Canada Day EH!

Celebrate Canada Day in style. Arrive by bicycle. The By-Cycle Ride is a trip every Canadian should do at least once. Note to non-Canadians: In cycling togs no-one knows the difference. We start on the east side of Toronto and follow a mainly bike-path route to get to country riding along the shores of Lake Ontario. From Kingston we follow the Rideau Canal to reach Ottawa, which was the village of Bytown before it became the national capital. It's five riding days with six nights indoor accommodation. We'll make sure you are properly dressed for your ride into Ottawa as each participant will receive a pair of CycleCanada socks as a "birthday present". A return option to Toronto, including bikes, is available.

My wife, Anne, and I had a terrific experience on the Toronto to Ottawa trip last week and have recommended it to several of our biking friends here in Indiana. Spencer was a superb support driver and host and I would not change a thing about the trip. I especially appreciated all the personal touches afforded a small group of riders unlike what we have experienced with other supported rides hosting hundreds of riders. This trip was superb and we will be coming back for future rides. R.G. The By-Cycle Ride 2011

Voyageur Route follows the rivers that were transportation corridors that was the fur trade route to the interior of the continent — the St. Lawrence, the Richelieu and the Ottawa Rivers. We encourage Voyageur Route riders to arrive early in Ottawa. It's a fabulous city for bike riding and sightseeing. There are galleries galore, museums, historic sights and great cafés that make for a wonderful extended holiday. If you want to double up with the By-Cycle Ride, we'll give you a reduced rate for both trips. Voyageur Route riders stay overnight in Montreal and the trip ends in vibrant Quebec City. A highlight of the trip is a fabulous group dinner at an historic auberge in a village of the north side of the St. Lawrence.

Four NBW (of our bike club members) cycled 350 miles from Ottawa to Quebec City during the last week of July joining two other 'Americans' and nine Canadians on a CycleCanada bike tour. For three of us, this was our second trip with this company, having done its Fall Colours Tour of the Ottawa River Valley a few years back. Again, we experienced a value packed week with wonderful biking, terrific SAG and superb accommodations. R. M. Voyageur Route 2010

The BiQue Ride is another classic trip for us. It's our 19th annual ride in 2013. From old city hall in Toronto, we follow the shores of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River from Toronto to city hall in Montreal. It's a ride through a lot of history in what used to be Upper Canada (upriver on the St. Lawrence) and Lower Canada (downriver). We go through Loyalist country, where those loyal to the British crown settled and the American colonies broke away. We go past some of the old canals that formed a waterway to the interior of the continent before the St. Lawrence Seaway was built. We are in Kingston mid-week for a rest day and this former colonial capital city has many attractions for visitors. There are six riding days over the seven-day trip and we offer a return option to Toronto for riders and bikes. By the way, that name is a contraction of Bike to Quebec.

I was on the recently completed Bique ride and just wanted to let you know that I enjoyed myself immensely. D.I. The BiQue Ride 2011 The Buffalo Grove, Illinois, guys had a great time on the Toronto to Montreal trip. Mike was a very good SAG guy. M.S. The BiQue Ride 2012

Tour Vert takes you from Montreal to Quebec City through les Cantons de l'Est, the Eastern Townships of Quebec. It is a journey through districts that have long been summer cottage and winter ski lodge destinations. And it is a journey through old farm regions that are famous for maple syrup, wines and tree fruits. The ride follows the northern shore of Lake Champlain and the western shore of Lake Memphremagog. Towns along the way include Sutton, Knowlton, Magog and Sherbrooke, places with deep English and French roots. Riding is hilly on a couple of days and this tour is the most challenging of our one week rides. Days with climbing are shorter and past riders found them quite manageable. The trip has five riding days with six nights accommodation.

Thank you so much for taking such good care of us and making our Voyageur Route such an enjoyable ride. My son and I had a fantastic time. S.D. Tour Vert 2012

Niagara Vineyards is the trip for those who want a relaxed pace with many, many, many sights to see along the way. The defining feature of this region is the Niagara escarpment, a steep cliff through the Niagara Peninsula that is part of the reason this region is justly famous for its wines. We start at Hamilton and end at the town of Niagara Falls. The first-day ride goes along the top of the escarpment for magnificent views before dropping to the wine district at the base. We stay one night at Niagara-on-the-Lake. It's a short ride to get there so it's possible to see a matinee and evening performance at the town's world famous Shaw Festival Theatre. Climbing back up the escarpment is done in easy steps by following the Welland Canal, the shipping channel between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. We stay close to the shores of Lake Erie on one night and follow the Niagara River to The Falls. It's a five-day trip with six nights accommodation. Hamilton is served by a national airport and bus or commuter train services, making it an ideal point to start a ride. It's really part of the greater Toronto region, so if you come from away and want to explore Toronto we can give you some help on the logistics.

Nice, nice tour. We enjoyed the route, accomodations, our companions and Michael. Even the temperature and wind was made to order. Nice to be back with Cycle Canada again and we wish you much luck with this new route. I think it will become very popular. J. & J. A. Niagara Vineyards 2012

A Quick Summary

• The By-Cycle Ride — Toronto to Ottawa; June 26 - July 1; $975 package fee; 500 kilometres (310 miles) over 5 riding days; 6 nights indoor.
• Voyageur Route — Ottawa to Quebec City; July 7 - July 12; $975 package fee; 545 kilometres (335 miles) over 5 riding days; 6 nights indoors.
• The BiQue Ride — Toronto to Montreal; July 21 - July 27; $995 package fee; 660 kilometres (410 miles) over 6 riding days, 1 rest day; 7 nights indoor.
• Tour Vert — Montreal to Quebec City; August 4 - August 9; $975 package fee; 485 kilometres (300 miles) over 5 riding days; 6 nights indoor.
• Niagara Vineyards — Hamilton to Niagara Falls; August 18 - August 23; $995 package fee; 240 kilometres (150 miles) over 5 riding days; 6 nights indoor.

For more information about us and our trips, please visit CycleCanada or call us at 1-800-214-7798, a toll-free number in North America. Or you can send us an e-mail.

www.CycleCanada.com | 1-800-214-7798

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Madly Off In All Directions

December 2012

If you want to do a cross-Canada ride but can't take the whole summer off, we have the rides for you.

The Cycle Canada Series takes you from coast to coast to coast – Tour Pacific, Tour Arctic and Tour Atlantic . A bonus is that much of routes for these trips are different from our summer-long cross-continent rides that go from west to east.

Each of these trips has a challenge component with over-the-top views. On Tour Pacific it is the rows of peaks in the Rocky Mountains and the glaciers of the Columbia Icefields. On Tour Arctic it is riding at or above the tree line through plateaus in the Ogilvie and Richardson Mountains on the Dempster Highway. On Tour Atlantic it is the Cabot Trail as you ride high above the Gulf of St. Lawrence and along the rocky coast of Cape Breton.

Coast to Coast to Coast

Tour Pacific is the best way to really see the Canadian West. We start by the Pacific Ocean in Vancouver, travel through cowboy country in the B.C. Interior and ride the world-renowned Icefields Parkway in the Rocky Mountains. A change this year is that we start right in Vancouver. In the past we have started at the eastern edge of the greater Vancouver area. The change to starting in the city makes it easier for those arriving by air to get to the start point of the ride. A change in route on the first few riding days means bypassing the Ashcroft hill, which will draw mixed reviews from past riders. The trip is a 15-day schedule with rest days in Kamloops and Jasper.

Tour Arctic is a cross country trip -- from south to North, leaving from Vancouver and going to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. Much of this ride is through remote and spectacularly scenic terrain. It includes two long ferry trips, through the Inside Passage on the B.C. coast and through the Alaska Panhandle. We travel the Klondike route to Dawson City in the Yukon, which still has that feel of its gold panning roots. On the Dempster highway we are on tundra past caribou habitat and through the Mackenzie River delta to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. It's a 25-day schedule with rest days at Prince Rupert, Whitehorse and Dawson City.

Tour Atlantic is the essential maritime Canada experience. Here is just a short list of some of the well-known sights along the route — the lighthouse at Peggy's Cove, the Bluenose II dock at Lunenburg, the reversing falls at Saint John in New Brunswick, Hopewell Rocks on the Bay of Fundy, Confederation House in Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island, Cape Smokey on the Cabot Trail and the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site in Baddeck on Cape Breton. The ride includes the peaks on the Cabot Trail and we celebrate the achievement with a lobster dinner in Baddeck. We have changed the spacing on the route for 2013. We will take an early ferry from Digby across the Bay of Fundy, getting to Saint John before lunch and with time to explore the city in the afternoon.Changes in spacing past Saint John allows us to stay in Moncton at an indoor location. It's a 14-day schedule with rest days at Saint John and Charlottetown.

A Logistical Note About Tour Atlantic

In the past, riders had relied on Acadian Bus Lines to get from Baddeck to Halifax or to Halifax Airport at the end of the trip. The bad news is that Acadian ceased operations at the end of November. The good news is that Maritime Bus Lines has taken over from where Acdian left off. The announced schedule from Baddeck to Halifax is the same. We'll be monitoring this situation and will make sure that there is an option to get to Halifax that includes bikes.

For those who cannot get away for two weeks or more, we have limited availability for segments of Tour Pacific and Tour Atlantic.

Icefields Parkway joins the Tour Pacific riders in Jasper and goes to Calgary through Lake Louise and Banff. Our Cabot Trail ride joins Tour Atlantic in Charlottetown. From there we cross the Northumberland straits by ferry to go to Nova Scotia. Past the Canso Causeway it is a clockwise trip on the Cabot Trail.

• Tour Pacific — Vancouver to Calgary; June 25 - July 10; $1,625 package fee; 1,380 kilometres (850 miles) over 13 riding days; 2 rest days; 12 nights camping, 4 nights indoor.
• Tour Arctic — Vancouver to Inuvik; July 15 - August 9; $4,150 package fee; 101 kilometres (63 miles) a day over 19 riding days; 6 rest days; 18 nights camping, 8 nights indoor; two major ferry crossings along the Pacific coast.
• Tour Atlantic — Halifax to Baddeck; August 12 - August 26; $1,625 package fee; 1,355 kilometres (835 miles) over 12 riding days; 2 rest days, 10 nights camping, 5 nights indoor.
• Icefields Parkway — Jasper to Calgary; July 6 - July 10; $750 package fee; 440 kilometres (270 miles) over 4 riding days; 1 night indoors, 4 nights camping.
• Cabot Trail — Charlottetown to Baddeck; August 21 - August 26; $750 package fee; 610 kilometres (375 miles) over 5 riding days; 2 nights indoor, 4 nights camping.

For more information about us and our trips, please visit CycleCanada or call us at 1-800-214-7798, a toll-free number in North America. Or you can send us an e-mail.

www.CycleCanada.com | 1-800-214-7798

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Madly Off In All Directions – November 2012

Hello Cycling Friend,

Heading into the third year of the Decade of Cycling, we reflect on meeting so many wonderful people who share our passion. Congratulations on some great rides - and there's lots more to come.

Our theme for 2013 is "Madly off in all Directions". We'll be sending you a series of newsletters in coming weeks on where that might take you as you plan for your next bike tour.

In our first letter, it's time to throw caution to the wind (a tailwind, of course) and plan a big tour where you explore Canada's far reaches. Go all the way — across the country, west to east or north to south. For a sneak preview, you can find lots of photos from our trips on the Cycle Canada website and on our Facebook page.

Tour TransCanada will be on a 73-day schedule in 2013. We have added an extra day in the northern Ontario segment around Lake Superior. Average daily distance is 125 kilometres (77 miles). Cycle Canada staff prepare meals on riding days and we take up to 16 riders. There are 11 rest days in the schedule, all in major cities across the country. We have a rest day book with suggestions on sights to see in those cities. Riders stay indoors on those rest days and we camp for a majority of the riding days.

Tour Arctic really is four different trips rolled into one adventure. From Vancouver and through the northern half of Vancouver Island we see what makes that part of the country such a sought-after place to live. From the northern tip of the Island it's an ocean cruise – Port Hardy to Prince Rupert to Skagway, Alaska. Then we travel the Klondike route to Dawson City in the Yukon, which still has that feel of its gold panning roots. The fourth trip is on the Dempster highway, over the tundra past caribou habitat and through the Mackenzie River delta to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. It's a 25-day schedule with rest days at Prince Rupert, Whitehorse and Dawson City. Prince Rupert is the jumping off point for side trips to Haida Gwai, the westernmost part of Canada.

Tour du Canada is a no-frills cross-country ride that explores historic Canadian routes. It is a now-traditional 72-day schedule. Daily average distance is 130 kilometres (80 miles). Tour du Canada is a complete outdoor experience and we camp most nights. Riders share in the responsibility for meal preparation. The schedule has 11 rest days, some in large cities and some in small communities. We take up to 38 riders.

• Tour TransCanada — Vancouver to St. John's; June 11 — August 23; $8,175 package fee; 125 kilometres (77 miles) a day over 60 riding days; 11 rest days; 42 nights camping, 31 nights indoors.
• Tour Arctic — Vancouver to Inuvik; July 15 — August 9; $4,150 package fee; 101 kilometres (63 miles) a day over 19 riding days; 6 rest days; 18 nights camping, 8 nights indoor; two major ferry crossings along the Pacific coast.
• Tour du Canada — Vancouver to St. John's; June 19 - August 30; $4,430 package fee; 130 kilometres (80 miles) a day over 59 riding days; 11 rest days; 62 nights camping, 10 indoors.

For more information about us and our trips, please visit CycleCanada or call us at 1—800-214-7798. That is a toll-free number in North America. If you have questions, send us an e-mail.

www.CycleCanada.com | 1-800-214-7798

Footnote: Credit goes to Stephen Leacock for our theme. The phrase is from Gertrude the Governess, a short story. After an argument with his father, Lord Ronald flung himself upon a horse and rode madly off in all directions.

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