I've done the Hwy 17 drive from Ottawa to North Bay. Pretty quiet part of the world....and maybe not all that interesting. The towns on that route aren't worth visiting in my opinion. I'd recommend a slight detour. Take Hwy 17 from Ottawa to Renfrew, then Hwy 60 West through Algonquin Park. The Park is worth the route change in my opinion...much more scenic area. From there you continue on 60 til it ends at Huntsville, at which point you head north on Hwy 11 to North Bay. Another advantage to this route is that that stretch of Hwy 11 is wider and faster than the section of Hwy 17 between Renfrew and North Bay. There is likely still some construction (road widening) on part of this route, but most of this part of 11 is wide open and lightly traveled.
Alternately - come to Toronto! The 401 is pretty heavy in the Toronto area, especially during rush hour, but other than that it's not bad at all. At London you switch to the 402, take it to Sarnia / the US border, then head north through Michigan to SS Marie.
(edit) I'm not 100% sure the 407 is still "free" to non-residents. I believe the Ontario government was working with other provinces and states to collect these fees....and surely NY State would be included in that if they *do* have some agreements worked out. Good fast way to get around Toronto. Pretty pricey if you actually get a bill though.
As IE said...gas in most places is about $1/litre now (insane!!). It'll surely be more in the province of Quebec and in the remote parts of Ontario, it always is. It's 3.8 litres per US gallon. Personally, I have about a 45 litre / 12 US gallon tank, which now costs me about $45Cdn, or $38US to fill. So I guess that translates to about $3.15 US per gallon. Don't pay with US dollars, you will definitely get ripped off.
