James Bay Road

[SevenSeasJim]

I'm thinking of making this trip possibly over Labour Day weekend (5 days) or next summer depending on a few things. Any people out there ever take this road trip? Any tips (besides don't run out of gas)?

Overview of Road and Map

[snarfmaster C]

i work in the general geographic region - north of cochrane on. the blackflies up there are unbelievable. definitely take a full bug jacket, or at least a hood. i'm not a fan of deet or any other chemical repellants, but i've found avon skin-so-soft does work for blackflies - not so much for mosquitoes, horseflies or deerflies though. if you're headed out in the later fall, chances are horse and deerflies will be bad. i always check out the bug report before heading out - http://www.theweathernetwork.com/features/bugs/pages/CAON0153.htm

like the page that you linked to said, the scenery doesn't change much once you get an hour or so north of new liskeard. there are a few eskers and drumlins that make for interesting relief, and there are plenty of beautiful rivers and lakes though. a canoe might be fun to take along. swimming may or may not be a good idea. i know in my study area there is a lot of logging, and later this month they begin aerial spraying of herbicides. they say it's safe to walk around sprayed areas after 48 hours, but i don't know how i'd feel about swimming even a weeks after... i'm not sure how you could find out about spraying unless you know the name of the logging company operating in the area.

i've definitely spotted some cool wildlife up there - owls, moose, porcupine, fox, star-nosed mole, fisher, *lots* of bears and beavers. you might be headed out at a time to spot some pretty funky mushrooms too.

it is definitely a cool area, especially in it's remoteness. it'll be a hell of a drive though.

another supposedly interesting (?) trip if you want to check out the area is the train that runs from cochrane to moosonee - the polar bear express i think it's called. you can do a round trip in a day, and cochrane is about 4 hours north of north bay.

[SevenSeasJim]

I travelled up that way last July (Hwy11 to Thunder Bay). We camped at Greenwater and I've never experienced bugs like that in my life. This is the worst year I've ever seen for Deer Flies and Horse flies in the Parry Sound area. While riding my bike I can have anywhere from 25 to 50 breathing down my neck at any one time. I must say that I'm intrigued to take in some of the Cree culture as well. Chisasibi sounds like it's got some cool things to experience.