Mike’s Ride Report – Highway 556 to Searchmont

Sometimes life throws you the most delightful curves. This morning Dustin Woods came along for a short ride up the highway with us – he’s doing a loop of Lake Superior – and I decided to take him on a side trip down the road to Searchmont. It’s just outside of the Soo and I’d heard some encouraging things, but hadn’t tried it out for myself. Boy am I glad I did.


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Highway 556 – Ride Report

  • Rideability: High – There isn’t a dull moment, and as with many of the paved surfaces in the region, the roads wind through the mountainous landscape, rather than plow through it. A couple of really tight turns lead me to add that there is absolutely no need to exceed the speed limit here.
  • Road Quality: Good – the only complaint is that on the way to Searchmont there are plenty of tar strips, or “road snakes” which can make steering a bit dicey, but on the way back there are almost none. Oh, and the railway crossings are in pretty poor shape – try to slow down considerably when you’re going over them. This wouldn’t be a big deal, but there are at least four of them.
  • Scenic Value: High – There’s a beautiful river that follows the road for a short bit, but the real scenery are the incredible cliffs surrounding the road.
  • Services: Fair – There are accommodations, and there’s a gas station right at the Highway 17/556 junction, but I didn’t see any place to eat. Do not take this as the final word tho – I was more interested in riding than finding food. That alone should tell you how fun this road is.

Overall: This is a 1 hour detour off the Lake Superior route and worth every second. If the ride is important to you, and not just the comfort of lying back in the wind on your two-wheeled winnebago, ride this road. You won’t regret it.

For more information on motorcycle routes, accommodations, attractions and restaurants in Algoma Country check out www.RideAlgoma.ca

As always, if you want more information about riding in Ontario, check out Routes.OntarioRides.ca or visit the home for Ontario Motorsports – www.GoRideOntario.com for information on all everything to do with motorized fun in Ontario!

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