Oh, what a feeling to roll my bicycle into Central Station and wait to board a Via Corridor train! After how many years of waiting?!
A. T. Lane and G. T. Bishop met at the station to take the train to Drummondville where they would disembark and then ride over two days back to Montreal by way of Granby.
The boarding was a bid haphazard though they allowed us to go down the stairs before everyone else. For some reason, the train staff were uncertain which car to put our bikes in even though we had seats in car 3. Finally, they directed us to our car and after moving a bunch of luggage and lifting the racks, we were able to put our bikes onto the hooks.
The timing of the trains that allow bicycles is quite particular so we only had the option to travel in the late afternoon and that obliged us to stay the night in Drummondville.
After a hearty breakfast the next morning, we set off towards the river to pick up the bike path that would take us out of town along the Campagnard bike path to Yamaska park.
A. T. was taken with the medals on the statue of founding administrator of Drummondville as well as the Anglican church, which slowed him enough to get caught behind a freight train rolling through town.
The Campagnard path is mostly through trees and very pleasant though there is little in the way of services except at Acton Vale where we depended on old reliable Tim Hortons for lunch.
On the way to Yamaska Park, we stopped at Roxton Falls where we were able to grab some Gatorade at the grocery store before checking the...Roxton Falls!
The day was pretty warm and we were drooping by the time we got to Yamaska so we decided to head to the beach to wet our feet in the cool waters of the reservoir.
Finally, we carried on the last few kilometers to Granby, stopping at A. T.'s favourite McDonald's before getting to our very pleasant Bnb, The Magnolia with its amazing collection of teapots.
G. T.'s usually assiduous planning was a bit off this day and the expected 70k ride turned out to be 88k! So, after a healthy Vietnamese meal, it was an early night to rest up for the next day.
The next morning, we were down at the breakfast room at 8am sharp and ready to fuel up for the day. We had an interesting exchange with a lady who was riding from Montreal to Quebec City and who had just returned from cycling around France for two months.
On the way out of town, we discussed the plan to ride along the Route des Champs to Chambly, the shorter route, and decided to take the southern path through Farnham and St-Jean-sur-Richelieu as it was a more interesting route, about the same distance as the day before and we expected it to be shadier.
We were not feeling any lingering effects of the previous day and very quickly we were rolling into Farnham via a long detour. It was too early to head to the micro-brewery but we found a nice cafe in the centre of town run by the ever-expanding French from France population taking over the province.
A. T. chatted up some ladies from Toronto who were touring the townships on their way to Sherbrooke.
Heading out of Farnham, G. T. narrowly missed getting side-swiped by an aggressive transport truck driver rolling through the centre of town who decided he had to get by when there wasn't enough room. Fortunately, it was only a scare but another reminder that cyclists are at risk even in sleepy little towns.
Back on the Estriade path to our lunch stop in St-Jean. A cafe with a very nice terrace looking on to the Chambly Canal.
The day was heating up and we were anxious to get down the canal to Chambly and then on to the REM station at du Quartier but decided to stop in Chambly for an ice cream to cool off. Yum!
Loaded up with creamy sugar, we carried on and arrived at the REM just in time to encounter a slow down. Apparently, the REM is having as much trouble with the heat as it does with the winter cold.
We did finally get back to Central Station and said goodbye after two days of very, enjoyable riding.
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