I'm trying to figure out which side of Ottawa river is better for riding, the Ontario side or the Quebec side. Has anybody done both and can compare? Road surface, scenery, camp sites, towns with stores to buy food?
On Quebec side we'd ride Route Verte (http://tinyurl.com/RouteVerte-Outaouais), on Ontario side we'd follow route from this site: http://www.hedney.com/o-m.htm.
I'm just starting to research the trip and would appreciate your input.
The food is bound to be better on the Quebec side.
Zero gallons to the mile
That what I was thinking too ;-)
Not necessarily. Depending on your route, Ontario could be offering fresh Lancaster perch, Glengarry cheeses and Beau's all-natural beers vs. Quebec's chien chaud, poutine and Jos. Louis cakes. You can find good food -- and very bad food -- on both sides of the mighty Ottawa.Originally Posted by Boudicca
The ontario side is much quieter and often closer to the river. The road is in better condition for the most part.
The Quebec side is better serviced (camping, food quality and variety), simpler to follow (148 and 344). The scenery has a little more variety and nicer towns but the traffic noise on the 148 can get old fast.
I prefer riding in Ontario and camp in Quebec. You can cross the river in many places. Most ferries are 2$ and take cash only.
This is what I would do: http://maps.google.ca/maps?saddr=Unk...b&z=9&lci=bike
The idea is to visit/camp at Plaisance park and camp in Carillon. You could cross the river in Cumberland to Masson-Anger.
As the map shows, you can get through Voyageur park to Pointe-Fortune. The park is nice with a few beaches but camping is expensive. Better cross to Carillon and camp at the municipal campground (left off the ferry). The 16$ are just as good as the 20$ ones, and there are 11,50$ bike-only sites in the Von Allen woods across the road behind, which are totally quiet (and probably mosquito-ridden), but without tap water and shower. You can shower at the main campsites. Showers take loonies (I had to ride in town just to get loonies). With the bags off the bikes, I suggest taking a short ride on the path parallel to the road and come back on the road along the reservoir. Get food in Hawksbury or Grenville.
From Carillon, you can explore the little network of paths to l'île-aux-Chats and reach St-André-Est on Route des Seigneurs (Google Maps wouldn't allow that). Stick to the 344 to Oka.
From Oka, I always get across to Hudson and ride into MTL from the west because it's more convenient for me. It's a nice ride except for a few spots between Avenue St-Charles and the island of Montreal. Highway 20 between Vaudreuil and the island of Montreal is accessible to bikes with a wide shoulder. Once on the island, stick to Lakeshore. I've never entered Montreal from the north.
Thanks Erick, that's wonderful advice! I never even thought about crossing back and forth. I guess I didn't know you actually could cross the river in so many places.
And thanks for taking the time to make a map, really appreciate it.
Last edited by lucille; 06-30-11 at 09:34 PM.
Ooh. I want to keep that map too.
Tell you what. You can try it out Lucille, and I'll ride it next year.
Zero gallons to the mile
It's a deal!Ooh. I want to keep that map too.
Tell you what. You can try it out Lucille, and I'll ride it next year.
Thought I come back with a report, if anybody else is planning to do the trip (other than Boudicca ;-)
We pretty much followed Eric's route. He's absolutely right, the Ontario side is much quieter, and nicer to ride. That Route Verte part on the map is super busy. Nice shoulder, but trucks and cars zipping by at 100 kms/hr (it's a 90 km/hr road) got a bit tiring after a while.
The ferries were fun, campsites very nice (you need quarters for showers in Quebec's campsites), we never had trouble finding a supermarket to get food and water.
On the same trip we went to St Jerome, boarded the bus (www.autobuslepetittraindunord.com) that took us to Mont-Laurier and rode down to Montreal. Le Petit Train du Nord is very nice, as often mentioned on this forum. Especially the northern part, which is paved.
The crushed stone on the southern part unfortunately was much worse than we expected. I think it's the variety of stone that's used, but it's not the same as rail to trails in Ontario I've been on. The surface was very soft and very dusty. It felt like riding through quick sand at times. Maybe it was just us on fully loaded bikes, but we found it hard and not much fun.
I wouldn't recommend this part of the trail to anybody with asthma or breathing problems.
Overall great trip, riding in Ottawa and Montreal couldn't be easier. Toronto has a lot to learn.
If anybody has questions, please go ahead.
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