea being, retired Snowbirds for example want their cars taken to/from Florida, Vancouver etc to have for their stays, but prefer to fly themselves.
You wouldn't make much money on it, but you at least wouldn't be paying for a rental or putting mileage on your own vehicle.
if I can remember the site name, I'll post back. Its run by a guy out of Toronto I think.

EDIT: the sites are Canadadriveaway.com and Torontodriveaway.com
Wheels did a story a while back as well.
http://www.wheels.ca/news/drive-a-snowbirds-car-to-florida-and-get-paid/


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

Hey, good luck with your trip! I'd love to do something like that some time. It would need to be a proper vacation though, not a cross-Canada tour haha.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Van to Charlottetown is about 60 hrs or so they say. The plan is to do it on the bikes this year.....might or might not happen. You gotta figure that until 9 years ago the furthest east I'd been in Canada was Calgary. Then went to Saskatoon. Then about 3 years ago we went to Oak Lake Man. then onto the Austin Manitoba Museum. That's where my great grandfathers news paper office now is. If we do do it this year I figure I might take an extra week or two. Here to Tofino then back across country then back here.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

doriangrey said:


> Resurrecting my thread here because it looks like this trip might actually happen this year. My wife and I have doing some planning and I think we might actually be able to the drive across Canada in late June.
> 
> We're talking about flying from Vancouver to Charlottetown PEI and spending 2 or 3 days there. The plan is to buy a used car in Charlottetown and then drive back to Vancouver. I'm thinking we can do the drive in 10 days - Google maps says it's about 60 hours of driving so an average driving time of 6 hours a day - some days shorter and some days longer - seems manageable. We might have a layover day somewhere in the middle - but we should still be able to do the whole trip in 2 weeks.
> 
> Any suggestions and/or advice is very much appreciated! =)


Check and see what the temp. registration/insurance thing costs to drive to B.C. and then out of province bs to register the vehicle in B.C.. When I moved to Ab from B.C. my bike had to be checked for insurance and registration. It was legal in B.C. but cost me almost $700 for all the paper work and things needed to make it legal in Ab. That didn't include the fine and a new helmet a while later. A couple of years back I almost bought a bike in Saskatoon. Just the paperwork and temp reg/insurance for 2 days would have been a fair bit so I came back here and found almost the same bike for a lot less. In B.C. I don't think it would be a problem but in Ab. it can be a bitch to insure a motorcycle over 30 yrs. old.


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## Scotty (Jan 30, 2013)

This whole post is 3 pages so far, and not one photo of said road trips?? I'd love to eff off for a year and do this very trip. No schedule. No plans except going either east or west


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## zontar (Oct 25, 2007)

doriangrey said:


> Resurrecting my thread here because it looks like this trip might actually happen this year. My wife and I have doing some planning and I think we might actually be able to the drive across Canada in late June.
> 
> We're talking about flying from Vancouver to Charlottetown PEI and spending 2 or 3 days there. The plan is to buy a used car in Charlottetown and then drive back to Vancouver. I'm thinking we can do the drive in 10 days - Google maps says it's about 60 hours of driving so an average driving time of 6 hours a day - some days shorter and some days longer - seems manageable. We might have a layover day somewhere in the middle - but we should still be able to do the whole trip in 2 weeks.
> 
> Any suggestions and/or advice is very much appreciated! =)


If you can take longer than 10 days, do so.
When I was 15 my family drove quickly to PEI and took our time coming back.
We had to skip Newfoundland due to some delays & issues with the ferries & related stuff.
We spent a fair bit of time in the Maritimes and also Quebec City, Ottawa, Toronto & Winnipeg--and many places in between.
Later that summer I went backpacking in the mountains--spending time in both Alberta & BC.


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## Lakota (Dec 20, 2013)

Scotty said:


> This whole post is 3 pages so far, and not one photo of said road trips?? I'd love to eff off for a year and do this very trip. No schedule. No plans except going either east or west











\Travelling in style, lol

























Vermilion Bay








Don't miss Kakebeka Falls just west of Thunder Bay Ontario (mini Niagara Falls) nice provincial park to boot

I ride Ontario to Alberta every summer, last year ran the Trans Canada both ways instead of my usual upper U.S. states. LOVED it, had not done it all Canadian in a couple decades. As a kid did this trip every summer sometimes by car, train or Greyhound. Harley dealerships usually always have free coffee on and can tell you what is worth seeing down the road. Cabot trail is on my bucket list after my trips west are no longer worth while. Just Do It, nothing beats driving across Canada, except driving across Canada.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

It would be nice to take longer than 10 days but we will only have 2 weeks of vacation to work with. We will have to skip some of the highlights - including Newfoundland because I think that is a vacation all on its own - but I still think it would be pretty cool to drive across the country. =) 
@Electraglide - you make a good point about insurance - it seems easy enough to insure a car in BC for a couple of weeks - and that insurance covers across Canada…but that is with ICBC so I don't know what it will be like insuring a car in the maritimes to ensure I get to BC with the proper coverage. The whole thing seems logical but I'm wondering if I am underestimating the logistical challenges with buying a car on the east coast and driving it back here…
@Diablo - I will definitely check those websites out because I don't really want to buy a car but I figured if I bought a used car and drove it out here then I could sell it when I got back here and even if ?I took a loss on the car it would still be far less than renting a car to drive 6,000 km...


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

@Lakota - that waterfall picture is awesome!!! I've just added that spot to my list of must-sees! =)

Also love the pic with the guitar in the tent - essentials


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## Scotty (Jan 30, 2013)

@Lakota, now those are some photos! And yes I like the mandatory travel gear as well.


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

This has been a long time dream of mine as well.

We've driven from Goderich Ontario to Bridgewater NS and back several times, usually a two day trip one way, though sometimes we're more leasurely about it. It's always been a busman's holiday so the truck has been crammed with gear, but it's a lovely drive once we're out of the built up GTA. Eastern Quebec is beautiful in topography and architecture, New Brunswick has glorious woodlands and I really like the trip along the St. John River, Nova Scotia has it all but the head of the Bay Of Fundy is different than most of the trip.

The trip from home to north of Lake Superior is also nice, but like everywhere you need to take lots of side trips and meander the back roads to get a real feel for the area.

If we were to dedicate time to a coast to coast trip, we'd camp, and we'd take the time to see as much as possible. My family has history in Alberta but I've never been there, and we have lots of friends scattered about the country and what fun it would be to see them all.

Peace, Mooh.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

If it were me, and B.C. was home, I would focus on seeing the stuff farthest from home. 

Charlottetown, Halifax, and Quebec City are all worth a day. The Bay of Fundy is really cool, but a bit out of the way (but make sure you stop for sticky buns in Alma if you go). 

In Ontario, the lift lock at Peterborough, Science North in Sudbury, and Ste Marie-Among-The-Hurons are all worth a look. Definitely go for a long walk on one of the beaches on Lake Superior.

In Saskatchewan, stop at the tourist office and do whatever they recommend. (Saskatchewan has the best run tourist offices in the country.) If you don't mind zig-zagging a bit, we had a lot of fun picking up a list of "world's biggests" in Saskatchewan and seeing as many as we could. Most of the really cool stuff in the prairies is well off the trans-Canada though. Consider taking the north route of the TCH and stopping in Saskatoon for a day.


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

doriangrey said:


> It would be nice to take longer than 10 days but we will only have 2 weeks of vacation to work with. We will have to skip some of the highlights - including Newfoundland because I think that is a vacation all on its own - but I still think it would be pretty cool to drive across the country. =)
> @Electraglide - you make a good point about insurance - it seems easy enough to insure a car in BC for a couple of weeks - and that insurance covers across Canada…but that is with ICBC so I don't know what it will be like insuring a car in the maritimes to ensure I get to BC with the proper coverage. The whole thing seems logical but I'm wondering if I am underestimating the logistical challenges with buying a car on the east coast and driving it back here…
> @Diablo - I will definitely check those websites out because I don't really want to buy a car but I figured if I bought a used car and drove it out here then I could sell it when I got back here and even if ?I took a loss on the car it would still be far less than renting a car to drive 6,000 km...


When I looked at the bike in Saskatoon I was told I could get a transport permit to bring it back here.....good for 3 days I believe. When I lived in B.C. you could take the plate off your 'old' vehicle and put it on your 'new' vehicle and drive it. I think you had 14 days to change the registration. I would check with ICBC to see what they say. As an aside, is Alley Cat Tattoos still in Langley and does Millie still do ink there?


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Lakota said:


> \Travelling in style, lol
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Damn fancy tent. Every Harley dealership I've been too in Sask., Ab. and B.C. has free coffee. If you make it to here the coffee is on and I might even spring for a burger or two.


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## doriangrey (Mar 29, 2011)

Electraglide said:


> When I lived in B.C. you could take the plate off your 'old' vehicle and put it on your 'new' vehicle and drive it. I think you had 14 days to change the registration. I would check with ICBC to see what they say. As an aside, is Alley Cat Tattoos still in Langley and does Millie still do ink there?


That is a great suggestion - I will definitely ask ICBC about that because that would be a great option! 

And yes there is a tattoo shop in Langley called Alley Cat ink - http://alleycatink.com/welcome/ but I've never been there..

lots of great suggestions everyone - thank you!!!


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

doriangrey said:


> That is a great suggestion - I will definitely ask ICBC about that because that would be a great option!
> 
> And yes there is a tattoo shop in Langley called Alley Cat ink - http://alleycatink.com/welcome/ but I've never been there..
> 
> lots of great suggestions everyone - thank you!!!


Wrong link.....that place is in Elkhorn Wisconsin.....but thanks anyway.


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## Lakota (Dec 20, 2013)

Electraglide said:


> Damn fancy tent. Every Harley dealership I've been too in Sask., Ab. and B.C. has free coffee. If you make it to here the coffee is on and I might even spring for a burger or two.


Careful what you wish for, I usually stop at Gasoline Alley, this year will be around second weekend of August. Just might pm you when I am headed through!


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## Electraglide (Jan 24, 2010)

Lakota said:


> Careful what you wish for, I usually stop at Gasoline Alley, this year will be around second weekend of August. Just might pm you when I am headed through!


Second weekend in Aug. There'll be room for another bike from Ont. . Not too sure about a tent as big as yours but you never know.


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