Travel Advice



Thank you to everyone who gave me advice for my travel adventures across the country and all the well wishes as I prepare to head out on a 6700km drive to the Yukon. Wow, writing that out now seems like a lot of miles! I've driven to Florida a number of times...so it's like driving back and forth, then back again, without the sunny warm weather at the end. *sigh*

Over the last several days, many of you have given travel advice for my trip; some very helpful and others just down right funny. I though I'd compile a list of some of your responses and I'll let you know which ones I follow and which ones I'll seriously consider. Before I dive in, let me declare that this is my FIRST trip across our beautiful country. Having travelled extensively throughout the world (around 40 country or so) I'm not new to travel. I've driven around Ireland, through the winding streets of Santorini, both islands in New Zealand, on a scooter in Vietnam, and from coast to coast in Argentina; just to name a few. Mind you, Shawn was always with me and did the majority of driving while I navigated (and great skill of mine-not his) but we almost always got to where we were going. And if we didn't, we usually ended up with a great adventure none-the-less. So I figured, "Hey, if I've driven and travelled throughout those countries, I sure can do my own country?!" Right?! And really, what do I really need to worry about besides running out of gas for fear of not finding a gas station in time! Which leads to my first piece of advice, one from my husband, that I found the most helpful: pack a Jerry Can. He also said to pack bear spray but I'm not planning to get that far off the well- beaten track. 

Here's a few words of advice I received from friends and family as I step off into my next adventure: YUKON!!!

1)One of the first people I told and asked advice was Dave (Shawn's work partner) who recently travelled with my husband to Kenora (Thunder Bay & Winnipeg). I was given some great places to eat (which I'm ALWAYS appreciative of) and an extensive list of the best micro breweries. "Dave, I'm driving..."  Hmm, I'll definitely consider this advice when I'm safely parked for the evening;)

2)Bears!!! My care group had all kinds of "mixed" advice for black or brown bear encounters. Make yourself look big, play dead (not too sure about this one), run (again, seems sketchy) but the topper was Terry's suggestion to cover my head in Moose dun so the bears would avoid me all together. Pretty sure EVERYONE would avoid me at this point. But you know Terry, all options considered, you just never know when the sh*t its the fan. I'm thinking I should do a little more of my own research on this one...

3)Snow. Reality is, I'll likely see some snow on the drive at some point or at least in the mountainous sections. Yes, I do have snow tires and a snow brush. Plus a toque, mitts, warm layers, a jacket-I AM CANADIAN after all! My friend Sue messaged me the other day about having snow tires and had some wise words;

I will keep the classic playlist handy for the slidy sections and envision the possibilities of one day becoming a stunt driving movie star...

4)Driving the Manitoba/Saskatchewan section. Apologies friends in these regions, Ontarians think it's pretty boooooring. However, I promised myself to keep an open mind as I pass through the never ending vastness and flatness, and will try to keep my eyes wide open. Maybe pop in a good audiobook or crank the bass-est tunes from my Spotify Ontarto to Yukon playlist;)

And finally, some of my favourite words of advice;

"Drive safe"
"Have fun"
"Enjoy the journey/adventure"
"Take lots of pictures"
"Call home once in a while"
"Take breaks" BTW I'm a professional power napper!

And one of my favourites, from my Uncle Ken (my dad's brother), that brought a few tears to my eyes. I envisioned my dad saying the very same words to me (which he often did) when I doubted myself:

Thanks everyone for your wise words of travel advice. I definitely feel the love!
See you on the road...

xoHeather

PS. I'll share songs from my Ontario to Yukon playlist as appropriate for each blog post;)

First up: Can I Believe You-Fleet Foxes

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ontario, Huron, Superior-Driving around the lakes of Ontario

Image
My first pit stop - B dot. lol  With a great head start my first day, I'm well on my to the Yukon! Having travelled approximately 800km the first day and 717km day 2, I've taken in a lot of stunning scenery. Ontario is reeeeally beautiful, especially the further north you get. I've never driven further than Temagami (north) or Espanola (northwest) so this is a real treat! I'll let you in on a little secret... It's always been my dream to get in the car and drive for as long as I can, for as far as I can. Guess you can't get much further than the Yukon in Canada so one could say it's a dream come true:) Here's a few snapshots of the Ontario portion of my drive (and experiences) across our beautiful land: Sudbury #17 looking south Home is there...somewhere. Stopped at a Native Arts & Crafts trading post in Serpent River-while it snowed! Serpent River pit stop In the Soo (Su) for the night #1. Wonder if the hotel was trying to be cheeky?(view of ...
Read more

From the Plains to the Mountains to the Sea

Image
Starting off in Yorkton, SK on Wednesday morning, I knew I had a loooong few days of driving ahead of me. With only 12 hours of light, stretching out a 12hr driving day is pushing each hour to it's limits. With so much to see along the way, I had to keep my stops brief in order to make it to my desired destination each day. Add a snow storm (or two), keeping a focus and praying for clearer weather helped to get me to where I needed to be.  Day 6 drive - Yorkton, Saskatchewan to Calgary Alberta 950km. 12hrs of driving. I arrived in Medicine Hat, Alberta into a snow storm to find the #1 Highway that cut through it closed due to road conditions. The radio announcer said stay off the roads if possible and that 10cm had already fallen. I checked ahead to Calgary and knew conditions were clear so...I detoured with the help of Google Maps and within 20min was on the other side and on my way to Calgary. The conditions gradually became better and better and as I approached Calgary the sun c...
Read more

Journey to the North-Yukon!

Image
With a full day of rest and two great nights of sleep, the decision was made that I would leave for the Yukon from Vancouver a day earlier than originally planned. With a wide spread storm expected in most parts of the northern BC interior on Monday, leaving on Saturday and having two full days of clear driving weather was the best decision I made. Well actually, Opa (Phil-my sisters father-in-law) made good sense of it for me;) He also offered an extended vacation in West Van at the end of my trip so it wasn’t hard to agree to that one! When planning my stops, timing for flights, and weather (having never attempted the drive before) I trusted the people who lived here. Smart move.  I set out Saturday morning at 7:30 sharp with a full breakfast and a packed lunch (for 2 days thanks to Opa!) that kept me on the roads and ahead of the storm...until Monday.  What was to follow were some of the most incredible days of driving I’ve ever done! Here’s a few shots of my ...
Read more