Last Summer I drove a van I bought 2,694 mi from BC to Ontario. No GPS, no cell phone just a road map I bought from a corner store. Getting lost and going off route is part of the adventure as you have stop and ask directions and meet with the locals. If I had a GPS I would have just zoomed on through not talking to anyone. I did miss one turn that cost me an additional 28 mi off my route but hey that was part of the fun.
Looking back on the trip I wish I would have had a CB Radio as there are vast areas of unpopulated areas on northern Ontario roads lots of wilderness and nothing else. Basically you run out of gas or breakdown your in BIG trouble.