Trois Rivieres to Quebec Day 55

There were lots of very nice gardens along the route today. We thought these were quite nice and thought about them for our gardens in the future???

The first Irving sign this trip. It lets us know that we are almost in the Maritimes.

Stopped here for a nice late breakfast. It was the kind of cafe that you could have lazed away an afternoon quite easily watching the boats go by. Kind of far away but you can see a freighter in the background; it was going at quite a clip. We noticed that the St. Lawrence was quite shallow near the shore on our side so it must have quite a deep channel down the centre.

This small sleepy town looked like it had no decent places to eat so we stopped a local who directed us to this little bakery where Holly had a nice spinach quiche and we both had a date square. This little town had the typical narrow streets with people sitting on their balconies. It was about 2 pm when we went through and the veranda of the seniors' residence was line with the elderly in their chairs just watching the day go by. It is a shame that most of the people we see have no clue that we are on our adventure.


Day 55 riding and August 20th with our distance today being 144k. Tomorrow is our rest day in the city of Quebec. We spent a lot of our cycling time today on route # 138. Again, another beautiful, scenic ride and mainly in the country. Terrain is flat to rolling again and we're pleased with that! We had a big detour in Trois Rivieres and at the end of the detour, met a gentleman who had done the Tour du Canada ride in 2006. He had recognized the shirts and reflective triangles that were on the backs of our shirts. We had an interesting chat with him.

On our route today, there were lots of fruit and vegetable stands along the roadside. We had a coffee break at a little shop in Batiscan which is along the river and we watched a freighter pass by. Also, we had an afternoon break at a little bakery in the quaint little village of Donnacona. Yesterday, we came across a blueberry farm and again today. It seems that there is a huge church or cathedral in every little town and village here in the areas we're cycling through. There is a hugh cathedral in Notre Dame-du-Cap that attracts Catholic pilgrims from around the world. We cycled by it today.

Cycling into Quebec was a little hectic as the cue sheet was a bit difficult figure out. We did have one good steep hill to climb up and of course there was a stop light mid-way up and, yes, it had turned red by the time we got there so getting going on a green light was tricky!! We ended up missing a turn and got lost but then got re-directed after asking a couple of times the direction to Laval University. Good to know that we weren't the only ones making wrong turns. A bit of a hassle after arriving here but got settled into our room fine and had pizza for supper. The people we've met so far make an attempt to speak English to us. Also, something that is commonly done here in the corn season is buying cooked corn at stands along the roads. Enjoy reading this week's blog and we'll have more for you next week. Terri and Holly

Mont St.- Hilaire to Trois-Rivieres Day 54

Wonderful scenery along the Richelieu River. Lots of people own boats. What a view from your back porch every day!! We couldn't understand when we saw two men were sitting in lawn chairs in their garage when they could be sitting looking at the river.

There were many beautiful cathedrals along the route. The next picture is on its side (still haven't figured out how to turn it) These stairs come up from the river. We imagined when the church was first built and boats were the main source of transportation they would dock and then walk up these steps in their long heavy garments to go to this cathedral.

Steps from the river.

Haven't seen this many at one stop for several days. Place and company were wonderful but we waited one hour for a crepe that we shared.

One of the many ferries we have had to take over the last few days.

Found some more corn only theses stalks were much higher. There were many stands along the way to buy corn. We wish we had known we had a microwave in the kitchenette aswe would have bought some. There was a stand that sold cooked corn you could eat right there but unfortunately we only saw the one and we had eaten not 15 minutes before.

Today, August 19th, takes us 137k to Trois Rivieres and it is day 54. Gorgeous morning, no dew and an early sunrise. Eveyone seemed to be eager to get riding. The route takes us along the Richelieu River. We eventually get to route # 223, and once again, cycled through quaint villages and towns. Countryside is flat to rolling with lots of farmland to enjoy cycling through. Lots of old stone farm houses and they are also seen in the villages with stone "hedges" surrounding the front of the property and also along the driveways. I noticed that a lot of the little town and country homes are white sided or else bright coloured siding with matching trim. I guess the French like bright colours?? We did a 20 minute ferry crossing at village of Sorel-Tracy to go to St-Ignace then onto route # 138. Everyone at camp commented on a great scenic ride.

Our ride to date has been 5,896 km. Not far to go now!!!!

Hudson to Mont St-Hilaire Day 53

An amazing sculpture along the waterfront path through the suburbs of Montreal.

Terri and I thought we might try this activity out when Lake Huron gets angry. There was a group of young people learning this activity on the calmer side of the Lachine Rapids.

Alison had her bike stolen from in front of her apartment this morning (it was even double locked) so she rented one of the city bikes so she could join us for the day. This is a new project for Montreal and it has been quite well received. A little expensive but handy for commuters.

Alison rode over the Jacques Cartier Bridge with us.


August 18th, day 53 and 113k to ride today. The cue sheet for today is one full page of very detailed directions, so even though we have a shorter distance to cover today, we'll not get into camp any earlier as there are lots of stops and turns as well as items of interest on our route through the city of Montreal for us to venture off the route if we wish. We cycled along on route # 40 and # 20, through little villages and towns such as Vaudreul, Dorion and Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue before the highway turns into Lakeshore Blvd. and as it goes through the different suburban Montreal communities, the boulevard's name changes as well. Those districts were Beaconsfield, Dorval, Lachine, Verdun, just to name a few. Place Jacques-Cartier was a point of interest but we somehow missed it!!?? The city has cycling paths everywhere as well as walking paths along the cycling path and they are both well used. It was a beautiful day and maybe that is why there were so many people out and about and as well, it is summer and lots of tourists enjoying the city.

Holly's daughter, Alison, who lives in Montreal, met up with us at Marche Atwater, a public market by the Lachine Canal. We had our lunch here and then she cycled with us over to the Jacques-Cartier Bridge which takes you off the Montreal Island back onto the mainland. There is a cycling path going right across the bridge which is amazing! We were cycling over bridges, under freeways, across canals, over railway bridges, under railway bridges, watching for street signs, watching traffic, watching other cyclists and pedestrians, checking the cue sheets to make sure of the right turns, etc, so were we glad to get out of the city into the country? Yes!!! But we did enjoy the cycling along the Lachine Canal and the St. Lawrence, with lots of scenery and parkland to enjoy. After leaving the city, we eventually got onto route # 223, taking us into Mont St.-Hilaire where we stayed at Camping Laurier for the night.

Ottawa to Hudson Day 52

The Parliament buildings in the background on the left.

Just to prove we were on Sussex Drive. Neither of us went sight seeing on the rest day so we were pleased when our route took us through downtown.

The Royal Canadian Mint. Unfortunately it started to pour after this so we did not get pictures of Stephen's house. We can understand why he has that little smile on his face. You would too if you had the house he had, right beside the Money.

The 2007 and 2008 vets who provided us with a wonderful break. Banana cake, granola bars, bagels and cream cheese etc, etc. Such a wonderful gesture, thanks guys!!!!!

Our entrance into Quebec was not as spectacular as other provinces. This was the sign we saw when we got off the ferry. Petit Kruz a la Quebec!!! 5 down and 5 to go!!!

First of all, yesterday's rest-day was spent at my daughter, Renee's, who lives near Perth and that is about an hour from Carleton University. She picked me up at about 5pm and brought me back Sunday evening. Great day spent with her, Steven, and their three boys. When I got there, the boys showed me the latest addition to the family - six young hens and a rooster!! Ben asked me if I could get him a hamster and a lizard!! He is 5yrs old so, that request was no surprise. The hens are actually Luke's. Ben has one as does Joe. Renee put on a barbeque lunch and family, friends and neighbours dropped by congratulating me on the ride so far and of course, their were lots of inquisitive questions about various aspects of the tour.

Monday morning, we had breakfast at the university cafeteria and headed out of the city by around 0730. August 17th and day 52 and 164k to go to camp at Hudson, Quebec. The day was over cast and muggy. There were great bike paths to use throughout the city so we sure took advantage of them when possible. The route out of Ottawa took us past national landmarks such as Parliament Hill, Chateau Laurier, Convention Centre, Royal Mint, External Affairs H.Q., French Embassy, the Prime Minister's Residence, the Governor General's Residence to mention a few. Then on through Orleans, Cumberland and into the country. We did have a brief downpour and missed taking pictures of the Prime Minister's Residence and Governor General's Residence.

Before our turn to catch the ferry, a few vets from tour 2007 and 2008 had a table set up with snacks for the riders going by. What a pleasant treat!! No peanut butter sandwichs for morning break!!! After spending a few minutes chatting, we carried on to catch the ferry to go from the Ontario side to the Quebec side which was just a 6 minute ride. Suddenly, I can't read the signs! We're in a foreign country? We'll somehow have to manage with the language and the signs. We travelled on various roads, going through little towns and villages throughout the countryside - towns like Thurso, Plaisance, Papineauville , Montebello, Fasset, Calumet, and Grenville, to name a few and some of the routes were # 148, 344 and 342. The farmland we cycled through along both sides of the Ottawa river was flat and picturesque. The roads had rideable shoulders most of the time. We had another ferry crossing to Pointe Fortune at k134 but again, just a short ride, but costing a toonie. Again, beautiful homes along the Ottawa River. The road leading into camp was pretty rough for cycling so we were glad to see the campground sign.

Ivy Lea to Ottawa Day 50 August 15

A little hideaway on one of the 1000 Islands would be nice on a day like today.

Terri and her daughter Rennie. She surprised us with watermelon and cold water. Thanks Rennee!!!!!

Leaving camp in Ivy Lea it was not hard to tell it would be a hot and muggy day. The dew was very heavy on the fly and I only needed the liner of my sleeping bag to keep me warm through the night. We set out early to do the 154 km so we could get into the University and get organized for our rest day there. Terri was meeting her daughter and going to her home outside of Ottawa to stay overnight and visit with the family. Terri's sister Mary had told us we would have a pretty ride today and she was very right about that.

We travelled along the 1000 Island Parkway for about 15 km and then we turned away from the water to travel through country roads. Terri took an extra side trip and added 10km to her ride. (but don't tell Don) I saw her go but could not get her attention. I sent word with a motorist heading her way that I would be waiting for her. About 30 minutes later she came up over the hill. Once we were together again we covered some pretty country roads and passed over the 401 at one point.

Terri's daughter Rennee met us just outside of Merrickville with cold water and watermelon for the cyclists. Many of the faster riders had missed her and she went ahead to a more distant spot so she could see them. We appreciated the stop and the watermelon really hit the spot. Just after seeing Rennee we got to Merrickville where we had a nice lunch. It is a quaint tourist town and a popular spot for cyclists from Ottawa to do an out and back ride.

Once on the road again we followed the Rideau Canal almost the rest of the way to Ottawa. It was a pretty ride with some fantastic homes along the way. We met Rennee again and had our second helping of watermelon. We put ice in our water to take us the rest of the way.

The heat was oppressive today and while you had a breeze when you were riding, you really felt the heat when you stopped. At any one point it would have been nice to jump into a pool. We came into Carlton University about 4:30 pm to find we had a bit of a walk from the truck but we had the advantage of Renee's van.

Terri will be spending her rest day with her family but she promised to bring me a piece of homemade pie. I am catching up on laundry, the blog and phone calls to family. I will be meeting my daughter Alison in two days in Montreal. She plans to ride with us for part of the day. I have to head to a bike store for a screw for my shifter. It is being held by electrician's tape right now.

We have been blessed with good health on the trip. We have just three weeks left and to date we have travelled 5,307 km. Hard to believe I know. Each day we are in a different city, on a different road. It is kind of funny, sometimes when I wake up in my tent in the morning I have to think where I am and what is actually on the other side of the door of my tent. It can be a bit disorienting. Even though we all have our routines in the mornings and evenings to get things done and on the road or ready for bed, we have to have enough flexibility to handle the new environment. Have you ever gone to the cupboard only to find you put a container of milk here? Well things like that happen on this trip. I have packed my tent in its bag and done it all up only to find out that my cycling gloves were in there. I have not decided yet whether I will be more or less high maintenance when I get back to Kincardine.

See you down the road.

Carrying Place to Ivy Lea Day Day 49

The Lake on the Mountain on one side of Bridge Street in Picton. The lake is level with the road. Just across the road you can look down over the mountain to see Picton Bay.

On the other side of Bridge Street you see (way down there) you see Picton Bay.
Way in the background you can see the wind farm. It appears to be built right in the water.

Many of he homes along Picton Bay were not only beautiful but they had the water as their front yard.

We got started on our trip out of camp this morning about 7:45 am and arrived at our destination about 6:20, a total of 167 km. The dew was very heavy this morning and it was warm enough to start out with just shorts and a shirt. The sun shone all day and the temperature got to 30 C on my thermometer. Thank goodness for the breeze you create when you are biking. I had mentioned several days ago in this journal we were all beginning the think we would not tan anymore. I was wrong for we are supposed to have nice weather again for the next several days.

We travelled along secondary roads for the better part of the day. The roads this morning went through farms again and the terrain was flatter except for one big hill early in the morning. I clocked only 5 km/hr and Terri said she was down to 6 km/hr at one point. We were thankful we were in the shade the whole way up and as it was only 24 km out of camp, it was early so not too hot. As we had a long day our goal was to not take long breaks and not too many. Our first rest was at the Lake on the Mountain where we spent time reading up on the folk lore regarding this lake. We climbed up a 2 km hill to find the lake at roadside at the top. You looked way down over the other side of the road and saw Picton Bay. There is an Indian legend that goes with this lake about a young Indian woman who dove into the lake (on purpose) and drowned. Some thought it did not have a bottom to it. It is a though the lake comes out of nowhere as it does not appear to have any body of water feed into it. Scientific evidence suggests that it is a result of glacier activity.

After going back down the hill we took the Glenora Ferry across the bay. I had been on this ferry in 2004 when I was on my first tour with Braun Cycle (from Kitchener). Much of the road after this until Kingston was familiar to both Terri and I. It took us along Lake Ontario and we loved the view of the water and the coolness it offered. This road called The Loyalist Parkway started before the ferry and continued on until Kingston. It took us through Bath where we had an official lunch break at a small cafe. I was not able to find the little bakery our group in 2004 had a break at but we enjoyed our lunch on the front porch of the cafe. Unfortunately there was no breeze there and a nap would have been nice.

We set off again with the clock in mind. We sent word on with another cyclist that we would not make the lunch stop offered by Mike and his wife Ruth. We felt we would not get there in time and did not want them to wait for us. We found out later that it was a very nice lunch and we were sorry to have missed it. We rode through Picton without stopping but found it to be a very quaint town. Our Braun group stayed there in 2004 and I saw little then and saw no more today. We spied several quaint eateries that would have been nice to visit.

The ride through Kingston was very busy with very rough road surface and we were glad to leave it behind us. This area is home to a somewhat transient population. It is home to a few federal penitenturies which in and of itself gives a certain atmosphere. Families of inmates sometimes move here for the length of their husband/father's sentence just to be able to visit more. In addition to the prisons, CFB Kingston is here.

We carried on through Gananoque, a very nice little town to stop in but our time was getting on. We were in the area of the 1000 Islands with a bike path running parallel to it. There was some views of the lake at various points. We are camped at Ivy Lea Campground very near the bridge to the USA. I got a glimpse of the bridge through some trees and noted it was a very high bridge.

We had a nice surprise just minutes after we got to camp. Terri's younger sister Mary (from nearby Prescott) stopped by for a visit. She stayed for supper and we shared some stories. She and Terri did a week long tour of the Finger Lakes last fall so Mary has some idea of the challenges this kind of a trip has.

We are off to Ottawa tomorrow where we will have a rest day. We will be sleeping at Carlton University for two nights and hopefully some of us will get to see some of the Capital.

Nestleton to Carrying Place Day 48 August

We were not the only ones out for a 7:30 am ride. Many horse farms in this Scugogg area.

Terri and I got away nice and early this morning, but ....this flat got in the way. This fellow, Terry, is always willing to assist. He helped me near Rogers Pass. He was used to fixing flat, his wife Sandra has had about 8 so far.

While we were fixing the flat, this local cycling group rode by. Given the average age we decided they were all retired. So nice to see so many keeping their health as a priority. They have such nice country scenery for their rides.
This was our first glimpse of Lake Ontario.

Terri appreciating the calm and serenity of Lake Ontario.

As we have travelled across Canada we have seen the corn grow. We hope we can get a feed of it soon.


Our ride today was spectacular. We had sun all day and although it was hot, 30 C, it felt good and I am sure it made the day more pleasant for everyone knowing the chances of rain were slim to none. We headed out of camp at 7:00 am because Terri was on cooking duty tonight. Our ride took us through beautiful Scugogg countrysides with more beautiful homes and several equestrian businesses. The hills were rolling and not too difficult. The road surface however was embarassing. There were several layers of patches which made for tricky riding.

About 20 km into the ride Terri had a flat and our lead dwindled to us being last. The spare she tried to put in was not holding the air so we had to put another one in. On top of this, the CO2 cannister head had an insert missing and we wasted about three cannisters trying to fill the tire. Another cyclist Terry (who by the way helped me when I had trouble at Roger's Pass) came to the rescue and we used the hand pump to inflate the tire. This took us an hour to get going again but once we did we had no more bike trouble today. While we were changing the flat a group of local cyclist who were out for a morning ride sailed past us. They looked like the "over 50 group".

Our trip today took us through several small towns so there was lots of opportunity to have coffee and treats. I think everyone enjoyed the quaintness of these towns and most took an opportunity to visit one of them for a break. We passed many farms and lots of corn fields. Several independent markets were advertising fresh produce and the words "new potatoes" sure made my mouth water.

We had our first peak of Lake Ontario about half way through the ride and we stopped to enjoy the view. It was calm on the water today. There were several signs posted that you could not swim in the lake due to the high bacteria count and one beach park we stopped at had a heavy sewage odour. We are so thankful to have the clean waters of Lake Huron in Kincardine.

Much of the route after lunch today along Lake Ontario was on the "Waterfront Trail", one I am familiar with in the Toronto area. Terri had also been on a supported group tour with Braun Cycle that used this trail system on their trip from Oakville to Ottawa. Some of the route tomorrow will be familiar to me as I also did a Braun tour in 2004 that was a 600 km circle trip that started and ended in Brighton with stops in Kingston, Picton, Trenton and Bath. That was the trip I met Mike on. Little did we know then that I would take 10 weeks and travel the whole of Canada. He and our friend Dennis are off on their own adventure this weekend, taking the bikes and trailers to Sauble Beach and return.

We have a long day tomorrow, 164 km that will take us through Kingston and to the home of one of the cyclists who has kindly offered, with his wife, to provide us with our lunch. We are looking forward to that. Weather promises to be sunny.