#larouteverte

Trail: uphill and downhill with steep inclines and declines; 8 km paved, 27 km unpaved; A

Last night I stayed at La Maison Jaune de Eastman on Lac d’Argent. It was a clean and comfortable room in a home with private entrance and bathroom. The setting was beautiful and the hosts provided kayaks and bikes. Highly recommended.

A nod to Eastman's literary heritage.

I sat in a café for over an hour hoping that the rain would let up. It didn’t. After checking the weather I saw that it would rain all day and the temperature would also fall. I thought of my friend Pep from Spain who would say “I am a pilgrim, the rain won’t hurt me”, and off I went.

Trail conditions were very good, with the addition of a 2 streams created from the heavy constant rain, 1 on each side of the trail. Periodically the streams were punctuated with ponds or rivers crossing over the complete trail.

Danger signs should have been at the base of each incline because if anything was going to kill me it was the steep ascents. The decline signs should have read “Wheeeee”.

I traveled through hilly forests with lakes sprinkled along the way. I saw a people walking and a couple joggers, but no other bikers. Most people seemed to know enough to stay inside, out of the rain.

Google was optimistic in it’s description of the trail, “mostly flat”. Google’s disclaimer “Use caution – bicycling directions may not always reflect real-world conditions” applied. The first third of the ride was up and down, up and down, but mostly up. The last 2/3 of the trail continued to be up and down but generally descending, which was more enjoyable. The last 2 days were physically challenging and, for the record, I never walked my bike up any hill.

Magog is at 200 m elevation and Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré is almost sea level. It should be an easy downhill from here on.

I was hoping for some amazing views today (the summit was 365 m / 1200 ft elevation but the rain and fog made it difficult to see much.

It was a shame that I had to use my brakes so frequently on the declines. They were often steep, muddy, and with sharp corners. It just felt so wasteful. I wanted to go downhill fast, but there was a real risk of getting a really big ouchy.

If I hadn't been relaxing and enjoying a fast downhill ride on pavement, I would have seen a shortcut to the right, less than a kilometre outside of the park. The shortcut would have cut out the Orford loop, saving about 3.5 km.

I arrived in Magog soggy and hungry. I had lunch. The rain didn’t let up so I didn’t get to see much of this pretty town on Lac Memphremagog.

Trail: very steep hill; 93 m up, 212 m down, 88 km paved; A

In a nutshell, I got to Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré after 9 hours in the saddle. I pushed through day-long rain & a constant headwind. A tough day.

Last night’s stay was at Gite le Duvet d’Oie. This was the gastronomic treat of my journey. I booked a room for the evening only to learn that there was a restaurant attached. After the most amazing dinner, and breakfast, did I realize that I booked a gourmet restaurant that offered a place to stay. I can’t say enough good about it. Thank you chef Gaston and family. It’s a splurge, but highly recommended.

Due to complications getting home on a train with a bike, I decided to compress my last 2 days into 1. This gave me more time to finalize my return trip home. Did I mention that the VIA Rail website states that the train has room for bikes? At time of booking my return trip VIA Rail Customer Service told me that it wasn't possible to take a bike on a train, regardless of what the website says. Hmmm, another poorly managed government business? This can’t end well.

My ride started at 8:00 after a delicious breakfast. Normally on the last day of a journey I’m pretty much adrenaline pumped, but today I way just blah. It was pouring rain. The temperature was 11° and felt like 9° (48 F). The wind was from the northeast at 22 km/h, a headwind.

The trail, from start to finish, was paved thankfully, so this made pedaling easier. It was tree-lined and then along beautiful homes along the St. Lawrence River. Similar to previous sections of the trail, there were frequent rest stops, except today, almost every one was uncovered. Bummer. So, reprieve from the rain was very limited.

At Levi I faced a steep 22° decline (so steep that barriers forced me to walk down the hill), followed by a wet narrow bridge over rapids, followed by a matching steep hill. Brutal.

I know that I wasn’t in a race but I felt compelled to compete races time after time. When I left the coverage of trees, I raced to the next section with tree coverage. Every time I passed an uncovered rest stop, I pedaled harder, racing to the the next rest stop in hopes that it might be covered. Every time I went down a hill I pedaled hard to get out of the wind and rain sooner.

I rode through a number of cities including St-Romauld, a beautifully preserved historical town on the St. Lawrence River. The TCT crossed the St. Lawrence River via ferry proving a welcome rest and cover from the rain.

By the time I got to Québec city, the wind had picked up to 35 km/h. I had to shift down to the lowest gear. It was like climbing a steep hill. Somehow I thought that riding against the wind was better than climbing hills. I convinced myself that: hills were permanent but that the wind could stop at any time; and that I could escape from the wind when I rode behind trees, buildings, and berms.

I rode past Montmorency Falls, 30 m higher than Niagara Falls.

I saw just 1 other biker today but half a dozen runners. Are runners endorphin junkies or too dedicated to stay in from the rain?

The last hour or so went by very slowly. I ate a pack of energy chews. The rain continued. The headwind was strong. All I could do was down shift, put my head down and pedal. I couldn't see the trail because my glasses were wet from the rain. I could only hear the sound of my raincoat flapping in the wind.

Trail: moderate hills; 139 m up, 199 m down; 17 km paved, 15 km unpaved; A

I had a change of plans. Originally I was going to stay in Sherbrooke for 2 night's, resting one day. On the advice of an "in the know" waiter in Granby I decided to stay one night in Magog and one night in Sherbrooke. Unfortunately, it was raining when I arrived and since Magog is an outdoorsy town, I didn't have much of an opportunity to partake in local activities.

I stayed at À L’Ancestrale B&B in Magog. The home was clean and the bed comfortable. The host was incredible. She had tea when I arrived, an excellent and filling breakfast, and as if that wasn’t enough, she gave me a dry place to work on my bike. Oh, and then to top it off, while I was fixing my tire, she came out with a large bag lunch, at least half the size of my already full bike pack. Highly recommended.

There are plenty of boathouses along the Magog River and an electrical power plant.

Magog is on Lake Memphremagog and activities are heavily based around the water such as boating, sailing, kayaking, eating & drinking, swimming, sun bathing, biking, walking. I would definitely give this town 3 days in the future. It may be a real gem.

I started the day by repairing my flat tire. I found a 2-3 mm thorn that had poked through the tire and punctured the tube. I removed it, replaced the tube and away I went, but not before the host got out an air compressor to properly inflate my tire.

Leaving Magog, I was faced with a detour. After taking surface streets back to the trail, I realized the TCT was in better condition than Quebec roads. Keep up the good work on the trails!

Even though I ended the day at a lower elevation, the trail was up and down. Not like the past two days where the trail was more like a “scream like a little girl” kind of roller coaster. Today, the trail was much more like long gentle hills, climbing for a km or so and then downhill for a km or so. The ride was fun. I just smiled all the way down the hills.

I arrived in Sherbrooke in the afternoon. After the detour and then missing a trail marker (La Route Verte forked to the right at l'Eglise St-Roch in Rock Forest while the TCT continued straight ahead) I rode an additional 13 km, so it took longer than planned. Sherbrooke is the city of "too many hills". I took my bike and coasted to a restaurant in 10 minutes and it took me almost 30 minutes to get back. It’s at the confluence of the Magog and St. Francis rivers, a university town with large building murals, waterfront activities, and a very cool train station microbrewery/restaurant - Siboire.

1. Wake up at 6:30

2. Prepare for my day (this takes about 30 minutes and seems to be the most complicated part of the day)

a. Check the weather for the day and adjust my clothing accordingly – sweater or not, rain gear or not

b. Pull on a t-shirt (add wool sweater if it’s cold outside)

c. Apply foot cream (optional - l had some left over from my last Camino and the cream makes my feet happy) and put on my socks

d. Apply Voltaren to my knees and legs, then pull on my knee braces (this made the ride much much easier).

e. Apply a liberal coating of chamois butter (to prevent rashes), then pull on my riding shorts.

f. Lace up my biking shoes.

g. Put on rain gear if it's raining.

h. Put my clothes into Ziploc bags and pack them into my bike bags.

i. Fill my water bottles and put them on the bike.

j. Attach bike bags to my bike.

K. Stretch my legs and back.

3. Enjoy breakfast.

4. Ride for 1.5 to 2 hours, the find a café / restaurant (or a boulangerie in Québec) for a second breakfast. Tim Horton’s is always an option.

5. If I expect to arrive at my destination before about 2:00 p.m. then I go straight to my room. If it's going to be later, I eat lunch on the trail and refill my water bottles.

6. Ride until I get to my destination, then check-in to my room and unpack.

7. Take a shower (to wash off the dust and sweat).

8. Change into evening wear, then hand wash my clothes and hang them out to dry.

9. Relax at a local craft brewery / microbrasserie (this is my chance to reflect on the day and taste local creations) then find a restaurant for dinner.

10. Look for a room in upcoming towns. This has been more complicated than expected, due to the number of rooms available - typically requires 3-5 days advanced booking. I ended up spending a lot more than I anticipated. This is an area where I needed to better prepare. In the future I would use www.warmshowers.org and, in Québec, www.sanctuaires.ca.

11. Sleep.

The following was my final route from Midland, ON to Ste-Anne-de-Beaupre, QC. A detailed map, with alternate routes, can be found on AllTrails ( Trans Canada Trail Pilgrimage: Midland to Ste-Anne-de-Beaupre Pilgrimage | AllTrails ).

My final 18-day itinerary was:

Total distance: 1,168 km (1,204 if you include the ride back to Quebec city)

Average distance rode: 69 km/day

Average ride time (includes breaks and lunch): 6.8 h/day

The pilgrimage could be completed in 19 days, including 2 rest days and a day to return to Quebec City where you can catch a plane, train or bus to return home. At this point only flights permit shipping of bikes. Via Rail no longer accepts bikes. They told me that they will again in the future. It's possible to get a bike shipping service but that requires some additional planning. Proposed plan, with a day off in Perth and Magog:

I found only one place to stay in Chambly. Book as far in advance as possible.

If you can afford two days off to rest, it makes the trip more enjoyable. I'd recommend staying in Perth and Magog. The average daily distance becomes 73 km and an estimated 6.2 hours of riding.

Day 19 - Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré to Québec – 38 km

Last night I stayed at Motel Deblois. It was a small but clean room with a comfortable bed and enough room for my bike. Recommended.

Before attending mass in the basilica, I climbed the 28 steps of the Scala Santa (holy stairway), built in 1891.

I spent the morning wandering around Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré, the oldest pilgrimage site in North America. The basilica is both gigantic and stunningly beautiful. The first church was built in 1658 and has become famous for the miracles performed here. The town and buildings around the basilica could use a little love. Church lawsuits and corresponding payouts have caused some deterioration and closures near the basilica. COVID made matters worse. None the less, it's still pretty amazing.

I found my personal connection. My 9th great-grandfather, Louis Guimond, was carved into the wall of the basilica. He was the recipient of the first miracle at Ste-Anne-de-Beaupre. I also found a plaque showing the land that he owned in 1658.

I inquired about a credential and learned that you must register before arriving in Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré to be recognized as a pilgrim @ [email protected]. There was plenty of information related to the basilica and local tourism, but very little about the rich history of the town and surrounding area, mildly disappointing.

I discovered a stained-glass window of polish pilgrims (on the right), from home, Detroit.

I finally met other pilgrims. Four people from Ottawa, Denis & Jeannette and another couple. Denis and his wife had completed 5 Caminos and three walks across Québec. They walked from Ottawa to Montréal, Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré to Gaspé, and on this day had finished their 18 day walk from Montréal. In total they have walked over 5,000 km, so far. Wow! They also told me that they used a group Chemin du Sanctuaire (https://www.chemindessanctuaires.org/) to find low-cost accommodations.

The ride back to Québec City took me through Chateau-Richer. It was a nice ride through history with buildings, homes, and farms dating back to the 1600s. The town placed interesting historical signs along the trail, tracing seigneuries back to the original land tenants.

I passed Montmorency Falls. At 83 m high, they are 30 m higher than Niagara Falls. The ride to Québec was an absolute pleasure. The rain stopped and I had a 25 km/h tailwind. I rode in high gear the whole way, while yesterday I could only ride in low gear for most of the day.