Ontario Highway 810


Tertiary Highway 810, commonly referred to as Highway 810, is a provincially maintained access road, extending from Bull Lake to Richie Falls on the Aux Sables River system north of Massey. A northerly extension of Highway 553, the road was formerly part of that highway until 1976, when it was downgraded from secondary to tertiary status and renumbered as 810.

Route description

Highway 810 is the southernmost tertiary highway in the province and is located approximately west of Sudbury. A large portion of the route follows alongside the River aux Sables in the River aux Sables Provincial Park.
There is relatively little human habitation along Highway 810, owing to the extremely remote and rugged location. On an average day, only 50 vehicles travel along the route.
The highway begins north of Highway 17, at Whisky Lake Road. At this point, Highway 553 ends and Highway 810 begins, travelling north through the Canadian Shield. As it snakes northward parallel with the River aux Sables, the route passes several resource access roads which travel even further into the wilderness. The highway ends at Ritchie Falls, north of its southern terminus, north of which the roadway that carried it continues as a forest access road.
Highway 810, unlike most other tertiary highways, is maintained by the Ministry of Transportation during the winter months.

History

The road that Highway 810 follows was originally opened as the Massey Tote Road by the Spanish River Lumber Company at the turn of the 20th century, and provided access for loggers between Lake Huron and logging sites on the River Aux Sables, which the road closely paralleled.
In early 1956, this road became Highway 553.
The northern of Highway 553 were redesignated as Highway 810 on November 20, 1974. Since then, the highway has remained unchanged.

Major intersections