Heading into Montreal - Om Rides To Canada - CycleBlaze

September 16, 2023

Heading into Montreal

Saint Jean sur Richelieu QC to Montreal QC

A short day alongside the river, we have the final urban stretch to Montreal. This was the planned final destination for the trip for now though I still may spend a few days in the area before setting off for home (by other modes of transit)

After a breakfast of croissants and strudel and having no idea what the other guests next to me were saying in rapid French, I set off. I’ll fully admit to having some culture shock - I knew our Québécois neighbors were French but it didn’t hit till I was here. Feels like I went overseas! It’s fun not knowing things. I picked up another paper map, this one is in French and should at least get me to Montreal. If not, I’m sure google maps can

One thing neat about this area is how bike friendly it is. I expect to be following La Route Verte 1 almost all the way to where I am staying. Namely, the purple colored route that will pass through Chambly.

Before heading north I went south for a bit to figure out how to get on the causeway, another bike path with river on both sides. They open and close access each night with these retractable bridges
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Causeway
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Paths all the way up to Chambly
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Pretty interesting bike ramp
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First glimpse of Montreal!
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I really took my time today. It was only 30 miles of riding but it took well over 4 hours as I was just enjoying the infrastructure and lamenting the end of the ride a bit. This has been a lot of fun and I’m not entirely excited about sorting out end of trip logistics.

Now that’s a bridge
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Celebratory (NA) beer!
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Celebratory meal
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Steve Miller/GrampiesLooks small but yummy.
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8 months ago
Notre Dame Basilica
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After getting my bike storage / locking situation sorted in a private terrace I set off on foot! Time to see Old Montreal like the tourist I am

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Where to next? (Jokes… unless….)
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The night ended fairly early. Tomorrow would be an on foot and metro sort of day, looking at things and eating. 

Thanks for reading! 

An aside - before closing this journal, I’ll share any post trip details. The original goal of the journal was to share with non cycling friends what I am upto, but for future travelers I’ll include relevant logistics, pitfalls, routes (scrubbed of privacy info), etc!

Best, 

Om 

Today's ride: 30 miles (48 km)
Total: 534 miles (859 km)

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Comment on this entry Comment 3
Genny FoxFun, spontaneous trip! I enjoyed following along with you!
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8 months ago
Mike AylingGreat Journal!
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8 months ago
Rich FrasierI loved following along! A great trip!
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8 months ago