Day 48 - Vankleek Hill ON to Montreal QC - 107.6 kms
Day 48 - Progress to Montreal QC - 4,866.4 kms
Our gracious host Ruth serves breakfast We awoke to the soothing sound of birds chirping outside our window! Unfortunately, this had been preceded by a wild thunder and lightning storm and we could also hear a brutal wind and worried that it might be from the West. A quick look out the window eased our worries as it looked like it was from the South or East.
We had been up after 1:00AM finishing off yesterday's blog, and as we were drifting to sleep we heard the floorboards down the hall creaking and then the stairs (one of the downsides of older homes...!). Shortly thereafter we heard the sound of a diesel truck starting up and driving out of the yard. The other guest in the Inn was a bovine pedicurist (ie. he cuts the toenails of cows for a living - true story!), and he had left at about 1:30AM?!?! We weren't sure if (1) he couldn't sleep because of the heat and humidity, (2) we had woken him up as we were getting ready for bed, or (3) some cow had booked a late night pedicure - whatever the cause, we were quite surprised by the moonlight departure...!
We slept a little later than expected and headed down to breakfast at about 8:45AM. Ruth - the "Innkeeper" - was waiting for us and quickly put together an amazing breakfast comprised of a fruit cocktail topped with "chocolate mint" leafs, a delicious omelet, buttermilk and jalapeno breads, and locally made jams and honey. It was one of our favorite breakfasts of the Adventure so far, and we truly enjoyed chatting with Ruth. Thanks for the down home hospitality Ruth!
We had been up after 1:00AM finishing off yesterday's blog, and as we were drifting to sleep we heard the floorboards down the hall creaking and then the stairs (one of the downsides of older homes...!). Shortly thereafter we heard the sound of a diesel truck starting up and driving out of the yard. The other guest in the Inn was a bovine pedicurist (ie. he cuts the toenails of cows for a living - true story!), and he had left at about 1:30AM?!?! We weren't sure if (1) he couldn't sleep because of the heat and humidity, (2) we had woken him up as we were getting ready for bed, or (3) some cow had booked a late night pedicure - whatever the cause, we were quite surprised by the moonlight departure...!
We slept a little later than expected and headed down to breakfast at about 8:45AM. Ruth - the "Innkeeper" - was waiting for us and quickly put together an amazing breakfast comprised of a fruit cocktail topped with "chocolate mint" leafs, a delicious omelet, buttermilk and jalapeno breads, and locally made jams and honey. It was one of our favorite breakfasts of the Adventure so far, and we truly enjoyed chatting with Ruth. Thanks for the down home hospitality Ruth!
Our day began once again on the Prescott-Russell Trail, however, the overnight rain - and a layer of rock chips that was too thick - made the going very tough. Cam describes it as "riding uphill in sand with your tires half inflated". By the time that we had gone 11 kms on the trail, the sweat was literally dripping off Cam's face. He felt like he'd done a days ride already. We agreed to switch to the highway, and thanks to Google Maps were able to find an alternate route of equivalent distance. The benefits were immediately evident as Cam had averaged about 16 kms/hour up to that point (in spite of a strong tailwind) and we were immediately riding between 26 and 30 kms/hour down the highway. It wasn't long before we reached Quebec, ending the Ontario Leg 4 of our trip and beginning the Quebec Leg 5!
Ken checks in at home while being ferried Our route to Montreal took us to a ferry crossing of the Ottawa River from Hudson QC on the West side of the river to Oka QC on the East side. Phil Gabriel, who has joined us on many previous rides, grew up around Oka. We called him for a lunch recommendation, but couldn't reach him, so we had a lunch in a great little restaurant in Hudson - the Cafe Champagne. The ferry cost us $2 each and took about 10 minutes for the 2 km crossing. Once we reached the other side, we were on the La Route Verte system which would carry us about half way to our hotel in mid-town Montreal on a mix of paved pathways and shared roadways. This segment of the Route Verte was nice, as it took us through parks and communities and had greater variety compared to the segments built on abandoned railways.
Taking refuge in La Metro Grocery Store Today was another hot one, with the temperature hitting 32 degrees, and what felt like 99% humidity. Ruth told us that her grandmother referred to these days as being "close". As long as we were riding, we were cooled by breeze, but when we stopped, the heat immediately descended on us. At about 70 kms in the town of Ste Marthe Sur Le Lac, we noticed very intense black clouds to the North. Ken hoped that "they weren't coming this way" and within minutes, the storm descended on us with gale force winds and heavy rain! It truly was amazing how quickly this hit us.
We looked around for some shelter and saw a retail mall behind the trees to the left. Fortunately, there was a path off the trail and through the fence, so we were able to find cover in La Metro Grocery store - along with many others, including a nice couple from the area who were out on their Harley Davidson. Cam faked them out with some basic French phrases, but once the conversation moved beyond the basics, he was quickly found out! They were gracious and the woman was particularly strong with English. To our surprise, they didn't realize that out West kids learn French. She asked why Western Canadians should learn French because they would never use it? Ken suggested that only Pierre Trudeau could answer that question!
We looked around for some shelter and saw a retail mall behind the trees to the left. Fortunately, there was a path off the trail and through the fence, so we were able to find cover in La Metro Grocery store - along with many others, including a nice couple from the area who were out on their Harley Davidson. Cam faked them out with some basic French phrases, but once the conversation moved beyond the basics, he was quickly found out! They were gracious and the woman was particularly strong with English. To our surprise, they didn't realize that out West kids learn French. She asked why Western Canadians should learn French because they would never use it? Ken suggested that only Pierre Trudeau could answer that question!
Riding through the storm. After waiting out the storm for about an hour (and using the opportunity to indulge in some cold drinks) we realized the storm was not letting up. We had 35 kms to go to our hotel, and it was almost 4:30PM, so we decided to suit up in our rain gear and face the storm. We started back up and although the storm had calmed a bit, there was still fairly heavy rain and occasional lightning and thunder. As we rode, we saw that the storm had caused some serious damage, with many tree branches on the ground. Some were large enough to cause serious damage to us if we had been riding beneath them when they came down!
Once we crossed the Riviere-des-Prairies and entered Montreal, we were immediately on roads with clearly marked bike paths. We rode about 10 kms from North Montreal to downtown, mostly on great bike-friendly roadways. Although traffic was very busy, we felt very comfortable on these streets. It also helps that drivers can't turn right on red lights in Montreal as this reduces the risk to cyclists.
Once we crossed the Riviere-des-Prairies and entered Montreal, we were immediately on roads with clearly marked bike paths. We rode about 10 kms from North Montreal to downtown, mostly on great bike-friendly roadways. Although traffic was very busy, we felt very comfortable on these streets. It also helps that drivers can't turn right on red lights in Montreal as this reduces the risk to cyclists.
A Montreal sculpture illustrating the depravity of man... We finally arrived at our hotel at about 7PM, a few hours later than we had estimated - mostly due to the storm delay. We got to see a lot of Montreal as we rode and later walked on Rue Ste Catherines, where we had an awesome meal at a restaurant. As we ate, we agreed that this was one of our most varied and interesting days, riding from Ontario farming country to downtown Montreal. We expect Quebec to be a great leg of the trip as it will be so unique compared to what we are accustomed to.
Ride Details:
- Distance: 107.6 kms
- Riding time: 5 hours, 14 minutes
- Average speed: 20.6 kms
- Wind: South South East (strong to nearly hurricane force...!)
- Temperature: 32 degrees Celcius
Tomorrow's Destination: Trois Rivieres (was Drummondville) -141 kms - We have decided to take the North route above the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City based on advice from our UK friend Alex who lives in Quebec City. He said that with La Route Verte, it is very good and interesting riding.
For more ride details see Strava and for more of today's ride photos see our Photo Gallery.
- Distance: 107.6 kms
- Riding time: 5 hours, 14 minutes
- Average speed: 20.6 kms
- Wind: South South East (strong to nearly hurricane force...!)
- Temperature: 32 degrees Celcius
Tomorrow's Destination: Trois Rivieres (was Drummondville) -141 kms - We have decided to take the North route above the St. Lawrence River to Quebec City based on advice from our UK friend Alex who lives in Quebec City. He said that with La Route Verte, it is very good and interesting riding.
For more ride details see Strava and for more of today's ride photos see our Photo Gallery.