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Home > Ontario's Trans-Canada Highway > Thunder Bay to Marathon Itinerary
Ontario Trans-Canada Highway Route: Highway #17 between Thunder Bay and Marathon, Ontario
Here is the itinerary for the 289 km along Highway #17 between Thunder Bay and Marathon:
The original Trans-Canada Route was highway 11 (designated "The King's Highway"), which connecting North Bay and Nipigon through northern forests. That highway was started in 1923 and completed as a key war-time project to provide toad access to key mining towns of northern Ontario. When Highway 17 was completed between Marathon and Montreal River in September 1960, it became the new (and much shorter) Trans-Canada Highway.
The Climate around Lake Superior is more moderate than inland away from the lake, because of the moderating influence of a large body of water. In the spring and summer, the shore is cooler, since it lakes longer to lake to defrost and the water to heat up, and in the fall, the shoreline is warmer since it take longer for the lake's water to cool. The immensity of the lake also causes "lake effect" precipitation year-round.
Just east of Thunder Bay is a monument to Terry Fox, who had lost one leg to cancer and started a cross-Canada "Marathon of Hope" to raise money for cancer research. He began his run in St John's, Newfoundland, and ran 42 km (26 miles) a day along the Trans-Canada, with a detour through Toronto, and ended his run here when he found out he had inoperable cancer in his lungs. Since his untimely passing in 1981, the Marathon of Hope is continued with annual runs in communities across Canada, and around the world and has raised over $400 million. For this monument, you can look eastwards to see the Sibley Peninsula looking like a "Sleeping Giant".
About 50 kilometres east of Thunder Bay is an amethyst mine, which is Ontario's largest mine of its provincial stone. Discovered when a road construction tractor hit an amethyst vein, which was formed when quartz and various minerals accumulated in crevices in Precambrian granite. A little further east is the Ouimet Canyon (and 21 km north of the Trans-Canada), which has been eroded to a depth of 107 metres and a width of 153 metres, and is so sheltered in summer that it has an arctic micro-climate.
The Nipigon River is Lake Superior's largest tributary. This was the launch point for the carved wooden canoe and Indian from the children's book (and short film) Paddle-to-the-Sea (filed in the 1960s). The flow of the Nipigon River is often supplemented by water from the Ogoki-Albany river system, which usually flows north into the Hudson's Bay, Under international treaty, this provides extra "Canadian water" for the hydro generation station at Niagara Falls. Because the Hudsons's Bay continental divide is not far north of the highway, the south-facing rivers are steep and often have magnificent waterfalls.
Terrace Bay is named for the layers or terraces created by banks of gravel laid down by the lake that grew from Ice Age glacial meltwater, and as water levels fell, the lake receded and a new terrace formed at the new shoreline. Today, shopping & accommodation are on the top terrace, most of homes are on the next level down, with two terraces more below that down to the level of Lake Superior. The town even has a small ski hill.
Ontario Highways road condition reports for this segment.
KM from Start | Highway Point Description | Municipality | GPS and
Map Zoom |
EB | WB |
9 | 289 | Junction Hwy 102, Dawson Rd (W), Red River Rd (E) | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
10 | 288 | Crossing McVicar Creek, Shuniah Park to W of hwy | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
11 | 287 | EB Exit for Huron Ave | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
12 | 287 | Junction Balsam Ave | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
13 | 285 | Current River crossing,. Blvd Park to E | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
15 | 283 | Roadside Turnout, north side of highway | | Map Zoom |
16 | 283 | Hodder Ave (S) (also Hwy 178 ) to downtown Port Arthur, N to Trowbridge Falls city park | Thunder Bay | Map Zoom |
16 | 282 | Terry Fox Memorial, N side of Hwy, rest area, picnic area, washrooms, | | Map Zoom |
20 | 278 | Junction Hwy 527, N to Armstrong (126 km), Spruce River Rd (S) to KOA Thunder Bay | | Map Zoom |
25 | 273 | Railway underpass | | Map Zoom |
33 | 265 | Mackenzie Station Rd | | Map Zoom |
34 | 264 | Lakeshore Dr | | Map Zoom |
35 | 263 | Mackenzie River crossing (rapids & waterfalls both sides of hwy), Mackenzie Beach Rd | | Map Zoom |
35 | 263 | Mackenzie Heights Rd | | Map Zoom |
39 | 259 | Amethyst Harbour Rd (S) | Amethyst | Map Zoom |
45 | 253 | Eldorado Beach Rd | | Map Zoom |
49 | 249 | Junction Hwy 587 (S) to Pass Lake (6 km), Sibley Peninsula and Sleeping Giant Provincial Park | | Map Zoom |
55 | 243 | East Loon Rd, Loon Lake to N of hwy | | Map Zoom |
58 | 240 | Silver Lake Rd | | Map Zoom |
61 | 237 | Road No 5 N | Pearl | Map Zoom |
65 | 233 | Welch Creek river crossing | | Map Zoom |
73 | 225 | Ouimet Canyon Rd (W) Access to Ouimet Provincial Park, no campgrounds, day use, picnic tables, hiking | Ouimet | Map Zoom |
76 | 222 | Dorian Loop Rd N to Dorian (1km) | | Map Zoom |
80 | 218 | Bible Camp Rd (E) | | Map Zoom |
81 | 217 | Fish Hatchery Rd (W) | | Map Zoom |
81 | 217 | Wolf River crossing | | Map Zoom |
85 | 213 | Hwy 582 (E) to Hurkett, Black Sturgeon Rd (N) | Hurkett | Map Zoom |
87 | 211 | Hwy 528 (S) to Hurkett (3 km) | Hurkett | Map Zoom |
98 | 200 | Black Sturgeon River crossing | | Map Zoom |
108 | 190 | Hwy 628 to Red Rock (7 km) | | Map Zoom |
109 | 189 | Golf Course Rd | | Map Zoom |
113 | 185 | Junction Hwy 585 | | Map Zoom |
115 | 183 | West access to Nipigon, all services, OPP | Nipigon | Map Zoom |
117 | 181 | Railway St (east access to Nipigon) | Nipigon | Map Zoom |
117 | 181 | Cross Nipigon River | Nipigon | Map Zoom |
118 | 180 | Junction Hwy 11, North route of TransCanada. To Geraldon, Hearst, Kauskasing, Cobalt & North BayLake Helen Indian Reserve N 1 km | Nipigon | Map Zoom |
131 | 167 | Crossing the Jackfish River | | Map Zoom |
137 | 161 | Road access to Kama Hill Nature Reserve | | Map Zoom |
144 | 154 | Roadside turnout, picnic area with scenic view | | Map Zoom |
145 | 153 | Wabasta Lake to N of hwy | | Map Zoom |
154 | 144 | Gravel River Nature Preserve, services | | Map Zoom |
173 | 125 | Roadside Turnout, Picnic Area, south side of highway | | Map Zoom |
179 | 119 | Pays Plat Indian Reserve | | Map Zoom |
181 | 117 | Roadside Turnout, picnic area (W side) | | Map Zoom |
186 | 112 | West exit to Rossport | Rossport | Map Zoom |
187 | 111 | East Exit to Rossport, all services & Accommodation | Rossport | Map Zoom |
195 | 103 | Rainbow Falls PP, camping, picnic area | | Map Zoom |
198 | 100 | Whitesand/Winston Rd (N), Roadside turnout on S side of hwy | | Map Zoom |
200 | 98 | Access to Schreiber Channel Nature Preserve | Schreiber | Map Zoom |
205 | 93 | Walker Lake to N of hwy | Schreiber | Map Zoom |
206 | 92 | Walker Lake Rd, S to Schreiber | Schreiber | Map Zoom |
206 | 92 | Superior St, S to Schreiber, all services & accommodation, OPP | Schreiber | Map Zoom |
207 | 91 | Drummond St, W to Schreiber | Schreiber | Map Zoom |
218 | 80 | Hydro Rd | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
219 | 79 | Cross Aguasabon River | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
220 | 78 | Lakeview Dr (S), access to accommodation | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
220 | 78 | Simcoe Plaza (N), central business district, accommodation | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
221 | 77 | Ridgewood Dr (S) on N: ski hill, tourist info, scenic viewpoint | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
222 | 76 | Mill Rd (N) | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
225 | 73 | Terrace Bay Airport, N side of highway | Terrace Bay | Map Zoom |
239 | 59 | Lake to W of hwy | | Map Zoom |
248 | 50 | Steel River Provincial Park (crossing Steel River) | | Map Zoom |
255 | 43 | Prairie River Mouth Nature Reserve | | Map Zoom |
274 | 24 | Neys Provincial Park (2km S of hwy) | | Map Zoom |
296 | 2 | Marathon airport | Marathon | Map Zoom |
298 | 0 | Peninsula Rd, (W) to north access to Marathon (5 km), all services | Marathon | Map Zoom |
KM from Start | Highway Point Description | Municipality | GPS and
Map Zoom |
EB | WB |
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