I left Saint Ignace, and headed to Canada. To get there, I had to go to Sault Ste. Marie and cross at the Soo Locks. I had spent some time in Sault Ste. Marie on my 2013 gypsy trip, so I didn’t spend any time exploring the locks, although they are fascinating. If you’re interested, check out the blog post for this location from 2013. They haven’t changed.

At the Soo, we entered Canada. It was a relatively easy time getting across the border. The customs agent seemed more interested in where I was going and why those places than anything else about my entry. We chatted for a bit, and he sent me on my way.

I then traveled along the Trans-Canadian Highway, which is the nation’s only transcontinental highway. At some point, I spun off and headed across Highway 2, which was a beautiful drive along

I stopped for the night at Chute Provincial Park. The stop was strictly to break up the long drive. It was too far for one day, and probably not enough for two. But provincial parks are great places to be and relatively inexpensive, so it was a decent night’s stay.

On my way out the next morning, I made a wrong turn and wound up in the parking lot for the access to Chute Falls. I had never heard of Chute Falls, but when I got there and heard the water rushing, I realized the hike wasn’t far. I had time, so I grabbed my camera and headed down the boardwalk to find this amazing falls that had volumes of water coming across it. Given that it had not rained much in the last few days, I was pretty amazed by how much water was in that small river.

I then made my way to Manitoulin Island, which lies between the Georgian Bay and Lake Huron. It is the largest freshwater island in the world. Lake Superior has the largest volume of water of any fresh lake in the world and is the largest freshwater lake in America. But Lake Huron gets short shrift in the U. S. because many of the calculations do not include the Georgian Bay. The bay is entirely within Canada. It is very clear and is routinely cold.   

Manitoulin Island’s northern boundary is the very originally named “North Channel.” The Georgian Bay is on east side, and Lake Huron is on the west. I’m not sure I know where one stops and the other starts. Manitoulin Island is fully within Canada. To get there, you take a bridge from northern Ontario to the island, entering it at North Channel over a bridge called “The Little Current Swing Bridge.” It is an Ontario Heritage Bridge, which will swing to a 90-degree angle to let larger vessels pass. 

The population of the entire island is just over 14,000.   Manitoulin Island is just slightly smaller than Rhode Island. It has several post offices, most of which have indigenous names. The population swells to nearly 18,000 in the summer with seasonal residents, but approximately another 1,000 visitors come and go every few days. The bridge, which connects residents to mainland Ontario, directs folks to Barrie as the primary commercial area. Most tourists come up on the Che-Cheemaun, a ferry that leaves the tip of the Bruce Peninsula at Tobermory. 

I had crossed to the island several times in the late 70s and early 80s. my visits then were mainly confined to the area right around the ferry harbor. Of course, it was all tourist-focused. I wanted to see more on this trip, so I decided to spend five days exploring the island. 

The number of water fowl and other birds here was amazing, and the wildflowers were still in bloom during my visit. I went to the largest lake, which has an island, on the island, which is in a lake. Confused yet? See my accompanying map. I also went to Bridal Veil Falls — not the Niagara one, but the one on the Kagawong River on the island. I would have loved to go down and play in that swimming hole. However, since I’m getting older and less confident in my ability to do such things, I stopped. But boy, was I tempted.  

I also visited many of the indigenous communities and areas.  The island’s population is 40% indigenous. Most of the names are words from their native language. I was pleased by their very focused strategic effort, and impressed by the way they presented their culture for all to see — and then to measure and keep up with progress. This is very transparent, accountable, and progressive for a group of people not always credited with these strengths.  

Canada has made a somewhat reluctant peace with the way Europeans went about procuring land in the country. For the most part, they did the same thing in Canada that was done in the United States. They pushed the Native Americans off of their native lands and onto reservations.

At some point, Canada came to terms with the fact that it had not treated the native people fairly and started to change the dialogue. Indigenous populations are now the First Nations people, recognizing that they had a country or a community, or several countries, even if they were not formally recognized as such. Until this point, there was no formal recognition of their history. The dialogue now acknowledges that Europeans were really conquerors, not settlers.

We often think of ourselves as settling North America. But North America was already settled by native peoples who arrived many thousands of years before Europeans got here. Europeans used the same approach in Africa and Australia, and each continent has dealt with colonization and disruption in the lives of the people and civilizations that were in each location before European influence arrived. 

There’s an interesting theory that says countries are really just figments of our collective imagination. Continents are real. They are defined by the geography on which they are formed, but countries have artificial lines of division, not unlike state lines. Because we need or depend on systems of laws and order, we recognize those boundaries as if they are somehow sacred.

All First Nations people, be they Canadian or American in location, have different opinions relative to the land. They settled where there was opportunity to provide for their communities, and their laws moved with them. There were tribal expectations, and there were repercussions for not following those, but the expectations resided within the community, not within a set of artificial borders.

Canada has tried to restore some of that autonomy to First Nations people. Has it been completely successful? No. But are they farther down the road than the United States? Absolutely.

As I traveled through Canada, I tried to be sensitive to the First Nation areas, and recognize the importance of doing business with them, supporting their economic activities, and encouraging their continued vitality. I also applaud and appreciate their generally good stewardship of the lands they feel they were entrusted to them.