Land of Lakes and Rocks – Sioux Lookout Part II

Turns out that in addition to Lakes and Rocks… Sioux Lookout is also home to conferences.  Hence, I was only able to stay at the Best Western for one night.  I moved to the Sunset Inn and Suites (just down the road) for my second night.  They have indoor waterslides! When I was growing up, this is what defined 5 star accommodations…;).  Though tired and reminiscent of our 1973 Bon Air Camper in terms of décor… it was comfortable and a roof over my head.  A step ahead of where I had been only a little over 12 hours ago.

 After completing the switch…  I set out on my day.  I explored the main drag, read my book on the beach, walked the waterfront trails, and had a bite to eat at a restaurant called Knobby’s… which was next to the marina.  Knobby’s has a spectacular view of Pelican lake and looked like a cottage on the inside… pine everywhere!  Like many restaurants in Northern Ontario (for some reason), it is also home to a gift/craft store and ICE.  Quirky and a nice place to spend an hour…

Later in the afternoon, I connected with Maylynn and Janete.  “We’ll come pick you up and we will have supper”.  Walleye wrapped in bacon, noodles, stir-fried veggies, and a cauliflower salad… very tasty indeed!  I must also tell you that it was wonderful to be enjoying some home cooking… with great company to boot!  We cleaned up and then it was off to explore.

We drove out to Ojibwa Provincial Park.  Maylynn and Janete had recently been camping there.  And interestingly, many of their friends camped their for much of the summer.  The outdoors are truly a way of life… and with just a few weeks of precious ‘summer’, people really take advantage of it.  We walked a little down by the lake (Little Vermillion) and enjoyed some chocolate that Janete had stashed in her purse.  “This is our favourite.  We drive to Dryden to get it!”.  My taste buds could definitely justify the drive!

It was then on to the shores of Abram Lake… From our vantage point we could see the MNR beach and many of the homes/cottages along the lake.  Just beautiful northern scenry… maybe it is because I saw so much of it when I was younger (we camped a lot!)… but it all felt very familiar and comfortable to me.

The sun was starting to set… we drove along some of the back country roads to see some of the “monster homes” of Sioux Lookout.  We made one last pitstop at Frog Rapids, which connects Pelican Lake to Abram- it is a popular fishing venue and Maylynn’s favourite spot to cast her line.  We watched for a few minutes (no big ones!) and then headed back into town.

 I was sad to say goodbye to my new friends.  We vowed to look each other up should we be in each other’s areas again… I sent them a gift basket (yes, there is a gift basket store in Sioux Lookout!) as a token of appreciation for all they had done.  Seemingly inadequate in my mind… but all I could think of.  I hope to one day be able to return the favour to them or another set of travellers who have seemingly lost their bed and breakfast owners…;).

Tomorrow, it is on to Sudbury… Looking forward to being in the land of the Big Nickel!