Touring - Winter Tour (Montreal to Ottawa)

Hey guys,

I've always wanted to cycle to Ottawa (from Montreal). Do you think it's too late to pull it off this year? Should I wait until the spring...

Might not exactly be touring: I'll probably leave Saturday and ride back on Sunday, but will be unsupported along the way.

Distance will be 185 km (115 miles) each way. Temperature will be just above freezing (November), and then down to below freezing until March... Daylight will be 9.5 hours now down to 8.75 in December.

Anyways I'm thinking next weekend (November 20th and 21st). Any thoughts?

Any thoughts? My thought is to wait until May! Or even better, until late September of early October, when the trees are turning colours, the weather can be mild, and there is still plenty of daylight.

If you can maintain an average speed of 18 km/hour -- which is a nice clip -- the trip will take you over 10 hours. Are you sure you want to ride at night?

185 km per day on two consecutive days is a big haul. Racers may be able to cover such distances. Can you? It depends on what shape you are in.

The trip might be viable in November if you cover the distance in two days instead of one. But back and forth in two days in freezing temperatures.... Not me!

A couple of Germans cycled across Canada in the winter, as to whether one would want to...

I think September is pretty nice. I have had bad luck in October, weather seems more riled up. The whole thing is to be flexible, if you want to go, get ready and keep your eye on the weather, sometimes you can get warm spells. In particular look for "heat waves" where you get a warm night. It isn't so much the sleeping, which should be fine in a warm enough bag, it is how long you get the so called "high" temp for the day. We are over 2/3rd of the way towards the shortest day of the year, which is the part I don't like. If you are spending your days out of doors, then you want long daylight which you don't get at this time of year.

Split it into a two-day trip and take a train back if there is a time constraint... otherwise, I think it's viable if you're willing to use lots of lighting, even blinkies in the day especially if it's over-cast. I would go for it if I weren't so lazy, especially in the next few days we'll have clear skies and very mild weather. I'm going to do a century before the week is out.

Thanks! Well I think I will aim for getting there in 2 days then. and get home some other way. I guess the hard part will be getting the bike back.

I've ridden 100-120km at least a couple of times this summer. So it probably makes more sense to aim for that much per day.

As for the weather yes November is about the rainiest time of the year. So I will have to make sure weather is ok before I leave. On the other hand the cloudy weather means that there is less of a difference between day and night temperatures. Right now it's generally low of freezing, high of single digits (Celsius). I think I'd be happy with anything but heavy rain or temperature below freezing.

We've been having a surprising amount of Easterly wind which is not too bad :)

Split it into a two-day trip and take a train back if there is a time constraint... otherwise, I think it's viable if you're willing to use lots of lighting, even blinkies in the day especially if it's over-cast. I would go for it if I weren't so lazy, especially in the next few days we'll have clear skies and very mild weather. I'm going to do a century before the week is out.

Sweet! I have reasonably bright generator lights on the bike I'm taking, but I'll use all the blinkies and stuff from my other bike and light myself up like a Christmas tree :)

I live in Gatineau and I just did a 9 day tour of the Laurentians in October and it was a wonderful ride but a little cold on the drizzly days. Which way are you planning to ride? If you take the Route Verte # 1 you could stop half way in Montebello or use the Petite Nation hostel as a half way point. The north-west wind can get strong most days and the last leg into Gatineau is not the most interesting. If you decide to take the Ontario side it is a little more scenic but it takes longer. If you have any other Questions just let me know as I cycled much of this region.
Gordon

http://www.hihostels.ca/quebec/839/HI-Petite-Nation.hostel

"Split it into a two-day trip and take a train back if there is a time constraint... "

Via Rail no longer provides baggage service between Ottawa and Montreal. :mad:

Which way are you planning to ride? If you take the Route Verte # 1 you could stop half way in Montebello or use the Petite Nation hostel as a half way point.

Thanks Gordon! I didn't know there was a hostel along the way. That is great.


The north-west wind can get strong most days and the last leg into Gatineau is not the most interesting. If you decide to take the Ontario side it is a little more scenic but it takes longer. If you have any other Questions just let me know as I cycled much of this region.

I was thinking of taking the Route Verte just because it looks so straightforward. I've biked to Pointe a Fortune near the Ontario border, so that way I wouldn't have to worry about losing time getting lost and backtracking (which wouldn't be so much of an issue if it were summer).

One question I have is that between Point a Fortune and Oka, the road seemed somewhat hilly (might have been because I was tired and it was raining hard that day), is it similarly sloping from there to Gatineau or is it flatter?

Edit: planning to ride from Westwards from Montreal to Ottawa

Thanks Gordon! I didn't know there was a hostel along the way. That is great.



I was thinking of taking the Route Verte just because it looks so straightforward. I've biked to Pointe a Fortune near the Ontario border, so that way I wouldn't have to worry about losing time getting lost and backtracking (which wouldn't be so much of an issue if it were summer).

One question I have is that between Point a Fortune and Oka, the road seemed somewhat hilly (might have been because I was tired and it was raining hard that day), is it similarly sloping from there to Gatineau or is it flatter?

Edit: planning to ride from Westwards from Montreal to Ottawa

It is straightforward with the exception of the Laval section but coming from Montreal it won’t be much of an issue. I don’t recall any really hilly sections so you must have just had a bad day. The ride into Gatineau is flat and like I mentioned it is the wind that can be an issue. Also be very careful at the intersection at Masson-Angers and stay right as it is really easy to get off of Hwy 148 and end up in Buckingham as it is not well marked!

A one-way rental car might be feasible, especially between 2 sizeable cities. I've done that a few times, and while it may cost a bit more, the lack of hassle is wonderful. You should be able to stuff your bike into a mid-size car, no problem.

A one-way rental car might be feasible, especially between 2 sizeable cities. I've done that a few times, and while it may cost a bit more, the lack of hassle is wonderful. You should be able to stuff your bike into a mid-size car, no problem.

Thanks! I'll probably go with that solution if possible. As my other alternatives seem to be shipping my bike (which might cost as much, would be difficult to do on a Sunday, and I'd end up waiting for a few days until I got the bike back) or getting a lift from someone (which would make me feel terrible what with having someone drive twice the distance, might as well drive there slowly myself :).

You could also check into Greyhound. I know they take baggage, not sure about bikes specifically. If it's not boxed they might not. But you could check.

A few years ago, I transported my bicycle by bus starting from Ottawa for about $25, but things have changed since last summer. The new buses do not take bicycles. (In particular, the so-called "Mega Buses" do not accommodate bicycles. I wrote to complain, and suggested that the company install the same bike racks as city buses. Like that did anything...)

Anyway, check with Greyhound before you decide to take the bus home.

Bon route!

A few years ago, I transported my bicycle by bus starting from Ottawa for about $25, but things have changed since last summer. The new buses do not take bicycles. (In particular, the so-called "Mega Buses" do not accommodate bicycles. I wrote to complain, and suggested that the company install the same bike racks as city buses. Like that did anything...)

Anyway, check with Greyhound before you decide to take the bus home.

Bon route!


You could also check into Greyhound. I know they take baggage, not sure about bikes specifically. If it's not boxed they might not. But you could check.

From the websites: Megabus does not take bikes. Greyhound does but I need to have it in a box. I will have to confirm with them to see, but I think this means I would need to get to Ottawa before closing on Sunday to get a box from a shop.

You could ride to Thurso on one side of the river and come back the other. Entering Gatineau is nothing special and unless it has changed, you have to ride a bit on highway 17 coming out of Ottawa, which sucks big time. Turning around in Thurso would save you that. You can also cross the Ottawa river in Grenville/Hawksbury or Carillon/Pointe-Fortune.

When I transported my bicycle from Ottawa to Toronto, the bus company sold me a bike box at the terminal. It was easy.

I offered to help the driver load the box into the baggage compartment. He gladly accepted my offer, which meant I had peace of mind knowing that my bike had been positioned right during the long trip home.

You could ride to Thurso on one side of the river and come back the other. Entering Gatineau is nothing special and unless it has changed, you have to ride a bit on highway 17 coming out of Ottawa, which sucks big time. Turning around in Thurso would save you that. You can also cross the Ottawa river in Grenville/Hawksbury or Carillon/Pointe-Fortune.

I was thinking of crossing in Hawkesbury.

This is the route I am considering so far:
google maps route (http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Rue+Lakeshore&daddr=45.43961,-74.07008+to:45.4716241,-74.179949+to:45.574259,-74.4582378+to:45.64739,-74.80094+to:Murray+St+E%2FRegional+Road+82+E&hl=en&geocode=FWrUtAIdRgOY-w%3BFXpatQIdwMeV-ympmggFKjTJTDFtCgYS47dtUQ%3BFYjXtQIdkxqU-ykf31IcR8vOTDEBTXx81cADeQ%3BFXNotwIdg9uP-ym5AJwCCcPOTDGo9l3h3uBZ4g%3BFR6GuAId1KCK-ym5VGRSq_DOTDHk3I2ChoFD2g%3BFS4ztQIdOgB9-w&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=4&sz=11&via=1,2,3,4&dirflg=w&sll=45.630845,-74.85054&sspn=0.372601,0.804749&ie=UTF8&ll=45.562141,-74.933624&spn=0.746116,1.609497&z=10)

When I transported my bicycle from Ottawa to Toronto, the bus company sold me a bike box at the terminal. It was easy.

I offered to help the driver load the box into the baggage compartment. He gladly accepted my offer, which meant I had peace of mind knowing that my bike had been positioned right during the long trip home.

I might call them tomorrow and see if they have a box and how late on Sunday I can pick it up. Though I really don't look forward to removing my handlebars. Whenever I mess with them I always feel they're misaligned afterwards... Unless the box is big enough to just remove the wheel and turn the bars...

Another option would be to stow my bike away somewhere in Ottawa and ride back on the next weekend.

I think in the end I'll leave riding all the way to Ottawa for a long weekend next year. I'll just ride out to that Hostel on Saturday and ride home on Sunday, and spend any extra time exploring around.

as a Montrealer, and originally from Ottawa...glad you decided to put it off, I mean..why not enjoy it with better temps. I jsut got in from riding at 4c, nothing wrong with that until it rains, and you are cold, and you have a flat (changed my first flat last week at 4c too, blah, but at least it wasnt raining...)

Assuming the weather is ok, I'll be leaving early this Saturday. I plan on heading as far as Papineauville and then I'll decide whether to continue to Ottawa or head for that Hostel or a motel.

On Sunday I'll most likely just bike back whatever path I take on Saturday.

tomorrow is sunny and high of 9, so not bad. Im sure you have your clothes all figured out for these temps as you have been riding here lately, and to top it off, Sunday looks similiar, a bit of cloud but high of 8.
I have driven the Mtl-Papineauville route many times (in winter though, to go to the Canadian Ski Marathon, the Papineauville High School was where many participants slept Fri and Sat night)--the shoulder isnt super great, so as always, be on the ball.

have a good ride

tomorrow is sunny and high of 9, so not bad. Im sure you have your clothes all figured out for these temps as you have been riding here lately, and to top it off, Sunday looks similiar, a bit of cloud but high of 8.
I have driven the Mtl-Papineauville route many times (in winter though, to go to the Canadian Ski Marathon, the Papineauville High School was where many participants slept Fri and Sat night)--the shoulder isnt super great, so as always, be on the ball.

have a good ride

Thanks! Good to know that the shoulder is crummy I'll aim to get there by sunset, even if it means pushing it a little harder the first day.

Long story short, I made it all the way to Ottawa and got a lift home.

Pictures:
Pictures of trip on Dropbox (http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/9676873/1/montreal_ottawa_november_2010?h=b8e8de)

Details:
Total distance: 246km
total time on bike: 14hours 40 minutes
average speed: 16.7 km/h
max speed: 46 km/h

final point reached: spider statue in Ottawa

Detailed description of trip to follow.

just to mention, that 16.7 kmh average.....that is just about what my aver. speed was on all the long trips I have done.
I rode both sat and sun and seeing your shots of early morning show it was at about 0c. You looked well dressed, hope you had good gloves etc, and that your feet were alright.
Look forward to reading more, interesting to see that it was 250km, quite a bit more than by car on the 417 isnt it? Did you start in St Anne as on your route map? You know, from NDG to my folks place in the east end of Ottawa, its only 180k, so 70k more is quite a bit isnt it? Oh, was that the 417 in the shot with the highway? May do this trip one day, so will be interested to see the route and your impressions of the roads. I guess youdid cross at Hawksbury? and then hit the 148 all the way down? And where did you stay half-way?

cheers

Hi djb,

Thanks for the post. You brought up every single point I wanted to talk about in my description. I will get to them. For now here is my route on the first day:
Day1 Route (http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Chemin+du+Bord+du+Lac+Lakeshore&daddr=45.42561,-74.06108+to:45.4710971,-74.17634+to:Chemin+de+la+Grande+Ligne%2FRue+Saint+Jean+Baptiste+E%2FQC-342+O+to:45.5836521,-74.4613478+to:Main+St+E%2FCounty+Road+4+to:45.61676,-75.01238+to:Rue+Principale%2FQC-321+N+to:QC-321+N+to:Rue+Principale%2FQC-321+N&hl=en&geocode=FeZ2tQIdtSya-w%3BFcojtQId6OqV-ylJ3FuofDbJTDEKFL9oAG0Qww%3BFXnVtQIdrCiU-ynjI8LmRsvOTDEBTXx81cADeQ%3BFSr1tQIdwjyS-w%3BFSSNtwIdXc-P-yldFmxXHsPOTDHAdE1yv6pNqw%3BFcj1twIdJKON-w%3BFXgOuAId5GaH-yk3FWGuRFnOTDHhafIWRpjtmQ%3BFVK1uQIdgsSG-w%3BFbQYuwId-5eG-w%3BFaSuuQIdvMGG-w&mra=dpe&mrcr=2&mrsp=6&sz=12&via=1,2,4,6&dirflg=w&sll=45.651248,-74.927444&sspn=0.156954,0.461426&ie=UTF8&ll=45.419901,-73.826752&spn=0.157601,0.461426&z=12)

or:
http://tinyurl.com/montreal-ottawa-2010-day1

A is where I left, B is where I had breakfast, C is where I had lunch, D and F are the location of the Hostel where I stayed the night and E was the point a little further along I cycled to, in order to make it a century. Note that I took a more roundabout where through Ile-Perot (1km extra) and one part of the 148 where the route verte makes a detour due to lack of shoulder (I'm guessing that and other minor stuff makes the 2km difference).

Edit: And here is my route on the second day:
Day2 Route (http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Rue+Principale%2FQC-321+S&daddr=45.62077,-75.01711+to:45.4931773,-75.5804826+to:45.47623,-75.61024+to:45.46472,-75.6807468+to:Unknown+road&hl=en&geocode=FfKhuQIdxLmG-w%3BFSIeuAIdalSH-ymbYsFGXlnOTDHfz73h-Y8jrg%3BFbkrtgIdvrt--yk7l1OX8hDOTDEWgSkVIdTc9g%3BFYbptQIdgEd--ylzMUL8eRDOTDHgKesaRUaQCQ%3BFZC8tQIdFjR9-yktg-7QLhvOTDFBdMlb_x_JUg%3BFbA1tQIdGPF8-w&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=4&sz=14&via=1,2,3,4&dirflg=w&sll=45.471929,-75.670652&sspn=0.039364,0.115356&ie=UTF8&ll=45.584731,-75.29892&spn=0.314281,0.922852&z=11)

or:
http://tinyurl.com/montreal-ottawa-2010-day2

This time the extra km vs the map come from me getting lost in Gatineau.

just to mention, that 16.7 kmh average.....that is just about what my aver. speed was on all the long trips I have done.

I have found that too. Though this time it was a short trip, but it was my first time with these larger panniers and it was like dragging lead parachute :)


I road both sat and sun and seeing your shots of early morning show it was at about 0c. You looked well dressed, hope you had good gloves etc, and that your feet were alright.

It was around 0c in those shots. But on Saturday I left at about 3 am and by sunrise it was -3 in Montreal and probably a little colder off the island. At 6am everything was covered in frost and I even passed a road near Hudson where there was salt and ice on the road. I was warm enough for the trip except for that morning. I was fooled by the weather report that said low of -1, and didn't bring wool socks. My feet were cold from 4:30 until just after sunrise (about 2 hours), but I had no other discomfort the rest of the ride.


Look forward to reading more, interesting to see that it was 250km, quite a bit more than by car on the 417 isnt it? Did you start in St Anne as on your route map? You know, from NDG to my folks place in the east end of Ottawa, its only 180k, so 70k more is quite a bit isnt it?

I left from Pointe-Claire. From there the driving route through the 417 would be 181km, and the direct version of the route I took (through Rigaud into Ontario, crossing the 417 and crossing back over into Quebec at Hawksbury, and riding along the 148 through Gatineau) would be 185km.


Oh, was that the 417 in the shot with the highway?

Yes that was at the overpass at Chute-a-Blondeau provincial park


May do this trip one day, so will be interested to see the route and your impressions of the roads. I guess youdid cross at Hawksbury? and then hit the 148 all the way down? And where did you stay half-way?

Definitely a fun trip. My impression of the route may be skewed because I left so early and didn't see much traffic until I hit the 148. The shoulder on the 148 is pretty decent, what isn't so much fun is the speed of the traffic. It took me a while to get used to it. There was one section maybe an hour after Hawksbury/Grenville without a shoulder but the route verte took a detour that was pleasant. I would probably recommend crossing over in Thurso or something like that, because from there through until the bike path in Gatineau near Ottawa the 148 wasn't too interesting.

I stayed in the HI Hostel at Saint-Andre-Avelin. It was 14km north of the 148. I also rode an extra 20 km there to complete my "century" the first day. Up until Saint-Andre-Avelin that northwards road has shoulders only about half the time, and it hilly, nothing ridiculous but consistently climbing. Not so bad, but it took me a while before I was confident enough not to pull off into the gravel shoulder each time a car would pass by. On my just for fun ride past Saint-Andre-Avelin is where I saw the only other cyclist outside of a town or city. She was a female road cyclist who passed me going uphill. I saw her riding back the other way a little later.

I think I'll do the trip again next summer but maybe on the Ontario side trying to stick to the river as much as possible.