5 things I learned visiting Thunder Bay

Post date: Sep 11, 2016 9:30:50 PM

5 things I learned visiting Thunder Bay, Ontario

1. Don't ask for unsweetened ice tea! Everyone is polite and friendly (until you ask for ice tea and get a polite, yet puzzled look)

2. Brush up on MATH to drive there! (Fortunately, Mike knew how to convert kph to mph by dividing the speed in kph by 1.6. So, 90 is really 56 mph; 50 is really 31 mph)

3. Visit Tim Hortons--it’s like a McDonald's plus Starbucks plus a Bakery. You can order a coffee, donut, and chicken salad croissant at the same place—and maybe get a plain croissant for a snack later, back at the hotel.

4. If you’re married to a librarian, it’s like a global secret club: walk into the downtown branch of the Thunder Bay library, introduce yourself as a librarian from Iowa, and get a free tour.

5. Watch out for bears! While we were visiting Thunder Bay, a mother bear and her two cubs walked into the kitchen of a restaurant in Terrance bay (which is about 130 miles away). Luckily, restaurant staff remained calm and secured the door to the dining area, but the bears trashed their back room and would not leave. Unfortunately, Officers had to kill the mother but were able to rescue the cubs and take them to a bear rehab area. I read a few related articles, including one with a young officer who had to deal with nine bears in a single week: he blamed the humans more than the bears.

5 Great Places to Visit in Thunder Bay (and one not far away!)

5 Forks Restaurant – this was next to our hotel (Days’ Inn North, on Golf Links Road), We had to try the Fish and chips—wonderful! We also enjoyed the chicken parmesan and pasta, salads, garlic bread—and desserts.

Tim Hortons (fast food restaurant) – also near our hotel, this offers coffee, donuts, and all kinds of fast food.

The Public Library – they have a great layout, with areas for teens, children, and adults. There is a large room for public programs and classes, an area with moveable tables for computers, and a makers place.

Hilltop Park – I think it was called Hillcrest. It included a large grassy area that sloped down the hill, as well as a Veterans’ Memorial to soldiers serving in WW2, and gave us a great view of the bay.

Fort William – We took the tour and learned about life at a large fur trading post in 1815

Just a short drive from Thunder Bay, you can visit Kakabeka Falls – this is the second highest waterfall in Ontario and can be viewed from a large boardwalk. The website points out “The Kaministiquia River has cut deep into the rocks to reveal 1.6 million-year-old fossils at the bottom of the falls.” The roar of that water is just incredible, and the water has a foamy appearance from the minerals in the rocks.

Last updated September 12, 2016