Highway 533 conditions??

[Greg]

Good morning all.   Just wondering if anyone has driven highway 533 lately (between Mattawa and highway 63)?

With the harsh spring, all the rain, etc.  Is there lots of gravel washed on the road?  Or complete wash-outs?  Any feedback at all?  (Just debating and planning my route).

Thx   Greg.  (...17 days)

[Chumy77]

Hi Gregg,was out there 3 weeks ago and road was fine ,probably a 45 minutes ride n0 boats behind.Good luck on your trip.

[Greg]

Thx Chummy77!

[Fort Wisers]

Agreed with @Chumy77....
We've been up and down it a number of times now in the past few weeks, road is good.
A few of the usual sections have heaved a bit and there are a few open pot holes but but nothing major or abnormal for 533.
No large gravel washes and no washed out shoulders that we noticed.

Have a great trip

[Greg]

Thanks F-W... good to hear... we are in our last stages of planning and we have began our packing and filling up the boat and gas cans, etc.

Cheers!

Greg (6 days)

[Fort Wisers]

Hey @Greg not sure if this will catch you in time...and for anyone else thinking of passing through along 533.
As of sometime after mid morning today there is now a crew from miller paving doing new tar and chip resurfacing from the sand pit after snake creek road to just a few km before Harrington lake.
As a result that section is a mess and there is a fairly long delay to get through (which is then escorted).
We travelled up 533 mid morning and there was no sign of this work even started. We just came back through now (evening) and there are a number of machines and work on the go. I’ll try to keep this thread updated as the work progresses and as we travel the road.

[Greg]

Thanks for the update.  Not sure if I should attempt it early on Saturday morning or go the long route

The odds of them working early on Saturday morning are slim I would think.

Going through north bay is really only about 30 or 40 minutes slower at the most - think this construction delay will equal that?

[Fort Wisers]

The delay was about 15 mins for us then a very slow drive through the construction area. The bigger concern would be the mess. It’s dusty, they’re spraying tar as you go by and now there’s a lot of loose gravel in this section.
Hope that helps...sorry, I know it’s never an easy decision.

[Greg]

Thx. I think you just helped me make my decision.  I have some friends going through there tomorrow and I'll check with them also.

Appreciate the heads up!!

Cheers!

[Fort Wisers]

Safe travels! Hope you have a great trip

[Fort Wisers]

Update as of noon today (Friday, 12-July-2019):
Resurfacing of 533 has now moved down to starting at the ski hill road.
Delays continue to be about 15 mins with a shuttle truck guiding traffic from one end of the construction to the other.
Cheers

[Fort Wisers]

Seems the work is complete (has been for a few days now but I’m just getting around to posting this today). Still lots of loose gravel in the resurfaced area and it will likely be this way for a while until enough traffic has packed it solid into the tar base.
On a different note, but still related to hey 533:
We saw a young bear cross 533 about 5km from where 533 meets hwy 63 a few days ago. Was very curious to watch us pass by! Safe travels everyone...