Cochrane is a town in Northern Ontario.

Get in

By road

• Highway 11
• be prepared that if there is an accident you can't go anywhere but sit in traffic until the road is re-opened.

By train

• Ontario Northland Railway, 200 Railway St.. 6:45AM to 11PM. Runs one train from Cochrane: 

• The Polar Bear Express to Moosonee stopping at Clute, Fraserdale, Coral Rapids, Moose River, and any point on the line to pick up/drop off hikers, campers, canoeists, fishermen, outdoor adventurers, and locals. This is one of the few "flag stop" trains in operation in Canada. Operates five days a week year round. During the summer months, there is an additional train on Sundays. No train service on Saturdays or on Sundays during the rest of the year. There is a special canoe car that can hold up to 18 canoes. Canoeists are responsible for unloading and loading their own canoes. No reservations are required. Cost an additional $54 plus GST to train fare. Snack car service and a special family car are available year round. Summer trains also feature: full dining car service, a dome car, and an entertainment car with live music. In summer 2008, track conditions resulted the train running very late much of the time (2.5 hours by railway announcement).

• The Northlander to Toronto Union Station has been cancelled and replaced by a bus which stops at Matheson (with connecting bus to Iroquois Falls and Timmins), Swastika (with connecting bus to Kirkland Lake), Englehart, New Liskeard, Cobalt, Temagami, North Bay, South River, Huntsville, Bracebridge, Gravenhurst, and Washago.

By bus

Ontario Northland bus service runs daily local service westbound to Hearst with connection in Driftwood to Timmins, Sudbury, Parry Sound, and Orillia; southbound to Toronto via Temiskaming Shores, North Bay, and Barrie. Special express shuttle to Hearst for the Northlander and to Iroquois Falls and Timmins for the Polar Bear Express. Bus service also operates from the train station (see above).

See

• Tim Horton Events Centre. In honour of Cochrane's most famous native, Tim Horton, a Toronto Maple Leafs player who (with businessperson Ron Joyce) founded the Tim Horton's doughnut and coffee chain in Hamilton (Ontario) in 1964. 
• Tim Horton Memorial Museum. Opened 2008 in the Tim Horton Event Centre, photos, books, jerseys and 568 pucks - one for each goal scored. $2. 

Do

• In the winter, Cochrane is famous for its world-class snowmobiling

Events

• Northern Ontario Tri-Culture Festival (Festival Tri-Culturel du Nord de l'Ontario), Hwy 11 West (under the big top), ☏ +1-705-272-2088, toll-free: +1-844-272-2088. Three-day event celebrating French, English and First Nations culture, mid-June. 

Buy

• Giant Tiger, 180 6 Ave, ☏ +1 705-272-1369. Discount department store, grocery, clothing and housewares. 
• Hart Store, 25 Brunetville Rd, Kapuskasing, ☏ +1 705-335-2062. One of 60 stores in a regional chain, is to Giant Tiger what Giant Tiger is to Wal-Mart. 

Eat

• JR's Barbecue Ranch, 63 3rd Ave, ☏ +1 705-272-4999. Famous for ribs. 

Drink

• Ice Hut Bar & Grill, 105 3rd St, ☏ +1 705-272-4777. Large screen TV’s with a range of sporting events. 

Sleep

• Station Inn, 200B Railway St. (at Ontario Northland train station), ☏ +1 705-272-3500, toll-free: +1-800-265-2356. 23 rooms with four-piece bath, cable TV, in-room coffee/tea, a/c, Wi-Fi. Sauna, full-service restaurant, fax/photocopy service, meeting facilities, free parking with plug-ins for cars and lock-up for snowmobiles. 

• Swan Castle Inn, 189 Railway St, ☏ +1 705-272-5200, fax: +1 705-272-4299. Check-in: 2PM, check-out: 11AM. Best Western with 42 rooms, smoke-free, coffee makers and refrigerators in-room, free parking with plug-ins for cars, high-speed Internet, daily newspaper and continental breakfast included. Fitness centre, hot tub and whirlpool, steam room, dry sauna, laundry, meeting facilities and catering. 

• West Way Motel, Highway 11 West, ☏ +1 705-272-4285, toll-free: +1-877-772-4285, fax: +1 705-272-4429. Fridges and high-speed Internet in some rooms. $90+. 

Connect

NorthernTel offers 4G HSPA+ (max 21 Mbps) and 1xRTT coverage in Cochrane. An analogue cellular service (AMPS, band B) had been provided by Ontera, but that company's GSM footprint now covers Moosonee and Moose Factory only.

Go next

Routes through Cochrane

Thunder Bay ← Kapuskasing ←

W  S

→ Temiskaming Shores → North Bay