We know a place where no planes go
We know a place where no ships go
Hey!
No cars go
Hey!
No cars go
Where we know...
The Arcade Fire – “Where No Cars Go”
Day 53 -- Hudson - Mont St-Hilaire (Montreal!)
113kms / 70 miles
I was on Galley Duty this morning so was up extra early to help out with the breakfast. I generally get out of my tent at around 6am to find John already stirring a huge, huge vat of steaming thick porridge and Dave preparing the mornings breakfast – potatoes. Not my favourite breakfast but it certainly provides everyone with a nice starchy ballast for the day. I was really looking forward to getting on the road today because it was the day we pass through Montreal..!! Montreal is definitely one of my favourite cities in the world. I was a bit nervous because the cue sheet was a VERY long one with lots of turns and from what I recall, Montreal traffic is very unforgiving..!
Andrew, Brendan and Ian were keen to get on the road early so they left to head out shortly after 7am. We finished loading the truck by about 8:15 and then I tagged along with Graham, Eve and Yao – The French Connection. It was nice to be familiar with most of the route and have the opportunity to play ‘tour guide’ for the day particularly because Yao had never been to Montreal so it was a ‘new’ city for him.
From the very first turn most of the morning was spent in traffic heading into the city. The map led us around some residential areas which were a challenge on the bike with A LOT of stop – starts and thousands of stop signs. It’s easy to get a bit ‘lazy’ and cruise through the signs but I always worry that a car will appear when I least expect it so always make a point to stop and be as vigilant as possible. At one point we had to cross the highway by means of a major bridge which, according to the cue sheets, was supposed to be done by a sidewalk. Unfortunately the sidewalk was under construction so we were forced right into the middle of the insanely heavy morning rush hour traffic. As we frantically peddled up the bridge I began to trail the French Connection and suddenly heard a very loud ‘humming’ sound behind me…. And then the humming sound became louder and then it started ‘hissing’… I glanced over my shoulder and saw a giant 16-wheeler transport truck barrelling down on me. I dropped into my low gear and my cadence we
nt to about 150 as I peddled for my life and flew the rest of the way up and then down the hill. It was a huge relief to turn off the highway where we had a ‘High Five to Dangerous Cycling’ whilst waiting for the light to change from red to green at the intersection.
I went to McGill University for 4 years of University and during that time I never really ‘left’ Montreal and stayed within about a 2km radius of McGill. One thing that today taught me was that I missed out on A LOT during those 4 years as Montreal and its suburbs have an incredible cycling infrastructure with well connected and marked paths along the river and through the city. I would certainly recommend them to any visitor looking to see more than just the city center.
By mid morning the cloud had cleared to reveal the sun and the ride along the river by means of the bike paths was incredibly scenic and relaxing. There were loads of cyclists on the path which was nice and I felt like I was part of the ‘cycling subculture’. Graham has a bell on his bike and every time we passed someone he would ring the bell and then he and Eve would wave. It was funny to see the reactions but most people chuckled and waved back.
We cycled through a gorgeous residential section in Dorval with huge mansions lining the waterfront. From Dorval we turned north and I suddenly knew where I was – familiar turf..! I smiled looking up at Atwater Market and recalled my first year university buying bags and bags of fresh vegetables to drag back to my residence to help prepare a giant Thanksgiving dinner. Passing by Atwater we soon found the path to Old Montreal where we cycled along the waterfront. Old Montreal and the Old Port have changed very little in the past 9 years and I felt right at home again. We were going to indulge and have some ‘beaver tails’ along the waterfront when we spotted the boys having a beer and some lunch. They’d just returned from Notre Dame cathedral and were relaxing in the morning sun. We decided that we’d have lunch a bit further on and I was handed ‘control’ for the rest of the days ‘off piste’ sightseeing.
I navigated my way up to St. Laurent and pulled in front of the Shed Café for lunch. The Shed Café was always a trendy place to have lunch and it still had the same cool vibe that it had 9 years ago. We found a table near to the window and relaxed listening to some ‘beats’ and reading through the free ‘Voir’, a popular English paper featuring ‘current events’ , the music scene etc. I had a ‘Shed burger’ which was delicious. Mmmmm…!
After lunch we headed to the McGill Campus – more familiar turf with loads and loads of nostalgia. Enroute we passed my
old stomping ground – Rue Durocher where I lived for 2 years as well as Place Milton where I had many a cup of coffee and blueberry pancakes in my University days. The campus looked and felt the same which was nice – I had to do a quick pose with my bike to prove that I actually made it this far. I can’t believe that I have actually cycled every single kilometre from Vancouver to Montreal..!
When we reached the McGill gates off of Sherbrooke I looked up to see the sky turning a very ominous shade of black – rain was definitely imminent. It was one of those local showers that comes down in sheets but lasts only 5 minutes so we knew that if we could find a café to have a quick drink we could avoid the storm. We raced back to Milton and found shelter in the LaPresse Café just as the heavens opened. A very delicious latte and cheesecake was devoured as we shared many laughs and stories from the trip and our travels in general.
By this point it was around 3:30pm and we were still keen to head up to Mont Royal to see the views of the city. We headed out and up Rue Parc to head up the mountain. I always thought Mont Royal was quite a ‘hike’ and for some reason always imagined it a challenge to cycle but it is clear that my fifty days of training have paid off as we flew up the mountain..! It was an easy ride, not too busy at all and we were rewarded with a fantastic view. As we were ‘off piste’ we tried to figure out where the Cartier Bridge was as we would have to take this bridge to ge
t back on track to follow the instructions to camp.
We know a place where no ships go
Hey!
No cars go
Hey!
No cars go
Where we know...
The Arcade Fire – “Where No Cars Go”
Day 53 -- Hudson - Mont St-Hilaire (Montreal!)
113kms / 70 miles
I was on Galley Duty this morning so was up extra early to help out with the breakfast. I generally get out of my tent at around 6am to find John already stirring a huge, huge vat of steaming thick porridge and Dave preparing the mornings breakfast – potatoes. Not my favourite breakfast but it certainly provides everyone with a nice starchy ballast for the day. I was really looking forward to getting on the road today because it was the day we pass through Montreal..!! Montreal is definitely one of my favourite cities in the world. I was a bit nervous because the cue sheet was a VERY long one with lots of turns and from what I recall, Montreal traffic is very unforgiving..!
Andrew, Brendan and Ian were keen to get on the road early so they left to head out shortly after 7am. We finished loading the truck by about 8:15 and then I tagged along with Graham, Eve and Yao – The French Connection. It was nice to be familiar with most of the route and have the opportunity to play ‘tour guide’ for the day particularly because Yao had never been to Montreal so it was a ‘new’ city for him.
From the very first turn most of the morning was spent in traffic heading into the city. The map led us around some residential areas which were a challenge on the bike with A LOT of stop – starts and thousands of stop signs. It’s easy to get a bit ‘lazy’ and cruise through the signs but I always worry that a car will appear when I least expect it so always make a point to stop and be as vigilant as possible. At one point we had to cross the highway by means of a major bridge which, according to the cue sheets, was supposed to be done by a sidewalk. Unfortunately the sidewalk was under construction so we were forced right into the middle of the insanely heavy morning rush hour traffic. As we frantically peddled up the bridge I began to trail the French Connection and suddenly heard a very loud ‘humming’ sound behind me…. And then the humming sound became louder and then it started ‘hissing’… I glanced over my shoulder and saw a giant 16-wheeler transport truck barrelling down on me. I dropped into my low gear and my cadence we
nt to about 150 as I peddled for my life and flew the rest of the way up and then down the hill. It was a huge relief to turn off the highway where we had a ‘High Five to Dangerous Cycling’ whilst waiting for the light to change from red to green at the intersection.I went to McGill University for 4 years of University and during that time I never really ‘left’ Montreal and stayed within about a 2km radius of McGill. One thing that today taught me was that I missed out on A LOT during those 4 years as Montreal and its suburbs have an incredible cycling infrastructure with well connected and marked paths along the river and through the city. I would certainly recommend them to any visitor looking to see more than just the city center.
By mid morning the cloud had cleared to reveal the sun and the ride along the river by means of the bike paths was incredibly scenic and relaxing. There were loads of cyclists on the path which was nice and I felt like I was part of the ‘cycling subculture’. Graham has a bell on his bike and every time we passed someone he would ring the bell and then he and Eve would wave. It was funny to see the reactions but most people chuckled and waved back.
We cycled through a gorgeous residential section in Dorval with huge mansions lining the waterfront. From Dorval we turned north and I suddenly knew where I was – familiar turf..! I smiled looking up at Atwater Market and recalled my first year university buying bags and bags of fresh vegetables to drag back to my residence to help prepare a giant Thanksgiving dinner. Passing by Atwater we soon found the path to Old Montreal where we cycled along the waterfront. Old Montreal and the Old Port have changed very little in the past 9 years and I felt right at home again. We were going to indulge and have some ‘beaver tails’ along the waterfront when we spotted the boys having a beer and some lunch. They’d just returned from Notre Dame cathedral and were relaxing in the morning sun. We decided that we’d have lunch a bit further on and I was handed ‘control’ for the rest of the days ‘off piste’ sightseeing.
I navigated my way up to St. Laurent and pulled in front of the Shed Café for lunch. The Shed Café was always a trendy place to have lunch and it still had the same cool vibe that it had 9 years ago. We found a table near to the window and relaxed listening to some ‘beats’ and reading through the free ‘Voir’, a popular English paper featuring ‘current events’ , the music scene etc. I had a ‘Shed burger’ which was delicious. Mmmmm…!
After lunch we headed to the McGill Campus – more familiar turf with loads and loads of nostalgia. Enroute we passed my
old stomping ground – Rue Durocher where I lived for 2 years as well as Place Milton where I had many a cup of coffee and blueberry pancakes in my University days. The campus looked and felt the same which was nice – I had to do a quick pose with my bike to prove that I actually made it this far. I can’t believe that I have actually cycled every single kilometre from Vancouver to Montreal..!When we reached the McGill gates off of Sherbrooke I looked up to see the sky turning a very ominous shade of black – rain was definitely imminent. It was one of those local showers that comes down in sheets but lasts only 5 minutes so we knew that if we could find a café to have a quick drink we could avoid the storm. We raced back to Milton and found shelter in the LaPresse Café just as the heavens opened. A very delicious latte and cheesecake was devoured as we shared many laughs and stories from the trip and our travels in general.
By this point it was around 3:30pm and we were still keen to head up to Mont Royal to see the views of the city. We headed out and up Rue Parc to head up the mountain. I always thought Mont Royal was quite a ‘hike’ and for some reason always imagined it a challenge to cycle but it is clear that my fifty days of training have paid off as we flew up the mountain..! It was an easy ride, not too busy at all and we were rewarded with a fantastic view. As we were ‘off piste’ we tried to figure out where the Cartier Bridge was as we would have to take this bridge to ge
t back on track to follow the instructions to camp.
The Fall From Grace...
It was getting late so we raced down Mont Royal and navigated our way east through the rush hour traffic and down to Sherbrooke where we suddenly saw the road sign directing us to the Cartier Bridge – hooray!! The bridge traffic was heavy and we were directed onto a narrow bike path which had giant orange ‘blocks’ to control the cyclists speed going both up and down the bridge. We were making excellent progress even though the lane was quite narrow with a giant concrete wall on the left and a railing to the right. It looked amazing to cycle through and I would have loved to have taken a photo but I was holding onto my handlebars for dear life. Going up the bridge was fine but then disaster struck…
It was getting late so we raced down Mont Royal and navigated our way east through the rush hour traffic and down to Sherbrooke where we suddenly saw the road sign directing us to the Cartier Bridge – hooray!! The bridge traffic was heavy and we were directed onto a narrow bike path which had giant orange ‘blocks’ to control the cyclists speed going both up and down the bridge. We were making excellent progress even though the lane was quite narrow with a giant concrete wall on the left and a railing to the right. It looked amazing to cycle through and I would have loved to have taken a photo but I was holding onto my handlebars for dear life. Going up the bridge was fine but then disaster struck…
As I was going down the bridge I tried to turn through one of the ‘speed control’ barriers and the speed control barrier worked – obviously I was going too fast and couldn’t get through it in time to turn my stiff headset (which I am pretty sure has a broken bearing) and went completely head over heels over the giant orange barrier. I was more in shock at what had happened than hurt and, embarrassed, I jumped up as the cyclist behind me asked if I was ok. Fortunately I was completely fine – not even bruised..! - but my bike certainly did need a bit of tuning and the chain had fallen off in the process. As I was last in line the rest of the French Connection were ahead of me and didn’t witness the fall so I picked myself up and continued down to the bottom of the bridge where they stood waiting for me. Graham made some minor adjustments to my bike as my brake needed to be tightened again and I adjusted my chain. As for my headset it would definitely require the expertise of a bike technician. Zen and the art of bicycle maintenance...
The Montreal Formula 1 Track
We discussed the possibility of continuing on through to camp but decided that we wanted to do a few more touristy th
ings in Montreal to make our visit complete. Graham and Eve navigated their way down to the biodome and on to the Montreal Formula 1 track. I’ve heard loads about the Montreal Formula 1 but have never witnessed it. WOW. Another thing I missed during my university days..! The track was awesome… it is a cyclists dream come true – completely smooth pavement, few (if any) cars, loads of turns and plenty of long straight stretches….. You can go as fast or as slow as you want. There is something for everyone from cyclist ‘newbie’ to ‘hardcore’. And what a great place to show off new cycling gear and wardrobe!! W
hen we were there the car lane was closed so we had the ENTIRE track to ourselves. We did a 2.5 km loop which was so much fun – I would have loved to have stayed and done it again and again and again but unfortunately the number of daylight hours in the day were quickly running out. Graham checked his watch and sunset was at 8pm and it was already 6:30 and we still had 55kms left to go..!
We discussed the possibility of continuing on through to camp but decided that we wanted to do a few more touristy th
ings in Montreal to make our visit complete. Graham and Eve navigated their way down to the biodome and on to the Montreal Formula 1 track. I’ve heard loads about the Montreal Formula 1 but have never witnessed it. WOW. Another thing I missed during my university days..! The track was awesome… it is a cyclists dream come true – completely smooth pavement, few (if any) cars, loads of turns and plenty of long straight stretches….. You can go as fast or as slow as you want. There is something for everyone from cyclist ‘newbie’ to ‘hardcore’. And what a great place to show off new cycling gear and wardrobe!! W
hen we were there the car lane was closed so we had the ENTIRE track to ourselves. We did a 2.5 km loop which was so much fun – I would have loved to have stayed and done it again and again and again but unfortunately the number of daylight hours in the day were quickly running out. Graham checked his watch and sunset was at 8pm and it was already 6:30 and we still had 55kms left to go..!
Home of the Blizzard...
We raced off and turned into another of Montreal’s fantastic bike paths – so nice…!! As we passed through another residential area Yao got the first of his 4 flats of the day… or should I say of the next 2 h
ours. A quick tire change was made on the side of the road (I kept my eyes peeled for members of the Hells Angels) and then we continued on. About 4 minutes later we decided to reward ourselves by going to Dairy Queen where we indulged in a Blizzard. Mmmm… Whilst Andrew, Brendan, Ian and I are Tim Hortons affectionados the French Connection are more partial to Dairy Queen. Graham can eat a large blizzard in 2 minutes without getting a brain freeze. It is really phenomenal. By this point it was getting darker and we still had about 40 kms left to go… AND the sky was once again looking threatening as the sound of thunder rolled in the distance.
We did manage to make some progress on the 40kms thanks to a fantastic bike path and some steady cycling whist watching a stunning sunset. Fortunately the wind was in our favour and pushed the storm further south and east leaving us dry. We could see Mont Ste. Hilaire off in the distance and there was a huge dark cloud hanging directly over it. It was definitely, definitely raining there but we’d hoped to avoid it..!
It wasn’t long before we could see that the oncoming traffic had the windshield wipers on which indicated that we’d finally caught up with the storm (or rather, it ha
d caught up to us). The giant puddles on the road also indicated that it had rained – hard…!! It looked like we’d been very lucky and had only just missed the storm by a few minutes. Phew..! Judging by the cue sheet we guessed that we were only about 2 kms away from camp which was quite a relief because by this point the sun had set and we were relying on two flashing emergency lights so that we were visible to traffic. In other circumstances I would have had more faith in the lights but because of the rain and the giant puddles on the road it would have been easy for a car to not see us. I was REALLY looking forward to getting to camp.
Suddenly Yao called out that he had another flat. We all pulled over into a parking lot and, frustrated, he quickly flipped the bike upside down and changed the tire. A flat 2kms from camp at 9pm is never fun. In between dodging rain drops, swatting mosquitoes and trying to stay awake we watched as Yao changed his tire... when he was just about ready to go we tested the tire and the valve broke off! Arrrgh! Graham and Eve decided to double-back to the gas station and find out exactly how far away the camp site was from the site of the flat. It was getting late, we were cold and tired and were hoping that rather than fix the flat again that w
e could walk the bike into camp.
We raced off and turned into another of Montreal’s fantastic bike paths – so nice…!! As we passed through another residential area Yao got the first of his 4 flats of the day… or should I say of the next 2 h
ours. A quick tire change was made on the side of the road (I kept my eyes peeled for members of the Hells Angels) and then we continued on. About 4 minutes later we decided to reward ourselves by going to Dairy Queen where we indulged in a Blizzard. Mmmm… Whilst Andrew, Brendan, Ian and I are Tim Hortons affectionados the French Connection are more partial to Dairy Queen. Graham can eat a large blizzard in 2 minutes without getting a brain freeze. It is really phenomenal. By this point it was getting darker and we still had about 40 kms left to go… AND the sky was once again looking threatening as the sound of thunder rolled in the distance.We did manage to make some progress on the 40kms thanks to a fantastic bike path and some steady cycling whist watching a stunning sunset. Fortunately the wind was in our favour and pushed the storm further south and east leaving us dry. We could see Mont Ste. Hilaire off in the distance and there was a huge dark cloud hanging directly over it. It was definitely, definitely raining there but we’d hoped to avoid it..!
It wasn’t long before we could see that the oncoming traffic had the windshield wipers on which indicated that we’d finally caught up with the storm (or rather, it ha
d caught up to us). The giant puddles on the road also indicated that it had rained – hard…!! It looked like we’d been very lucky and had only just missed the storm by a few minutes. Phew..! Judging by the cue sheet we guessed that we were only about 2 kms away from camp which was quite a relief because by this point the sun had set and we were relying on two flashing emergency lights so that we were visible to traffic. In other circumstances I would have had more faith in the lights but because of the rain and the giant puddles on the road it would have been easy for a car to not see us. I was REALLY looking forward to getting to camp.Suddenly Yao called out that he had another flat. We all pulled over into a parking lot and, frustrated, he quickly flipped the bike upside down and changed the tire. A flat 2kms from camp at 9pm is never fun. In between dodging rain drops, swatting mosquitoes and trying to stay awake we watched as Yao changed his tire... when he was just about ready to go we tested the tire and the valve broke off! Arrrgh! Graham and Eve decided to double-back to the gas station and find out exactly how far away the camp site was from the site of the flat. It was getting late, we were cold and tired and were hoping that rather than fix the flat again that w
e could walk the bike into camp.
About 5 minutes later Graham and Eve returned laughing - they pointed across the street and suddenly we saw the source of their amusement. We had been sat across the street from the campground fixing the tire for the past 30 minutes but never noticed it because the campground sign was well hidden and poorly lit..!! If Yao hadn't gotten the flat in that spot we would likely have missed the campground completely. Oops....
We walked across the street and into the soggy campground. Andrew and Brendan had kindly put up my tent so I crawled into it and promptly fell asleep. An exciting and busy day - lots of great memories and another fun day on the TdC as I rediscover Canada..!
We walked across the street and into the soggy campground. Andrew and Brendan had kindly put up my tent so I crawled into it and promptly fell asleep. An exciting and busy day - lots of great memories and another fun day on the TdC as I rediscover Canada..!
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