Crossing into Canada?

[OtterMike]

I am in the planning stages of a cross country ride starting July 2015, and am exploring crossing from Michigan into Canada at Sault Set Marie, and then on to Montreal and and maybe Quebec City and then back into the USA and Maine. 

Does any kind soul have any advice, experience and resources for these areas (update Wisconsin, the Michigan UP,and into Canada as well as Montreal and into Burlington VT or on to Quebec City and into Maine on Hwy 201? 

Any help and insights offered will be gratefully received. 

[DanE]

The province of Quebec has an extensive cycling network called La Route Verte. Check out the information on their web page: http://www.routeverte.com/rv/home.

[bikemig]

It's been a while but that's the route I did when I modified the northern tier route.  I went through the UP, crossed into saulte Ste. Marie, entered the US near Kingston Ontario and then picked up the northern tier.  The UP is great (other than the mosquitos natch) and Saulte Ste. Marie was suitably ugly at least on the US side. The trans-Canadian is what it is.  I then dipped down to Manatoulin Island, the Bruce Peninsula and hit Lake Ontario east of Toronto. Once I got off the trans-Canadian, it was all good. 

[jrswenberger]

Don't forget the passport....

[geegee]

If you do go through Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, drop by the folks at Velorution bike shop. They have a really cool free campground at the back of the store for touring cyclists, with access to the store's bathroom and shower. They're also actively advocating an alternative route towards Sudbury that avoids the busy Trans-Canada (Highway 17):
https://www.google.ca/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=214764887640319326754.0004e397f01a335380b26

Consider taking the Espanola-Manitoulin Island-Tobermory route as suggested above, as Southern Ontario has more parallel routes on quiet county roads compared to the rugged hilly north. Sudbury to the Ottawa Valley (into Petawawa) can be quite a challenge as the highway is narrow and steep at times with no alternative routes. Having said that, I've cycled across that expanse twice and I'm still in one piece

I rode through the south of Lake Superior last year and the roads in the UP are a mixed bag. Some stretches have no shoulder but traffic is generally light.

If you decide to ride along the shores of Lake Ontario and the St-Lawrence Valley, that route is documented here: http://www.waterfronttrail.org

As already mentioned, the Route verte in Quebec makes getting around by bike in that province really easy.

[Norsman]

I strongly agree with the recommendation to go to Velorution in SSM.  As to the route east, I would stay off the Trans Canada Highway (TCH) as much as possible. Check with the Velorution people to figure out if their route works for you.  At the very least take a non-TCH route out of SSM.  If you are forced to go on the TCH get off at Massey and use  Lee Valley Road to Espanola. When I did a cross Canada ride I went down to Manitoulin Island and the Bruce Peninsula before I headed east.  That was much nicer than my TCH ride around Lake Superior.  I used the Waterfront Trail for much of my ride thru southern Ontario.  But sections of it were a bit of a pain, bumpy and on the non-water side of the road.  When that happened I used the quiet highways along the shore to get me to Quebec.  Hwys 2 and 33 if I remember correctly.

The Route Verte routes in Quebec are very good. I used the excellent Petit Temis bike path to get me from Riviere-du-Loup to New Brunswick.  If you want to go that far east it connects very nicely with upstate Maine. Otherwise go on their website and use the Maps section.  Use the From and To bike symbols in the top left corner to plan a good bike route.

[JayH]

One suggestion about the border crossings, not all of them are open 24 hours/day, 7 days a week so research that when the time is near just in case you're doing odd hours... 

Jay

[jamawani]

Those Canadians are wild and crazy people.
I would be very careful.   ;-)

[mbattisti]

for routes to and from Burlington, check out the Champlain bikeways website. If heading north and/or east from Burlington, avoid rt.15, heavy truck traffic.  Better to take ACA's more northerly route thru Newport, VT.

[JohnBerry]

It's eleven years ago now, but I crossed into Canada by taking the ferry from Sandusky, OH, to Pelee Island, and then on to the mainland of Ontario.   Getting into Sandusky is a bit tricky (the maps didn't at that time show the old road that avoids having to get on the freeway), but the ferry is great (goes past the Commodore Perry monument), Pelee Island is fantastic, and so is the coast road east from there.

I also went up through Goderich to the Bruce Peninsula, Manitoulin, Sudburt, North Bay, Sundridge, Barrie, Uxbridge, Port Perry, Cobourg to avoid riding through Toronto.  That whole diversion was interesting and scenic (I stopped at a lift on the Peterborough-Huron canal), for example), but I found out later that I could have ridden thro' Toronto on cycle routes.
John