Boston to Bathurst, Canada
Discussion
I need to visit Bathurst, Canada for work.
My boss has nicely offered to pay for me to fly to Boston instead of going direct and spend a day driving up from Boston to Bathurst (about 700 miles - mostly).
Has anyone done this drive? Any tips for places to stop/see etc. I'll have 1 full day to make the trip there and then a full day a week later to drive back.
I have found a Cadillac CTS with Avis for £350 for the week from Boston airport. This includes a $25 day surcharge for me being under 25!! Any other car hire recommendations in boston? I'll be going first two weeks in April.
Cheers!
My boss has nicely offered to pay for me to fly to Boston instead of going direct and spend a day driving up from Boston to Bathurst (about 700 miles - mostly).
Has anyone done this drive? Any tips for places to stop/see etc. I'll have 1 full day to make the trip there and then a full day a week later to drive back.
I have found a Cadillac CTS with Avis for £350 for the week from Boston airport. This includes a $25 day surcharge for me being under 25!! Any other car hire recommendations in boston? I'll be going first two weeks in April.
Cheers!
Good choice of car but......
How do you think you will perform on your first day of work when it is preceded by a transatlantic flight and a 700 mile drive.
If I wanted to do what you intend, I would add a couple of days holiday on each end of the trip, or maybe consider flying to Quebec and driving from there.
How do you think you will perform on your first day of work when it is preceded by a transatlantic flight and a 700 mile drive.
If I wanted to do what you intend, I would add a couple of days holiday on each end of the trip, or maybe consider flying to Quebec and driving from there.
jeff m said:
Good choice of car but......
How do you think you will perform on your first day of work when it is preceded by a transatlantic flight and a 700 mile drive.
If I wanted to do what you intend, I would add a couple of days holiday on each end of the trip, or maybe consider flying to Quebec and driving from there.
Adding a couple of days is no-go am afraid. I am actually planning to stay in Portland overnight on the way to/from Bathurst - should make it a little easier.How do you think you will perform on your first day of work when it is preceded by a transatlantic flight and a 700 mile drive.
If I wanted to do what you intend, I would add a couple of days holiday on each end of the trip, or maybe consider flying to Quebec and driving from there.
It's not 700 miles, more like 575, I've actually done this trip. However about 120 of those miles are on a 2 lane road through the middle of nowhere, if you haven't been on a trip like this before, you'll finally get an idea of how sparsely populated North America can be.
I even got off my lazy butt and found my notes from when I did the trip.
I'd get the CTS, it's actually a very nice car to drive and, MOST importantly it should have XM Satellite radio.
Anyhoo...
Getting out of Boston and up past the New Hampshire border can be a bit of a drive from hell during rush hour, if you have a typical transatlantic flight that lands around 2pm, you're in luck, you should be on the road by no later than 4pm.
Boston driving, shall we say, is a bit of an art form.
I'd try and make it further north than Portland on the first night, shoot for Bangor which is about 200 miles north of Boston. Once you hit Maine you can cruise at 75 and not have to really worry about a ticket. Bangor is actually an interesting town, good places to eat, etc. I haven't been there for years. The scenery in Maine can be really beautiful too.
Basically, the route you want to take, which is the quickest, is...
Leaving Logan Airport, you're on the Mass Pike aka I-90 for a mile or two, you then grab I-93 North. Do NOT get on I-95 from I-93! That'll get you mired in traffic!
You're going to be on 93 north for about 15-20 miles if I recall, then you grab I-495 North, don't recall if it's 495 East or North there, but you take the first I-495 exit.
495 runs right into I-95 North just south of the New Hampshire-Massachusetts border.
You're only in New Hampshire for about 5 or 6 miles until you hit the Maine state line. Stay on 95. Now, you have two choices once you get closer to Portland.
If it's not rush hour, take 295 north, that'll give you some great views of Portland and the Harbor, if it's rush hour, stay on 95.
If you're in Maine and it's Lunch or dinner time, get a lobster roll to eat.
Continue on I-95 to the Canadian border in Houlton. You're on 95 for about 300 miles in Maine.
Once you cross the border and enter Canada, the road is still a motorway, but it's now Canada route 95. You follow this connector for about 5 miles or so until you hit the Trans-Canada Highway, which is also route 2.
You want to take the TC Hwy North, if memory again serves, once you hit the interchange, you can either go right for the TC south (Do not do this) or just stay straight and the on-ramp will merge you right onto the Trans-Canada highway Northbound.
Continue on the Trans-Canada Highway for about 80 miles. You exit at Saint Leonard and at the end of the ramp you make a left (The off ramp does a 180) onto Highway 17. If you make the wrong turn on 17 you'll run into the American border in a mile or so, so you'll know to turn around
Stay on 17 until you get to the town of Saint Quentin. At Saint Quentin you catch up with Highway 180, that leads you right into Bathurst, and if I remember it's about a hundred miles, took me about an hour and a half.
OK.. more top tips..
If it's anytime up to nearly May you can encounter snow, bear this in mind which is why I suggest trying to knock off at least a couple hundred miles if possible the first day. And when I mean snow, I mean snow as measured in feet, not a light dusting of 2 inches.
Highway 180 goes through some hills/mountains and is somewhat entertaining, however, I also remember the speed limit being 80-90km/h and I also remember seeing a few cops. With a UK License the only thing you'll need to worry about is a fine though.
If you can specify a CTS4, so much the better if it's winter as they are all wheel drive and good in the snow.
There's also a lot of nothing that you'll be driving through, in some spots it's not like there's fuel every 10 miles. Also, fuel is more expensive in Canada, fill the tank at the last exit in Maine off of I-95 before the border. With a full tank you shouldn't have to buy much fuel in Canada, at best half a tank.
Depending on traffic you may need an hour to get across the US-Canadian border. I have sailed through it before and I have seen it backed up and take an hour or more to get across.
Make sure you have it in writing from AVIS that you can take the car into Canada.
Hope this helps!
Bill
I even got off my lazy butt and found my notes from when I did the trip.
I'd get the CTS, it's actually a very nice car to drive and, MOST importantly it should have XM Satellite radio.
Anyhoo...
Getting out of Boston and up past the New Hampshire border can be a bit of a drive from hell during rush hour, if you have a typical transatlantic flight that lands around 2pm, you're in luck, you should be on the road by no later than 4pm.
Boston driving, shall we say, is a bit of an art form.
I'd try and make it further north than Portland on the first night, shoot for Bangor which is about 200 miles north of Boston. Once you hit Maine you can cruise at 75 and not have to really worry about a ticket. Bangor is actually an interesting town, good places to eat, etc. I haven't been there for years. The scenery in Maine can be really beautiful too.
Basically, the route you want to take, which is the quickest, is...
Leaving Logan Airport, you're on the Mass Pike aka I-90 for a mile or two, you then grab I-93 North. Do NOT get on I-95 from I-93! That'll get you mired in traffic!
You're going to be on 93 north for about 15-20 miles if I recall, then you grab I-495 North, don't recall if it's 495 East or North there, but you take the first I-495 exit.
495 runs right into I-95 North just south of the New Hampshire-Massachusetts border.
You're only in New Hampshire for about 5 or 6 miles until you hit the Maine state line. Stay on 95. Now, you have two choices once you get closer to Portland.
If it's not rush hour, take 295 north, that'll give you some great views of Portland and the Harbor, if it's rush hour, stay on 95.
If you're in Maine and it's Lunch or dinner time, get a lobster roll to eat.
Continue on I-95 to the Canadian border in Houlton. You're on 95 for about 300 miles in Maine.
Once you cross the border and enter Canada, the road is still a motorway, but it's now Canada route 95. You follow this connector for about 5 miles or so until you hit the Trans-Canada Highway, which is also route 2.
You want to take the TC Hwy North, if memory again serves, once you hit the interchange, you can either go right for the TC south (Do not do this) or just stay straight and the on-ramp will merge you right onto the Trans-Canada highway Northbound.
Continue on the Trans-Canada Highway for about 80 miles. You exit at Saint Leonard and at the end of the ramp you make a left (The off ramp does a 180) onto Highway 17. If you make the wrong turn on 17 you'll run into the American border in a mile or so, so you'll know to turn around
Stay on 17 until you get to the town of Saint Quentin. At Saint Quentin you catch up with Highway 180, that leads you right into Bathurst, and if I remember it's about a hundred miles, took me about an hour and a half.
OK.. more top tips..
If it's anytime up to nearly May you can encounter snow, bear this in mind which is why I suggest trying to knock off at least a couple hundred miles if possible the first day. And when I mean snow, I mean snow as measured in feet, not a light dusting of 2 inches.
Highway 180 goes through some hills/mountains and is somewhat entertaining, however, I also remember the speed limit being 80-90km/h and I also remember seeing a few cops. With a UK License the only thing you'll need to worry about is a fine though.
If you can specify a CTS4, so much the better if it's winter as they are all wheel drive and good in the snow.
There's also a lot of nothing that you'll be driving through, in some spots it's not like there's fuel every 10 miles. Also, fuel is more expensive in Canada, fill the tank at the last exit in Maine off of I-95 before the border. With a full tank you shouldn't have to buy much fuel in Canada, at best half a tank.
Depending on traffic you may need an hour to get across the US-Canadian border. I have sailed through it before and I have seen it backed up and take an hour or more to get across.
Make sure you have it in writing from AVIS that you can take the car into Canada.
Hope this helps!
Bill
Edited by Captain Cadillac on Friday 25th February 09:33
Hi Bill,
Looks like I'll be in Bathurst 14th, 15th and 16th April.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
I think I have mapped out the route you suggested - does this look right?
Matt
Looks like I'll be in Bathurst 14th, 15th and 16th April.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
I think I have mapped out the route you suggested - does this look right?
Matt
See if this works.. shorter and quicker.
Via Saint Quentin, via Route 17 and 150.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Via Saint Quentin, via Route 17 and 150.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Captain Cadillac said:
See if this works.. shorter and quicker.
Via Saint Quentin, via Route 17 and 150.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Looks good cheers. Everything this booked now except the car..decisions decisions!Via Saint Quentin, via Route 17 and 150.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
I got back a couple of weekes ago!
It was an amazing experience - I have never been to the US/Canada before let alone driven on the wrong side of the road in the wrong side of the car.
The rental place tried to give me a Lincoln Towncar but I didn't like the look of it so managed to swap it for a BMW 328i x-Drive. It turned out to be a very good choice with the 4 wheel drive!
I was also involved in a few near misses with a deer and a moose!
It was an amazing experience - I have never been to the US/Canada before let alone driven on the wrong side of the road in the wrong side of the car
.The rental place tried to give me a Lincoln Towncar but I didn't like the look of it so managed to swap it for a BMW 328i x-Drive. It turned out to be a very good choice with the 4 wheel drive!
I was also involved in a few near misses with a deer and a moose!
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