PUPs Go West – Day 2, Wawa

From Sault Ste Marie to Thunder Bay The second day of beautiful sunshine and cooler temps for the pugs. This stretch of highway is fun and fantastic. Curves in the road for that James Bond feeling. High granite walls with lush greenery at every turn. And, the ever present Lake Superior on your driver’s side. I was the only one on the road for most of the drive. Morning on Lake Superior, uranium, The Pug Bus, WaWa – Honk Honk. Camping on the Giant. Driving music: This is Group of Seven country – Canadiana. Plus it is breath takingly serene so I chose Loreena McKennitt and Bruce Cockburn.


6:30 am, before we hit the road. Spent a few minutes on the beach watching the sun rise on Lake Superior. No one else around.

Lake Superior beach

The dawn, the clouds, the trees. Just had to stop. I’ve heard that people avoid the north shore route because it takes so long. They will cut through the US and take the south shore. The beauty of the north shore is not to be missed. Plan and take a few days to cross it.

highway and lake

Algoma Bay where the first uranium find was allegedly made. The location is to the right in behind the pugs. This view represents 10% of the world’s fresh surface water.

pugs and Algoma Bay

Lake Superior is so large it can take on the characteristics of an ocean. The shipwrecks of Lake Superior attest to the power of this lake. On certain days the waves pound the shore. You can see the depth here. Don’t get too close, Eve.

pugs and cliff

Loved this wall face and had to stop, tie the pugs to a pole, and take a pic.

pugs and Muskoka rock wall

We stopped in Wawa. In the parking lot was – The Pug bus – license plate was more than a coincidence. Raisin charmed the folks getting on the bus. I found out later that all Coach Atlantic buses have the prefix PUG.

pugs and bus

What would a visit to WaWa be without the goose. Bucket list scratched. Erected in 1963 it is one of the most photographed monuments in North America. It is located at the junction of the last link of the Trans-Canada Highway.

Larry pugs and Wawa goose

Looking out from the goose. Wawa means Land of the Big Goose in Ojibway. So the goose was around long before the steel statue. It is 28 ft tall, 22 ft long and has a wingspan of 20 feet. Stompin’ Tom Connors sang the song “Little Wawa” about a goose that stayed behind when her lover Gander Goo got shot down with an arrow.

pugs on picnic bench

Eve decides to roll in the grass as the spirit of Gitchee Goomee rolls her eyes. Gitchee Gumee is Objibway for Big Water.

pugs and Gitchee Goomee statue

We headed out on the Trans-Canada. Our first food truck – think it was near Terrace Bay. Yes, we had fries.

pugs and chip truck
highway and Lake Superior

Our campsite setup at Sleeping Giant Provincial Park in Thunder Bay. The park is situated on the giant. Our campsite was just under his chin.

Sleeping Giant campground

There were campsites down by the lake that were all taken. We booked one up the hill. There was no one around us and Eve got to explore.

Eve and forest

This is Thunder Bay lookout. About where the Giant’s navel is. It is a steep slow, 5 minute drive. You need to drive about 10 mph. You can go 40 if you want to break your axel. At the top is a flat red shale area for parking. Looking out to the left would be Thunder Bay city.

Larry pugs and Thunder Bay lookout

The view looking north.

lookout view north

The view looking down and south

lookout view south

After a full day, one little pug just wants to relax in the grass. We sat and listened to the wind in the trees, sipping wine and eating liver treats. Finished the pork sausages for dinner along with canned beans and peas. Campfire food.

Raisin resting in grass

Time to get a good night’s sleep. The pugs snuggled into their beds.