Lisa Stokes

Barrie and Penetanguishene – Day 3

We were up at 7:30 again. A typical hotel buffet breakfast was included in the room rate. We were quick to eat and pack up and outside ready to go at 8:45 AM.

We had arranged to meet Sharry and Ron for coffee at Grounded Coffee Company. We barely had to pedal the 3 km downhill to the waterfront. We used the extra time to visit the murals Ron had shown us last night.

We passed the ubiquitous small town Ontario Carnegie library. Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish American businessman and philanthropist. A total of 2509 Carnegie libraries were built between 1883 and 1929. There were 125 built in Canada, 111 of which are in Ontario. This particular Carnegie library building has been repurposed into a home decor shop and café, known as Olde Town Library.

These are just two of the many murals we passed.

We then rode out on the pier to get a daytime view of the “Huron Native and Jesuit Priest at Sainte-Marie” mural, which measures 80 feet by 250 feet, making it the largest outdoor historic mural in North America. The mural depicts a Jesuit Priest and a Huron Native gazing from a hilltop over the Wye Valley and into the nearby village of Saint-Marie, as it would have appeared in 1640. The light was perfect, and the water reflective.

We rode back north on the pier and stopped at this beautiful sculpture of a trumpeter swan by Ron Hunt.

Ron and Sharry were picking up their coffee when we arrived at Grounded. Their famous scones had already sold out, but their cookies looked very good so we each bought one for the road.

We had another enjoyable visit. When Midland Ski and Bike, across the street from the coffee shop, opened at 10 AM we went to see if I could replace my mirror. They had bar end mirrors and helmet mirrors, but none for glasses. I tried to see if the helmet mirror would work for me, but I was uncertain, so I didn’t get it since I have another glasses mirror at home.

We set out on the Midland Rotary Waterfront Trail, a paved 8.5 km multi-use path.

In this section the homes on the right have private water access on the left. Fortunately, the town carved out the space for the trail in between.

That’s led us to Sainte-Marie among the Hurons. This was Ontario‘s first European community, and was the headquarters for the French Jesuit mission to the Huron-Wendat people. It was founded in 1639 and ended in 1649 when members of the mission community were forced to abandon and burn their home of 10 years.

The sun was directly behind the site and made it very difficult to photograph. We didn’t have time to explore the museum.

This is the Martyrs’ Shrine Midland. Construction began in 1925 and took one year to complete.

We planned a direct road route back to Barrie. We passed the beginning of the Tay Shore Trail, part of the Simcoe Loop, on our way to the road. It would have made for too long a ride for the day for us to continue following the Simcoe Loop.

It was the day of hill climbing with 642 m of climbing and 66 km of distance. There were a couple spots where we had to walk.

This beautiful tree was at the top of one of the climbs where we stopped to catch our breath.

Lunch was in Hillsdale. The Hillsdale Old Corner Store shared a building with a pizza shop at the main intersection. We spread our business across both.

We passed this interesting building on the way into Hillsdale and a Brampton Brick location, just south of Hillsdale.

At the top of another steep climb, there was an old cemetery where we stopped to rest. This gravestone tells the story of how common deadly childhood disease was prior to modern vaccination.

We had to make another detour as we were getting close to Barrie because of a road being completely dug up. It took us twice as far as the planned route, and onto a climb on Bayfield Street, which was like like a highway at this point. At the corner where we got back to the planned route there was a Giant Bike Store. We decided to turn in and have a look around, and have another rest. Cindy bought some chain lube and a couple Presta to Schrader stem converters.

Shortly after leaving the bike store, we entered the Simcoe Forest Hickling Track which has a recreational Trail, which is apparently part of the Trans Canada Trail. It started out all right, but soon deteriorated into single track mountain bike climbs, which were impossible for us to ride with our loaded panniers. I wouldn’t take that route again.

It did roughly follow an undeveloped road allowance for Anne Street which was a pleasant street on which to ride into Barrie.

Fortunately, the last few kilometres to Gail‘s condo were downhill since she’s on the waterfront. We were both very glad to get off our bikes with over 100 km completed for the day.

Gail met us outside the garage and gave us her key fob and keys to the guest suite. We secured our bikes and I went upstairs for the bundle buggy of linens. We then had a refreshing swim.

The three of us went out to dinner at Barnstormer’s, a local brew pub. The fish tacos were good.

Barrie and Penetanguishene – Day 2

We woke at 7:30 and stripped the bed. We packed the bedding and towels into the bundle buggy Gail had provided us. We took that up to her condo, where she had a delicious breakfast waiting for us. Gail even provided us with hard boiled eggs for a snack on the road. The route was about 70 km.

We rode west across Barrie to the North Simcoe Rail Trail. The route followed quiet streets downtown, and went under Highway 400 at Tiffin Street, which had a short stretch of bike lane then paved shoulders. Dunlop Street turned into Highway 90, a busy road with fast traffic. However, it had very wide paved shoulders.

We passed the Royal Canadian Air Force Parkette on Highway 90. It has a CT – 133443 Silver Star jet on display.

We turned off Highway 90 onto Pinegrove Road, which has a nice smooth surface, and very little traffic.

Before long, we arrived at the south end of the North Simcoe Rail Trail. The North Simcoe Railway was a railway line built in 1878, connecting the town of Colwell (near Barrie) to Penetanguishene, primarily to serve the lumber industry. It was later acquired by the Grand Trunk Railway and then Canadian National Railway. The line was ultimately decommissioned. Today, its former route is a popular recreational path known as the North Simcoe Rail Trail. It runs through the communities of Minesing and Springwater in Simcoe County. The trail is part of the Trans Canada Trail.

The section of the trail between Highway 90 and Pinegrove Road is closed, which is why we used Pine Grove Road to access the trail which runs for 32 km.

When we saw these stairs, we decided to explore what was above. It was Fort Willow Conservation Area. Fort Willow was strategically located as a supply depot during the war of 1812. It was also “used for centuries by first nations, for trade and French explorers as part of a major transportation route known as the Nine Mile Portage”.

Artwork allows visitors to envision the buildings that once stood inside the timber outlines on the ground. They are based on archeological studies that identified “brick kiln, a commandant’s house, an officer’s kitchen, stable and yard, a blacksmith’s shop, a cookhouse, and barracks”.

As we set off, I reached into my jersey pocket where I had put my sunglasses with my rearview mirror attached and realized I had lost the mirror. We retraced our steps, but sadly did not find the mirror. Fortunately, most of the day was on the trail, making the mirror less necessary than usual. I checked on Amazon to see if I could have one delivered to Gail, but the shipping time was too long to make it useful for this trip, and I have another one at home. Somehow, I also managed to save my ride, so there are two screen caps at the end of this post to show our route and stats for the day.

This is the Minesing swamp. It is one of Ontario‘s largest remaining wetlands.

At Minesing Station there was a parking lot, shade shelter, seating, and a painted bike repair station.

The trail was substantially shaded, but this section was in the middle of a field. Fortunately, it wasn’t hot.

The trail surface was reasonably good. There were occasional examples of fall colors.

We left the trail south of Elmvale where we planned to go to the Elmvale bakery for lunch. Unfortunately, they are closed on Mondays, so we ended up at McDonald’s.

Just north of Elmvale, we headed for the Tiny Trail via Heritage Park. It is a 23 km trail that is partially paved, and partially crushed gravel, that links the North Simcoe Rail Trail to the Town of Penetanguishene’s Waterfront Trail. It was a former CN railway that was abandoned in 1969. In 1978 Tiny Township purchased 22.5 km of the old railway right of way for $10,000. The purchase agreement stipulated that the long strip of property was to be used as a linear park.

Prior to the construction of the railway, stage coaches used to run between Barrie and Penetanguishene, with a tavern every 2 km for passengers to rest. The North Simcoe Railway Line Was Built in 1878 to Replace the stagecoach service, much to the annoyance of the 37 tavern owners.

The trail on the north side of Flos Road 10 requires a detour to the east, then north on County Road 27, and a left turn onto County Road 6 to pick it up again. When we got to the the trail, which was accessed right beside someone’s house, it was grassy and there was a smooth empty road adjacent to it, so we took the road for a few kilometers.

After seeing the trail on these abutments from the road, we joined it at the next opportunity.

The trail was very wide and very smooth. This is one of the 14 bridges along the trail.

They had excellent way finding with the trail name, road crossing name, distance from the beginning of the trail, GPS coordinates, a map, and permitted uses.

The trail continued to closely parallel the road, but the surface was good and shaded, so we stayed on it.

There were quite a few benches along the trail and we took advantage of one.

There were amenities and a parking lot where the trail crossed Balm Beach Road East.

It was challenging running the railway into Penetanguishene. Steep grades posed considerable challenge to railway planners. Penetanguishene is protected by high ground to the south and to the west of town. To minimize the grade, the best approach was to enter from the southwest along the creek bed of Copeland Creek. The drawback to this was the meandering nature of Copeland Creek, which cut back-and-forth within the ravine it had carved out. Since the railway could not follow this zigzag route, the solution was to build 11 bridges over the creek.

Those bridges deteriorated and had to be replaced. The replacements have been installed closer to the creek, leading to a steep descent and ascent after each bridge. The trail is also curvy. It was like riding a roller coaster. It’s not a section that an inexperienced cyclist would want to ride. Fortunately, they paved this section of the trail.

Just after the 11 bridges, there was a large culvert to take the trail under the road. Unfortunately, it was surfaced with sand and our bikes started fishtailing as we entered it, so we dismounted and walked them through. It always irritates me to see the government install a sign advising caution, rather than fixing the problem.

This was the beginning of the Penetanguishene Trail.

Just before the trail crosses the road I spotted this cute “bike”.

The Penetanguishene Trail is paved and runs along the waterfront.

There is a sculpture park that include this sculpture, entitled The Meeting. It is a celebration of two people, two faces, and two distinct cultures coming together 400 years ago.

Facing away from the water and looking south along the sculpture walk, one could see the spires of Saint Anne Catholic Church. It is often called the ‘The Cathedral of the North’. Construction began in 1886 and finished in 1902.

The marina was visible from the trail.

Near the waterfront, along the trail, was this amphitheater.

Our hotel for the night was the Super 8 in Midland, which necessitated two significant climbs from the waterfront. We gave up about a third of the way up the first hill on Main Street, with the excuse of stopping to photograph this mural. Then we walked our bikes to the top.

The second hill was between Penetanguishene and Midland. Fortunately, there was multi-use path so we didn’t have to be concerned about being close passed by fast moving motor vehicles. We did manage to ride up the second hill.

When we got to the hotel, they couldn’t find our reservation. Cindy had reserved it on booking.com. They couldn’t find it by her name or the reservation number she had. At one point the clerk asked Cindy if she was sure she hadn’t accidentally booked the Midland, Texas location? I wandered away while they were trying to work it out and when I returned a few minutes later and looked at Cindy‘s phone I noticed that she had booked it for October 15 instead of September 15! Cindy has a very busy September and October with a number of trips, although she couldn’t figure out how she made such a mistake. Fortunately, it was a Monday night and the hotel was able to accommodate us.

The place we selected for dinner was back down on the waterfront. Neither of us wanted to have to ride uphill again after a refreshing swim and shower, so we agreed that we would use Uber. Cindy called Ron and Sharry before swimming to tell them we were in town. They suggested that they could join us for dinner, and we agreed. They offered to pick us up, which saved us having to use Uber.

We went to The Boathouse for dinner, which has a lovely patio right by the marina.

It has a view of the “Huron Native and Jesuit Priest at Sainte-Marie” mural, which measures 80 feet by 250 feet, making it the largest outdoor historic mural in North America. The mural depicts a Jesuit Priest and a Huron Native gazing from a hilltop over the Wye Valley and into the nearby village of Saint-Marie, as it would have appeared in 1640.

After dinner, Ron drove us around town pointing out the many murals. The Midland Mural Festival is September 27, 2025, and features over 30 outdoor murals.

Barrie and Penetanguishene – Day 1

I have a friend in Barrie, Gail, who has a condo on Kempenfelt Bay. The condo has a suite that can be rented for $55 per night by condo owners for their guests. Last year, I was unable to participate in a ride of the Simcoe Loop that Cindy and some other BikeBrampton members did. So Cindy and I decided to do a four day tour to Barrie and Penetanguishene, with day three planned along the western side of the loop. I cycled another portion of the Simcoe loop, from Barrie to Orillia, a few weeks ago. We stayed in the guest suite on days one and three, and at a hotel in Midland, where Cindy has friends, on the middle night. I reduced the weight of my panniers to 8.3kg for this trip. I left my iPad and charging block at home, along with one less pair of shoes, and warm jacket.

We started by riding north on Torbram Road to the Caledon Trailway. The weather was perfect, and forecast to stay that way for the whole trip. The morning started with the temperature of between 11 and 15°C, and the afternoons ranged from about 20 to 25°C. This is my Goldilocks zone – not too hot, not too cold, but just right.

We saw a few isolated trees that have started to turn color, but it’s still mostly green.

We made our usual stop for water at the Caledon East Community Complex.

We passed only a few people on the trail until we got Humber Station Road. Then we were reminded that today is the Terry Fox run day. The trail was very busy for the next few kilometers.

The Caledon Trailway connects seamlessly to the New Tecumseth Trail at Highway 9. I recently wrote in more detail about riding the Caledon Trailway and New Tecumseth Trail to Tottenham.

We knew we were close to our planned lunch stop when we saw the Tottenham water tower. We often stop at the Tim Hortons on Queen Street North, but they are closed for renovation, so we went to the A&W next-door, instead.

Tottenham is known for the South Simcoe Railway. They offer excursions “operated by the South Simcoe Railway Heritage Corporation, a nonprofit historical association, dedicated to the preservation and operation of railway equipment from Canada‘s steam era“.

The rail trail is discontinuous since tourist trains are still operated on the section between Tottenham and Beeton. I planned a route for the rest of the way to Barrie by road. This allowed me pick up new tiles. I have cycled the 28 km on rail trails that go from Beeton to just south of Barrie, on the west side of Highway 400 at Gateway Casinos Innisfil. Our timing enabled us to see the train in operation.

It was such a perfect day. The blue sky was filled with fluffy white clouds, and we saw an occasional red maple completely turned to fall colours.

We stopped in Beeton for coffee and cookies.

Our route led us through a very flat agricultural area with very little traffic. We passed sod and vegetable farms.

We saw a lot of of these rolling irrigation machines.

Crops were being harvested on quite a few of the farms.

I found this field interesting, with stands of corn interspersed with another crop.

It was flat here, but there was a climb ahead.

We did a few out-and-backs on east-west roads to pick up tiles near Highway 400. Some of those were gravel and quite hilly.

We spotted a quilt shop on Highway 27 just north of Cookstown and stopped. There was lots to tempt us, but without much room to carry things, we only made a few small purchases.

I wear a cycling mirror on my glasses so that I can keep an eye on the traffic and people riding behind me. It helps me to be much more aware of what’s going on around me, and it’s especially helpful when making left turns.

We saw quite a few barns with quilt blocks on them.

We decided to stop in Thornton for ice cream at this very colourful shop. The group picture on the left was interested in how far we had cycled, and were very shocked and impressed to find out we had 100 km planned for the day.

As we entered Barrie, we came across the scene of a recent collision. One vehicle was rolled over and another was damaged. A firetruck was being used to protect the scene. All of the cars had to make a U-turn, but we were able to go through on our bikes.

Barrie is in a bowl. There are a lot more hills than we are used to in Brampton.

When we got to Gail‘s place I didn’t quite have 100 km, so we did a short out-and-back on Barrie’s North Shore Trail, which is a multi-use recreational trail, running the entire length of Barrie’s North Shore of Kempenfelt Bay. We did an arrival picture in front of Spirit Catcher by sculptor Ron Baird.

We locked up our bikes in front of Gail‘s car in the parking garage. Then we went up to the condo with her to pick up a bundle buggy with sheets and towels, before taking a refreshing swim, which soothed our bodies, tired by the 100 km ride.

Gail made us a delicious dinner. We enjoyed the view of downtown Barrie as the day ended.

Barrie and Algonquin Highlands – Days 4 and 5

Day 4 – No Biking Travel Day

The forecast for the day was 25 to 35 mm of rain. We got up, had breakfast, and packed. David and Dayle are heading back to Brampton for a few days. Dayle supplied me with a rain poncho, rain pants, and plastic bags, and elastics for my feet. We didn’t want to have to sit in wet clothing for the drive to Orillia.

Packing the boat was much easier with the three bikes already in the van.

The rain was moderate, and eased as we crossed to the government dock.

David and Dayle store their motorboat at the cottage. Once we unloaded, David took it back. He then kayaked back to the government dock.

Surprisingly, the rain had stopped for his return trip and loading of the kayak.

Fortunately, we were able to get all of the bikes inside the car. It did rain off and on during the drive so we were happy to be able to keep the bikes dry and clean from road spray.

Martha and Bruce were already at the restaurant when we arrived.

We had a nice visit. The restaurant provided a beautifully decorated plate and slice of cake with a candle, and we sang “Happy Birthday.”

Fare shares a parking lot with the Stephen Leacock Museum.

Stephen Leacock (1869-1944) was a Canadian humourist and economist. The Leacock Museum National Historic Site encompasses his summer cottage, boathouse, and gardens. It is on the shore of Lake Couchiching in Orillia.

We decided not to take the time to visit because we figured traffic would be bad on the Friday of the holiday weekend. It will definitely be on my list for the next time I visit Orillia.

We arrived at my friend Jennifer‘s house about 3 PM. We hadn’t seen each other since before the pandemic. We spent the rest of the day catching up. Jennifer and I went to Made in Mexico for dinner. It was so fun catching up, and we vowed to make it a much more regular occurrence in the future.

Day 5 – Barrie to Brampton by Bike

I was ready to roll just after 9:30 AM. I said goodbye to Jennifer and her family and was on my way. I decided that today would be my first gran fondo (100 kilometre ride), this year.

I have cycled from Barrie to Brampton once before, and have cycled from Brampton to Barrie a couple times. Those rides were primarily on the Caledon Trailway, New Tecumseth Trail, and the Thornton Cookstown Trail. All three trails are part of the Trans Canada Trail. Since I want to expand my tile collection, I planned today’s route off the trails, to pick up new tiles. I’m always surprised by how hilly Barrie is. I had almost 100 m of climbing by the time I got out of the city.

Knock School, built in 1901, has been repurposed as a community centre.

In order to get 100 km for the day, I travelled east initially, and went under Highway 400 on Essa Road. Then I crossed back over the 400 at Sixth Line. It was a beautiful day for riding.

I spotted this pastoral, but rundown, scene from the bridge over the 400.

I had to detour around a road closure. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Fifth Sideroad was newly paved.

There was a lot of climbing, but also an almost equal amount of descending.

Most of the roads were fairly lightly travelled by motor vehicles, and everybody gave me plenty of room.

About 30 km in I stopped for a small snack. My legs were feeling quite fatigued on the hills despite the rest day yesterday. Tuesday and Wednesday also had a lot of climbing.

I recognized this barn as one I have passed on a tile collecting ride in the past. So I knew from here on that I was not collecting any new tiles. 20 of the 68 tiles I travelled through were new.

There was a pretty late-season field of sunflowers under the Hydro towers in New Tecumseth.

Barry and Cindy met me in Tottenham at the Tim Hortons for lunch.

We left the trail at Humber Station Road. Cindy also collects tiles, although not as passionately as I do. She needed some on this road. My legs were becoming pretty depleted at this point. There were two hills that I couldn’t make it all the way up with my 16 kg bike, 11 kg panniers, and tired legs.

When I rode from Barrie to Brampton six years ago, using the trails that I mostly avoided today, my elevation gain was 416 m, compared with 819 m today. No wonder my legs were tired. The trails have a little more rolling resistance, given that they are generally unpaved. However, on a ride like today’s, the lack of rolling hills on the trails probably more than offsets the extra energy needed to ride on the limestone screenings.

As I passed my street, I had about 3 km to go so I accompanied Barry to the Chinguacousy Wellness Centre to refill his water bottle before continuing to Georgetown. Cindy also took the long way home to get a gran fondo. Barry ended up riding 125 km.

It was so great having two good friends accompany me for part of my longest ride this year. It’s been a great week spending time David and Dayle , and catching up with Jennifer.

Cindy and I will be heading back to Barrie and beyond on September 14 for a four day getaway.

In the last two weeks I have cycled 512 km with 3227m of climbing. David and Dayle, Cindy and I will be riding from Montreal to Sherbrooke to Berthierville to Montreal, which will be 513 km and 2392m of climbing, over seven days, starting October 10. I’ll be continuing to train my legs for the next five and a half weeks with the hope that the Quebec trip won’t be too tiring.

Barrie and Algonquin Highlands – Day 3

The cottage was even colder this morning than yesterday, but the sun came out, and it looked like it would be a good day for riding. We couldn’t decide where to ride, and the connectivity at the cottage was quite poor this morning, so we got ready to go, loaded the bikes into the boat, transferred them to the van, and drove into Dorset. We decided to ride in the opposite direction to what we did yesterday, and ride to Dwight.

The hill out of Dorset in this direction wasn’t as steep as the one we did yesterday, but was much longer.

Even though we were all going to the same place at the same time, we ended up quite spread out. The ride today was only 18 km one way, but even hillier than yesterday‘s ride. I caught up to David when he stopped for a snack at about 12 km. We waited for Dayle to catch up to us and also have a snack.

Most of the ride was on Highway 35. In some places, there was a shoulder of about a meter, but in many places, the shoulder was nonexistent. However, most of the drivers were quite considerate in their passing distance. Even though the drivers weren’t aggressive, it was still a relief to turn off onto Dwight Beach Road.

The Group of Seven Outdoor Gallery is a year-round, free, public art exhibition, featuring 103 recreations of art masterpieces, by Canada’s Group of Seven artists and Tom Thomson. Two of the works are on the recreation centre in Dorset.

Dwight wasn’t very busy today, with lots of parking spots available right beside the beach. The beach was quite extensive with lovely white sand.

We availed ourselves of the public washrooms before deciding where to go for lunch. Fortunately, there was a map of local attractions, including restaurants.

We chose Erika’s. We had sandwiches and chocolate milk for lunch. They had a very nice covered area for eating outdoors.

The biggest hill of the day was almost back at Dorset. It became steeper about halfway up, and was about a kilometre long.

We passed the Dorset Scenic Lookout tower. We didn’t stop today, but we did visit it last August. It’s definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area. There is a small admission fee listed at the link above, and a small gift and snack shop.

It’s difficult to get a photo of the tower because the trees are so close.

Above the tree-line the views are phenomenal. The observation deck is 142 metres above Lake of Bays.

The art piece Unfeasibly Large Binoculars at the base of the Dorset Scenic Lookout Tower was created by Don Pell. These binoculars pay homage to the amazing views from the park. Looking through each barrel of the binoculars reveals silhouetted scenery.

This chart shows the average date of peak fall colors. The Dorset Scenic Lookout Tower website has a tower camera. If one wanted to visit the tower during peak colours one could keep an eye on the camera.

Here we are done riding, still smiling. In 37 km we had 411 m of climbing. That’s double what we would typically climb riding around in Brampton for that distance.

We were invited to the neighbours for 5 PM for drinks and snacks. We arrived back at the cottage just after four. David and Dayle went in for a swim, but I went straight into a warm shower. We had a lovely visit with the neighbours. They had a beautiful cottage which was warmed by a fire. David expressed surprise because Algonquin Highlands has a total fire ban in effect right now. However, the neighbours remarked that it didn’t apply to fires for heating indoors. As I write this blog, I looked it up and they are correct. A total fire ban means all outdoor burning, including cooking fires, bonfires, and fireworks, is prohibited.

When we return to the cottage, David decided to start a fire in the enclosed wood stove and it warmed everything up very quickly. We had dinner and an early bedtime. We are all quite tired.

There’s an enormous amount of rain predicted overnight and all day tomorrow. We decided to leave the bikes in the car tonight, rather than having to transport and load them in the rain. Tomorrow we will be meeting David’s sister, Martha, and her husband in Orillia for her birthday lunch. After lunch, David and Dayle will drop me at a friend’s house in Barrie, where I will stay for the night. Weather permitting. I plan to ride home on Friday.

Barrie and Algonquin Highlands – Day 2

David and Dayle are very skilled at getting a lot in a very small boat. The road from the dock is very hilly, with blind corners, and absolutely no shoulder. So when we ride here, we drive the bikes into Dorset to start.

It was only 5° and overcast, but dry, when we got up. We had a hearty oatmeal breakfast. Then we dressed warmly for riding. I haven’t dressed this warmly for months. I’ve been complaining about the heat all summer, but it was challenging to acclimatize to the sudden cold. I would much rather ride in these temperatures, though, than the hot humid days that we’ve been experiencing this summer.

We parked the car at Centennial Park in Dorset. There is a recreation centre right across the street which we were able to visit for the bathroom.

Here we are ready to ride.

This one lane bridge over a channel in Dorset has a traffic light to control the direction of movement.

It was a day of rolling hills. I think the climb out of Dorset to Highway 117 was the steepest climb of the day.

I stopped here for a picture of the red bike. While stopped I swapped my gloves for fingerless ones, and removed the beanie hat I had under my helmet.

We had a small snack on the side of the road after about 75 minutes of riding. I also swapped my lightly insulated jacket for a thin windbreaker.

David planned today’s route. One option was a circumnavigation of the Lake of Bays, which would have been almost 80 kilometers. Alternatively, it could be an out and back to Baysville for 54 km. We chose Baysville.

Here we are arriving at Baysville. Just before turning off 117 David and I stopped to wait for Dayle, and saw this juvenile fox run by.

It was an awfully cold day to be jumping off the bridge into the water.

I thought this was a cute building. Most of the restaurants in Baysville were closed.

This mural was painted by Chantelle Poisson, a local artist.

We had lunch at Miss Nelle’s. We chatted for a while to a women outside the restaurant. She told us that her husband had been riding locally, and was struck by a driver who left the scene. Fortunately, a neighbour heard his phone ringing in the ditch, and found him. He was so severely injured that he was taken by air ambulance to hospital in Toronto. He spent months in hospital and more time in rehab. The driver was caught, and was impaired when she hit him.

We all had breakfast bagels. I thought they were quite good. My latte and chocolate chip cookie were average, at best. The premises were cute and matched my panniers.

This scene is across the road from the restaurant.

This was one of the many hills that we climbed today. But there was also a lot of descending, and the grades on most of the hills weren’t too bad.

We are almost back to the car.

Last hill!

The bikes are loaded in the boat ready for transporting back to the cottage.

David and Dayle went swimming when we got back. The water is warmer than the air. The air temperature was only about 15° at best. I was concerned I would have difficulty warming up after a swim, so I changed out of my cycling clothes, and made myself a cup of tea, instead.

We had a relaxing evening. We will decide in the morning where to ride tomorrow.

Barrie and Algonquin Highlands – Day 1

David and Dayle invited me to their cottage for a few days. I wasn’t able to drive because Michael needs the car at home. David said as long as I could get myself and my bike to Barrie, they would pick me up. I asked Michael to drive me to Rutherford GO Station, the closest station on the Barrie line to our house. It took over 40 minutes to get there. While having him drive me saved me time, it was long time for Michael. If I’m doing it again, I would consider starting at Bramalea GO, taking the train to Union Station, and then north to Barrie.

We were stopped for several minutes at the level crossing on Rutherford just west of 27.

I was surprised at the size of the Rutherford GO Station. It has a massive parking garage. In the garage are two very large bike rooms.

There’s a bike lane through the parking lot to the bike rooms.

The platform was very crowded when I arrived on it. After a couple minutes, a train came from the north, heading for Toronto, and almost everyone boarded. There were only a few of us going north.

I boarded the first coach because I saw that there was a spot available for a bike. I know they sometimes have bike coaches, but I didn’t want to have to walk the length of the train looking for it. I was glad that I chose the first car because the doors closed almost immediately.

My train got into Barrie at 11:40 AM. It was a very short ride to my friend Gail‘s, where I had arranged to go for lunch. I locked my bike up out front, and took my panniers, weighing 11.1 kg, up to her condo.

Right across the street from the Allandale Station is an extensive park around Kempenfelt Bay. There are separated biking and walking facilities.

I passed a couple bike share stands. The bikes didn’t have to be docked, but it does seem that it is either encouraged, or required, to park in a designated area. I think this is a good idea. It addresses one of the concerns (abandoned vehicles on sidewalks) that the public often has about bike share and scooter share programs.

We had a short, but good visit. Gail made a delicious quiche and coleslaw salad for lunch.

The weather was beautiful when I left Brampton, and much of the way to Barrie on the train. Unfortunately, the forecast for the afternoon was for rain, and it was looking threatening when I got off the train. There was also some moisture in the air. The current condition for Barrie and Orillia showed rain as we finished our visit, but it was still dry, and I have some rain gear with me, so I decided to start riding.

Last year, the gang did the Simcoe Loop Trail, and I couldn’t go. Part of that trail runs from Barrie to Orillia. So I suggested to David that I ride to Orillia, which would shave 82 km off their round-trip to pick me up, and take me north to the Algonquin Highlands.

Spirit Catcher by sculptor Ron Baird, was designed for Expo 1986 in Vancouver. The Helen McCrea Peacock Foundation purchased the Spirit Catcher and donated it to the Barrie Gallery Project. It was erected on the Barrie Waterfront in 1987.

Ron Baird is the artist of The Ghost Train in Mount Pleasant Square in Brampton. I wrote an entry for Atlas Obscura about it. CAA Magazine has a feature called Where in the World. They found my Atlas Obscura entry, and contacted me through Instagram to purchase a license for the image for the magazine.

This is Meridian Place, an outdoor amphitheatre and gathering spot.

This is the Barrie North Shore Trail. It is a multi-use recreational trail running the entire length of Barrie’s north shore of Kempenfelt Bay. The former rail corridor provides great views of the bay.

There were some condos and some lovely single family homes backing on the trail.

This led to the Oro-Medonte Rail Trail. It is a 28km recreational trail running the entire length of the township. The Rail Trail connects Barrie and Orillia.

There was a short section on the road.

It was a green corridor without many views, but pleasant nevertheless.

I was planning to ride 41 km to just north of Orillia. About 12 or 13 km into the ride it started looking threatening. At 14 km it started spitting, and then got quite misty.

At 19 km it was getting heavy enough that I stopped to put on a rain jacket and helmet cover. I also started sharing my location with David and Dayle, who were driving to meet me north of Orillia.

At 25 km the rain stopped. Then the sun came out.

David and Dayle passed the point we had planned to meet, before I got there. When Dayle saw that we were very close together, she told me to stop at Highway 12. There was no way for me to get up to the road. So, I replied that I would ride to the next street. It had a level crossing.

There was also small spot there for a few cars to park, and public art. This is Sugar Maple Deer by Monica Wickeler Moment later, they pulled up and loaded up my bike and me. It started raining as we drove away, and continued while we shopped at Costco in Orillia. I would have gotten quite wet again if they hadn’t picked me up six kilometres early.

I washed my bike, and cleaned and oiled the chain yesterday. It had gotten very dusty from my recent rides on the Caledon Trailway. Now it’s filthy again having ridden on the limestone screenings trail today in the rain. We drove about an hour to the government dock which David and Dayle use to get to their water access only cottage. They store the bikes in a locked shed at the cottage, rather than leaving them in their van at the government dock, where they might tempt someone to break in.

Dinner was salmon and fried rice. I forgot to take a picture! Tomorrow will be a local ride.

It was a multi modal day. Car, train, bike, car, and boat. When the Ontario Northlander train starts again, currently projected for 2026, it will be possible to get to Timmins by train again. There will be stops in cottage country at Bracebridge and Huntsville. That would make the car trip for much shorter for David and Dayle to pick up guests coming by public transit.

Image credit: https://www.ontarionorthland.ca/en/northlander

Montreal with Owen – Street Art

I love street art, and when I have my bike with me, I often take pictures of it with my bike leaned against the art. I share these images primarily on Instagram. For those of you who don’t follow me, this is the link to my Instagram profile, if you would like to do so. Otherwise, this final post of the week has the best of my street art images from the week.

Or you can scan this QR code.

Here is a map, with a link of all the places I took pictures of my bike this week. Not all of them are in front of murals, but they do represent places of note where I was. When you click on a pin the image will display. The image below is just a screen cap. You will need to use the link to interact.

Montreal with Owen – Day 6

It is our final day in Montreal. We finished packing and had breakfast. Then washed the dishes, and took out the garbage.

We walked to a café for coffee. I thought this was interesting. There is an app you could download, and then borrow a portable battery, for free, as long as you return it. The LifeLine Charger App would show you locations that offered the service.

I use my phone to navigate, stay connected, and when I’m travelling often take 200 to 300 photos in a day. So I always travel with a portable battery.

Here we are back at Dorchester Square.

We are back at the Central Station. We bought food from restaurants in the station to take on the train with us. Vaccine passports and tickets were checked on this level before we were allowed to descend to the platform.

We are on board, ready to go.

This was my last picture of the day, as we were leaving Montreal.

The train arrived in Toronto late, leaving us with, if I recall correctly, only seven or eight minutes to get from the ViaRail train to the GO Train. As we rushed down the platform to the GO Train, Owen saw someone drop their wallet, but couldn’t catch up to them, so handed it into the conductor on board the GO Train, hoping that would help the person to be reunited with their wallet.

Only after the train left Union Station, did we realize that in the rush, we had forgotten to tap on. Fortunately, no one checked, and we made it to Bramalea GO without being fined as fare dodgers.

Michael picked us up at Bramalea GO and drove us the rest of the way home. It was a very enjoyable week in a beautiful city. Owen, who hasn’t travelled much, was very happy to be back home. I, on the other hand, was already looking forward to my next adventure dog sitting in Whitby with Cindy in May.

Montreal with Owen – Day 5

There was a significant heavy, wet snowfall overnight. The plan for the morning was to visit Mehrunnisa to see her apartment, and the views from its rooftop patio. Then she would show us around McGill.

There was no way we could ride a bike in these conditions, so we walked. It was still snowing fairly heavily, so we took umbrellas. We had to walk up some slippery steep sidewalks.

The consulate general of the Russian Federation is located on Avenue du Musée. There have been regular protests outside the building, with protesters staining the snow red, and painting a Ukrainian flag on the fence in front of the consulate. Montreal city councillor, Serge Sasseville, lives across the street, and flies Ukrainian flags from many of the windows of his home.

We had to be very careful climbing the stairs.

The apartment where Mehrunnisa lives, has a rooftop patio. There was enough accumulated snow that we couldn’t push open the screen door. Mehrunnisa opened the window and used a broom to clear it out out of the way.

The snowfall was slowing, but the view was still quite obscured.

In this picture, you can see how much snow has accumulated on the tabletops.

We descended a different staircase, which took us down to the McGill campus.

It was very cold, so we walked through campus, but didn’t linger.

I found these retractable bollards interesting. I hadn’t seen one in person before. I have since seen another in a small town in Slovakia.

This is Jonathan Borofski‘s “Human Structures“ sculpture, and the Roddick Gates. The sculpture features multiple groupings of figures, made from painted and moulded galvanized steel, “exploring themes of interconnectedness and the relationship between the individual and their environment”. The gates, located on Sherbrooke Street West, serve as the main entrance to the campus.

This sculpture, entitled the illuminated crowd, was created in 1968 by Raymond Mason. It features 65 figures. The plaque reads, “A crowd has gathered, facing a light, an illumination brought about by a fire, an event, an ideology – or an ideal. The strong light casts shadows, and as the light moves towards the back and diminishes, the mood degenerates; rowdiness, disorder and violence occur, showing the fragile nature of man. Illumination, hope, involvement, hilarity, irritation, fear, illness, violence murder and death – the flow of man’s emotion through space.”

We decided that it was a day to explore RESO Montreal. Montreal’s underground city, and network of interconnected tunnels, and walkways beneath the city’s downtown is similar to the PATH system in Toronto. RESO is a homophone for “réseau” (network).

The Lindt store was clearing out Easter chocolate.

We had lunch in the food court.

RESO spans approximately 32 km of tunnels and walkways and connects numerous buildings, including five shopping malls and the metro system.

I wanted to thoroughly explore RESO, but it was quite confusing, and we had to backtrack from dead ends a few times. The kids were getting tired, so we got the metro back to where we were staying. We said goodbye to Mehrunnisa, who needed to finish packing, to be ready for her return to Ontario for the summer.

I dropped Owen back at the apartment. The snow was melting, so I borrowed a bike share bike to ride back to Complexe Desjardins to continue exploring RESO.

These two level bike racks were outside the Saint-Laurent Metro stop.

The shopping centre faces Place des Arts. No one was lounging outside today.

Complexe Desjardins was very open and light inside.

The scenes within RESO varied significantly, depending on whether they were underground, and presumably, when they were built.

This is the inside of Palais des congrès. I posted a picture of the outside here. The coloured glass is even more spectacular inside. The mirror on the left doubles the effect of the windows on the right.

It was getting late, and I was having trouble finding my way underground, so I emerged into Victoria Square to look for a bike share station. I discovered this metro entrance which is the only example of a Paris metro sign in use at a subway station outside of Paris. This is an original entryway designed by Hector Guimard in the Art-Nouveau style. It can be found at the Victoria Square station. It was installed in 1967 to celebrate the collaboration with Parisian engineers on the construction and opening of the Montreal metro.

The snow was almost gone. Despite being evening rush-hour, many of the streets streets were empty of cars.

Owen and I decided to try Juliette & Chocolat, for dinner. He had a crêpe and I had a salad with chocolate dressing. It was good, but a bit odd. We then packed what we wouldn’t need in the morning, in preparation for catching the train home.