It is often used to access Grundy Lake Provincial Park, a popular camping area for northbound travellers.

It travels east and provides access to Grundy Lake Provincial Park, then enters a mostly remote wilderness of the Canadian Shield, dominated by thick forest and rock outcroppings.

It passes through Gurd Township for an additional 20 kilometres (12 mi) before entering Trout Creek.

[3] The route was paved between Arnstein and Golden Valley by 1958,[7] and to east of Commanda in 1961[8][9] Under the funding of a "day labour program", the route was extended west 21.4 kilometres (13.3 mi) along a gravel road to the Pickerel River at Kawigamog Lake on April 25, 1965.

[10][11] The remainder of the route between Commanda and Trout Creek was paved in 1966, and work continued to extend Highway 522 further west.

[1] The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 522, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.