Day 17: Thessalon to Sault Ste. Marie. Trip total: 1977km

I took a chance and went off the highway today,  fortunately the roads were all paved and pretty flat all the way into Sault Ste.  Marie.

I settled into my motel before finishing the final leg out to the terminus for the waterfront trail, which was a little over 20km further west. I was hoping for a marker of some sort, but the little waterfront trail signs that dotted my journey were nowhere to be found.

It was satisfying that the road actually stopped at the Lake Superior shoreline so at least it felt like it was as far as I could go. I say 'felt' because I know from experience that there's another 700+km of shoreline along the Canadian side of Lake Superior that I could bike to technically cover all the waterfront,  but I'm not one to argue with the route mapped out by the good folks at the Waterfront Regeneration Trust.

Speaking of the mapped route, I deviated significantly from the official route by cycling around Georgian Bay,  but I'll be covering the missed section on my way back down through Manitoulin Island heading home.

All told, between my cross Canada tour and this one  I've now cycled the entire Canadian shoreline of the Great Lakes.  It goes without saying that Canada is huge,  but I'll never underestimate the sheer size of Ontario all on its own.

I have the luxury of retracing familiar territory on my ride back home, so I'll get a chance to hit some spots I wanted to check out last time around without feeling rushed.