Cycling Across Canada 2026

[Soulboy#1]

Hello all.

As per the above title I’m reaching out to forum members who’ve gone across Canada (Victoria to St John’s) for some advice.

Looking to start planning early so I can get my head around everything. Would love to know opinions on the following…

Best Route (Hoping to get up to Jasper and cycle the length of the Icefields Parkway but have heard highway 5 from Kamloops is busy).

Best time of the year to start (West to East).

Views on camping v wild camping (Ive heard the bear count in BC is higher than North America (Montana Wyoming Washington)

Warmshowers network en-route.

What mountains can be hiked along the way.

If you did it again, what would you do differently?

How long did it take you?

Costs.

Road conditions/traffic.

I’m in the UK SO reaching out to as many touring/adventure folk as a can in the nearby vicinity. Ive cycled across the US and throughout Europe so well versed with touring, but would be great to strike up conversations with those who’ve already completed the above route.

Thanks in advance.

David

[canalligators]

David, sorry you didn’t get any input. I would have been interested. 

Personally, I love Canada and might be interested in a TransCan.  But from what I’ve heard, there are some delightful roads and some dangerous ones.  I remember hearing that BC has a good route with paved shoulders, but the prairie provinces have a lot of bad sections on the TCH.  Across the tops of lakes Superior and Huron are known to be bad roads, with heavy, fast traffic and soft gravel shoulders.

Some years ago, Ontario started a program to improve cycling.  I don’t know how successful this was, or whether the objective was to improve touring.

All of this is heresay, just what I remember hearing.  If somebody knows better, please speak up.