Tag Archives: quebeccycling

Magog

31 Aug

From Granby to Magog was our first harder ride with about 725m in elevation gain and about 65kms. The terrain became hillier and even a few small mountains in the vicinity that are skied on in the winter. The one we encountered was Mont Orford which is also a provincial (Quebec National…) park with biking/skiing trails and lakes. The trails were often gravel but very small stones so not an issue and the scenery more than made up for it. So far the weather is cooperating and we had a lovely day to ride. Quebec has definitely put some tax dollars to use creating this vast network of trails. The sales tax here is 10% on top of GST.

Our accommodation in Magog is a B&B in a historical old house full of charm in the centre of the town. The town is the most touristy we have seen outside of Montreal, offering lake activities, cycling, hiking, skiing in the winter, etc. It isn’t far to the US border so we see license plates from Vermont, Maine and even Florida. The town sits on Lac Memphrémagog (there’s also a Lac Magog) which is derived from an indigenous name and apparently has a lake monster named Memphré who curiously looks just like the Ogopogo.

During the 2 days here we rode around the Orford area again, took in the lake front, strolled the shopping street (no purchases though due to lack of space on the bike), sampled poutine, visited a historic home/museum and hiked in the marsh area. A lovely place to visit!

Having fun in the rolling hills
Lots of cycling in the forest on easy gravel trails
Tourist finding some early changing leaves
The real deal, and it will only get moreso while we’re here
Orford music centre which holds memories for Erika
Having a nice Poutine avec champignons sauvage. 2 thumbs up
Where there’s apples, there’s cider, and a moose on a bike
Tara finds hibiscuses wherever we go
There are 6km of trails in this marsh area next to the town
Looking south down the lake towards Vermont
Looks familiar, no?

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St Jean-sur-Richelieu & Granby

31 Aug

We left Montreal on a sunny morning after having been assured our luggage was going to be cared for by the B&B we just stayed at. Fingers crossed, we’ve heard this before. The cycle trails and separated lanes made getting out of town very easy. We crossed the big old steel Jacques Cartier bridge on the way out giving us a nice view of all the islands comprising Montreal, then on to well sign posted and separated bike lanes along the Route Verte 1 (RV1) the entire way to our first stop at St Jean-sur-Richelieu. There were many other cyclists using the system because, why not? From Chambly going south we followed a canal with many locks and pleasure boats reminding us of the Bourgogne region we recently cycled. The canal was built to get around the many rapids and shallow spots of the Richelieu river which we were never far from. Because of the water we saw many shore birds and a lot of folks fishing as well. We stayed at a bit of a dive motel as there wasn’t much choice but it had a good situation next to the river.

After looking around St Jean for another day we were off to Granby via two essentially long straight and flat ex-train lines mostly well paved for the cyclists. These went through farmland with soybeans and corn predominantly with the occasional smell of dairy cattle and a bit of poison ivy too. We stumbled upon a small active airfield where skydiving was the thing and we got a close-up view of the landings. Just one night in Granby so not much to say. It thundered and rained heavily in the evening but we missed most of it while dining in an Italian restaurant.

The end of the climb over the Jacques Cartier bridge
Most of our route is on the RV1, which collocates with the Transcanada trail in part
Two lanes bike, one lane cars!
A sunny calm day on the trail
One of the locks on the Chambly canal with a cute lock-master’s house
Lunch beside the Richelieu river
Interesting that the steeple is full of (disguised by paint) transmitter antennas
Cheesy old motel, mais c’est suffit.
Sunset selfie behind the motel
Art at a nice café stop in Farnham
Churches and cyclists abound
Tara’s favourite type of cycling
Grandby has a large zoo, apparently with large Meerkats
Our B&B in Granby
Something we don’t see everyday

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Montréal

29 Aug

We landed in Montreal late, but on schedule, and Ubered to our B&B, La Loggia, in the gay village of Montreal. It is an “art B&B” so fits well within this neighborhood, which is eclectic, especially in the evening. It is also well situated for us as it is a walkable distance to Vieux Montreal attractions. We took in a guided historical walking tour as well as a boat tour of the old harbour. So much Canadian history that we have either forgotten or never learned. Our host at the B&B was very accommodating and had agreed to store our bike cases for the month we are cycling around the area. We hope that goes well.

Our first impressions of cycling here are very positive, there are a lot of folks cycling obviously for transport (not just recreation), and the separated pathways are everywhere. Also the drivers have been very mindful of both pedestrians and cyclists which is great to experience.

Packing up beside our B&B to hit the road for our first leg
The B&B has history!
Cyclists heading to work(?). Where are we, Copenhagen?
Maisonneuve is said to be the founder of Montreal in 1642
Here he is in front of the Notre Dame Basilica
Of course the indigenous peoples were here long before…
Queen Victoria gets a nod since the British did eventually come out ahead
The Montreal metro opened just in time for Expo 67 with unique architecture and art in each station; here resembling Paris
Interesting that there is Al(l)dred history here
There are extensive waking paths along the old harbour and interesting pedestrian only streets further in
Getting the perspective from the water is always fun; this was on an electric boat
Not electric Theodore the tugboat
There is a massive indoor and underground city beneath the roads and buildings; kind of like Calgary plus 15s turned upside down. Here you see a statue of the wife of Poseidon gifted to Montreal by France.
Also on display is a large chunk of the Berlin wall

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Quebec 2026

26 Aug

Wanting to stay closer to home and support Canadian business we decided to visit Quebec after hearing from a few people about the cycle trail network across the province. The flight is shorter, the time difference small and we learn more about our Canadian heritage and history. The language is not so easy but hopefully we will manage with our limited knowledge. Thank goodness for bilingual labeling, a bit of school French and Duolingo to help us.

Our plan is to fly to Montreal then head south and east to the Eastern townships. We then go off towards Quebec City across the broad plain south of the St. Lawrence in a more or less straight line. We return back to Montreal on the upper side of the river, with a side trip north into the start of the Laurentians. This path allows us to follow La Route Verte, an extensive provincial wide cycle friendly route on protected lanes and quiet roads. Have a look at our route; we go counter clockwise from Montreal.

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