Just in time!

I need to cycle 37km to hit 2000km on my road bike this year, and checking the weather forecast during the week I realise that Saturday is the day to do it.

 

Rechecking the weather Saturday morning and things look ominous...

 

 

However, we are planning a morning ride, so hopefully we will beat the first snows, which are due to arrive at 3pm!

 

 

Earlier in the week we sent an email to a few friends to see if anyone was interesting in joining us on the Saturday ride.  Amazingly, despite the weather forecast there are nine of us that turn up.  As we set off through the old port I practise getting my camera out my back pocket and taking a picture as I ride.  Fortunately this is accomplished without falling off!

 

 

Today we are heading to Nun's Island.  Destination Mme Clafoutis for coffee and a croissant.  At one point on the ride I am asked if we are lost, to which I feel the answer must  be yes.  If you are on Nun's Island you are by definition lost.  It is a complete warren of roads and the only way to figure out how to get round is to hug the shoreline.

 

Here are the nine hardy cyclists, not lost, on Nun's Island  Neil, Jonah, Tristan, Adrienne, Monika, myself, Stuart, Stephane and Cecile

 

 

At one point Monika takes us on a detour to the shoreline.....

 

 

....to show us a lovely seat for a wee rest where you can dip your toes in the St Laurent river.  I think we'll save that pleasure for a summer bike ride.

 

 

After completing a circuit of the island we reach our goal!

 

 

 

....and are sated with the most amazing croissants.  I chose the chocolatine and pistachio which is awesome.  No-one is brave enough to try the Mon Dieu, which is a croissant that contains everything - chocolate, maple syrup, almonds, pistachios.  It's not for the faint hearted!

 

 

This is definitely what cycling is all about  (well, for me anyway!)  coffee shops and good friends!

 

After a quick calculation of distance ridden and distance left to ride I realise that the return journey is not enough to hit the target.  Therefore a detour is needed.  So we leave Nun's island on the Estacade - the Ice Bridge.  A bridge that was built to protect the Champlain Bridge from the ice floes in winter.

 

 

The Estacade is a car free bridge - great for cyclists!  (More photos whilst cycling - I'm getting good at this!)

 

 

Although, I'm not quite ready for the hands free approach that some people take  (and quite frankly this is just showing off!)

 

 

 

Our route takes us onto the Gilles Villeneuve track, where the formula one cars race.  A couple of cars do drive past us, but I'm not quick enough to capture them on camera.

 

We also get to ride next to Habitat 67, yep still ugly!

 

 

Finally, we arrive back at St Louis square, and thanks to our friends for the good company this morning!

 

 

The ride back was calculated to perfection.  I hit 2000km as we ride around the square...

 

...and no snow so far!

Y2K....?

.... well why not?

At the end of my last ride I realised that I was 101km short of having cycled 2,000km on my beloved new road bike in its first season.  This does not seem right and needs to be fixed.

 

Despite entering the month of November and temperatures dropping to freezing, the weather forecast for Sunday looks excellent - blue skies and sunshine (my favourite!)

 

As we set off down Lachine Canal we realise that some of the puddles are frozen, so extra care is needed, plus many branches are strewn across the bike path following a mega gale on Friday.

Despite the hazards we make excellent progress and at one point I realise that I am cycling at 25km/hr without pedalling all that much.  I mention to Stuart that the return journey may be a little challenging.  He says it is important to enjoy the outward journey rather than worrying about the return or you wont enjoy any of the ride.  Fair enough!

Given the sub-zero temperatures we decided not to attempt the 101km in one day, so it was destination Pointe Claire for a 60km round trip.
I couldn't decide what picture to use to symbolise Pointe Claire.  Really it should be the little church that sits on the point of Pointe Claire...

 

 

 

...however, I feel the cake counter at the Patisserie and Boulangerie is more representative!  Stuart always has the muesli and date muffin, which we have deemed to be the healthiest treat in the store.  Today I had a particularly impressive iced cinnamon danish swirl thing. Who knows why my weight doesn't seem to be decreasing despite all the cycling?  (Note - in the earlier picture on this page I have many layers on for warmth!)

 

By the time we get to Pointe Claire my toes have been replaced by 10 little ice cubes, so we spend quite a while here gradually warming up.

 

 

Halfway home and I stop to take a picture of the small lighthouse at the end of the Lachine Canal.  There are in fact two lighthouses, one in the distance that sits on the end of a point, and one hidden in the trees.  The lighthouse may be a symbol of safety to sailors, but to me it symbolises a handy bathroom stop on the way home.  However, it seems that public restrooms are only open during the warmer months, no idea why - my bladder isn't seasonal!

 

We are lucky on the return journey, the wind has dropped making the homeward ride just as enjoyable as the outbound.  It has been a glorious day, sunshine makes cycling special!

 

 

A quick stop at Atwater market on the way home, and Stuart has a pannier full of organic goodies.

 

Finally, home again and I think today was one of my favourite rides of the season.  Perhaps it is the knowledge that we will soon be losing all the wonderful colours to a blanket of white for a few months that made the ride so poignant.

 

So, only 37km to go!  Will we make it before the snow comes?! 

 

Last Ride of the Season?

It's 20th October and the temperatures are dropping considerably, but sunshine is forecast and there is will be quite a serious tail wind heading from the SW, so it seems like an ideal day to do my favourite ride!

 

This ride involves catching a train to Deux Montagnes, cycling through Oka National Park, catching the ferry to Hudson, cycling round to St Anne-de-Belleview, onto Pointe Claire and back along the Lachine Canal to the Old Port.  It's hard to explain, so with my very best mapmyridewithgooglemapsandpowerpoint.com app here is a picture of the route!

 

 

 

We arrive at Gare Central ready to catch the 9am train, and as usual I get my extra large, one shot, skimmed milk, no foam latte.  (So much easier to order in the UK - tall, wet, skinny latte).  Fortunately I remember to remove the coffee from the convenient on board coffee holder before Stuart hangs my bike on the bike rack)

 

 

 

The leaf fall has been incredible and there are some points on the route where you can't even see the bike path and you have to hope that the pile of leaves that you are cycling through doesn't contain potholes or sticks that might tip you off.  I'm hoping that the Fall season isn't too literal.

 

The ride from Deux Montagnes station through the Oka National Parc is really lovely.  The sun is shining and the leaves that are left on the trees look really pretty

 

 

There is one hill on this whole trip, so as usual I fall quite behind at this point, but this does give me the opportunity to take this shot of Stuart sailing off into the distance!

 

At the top of the hill we turn left and get to cycle along the shore line down my favourite road in the whole of Montreal.  The houses on the right side of the road are all unique and very photogenic, whilst on the left side of the road are seating areas for each house where the residents can watch the sun going down across the Lac de Deux Montagnes.

 

 

When we get to Oka the ferry isn't in yet and I realise that I am running on empty.  A couple of slices of toast this morning and soup last night is not enough to keep me going.  I'm close to the "bonk", but fortunately there is a little Resto which serves snacks close to the ferry stop.  I have my first ever grilled cheese sandwich - who knew these could taste so good!

 

 

The winds are probably 25km/hr, but unfortunately at the start of the route these are head winds and not tails winds.  Average speed for the first part of the trip is only 14.1 km/hr.  Not particularly impressive, but don't forget the big hill!

 

 

 

As we depart Oka, the little church fades into the distance....

 

...and as we approach Hudson we see one of our favourite restaurants Auberge de Willows appearing on the far shore. 

 

 

It's pretty breezy on the ferry, so Stuart seeks the only shelter available.

 

 

Once we get to Hudson the next road we cycle down has some fairly ostentatious "look at my money" houses.  We have christened the one that Stuart is cycling past in this picture "Gopping Towers"! 

 

 

St Anne-de-Belleview is our scheduled lunch stop, and despite the promise of a nice tasty lunch, average speeds have not noticeably increased.  Only 15.5 km/hr!

 

 

We return to our favourite restaurant Herbs, and find the back gate locked,  The garden isn't in use this time of year.  We head round to the front of the restaurant and then have the dilemma of where to park our bikes.  Stuart wants to leave them perched outside and keeps pointing at the table in the window saying we can keep an eye on them whilst we are eating.  I want to padlock them to something solid to stop someone jumping on one and riding off into the distance.  After what must have been a fairly expressive debate on the issue, Carole the owner opens the front door and asks us if we would like her to unlock the back gate so we can park our bikes inside the garden!

 

 

From our window seat table at Herbs we can see a gift shop /ice cream store over the road called the Cool Shop.  It also sells Bouchees de Castor.  Castors are beavers and we know that Beaver Tails are a horribly unhealthy but strangely compulsive snack of a steam rollered donut sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar.  We wonder what Bouchees de Castor means, and I'm sure it must be Beaver Balls, but disappointingly it turns about to be Beaver Bites

 

 

 

The road from St Anne-de-Belleview takes us past a house where even the bin bags are Halloween themed....

 

.....my favourite house, which has the Quebec Fleur de Lys adorning the window shutters...

 

 

.... and Stuart's favourite house which has three glass sides and amazing views across the water.

 

Next stop is the boulangerie and patisserie at Pointe-Claire.  (top ride - three nice food stops in one day!)  Average speed still only 17.8 km/hr.  I don't think the tail wind has kicked in yet!

 

As we leave Pointe Claire I see quite a few examples of what I believe is the first sign of winter.  A white plastic stick, with a Snow Clearance company name printed on it,  hammered into the front of a driveway to indicate that the house owner has paid to have their drive cleared for the season

 

 The final part of the ride is back down the Lachine canal and the light is perfect for photos as we approach downtown Montreal.

 

Finally, at the Old Port we look across the water to the building that I dubbed the ugliest building in the world when I first saw it (apologies to any fans of the architectural wonder called Habitat 67).  However, in the evening sunlight you can see that there is a certain beauty in this building!

Final average speed of the day is only 21.2 km/hr.  I try to suggest that we were heading up hill towards the end (impossible, we are on a canal path) or there is no tail wind after all (the waving flags indicate otherwise), but unfortunately I think I have to face facts, fitness levels will drop away if you don't keep riding.  Time to sign up with the gym!