Things to do in Northwestern Ontario Day and weekend trips from Thunder Bay.

1. Before you drive

Thunder Bay Transit does not leave the city. These trips need a car, a full tank, and a check of the highway the morning you go.

• Ontario 511 shows road conditions, closures, cameras and where the plows are. Use ontario.ca/511, or dial 511 hands-free.
• Highways 11 and 17 are the Ontario Trans-Canada highways. The province's target is bare pavement within 12 hours after a storm ends. A bad storm can take longer.
• Keep the tank at least half full. Ontario also says not to pass a working snowplow, and not to use cruise control on snow or ice.
• The car kit, winter tires and how to dress are in the winter guide.

This guide does not name fuel-station gaps. No official page we checked lists the empty stretches on Highway 11 or 17 out of Thunder Bay. Fill up in each town. Ontario 511's service-centre list covers only Highways 400 and 401, so it will not show fuel on Highway 11 or 17.

Sources: Government of Ontario, "Winter driving" (updated December 29, 2022) and "How we clear Ontario's highways in winter"; Connecting the North (draft plan, 2020); 211 Ontario, Ontario 511

2. Kakabeka Falls and Sleeping Giant

These are the short trips. Fees, hours and what the vehicle permit costs are already written in free things to do in Thunder Bay. Read that section before you go.

• Kakabeka Falls is on Highway 11/17, at 4853 Highway 11/17. Day use is listed for all of 2026. The falls are 40 metres.
• Sleeping Giant is about 35 km south on Highway 587 from the highway. The park phone is 807-977-2526.
• Both need a day-use permit for a vehicle. Ontario Parks does not print which of the four 2026 prices ($12.25, $15.50, $18.00 or $21.00) each park uses.

Sources: Ontario Parks, Kakabeka Falls and Sleeping Giant. Permit prices: the free-things guide, checked the same day.

3. Dorion and Ouimet Canyon

Superior Country places Dorion 70 km northeast of Thunder Bay. The township office is 170 Dorion Loop Road, (807) 857-2289.

Sources: Superior Country, Dorion; Ontario Parks, Ouimet Canyon; LRCA parking fee

4. Nipigon and Red Rock

Both are east on Highway 11/17. Superior Country's 2025 brochure prints Nipigon at 110 km and Red Rock at 116 km from Thunder Bay. It does not print a drive time.

• Nipigon: an accessible paved path from Bridgeview Lookout under the Nipigon River Bridge, which the brochure calls the first cable-stayed bridge in Ontario. The same page names the Nipigon Historical Museum and Paddle to the Sea Park, and does not print an admission price.
• Red Rock: the Marina Interpretive Centre, on Nipigon Bay, and a hike the brochure times at one hour return, the Nipigon River Recreation Trail to Lloyd's Lookout. No entry price is printed.

Source: Superior Country, Lake Superior North Shore Inside Passage brochure (2025)

5. Rossport, Schreiber and Terrace Bay

Still east on Highway 17. The same 2025 brochure prints Rossport at 190 km, Schreiber at 210 km and Terrace Bay at 223 km. No drive times are printed.

Sources: Superior Country brochure (2025); Ontario Parks, Rainbow Falls

6. Marathon and Pukaskwa

Parks Canada says Pukaskwa National Park is a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Thunder Bay, and a five-hour drive from Sault Ste. Marie. From Highway 17, take Highway 627 just east of Marathon and go south 13 km. The day-use area is another 2 km after the Pic River bridge.

• In town: Superior Country describes Pebble Beach, with a platform and a stair to the shore, and Penn Lake Park with easier trails. It does not print an entry price for either.
• Pukaskwa day use: adult $7.25, senior $6.25, youth 17 and under free, family or group (up to seven people in one vehicle) $15. Off-season daily rates on the same page: adult $4, senior $3.50, family or group $7.75.
• The hours page sets Hattie Cove campground rates: full from May 15 to September 14, reduced from September 15 to October 15. The fees page lists off-season admission prices but does not say which dates they cover. Facilities are closed November through May. The park calls itself a three-season park.
• Youth free admission is a Parks Canada rule. It does not apply at Ontario Parks, including Ouimet, Rainbow Falls, Kakabeka, Sleeping Giant or Quetico.

Kasper Transportation runs a bus from Thunder Bay to Marathon, Parks Canada says, and a taxi can continue to the park. The page does not print the bus days or the taxi fare.

Sources: Parks Canada, "Plan your visit", fees and hours; Superior Country, Marathon

7. Ignace and Dryden

West on Highway 17. The Township of Ignace prints its own table: Thunder Bay is 246 km and about 2 hours 39 minutes. Dryden is 106.7 km and about 1 hour 12 minutes from Ignace. Ignace sits at Highway 17 and Highway 599.

• Ignace: the township calls itself halfway between Thunder Bay and Kenora, and a place to picnic and stretch. Superior Country's route notes also say to fill the tank here.
• Dryden: the same Superior Country route describes Max the Moose, a 5.6 metre statue by the visitor centre just off Highway 17, and the shore of Wabigoon Lake. It does not print a fee to stop for the statue.
• The City of Dryden's own plan says Dryden is about 138 km east of Kenora. It does not print a Thunder Bay kilometre figure. Use the Ignace legs above, then check 511.

Sources: Township of Ignace, "Travelling to Ignace"; Ignace visitors; Superior Country, Nor'Wester route; City of Dryden, community improvement plan (2019)

8. Kenora and Lake of the Woods

Ignace's table puts Kenora 243 km and about 2 hours 45 minutes from Ignace, on Highway 17. Add Ignace's 246 km from Thunder Bay and this is a long day or a weekend, not an evening out. The township does not print one combined time, and neither does this page.

Sources: City of Kenora, Rotary Splash Park, Science North exhibits, trails, parking and sports centre amenities

9. Atikokan, Quetico and Fort Frances

This way is Highway 11, through Atikokan to Fort Frances. The Town of Fort Frances prints Thunder Bay at 347 km, and Atikokan at 151 km from Fort Frances. It does not print a drive time. The mayor of Atikokan calls the town about halfway between Thunder Bay and the border at Fort Frances, on Highway 11.

• Quetico Provincial Park: the Town of Atikokan calls itself an entry point to the park. The Dawson Trail campground is 45 km east of Atikokan, at 30 Quetico Park Road. Phone 807-597-2735.
• Ontario Parks lists Quetico day use for all of 2026, and the Dawson Trail campground for a 2026 season that ended October 13, plus a 2026 winter window from January 1 to March 31 that has passed. The park page does not yet list 2027 dates.
• A vehicle permit applies. The fee table does not name Quetico's daily price. Cross-country ski fees at Quetico are included in that permit.
• Fort Frances Museum, 259 Scott Street. Peak hours on the town page: mid-May to early September, Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Off-season, October to mid-May, admission is by donation, and the lookout tower is closed.
• The museum page lists 2026 admission, HST included: adult $6.80; seniors, students and children 5 to 12 $5.65; 5 and under free; family $18.10. The town's summer guide prints slightly different figures ($6.78 adult, $18.08 family), so check before you go.
• The town's heritage page names the LaVerendrye Parkway and Sorting Gap Marina on a walking map picked up at the museum. International Falls, Minnesota, is 1.5 km from Fort Frances. Crossing rules are in the Minnesota guide.

Sources: Town of Fort Frances, nearest centres; Town of Atikokan, message from the mayor; Ontario Parks, Quetico and 2026 day-use fees; museum admission and hours, summer 2026 recreation guide and heritage tour

This page is general information, checked on October 29, 2026. Distances are the figures the linked page prints, rounded by that page, not a promise of today's drive. Fees, seasons and roads change. Confirm on the linked page, and on Ontario 511, before you go. Questions: info@wakenyatbay.ca.

← Newcomer hub