Across the busy harbor from Michigan, the “other” Sault Ste. Marie (pop. 81,000) is a much bigger, much grittier, and comparatively depressed Canadian sibling. Graffiti on a railway bridge proclaims: “This is Indian Land,” and since the big Algoma Steel mill here began laying off workers, many locals seem tempted to let them have it back. The main visitor attraction, right downtown, offers a quick escape: the Algoma Central Railway Terminal, well-signed at 129 Bay Street, from which the Agawa Canyon Wilderness Tours (daily at 8 am; $C65; 705/946-7300 or 800/242-9287) depart throughout the summer and early fall (fall color season is the prime time to come). These day-long train trips take you north through a roadless wilderness featuring narrow river canyons and spectacular views. A two-hour stop above the canyon lets you get out and have a picnic, or stretch your legs with a walk to a waterfall. From January through March there is also a “Snow Train” for the hardy, and there’s also an “End of the Line Tour” (to Hearst, Ontario), which takes two days (and does return, despite the name).
Sault Ste. Marie also has a mile-long waterfront boardwalk (though all the big ships travel on the U.S. side), and a pleasant HI youth hostel in the old Algonquin Hotel, 864 E. Queen Street ($C20; 705/253-2311 or 888/269-7728). The Soo is something of a culinary wasteland, but there are a surprising number of very cheap greasy-spoon diners.
