Kingston to Ottawa Cycling

This trip was a solo cycling trip from Kingston to Ottawa, roughly parallelling the Rideau Canal. This trip was done over 6 days at the end of August and early September in 2005. Each cycling day was roughly 60km along the most direct route, although I tended to take less direct, but more interesting back roads. For accommodation, I stayed in bed and breakfasts – it is much easier to cycle when you know there is a warm bed and hot shower waiting for you at the end of the day.

I started the trip by taking the train with my bike to Kingston. The following day I cycled north to Westport. From there, I meandered north and east to Merrickville crossing the Rideau River a total of 4 times. I did a day trip to Smith Falls from Merrickville and spent a second night in Merrickville. On the last cycling day, I travelled north along the Rideau River to Ottawa. The next morning, I packed up my bike in a box and took the bus back to Toronto.

I estimate that the total distance cycled was about 300km over 4 days of cycling.

Table of Contents

Train to Kingston

The first day of the trip involved loading everything on to my bicycle and cycling down Yonge Street to Union Station in Toronto. There I dismantled my bicycle (removed the pedals and rotated handlebars) and loaded it into a box for VIA rail.

I had rehearsed this so things went smoothly for me but a cyclist who arrived shortly after me, could not get his pedals off and damaged my pedal wrench in the process. I arrived in Kingston in the early afternoon, assembled my bike and cycled downtown from the station.

In Kingston, I had a reservation at the B&B on board the Alexander Henry, a former Coast Guard ship but now part of the Great Lakes Maritime Museum. I cycled around Kingston, including over to the Fort Frederick Museum at the Royal Military College. Around 5pm, I checked in to the B&B and spent the rest of the evening on foot. I walked through the downtown and past Queens University before having dinner.

Kingston to Westport

In the morning, the remains of Hurricane Katrina provided torrential rain and wind. I headed off anyway on my bicycle. My first stop was at the Kingston Mills locks just north of Kingston – it was still raining so I barely slowed down.

From there, I continued north, along Highway 11 and 10 to Perth Road. Then I branched off the highway onto the Cataraqui Trail. After an exhausting ride along this trail, I had lunch at Chaffey’s Locks as the rain finally ended. From there, I headed north to Crosby and then west to Westport, arriving at 4:30 (~80 km). After a shower and nap at the Toybox B&B, I walked into Westport for dinner.

Westport to Merrickville

After a delightful breakfast in the sunshine, I cycled back toward Crosby and then north along Highway 14 to the locks at the Narrows.

After watching a few boats go through, I continued along Highway 14 and then Highway 21 to Rideau Ferry for lunch and again crossed over the canal system. I had a run-in with a snapping turtle that I attempted to move off the highway.

From Rideau Ferry, I headed directly east, bypassing Smiths Falls along the back roads. I cut north through Kilmarnock Island, one of my favourite parts of my trip, then into Merrickville for the night (~90 km, see route). Since my B&B was about 1km out of town, after a shower and nap, I cycled back into town for dinner and to enjoy the sunset.

Merrickville has been named the ‘prettiest village’ in Ontario. However, almost all it has are restaurants, antique stores and jam stores. It has a lovely park beside the canal though.

Smith Falls

After my first night in Merrickville, I took a day trip to Smiths Falls. The two towns are ‘only’ about 20km apart but by taking my time on the back roads in each direction and wandering through town, somehow the entire day passed by.

The Canadian Pacific Railway goes through Merrickville and I managed to catch a train crossing the Rideau River. I also spent some time at a rural crossing and photographed a train there.

In Smiths Falls, I started by going to the Hershey’s Factory and saw thousands of peanut butter cups being made (no photos allowed), but I didn’t buy anything from the giftshop. Another attraction was the Scherzer rolling lift bridge used by the, now abandoned, Canadian Northern Railway. In the evening in Merrickville, I walked into town for dinner and again enjoyed the sunset over the Rideau River (~50 km).

Merrickville to Ottawa

From Merrickville, I cycled north paralleling the Rideau River. I started on the east side of the river until near Kemptville where I crossed to the west side. Passing through small villages and many river side cottages, I crossed back to the east side of the river at Manotick for lunch. From there it was a short trip through the farms until the first subdivisions of outer Ottawa. A thunderstorm got me completely soaked in the last mile to the B&B – my first rain since Kingston (~75 km).

Ottawa

After drying out, I walked to Parliament Hill and enjoyed the sights as the sun set behind the storm clouds. I had dinner in the Market and enjoyed the very corny ‘Sound and Light’ show at Parliament Hill in the evening.

The next morning, I packed up my bike for Greyhound and left my bags in storage before meeting a friend for brunch. After a good visit with her, I made my way back to Greyhound to catch the 2:30 bus back to Toronto.