Driving from Winnipeg to Montreal?

March 31st, 2007, 08:26 PM

I'll be driving from Winnipeg to Montreal sometime late September, early October. According to Google Maps, the best route is through the US which seems kind of indirect. What's the shortest way of going from Winnipeg to Montreal?

Thanks

March 31st, 2007, 08:28 PM

Wow! That's quite long. My longest drive was from Amherst Nova Scotia, to Qwealth Onterial. On the way there I had help driving. On the way back to Amherst I only had one, one hour nap.

March 31st, 2007, 09:02 PM

I would have thought the TransCanada would be shorter. Interstates and the 401 may be a bit quicker. I would do the TransCanada myself.

April 1st, 2007, 01:08 AM

It is very, very slow driving through Northern Ontario, for a few reasons. The first is is that it is really slow driving around Lake Superior between Thunder Bay and Sault Ste. Marie (that part of the drive alone takes more than 8 hours). The second reason is that there are a lot of moose on the highways, especially between Kenora and Thunder Bay. The third is, the highway is crap between about Thunder Bay and Sudbury. All of the highways, until you hit around North Bay, are single lane on shared roads, all in poor condition; it's really awful between Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury.

If you are going to attempt the drive, the best way would be to drive to Thunder Bay by taking highway 11 from winnipeg through Kenora (get behind a transport if you want to feel safe from moose). There is an alternate route to get into Thunder Bay which will actually shave about 35 kilometers off the drive to Thunder Bay, and put you in direct line to the TransCanada, instead of driving through the city, taking the longer way; it's labelled quite clearly as the alternate route (and almost everyone takes that way). Then drive east about another hour until you get to a little town called Nipigon. Turn left on the highway (the road will be well marked as the Highway 11 turnoff to Hearst/North Bay) and follow highway 11 until you (eventually) get to North Bay.

It's weird, on the map, this way looks longer, but it's faster for two reasons: 1. it's actually shorter when measured and 2. the roads are brand new, completely straight, without hills, have few towns in between and really cleared out on the sides, so you can see anything that might be on the roads (though in a dozen trips, I haven't seen anything yet). I probably shave a good few hours off driving to Ottawa going this way, but be prepared to switch drivers, or to stop for the night in a place like Hearst. If you leave Thunder Bay at 7a.m. you can arrive in Ottawa by 11:30 or midnight, provided you don't stop for long.

After arriving in North Bay, follow highway 17 to Ottawa, then proceed on highway 417 to Montreal, which usually takes about 2 hours. I've done this trip a bunch of times from Thunder Bay, and it is definitely the fastest, easiest, and safest way to go; highway 17 between Thunder Bay and Sudbury is just too much of a headache.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need more help, and I can make you a direction map using some software I have here which I found quite helpful. How many days are you planning to travel? My recommendation would be to drive to Thunder Bay in one day, then either right to Montreal the next; or to stop in Ottawa, get some sleep, and finish off the trip the next morning.

April 1st, 2007, 01:10 AM

Ultimately, if you go through Canada, watch for moose, especially in northern Ontario. Conversely, if you go through the US, watch for deer, especially around Minnesota. Both are rampant in numbers on the highways.

P.S. Google maps sucks. I'll work on a map for you and post it up here.

April 1st, 2007, 01:17 AM



According to Mapquest, Minnesota, and though Chicago and up is faster...

Interstates are always double lane, probably is alot faster.

April 1st, 2007, 01:36 AM

mapquest is wrong; Minnesota will completely slow you down.

April 1st, 2007, 01:44 AM

Where on earth would you go up from Chicago to? From what I can see on my map, it's at Lake Michigan's wang. There's no quick way through the States, you have to go around all five Great Lakes, and cross either in Detroit/Windsor (a nightmare) or go through New York. Either way is a waste of time; if the length doesn't get you, the border crossing will.

April 1st, 2007, 01:50 AM

Here you go Mr. Fibble, one pdf file of a map, handmade and complete with turn by turn instructions, to get you from Winnipeg to Montreal. These are superior to anything mapquest or google has to offer. You can download it here:

http://s6.quicksharing.com/v/8905928...tr_al.pdf.html

April 1st, 2007, 02:03 AM

Plane.

August 13th, 2007, 01:02 PM

Hey,

I am driving down to Montreal early September and need details as I have no clue where Montreal is-so any help would be much appreciated folks.

p.s snowles, can you send that pdf map u had posted here, tried to download but its deleted

cheers

August 13th, 2007, 01:11 PM

use google maps or google earth or any other map. that'd give you a good clue about where montreal is. Where are u driving from?

August 13th, 2007, 03:59 PM

Definitely take the US route. It takes FOREVER through Canada.

Even if you go the US way it still takes a minimum of 4 days.

I would say head south out of the 'Peg to Grand Forks, ND then east. It would seem to me that the logical route would be to take I90 through NY then head north again.

August 13th, 2007, 05:18 PM

Google Earth
http://earth.google.com/

Mapquest
http://www.mapquest.com/directions/m...2z=&panelbtn=2

Easy Peasy

August 13th, 2007, 05:23 PM

Triedit, I don't think that the U.S. route is the shortest......I have been to both cities from my home town. Winnipeg is about 17 hrs and Montreal about 10 from my place.
But to make sure I gave the problem to "Map Source" the map program for my navigator and it first gave me the route you mentioned for a total of 2865 kms. But then I tricked it into going through northern Ontario as a via point and the total distance turned out to be 2351 kms......a distance saving of about 500 kms so the other person was right in suggesting that route.
Just think of the scenery with the leaves changing colour as you travel through the wilds of Ontario

August 13th, 2007, 06:46 PM

Ive been the "cross Canada" route, and the scenery is quite lovely. And with the limited speeds on the trip you get lots of time to take it in. It may be the shortest in km, but its the longest in time!

August 13th, 2007, 07:12 PM

But without factoring in the time lost for two border crossings....you would have to travel at least 20 kms an hour faster for the whole trip to make up for the difference in distance.....and remember you loose 1.6 km for every minute that you are stopped if you are figuring the trip time-wise.????

August 13th, 2007, 08:17 PM

check your e-mail; i sent you a map that will get you to Montreal as quickly and easily as possible.