When you get way up here, Canada, the great white north, you see some amazing sights. The stars are brighter (with less nighttime light pollution), less cars on the road, and a peace that gives you a chance to kick back and enjoy the clear night sky. Someone in the distance is burning a couple logs on the fire, with the faint smell of s’mores wafting through the air, mixing with the scent of pine and maple. Everyone is settling in for the night and the moose are just waking up for their midnight wandering. Nights are about sitting with friends around the fire, sharing stories, and experiencing the north in a way that’s just not possible in other places. Well, perhaps it is, but you have the best hockey versus curling debates in Canada. Late June is the best time to talk about ice sports because Canadian wait through baseball, basketball and football to get back to the sports close to our hearts. From hanging out at the Tim Hortons to taking a walk around the block, there is nothing like the clear night sky, a fire, friends, and endless possibilities of adventure.
American Ingenuity
Over the past 150 years, which is roughly as long as Canada has been around, people have probably been sticking things into fires. Yes, finding sticks and sticking marshmallows into the fire in order to create the most delicious of snacks, the smore. Which is basically a melted and third degree burn causing marshmallow, preferably on fire, laid (or scraped) gently on top of a square of chocolate and some Graham cracker squares (which are basically square cookies). The marshmallow melts the chocolate, and magic happens in your mouth. Yet while Canadians have been doing this using the pointy end of a stick for decades, it look an American inventor (J. Tolf) to use the new and improved two stick smores delivery system (patent pending). In this system, one puts the pre-assembled smore (preferably maple marshmallow flavored for extra Canadian quotient) onto two sticks and hold thusly over the fire. Within moments, the treat is toasted, delicious and ready to eat.
Use extreme caution around fire and/or flaming marshmallows.
Death by Triple Chocolate
One night at the Laughing Buddha we went for some amazing cheesecake. It was gluten free (and apparently all of their cheesecakes are) and was a triple chocolate delight. Even though it was called death by triple chocolate, we felt fine afterwards, which is possibly due to the addition of some whip cream on the side, or perhaps the drinks we had to wash it down with. When at the Buddha, give the cheesecake a try. They change daily, so its always something new and exciting. The staff are all cool to hang out with, and even though they get paid to serve you drinks, come there long enough and they learn your name, just like on Cheers.
Leslie’s Poutine
People told me that Leslie’s poutine was the bomb. Literally the best poutine in Sudbury (and they even had a contest about it and people voted) and we gave it a try. There were many options to pick from, and I was not entirely sure which to pick, but in the end I decided to go with something traditional, combining the tastes of old world Montreal poutine (which in case you don’t know is fries covered with cheese curds and smothered in gravy) with some amazing ground beef. The combination of the gravy, cheese and burger was amazing.
Tiger Tiger Woods (or Mini Golf)
Sudbury has a mini golf course, or as you may know it, an old fashioned game of putt putt. This is not the kind of game where you succeed and win a green jacket, this is now a game where there are crowds, trophies, prize money or corporate sponsors. No, this is a game where you go up against your friends and have the bragging rights to proclaim your victory from the rooftops. Perhaps not that dramatic, we did pretty decently at only half a dozen points over par, and enjoyed an afternoon (without the aid of a performance enhancing slurpee) and it was great spending some time in the sun and wacking balls around the greens. If you get a chance to hang out in Sudbury and play some mini golf, go to the batting cages or take a couple spins on the go karts, its time well wasted.
I’m on a boat (on Ramsey Lake)
One of the nice things about Sudbury is the many lakes. We went down to Ramsey lake is right in the middle of the city and rented canoes and kayaks for a day on the water. We were mostly ok with the sun, although no one remembered to spray their knees with sunscreen, resulting in some funny walking overall it was a relaxing day of paddling and fishing on the calm lake. We heard the music playing from the Northern Lights Boreal Festival in Bell Park, and hopped out for some snacks and a washroom break when it seemed that fishing was not working out (as we caught nothing more than minnows). The University has an outdoor center where they rent all sorts of watercraft, check them out at the waterfront or online here. It was pretty inexpensive and a good time was had by all. Lessons learned? Always wear more sunscreen, try not to tip the canoe, and two person canoes are faster than kayaks.
Have fun and be safe out on the water!
The worlds biggest pocket change
One of the interesting things about visiting northern Ontario was a trip to the Big Nickel. Yes, its actually a giant nickel. You can read all about it on
Wikipedia here or just read on. Its about 30ft tall and site on pillars next to Dynamic Earth, home of a mine museum and activity center near Copper Cliff in Sudbury. Located right next the Super Stack (the chimney of the smelter) the big Nickel is one of the more interesting things to see in Sudbury. As someone said recently, “its a big piece of pocket change, I don’t get it”. While that’s true, its exactly the point. Its interesting that the nickel itself was organically very controversial and we built three feet outside of city limits, today it has become a landmark synonymous with Sudbury,
French River Trading
One of the excellent stops on the trip was the French River Trading Post. Located just south of Sudbury right at French River at 20112 Hwy 69 S, ON-69, French River, ON P0M 1A0, and you can call them at 705) 857-2115 (mention the site and make us famous), or check out their website here. We enjoyed an excellent lunch, hung out at the store, and saw the many interesting things they had for sale. We even stopped by the fudge counter and sampled some of the sugar and maple filled treats they had for sale, it was an amazing experience. If you need a moose hat or t shirt to remember your time in Canada (or Northern Ontario), stop by the trading post and check out the many hilarious t shirts, unique souvenirs, or pieces of art.
