5 May 2025 Return from Cornwall

A.T. caught the  6:45 AM Toronto bound VIA train at Gare Centrale.  He got off at Cornwall and rode back to Dorion for a second EXO train to Montreal.

 

 

  Luckily, this was one of the new bike rack equipped Venture trains. This way A.T.  could record how VIA was putting these new racks to use. (VIA does not yet permit the bicycle racks to be used by full size bikes, hence the reason A.T. was using a folding bike)

 

 

Getting off the train, he headed for breakfast at a nearby Chez Cora.  It seems to be called Cora Breakfast and Lunch in Ontario.

 Hunger satisfied he set out on the Cornwall portion of the Waterfront Trail to Quebec.  One of the signs he saw stated the trail starts at Niagara on the Lake, another in Windsor Ontario.  The  Waterfront Trail website indicates it begins alongside Lake Superior on the Canada - US border.  It would be interesting to do the full length of the trail and find out what portions are actually bike friendly.

  The Cornwall section of the trail is pretty nice, A.T. joined it in  a forested area west of the city and followed it down to the St Lawrence River.

 

   The historic Cornwall Canal separates the City of Cornwall and the St Lawrence River.  The Waterfront trail runs down a strip of parkland between the canal and the river.  The water level on the left, in the canal is noticeably higher than the river on the right.

 

   In 1905, a portion of the canal bank washed into the river, knocking down a nearby Railroad Swing Bridge.  If you look closely at the river, the swing bridge gear wheel is still visible just under the surface of the water.

About 20 east of Cornwall is the Cooper's Marsh Bird Santuary.  It looks like a good place to explore more thoroughly someday.

 

The Waterfront trail east of Lancaster, to the Quebec border is a dull, straight Hwy 401 service road.  Fortunately it is lightly used with a wide paved shoulder.

 

Although in theory Ontario's Waterfront Trail connects to Quebec's Route Verte network, the bike lanes seem to disappear near both side of the border.

 

The bike paths and facilities quickly improve as one moves deeper into Quebec.

 

G.T Bishop had taken an afternoon train to Dorion and arranged to meet up with A.T. Lane as he approached the Soulanges  Canal.

 

 Together they traveled the Soulanges  Canal, taking special note of the Roman ruins discovered by Louis Rubenstein.

 

 

They boarded the train at Dorion, and speaking of Louis, guess who should show up to join them at the Beaconsfield station?