Near-North Muskoka Cottage Country
The heart of Ontario’s cottage country runs through the Muskokas starting at Orillia (just west of Highway 400), and then in quick succession, the communities of Severn Bridge, Severn Bridge, Bracebridge, Huntsville, Burk’s Falls, South River, and Powassan to North Bay. As yo umake that drive you pass by the may scenic lakes, and from Huntsville a very good entrance into the scenic Algonquin Provincial Park.
The Ontario Northern Route #11
The officially designated Northern Route begins where#11 crosses the Main Trans-Canada at North Bay. From this point the Northern Route arches abouve Lake Superior through a chain of northern Ontario mining towns, that because of their strategic importance to American(and Canadian) weapons manufacture during World War II were quickly conected by road . These towns were already connected by rail lines built in the late 1880s and early 1900s. These town include Temagami, Cobalt, Temiskaming Shores, Englehart, Kirkland Lake (where it connects to the Quebec Northern Route from Montreal and the Laurentians (introduced above), and then continues to Matheson, Iroquois Falls, Cochrane, Kapuskasing (today, best known for its wintertime cold-weather testing for the car manufacturers), and then Hearst, Longlac, Geraldton, Beardmore before bending sharply south to avoid Lake Nipigon and then crossing the Nipigon River into Nipigon.
Northern Route #11 near Hearst
Between Nipigon and Thunder Bay, the Main Route #17 and the Northern Route #11 share the same roadway. It is currently being “twinned”. This began with the Thunder Bay Expressway, meant to bypass the urban areas of Thunder Bay to speed through traffic. The 4-lane Expressway arches around the west end of the city, and has since been continued east. The portion betwen Ouimet and the Dorion East Loop has recently been completed (2023), leaving about 35 km of the 110 km from Thunder Bay untwinned to Nipigon.
The Rainy River Extension Highway #11
From Thunder Bay, travewllers can cotinue northwest on the #17 to Dryden and Kenora, or west of the #11 to Fort Frances and Rainy River (which now runs SOUTH of the Main Route). From Fort Frances, travellers head west a bit to Emo, and then head north on Highway 71 past Nestor Falls and Sioux Narrrows to reconnect with the main Trans-Canada Route #17 at Kenora. Highway #17 is 490 km between Kenora and THunder Bay, and the Highway 11 & 71 route is 560 km. Highway 11 continues west from Emo (junction with Highway 71) for another 50 km to the town of Rainy River, where there is a border crossing with Baudette, Minnesota.
