The Long Road North

After meeting our contact in Amos, we drove north to Matagami where the James Bay Road begins. A few minutes out of town after fueling up, we were greeting with the following signs ("Isolated road for 375 km"):

Photo by Cameron Donaldson

Still driving...

Originally built in 1970s, the James Bay Road was constructed for a massive hydro-power project in northern Quebec. According to the JamesBayRoad.com website, the north end of the highway is located ~1500 kms north of Toronto, Ontario! However, we weren't venturing that far along its paved surface during this trip...

Photo of French & Cree stop-sign by Bonnie Donaldson

We arrived at the end of our northward journey in Waskaganish just before 10pm, where we were shown to our "apartment". A beautiful recently-built duplex, our accommodation for the week contained everything we needed to immediately feel at home. The exceptional hospitality of the people made our first evening in Waskaganish only a taste of what we would experience during the coming days.