Georgian Bay Route of the Trans-Canada Highway, which continues south along Highway400. Route description Highway69 is a major highway serving the recreational areas surrounding Georgian Bay and the Thirty Thousand Islands, as well as providing the westernmost fixed connection between southern and northern Ontario; the highway occupies the northern portion of a corridor that connects Toronto to Sudbury, with Highway400 occupying the southern portion. While Highway 6 is located further west, it requires the use of a ferry service between the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. Between Nobel and Sudbury, there are no large communities, although numerous small communities lie adjacent to the route, including the Shawanaga First Nation, Pointe au Baril, Magnetawan First Nation, Byng Inlet, Britt, Bigwood, Delamere and the Henvey Inlet First Nation. As of 2021 the highway began north of Highway559 (Exit241) in Carling, where the divided four lane Highway400 narrows into the two-laned Highway69 (that will serve as the future southbound lanes). Construction is scheduled to begin in 2022 to extend Highway400 northward by from Highway559 to Shebooshekong Road near the Shawanaga First Nation. Highway69 travels in a predominantly north-northeast direction, well inland of Georgian Bay. The Canadian Shield dominates the topography, resulting in numerous transverse marshes and rock outcroppings that bisect the highway, with dense forests in between; services are limited and distant. Exiting Carling Township, the highway enters The Archipelago, where it scrapes the northeastern edge of the Shawanaga First Nation. It provides access to Pointe au Baril and Pointe au Baril Station before intersecting the southern end of Highway529, a former alignment of the highway. It enters Unorganized Centre Parry Sound District, a sparsely-inhabited agglomeration of townships, where it provides access to Britt and Britt Station, as well as the northern end of Highway529. Progressing north, Highway69 enters Sudbury District at the community of Key River. It passes through Cranberry, intersecting Highway 522. Highway69 widens to a four lane freeway north of Highway522 before briefly curving northward. It crosses the French River near Wanikewin and encounters an interchange with Highway607 near Bigwood. It remains a divided four-laned freeway the remainder of its journey into Sudbury, passing by the communities of Rutter, Burwash, Estaire, and Wanup before merging into a four-lane arterial road immediately southeast of Highway17 at the Southeast Bypass. The highway ends at the interchange with Highway 17; past this point, the roadway continues into Sudbury as Municipal Road 46 (Regent