Riding my bike 150km around the circumference of Montreal Island
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- Опубліковано 5 жов 2024
- I circumnavigated Montreal Island 150km by bike on Saturday September 4th 2021. I've recently moved here and thought this would be a great way to get to know the city.
I started in Griffintown and rode north-east along the St Lawrence River to Parc du Bout-de-l'Île, then sotuth-west along the Prairies River to Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, before returning to Griffintown via the St Lawrence.
You can see my Strava route here: / strava
I have cycled many parts of that trip, but never in one sitting. Impressive work. Inspirational.
Thanks Nick, hope you get to do the whole trip one day, it’s well worth it
What a nice find!! I've done the 150 km two summers in a row now and it's just one of the most interesting fun ways to discover parts of the island that you didn't know existed. Also I'm thinking of doing an architectural tour around the island. There are a lot of interesting homes and locations that only us bikers see on this trip.
I'd like to live in Montreal. It is actually a dream of mine. Good ride!
Really like your content, Dan! You seem like a genuine nice guy. I grew up in Île-Perrot, just west of the island of Montréal, maybe I should give a try to this or your 'walk the entire island' challenge.
"Reeve Bwoisay" and "Eel Bizarre". I grew up in that area.
I biked from LaSalle to the eastern most tip in Pointe Aux Trembles and back when i was 16- Sherbrooke ST. all theway this was in the 80's kinda scary. I kept reminding myself " you're still on the island ' lol
Bravo, inspirant! J'ai toujours vécu à Montréal. Montreal's construction is a nerver ending problem, it's a shame!
thank you man ! you are my hero. i've tried to do this route but failed to garner enough energy to finish. you're one tough cookie !!
Cheers Claude, thanks for watching, I hope you're able to do it one day!
GRUAU has to be one of the last coureurs des bois, for I find his tags absolutely everywhere in the remotest places of Montreal and the Laurentides.
If you’re up for a bigger challenge, you can ride around Montréal island offshore. I wouldn’t do it in one sitting but there are also excellent bike paths and parks to see.
Great video Dan. Love your biking videos. I recently did a 101km trip from Pickering to Burlington on a mountain bike and well, could not imagine doing 50 more KMS. Keep these videos coming!!
Thanks Michael! Pickering to Burlington would be a fantastic ride, I haven't done that exact route but I've done all parts of the trail between them. I was hoping to do a 3-day thing this past weekend but it was too rainy so I stuck to the 1-day. Hopefully I'll get at least 1 more biking video in before it gets too cold.
Great video. I live in Lachine and bike daily in and about. I don't know if you've been back to Ile Bizard, but the other half of the circumference that you missed going though the nature park is quite spectacular, complete with stone walls and farms. I used to jog that route (17km) regularly when I lived near there. Anyway, great video. There's also a ferry that can bring you to Laval -Sur-Le-Lac and access to Laval island, which is a lot of fun too. I'll have to do your trip this summer.
Hey thanks Aaron, I was pretty curious about the other half of the island while I was there; you’ve sold me on a return visit. I’ll get back there at some stage this summer to see more. I did the circumference of Laval a month or two ago and noticed the turnoff to the ferry, it’d be nice to do the trip from Ile Bizard to Laval. Cheers and hope you do get out to ride the Montreal ring this year
Very nice ❤ I did most of your route but n’ont in one shot! 150 klm is close to my all time record. I did 120 back in 2020 since then I have been on the pause side of things due to medication but! I’m back free from that 🤬 and heading to Boucherville I think. Have a nice day keep up the good work!
Impressive man !! You also sound very smart ... thanks for your video and comments
Hey thanks a lot Jean, glad you liked the video, I really enjoyed making it!
You got me motivated to do this ride this summer. On my single speed road bike nonetheless!!! Wish me luck 🤞
Awesome!! Enjoy! It's a great ride. Actually the other week I did the same in Laval (ua-cam.com/video/A-JhxYJq3HQ/v-deo.html) - Montreal is for sure the more exciting option :)
@@DanSchaumann I did Jesus island a couple of years back and the north shore of Laval was really beautiful, but man, a lot of Laval is just tedious. I did like the farms and open fields to the East too. Oh and passing by the prison. that was interesting.
One ride I enjoy is from Atwater Market to parc Rene Levesque in Lachine it's against the wind but when you head back from Rene Levesque back take the LaSalle path, you got the wind on your back pushing you all the way and it's some of the nicest river side views, same path you took with the surfing, lots of pic nic areas and beach volleyball, outdoor exercise, verdun beach etc.
I've done this ride a few times and it's magnificent! I love the trail along the Lachine
In the evening I'd time the lights and fly down Atwater hill . Still kinda crazy when u think about it
My hometown! Looks like you had a great day to do this! Well done!
Thank you! Yeah, it was a wonderful day for cycling
Great video, I enjoyed watching it, I'm getting my new bike and I'm excited of someday try a long route like this in Montrea, btw I live also in Griffintown!
Great to hear! Yeah you should try this for sure. Even if you don't want to tackle the full route to begin with, it's worth heading down to Dorval / Beaconsfield / St Anne-de-Bellevue or up to Montreal Eat / Parc du Bout-de-l'Île along the riverside. I only have a few weeks left in Griffintown and then moving to CDN
Yeah, stretches of Gouin between Cartierville and Sunnybrooke can be awful! I was hoping to see a glance at least of the cable ferry between Île Bizard and Laval that takes you to the bike route leading up to where I live in Two Mountains on the North Shore.
Wow awesome video 👍 really liked all the animal friends you made along the way!
Thanks Tatiana! Yeah so much wildlife on this one :)
Dude the timing of this video was perfect, i was literally planning something like this to do with my girlfriend.
Welcome to Montreal,
WhatYulLove is my friends restaurant, ill let him know you enjoyed it.
Thank for the insight on the ride around Montreal.
I live right before you end your trip (Dorval).
EDIT: if ever you wanted to try ile blizard i highly recommend it.
Super fun and roads are mostly perfect.
Hey thanks Philip, I'm glad you saw the video! Yeah you should totally do the loop, it's a great adventure. Ha, crazy that you know the WhatYuLove owner, yes please go ahead and tell him it was great. There's a jerk chicken place I went to regularly in Toronto which I miss but these guys are a top quality replacement. I do want to get back and see more of Ile Bizard, especially the nature park. I was very impressed.
Sweet ride! ❤
Impressive route.
Hi Dan I did this ride last weekend inspired by your video. Really fun route. The south West side was so much nicer then the Nord east side of the island lol. At least I had some good Haitian food in MTL Nord. Merci
Hey Randy, thanks for letting me know, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed the circuit! Yeah, the south-west is spectacular, isn't I? Especially around Senneville
Great ride and never far from home.. (that is, if you live in Montreal) I do it multiple times every season.
EXCELLENT VIDEO - great choice of images, all along the path. Great comments too. Bravo.
Regarding the guy's name... it is NOT commonly used by Quebec french speaking people.
I am 65 years of age, born in Montreal, and never heard one using it. I had to check it in the dictionnaire... I realize that it is (was) most probably used by a french from France. Sorry for that man...
For you to learn a good french (Québec) expression: what about ... se faire ENFIROUAPER ? The regular définition is " deceive " but, here is a long story short, it comes from a time when French explorers were travelling in North America using canoes to transport their goods. To do so, they had to WRAP THEM into the fur ! Their for " to be in fur wrap " became " enfirouaper " ! A nice story, isn't it ?
Keep discovery Montreal and the people ! and hopefully, you will not be "' enfirouaper " by some one, by any one !
So you HAVE gone through Lasalle! LOL Great video Dan! :)
Yeah and I've been through there before too, I just never realized it was Lasalle! Thanks man!
I did the same trip 20-25 years ago. The island of Montréal is surprisingly varied. I used to live there and have since moved to the country, but your video reminded me of that. Are you familiar with Mont-Tremblant, 1 1/2 hour north of Montreal? People come from all over the world to visit this place. It's gorgeous. I believe you can bike here all the way from Montreal.
It's a great ride, isn't it? I do know of Mont-Tremblant and the bike path that takes you there but I haven't ridden it myself - it's on my to-do list for next summer
You said you've just moved to Montreal, where were you from ? Great vids you make!
Thank you! I'm Australian but I've been in Canada since 2013. I spent most of my time in Toronto before I made the move to Montreal a few years ago
Thanks for your time and the video you created, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Might I suggest tough that you tighten your helmet; if you already chose to wear one. It should be treated a bit like motorcycle helmet and adjusted every time you put it on.
Cool vid
"Whould I do it again? Absolutely not!" 🤣🤣🤣
A nice way to do it is in two days using the metro
I've reached to you before on this video, and I have a few question for you: I will be doing this route in a few weeks time and was wondering if you had any tips or suggestions for my ride? Did you use Strava as a guide or did you simply use it to record your route? Finally, I will also travelling in a counterclockwise direction (so that I am also on the same side the water) ...did you find this to be this helpful for staying on route for the perimeter of the island? Cheers, and well done on your ride!
Thanks for getting back in touch! Good to hear you're doing the ride yourself. I used Google Maps as my guide but I had to tweak it a bit; it (rightly so) suggested some bike routes which were a bit more internal, whereas I specifically wanted to stick as far close to the outer circumference as possible. Strava was just to record the route. I'd also agree counter-clockwise is the best option, for exactly that reason, it's easier to take a detour into a waterside park. Be cautious around the Cartierville area of Gouin, when I was there a few months ago it was full of roadwork and quite chaotic. Good luck!
@@DanSchaumann Thanks so much for getting back to me! I appreciate your feedback! I'm really looking forward to this challenge!
If you had an Ebike you wouldn't get tired lol, i do spend quite a bit of energy with mine, but never get tired.
Nice one Dan, I did the loop about 10 years ago but spent the night in West Island. I think my first day was around 80 85 km. Keep riding!
Cheers Gregory, thanks for watching. It's a worthwhile ride, isn't it? That's a great idea to have stayed on the West Island to break the trip up, in hindsight I certainly could have taken a good meal and a few beers by the time I got out there.
I'm planning on doing the same trip, probably next summer (an injury ate up a lot of this summer). It's nice to see this quick summary so I have some idea what it's like but still have plenty to discover. Any tips/things you would do differently?
P.S.: Go in drains! C⚡C
You're right, I should have gone in the drain! I'm pretty happy with the route I took but in hindsight I should have done the full loop of L'Île-Bizard instead of just cutting through the centre. I've since been back there and it's incredibly cyclable, it deserves its place in the circumnavigation. Hope you manage to do it next year!
Nice!
Great video! I've ridden up to Montreal three times from Burlington, VT, but haven't ridden much around Montreal itself, other than the Lachine canal. Do you use paper bike maps at all to navigate around Montreal? I'm really directionally challenged, and find when I bike that I like to have an actual paper bike map that I can spread out and consult, in addition to a digital map on my phone that I can then look at for more detail. If you do use paper maps, where did you get them? Incidentally, if you haven't ridden the 20 km Chambly canal path that links Chambly with Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu SE of Montreal, that's definitely worth you checking out. (I ride that as part of my route from Vermont to Montreal).
Hey Archie, thanks for your message. I don’t use paper bike maps but I recently got a Quadlock which attaches to the handlebars and holds my phone for easy google maps usage. I did the Chambly - Saint-Jean canal last year with a friend, we went down to VT via Rouses Point and looped back up through Venise-en-Quebec. The canal was one of the highlights of that ride. I’d love to cycle down to Burlington, I’ve been a couple of times (not by bike) and also to Montpelier, which is my all-time favourite US city. Vermont is awesome!
Nice video, Dan! I’ll be visiting the city in early August - is there a bike route in or near Montreal you’d recommend for beauty and/or charming places to stop? I don’t have 150km in me, but I could comfortably do 50km as long as there aren’t too many climbs. Thanks!
Hey thanks a lot for watching and for your comment! There are some great bike routes around town. I recommend Petite Voie du Fleuve. Take the Cartier Bridge from downtown over to St Helens Island, head across to Île Notre-Dame for a lap of the Formula 1 track and you can join PVdF from there. It's a 14km trail dedicated to cyclists & pedestrians which takes you along the St Lawrence to the RecreoPark. If I recall correctly, it's mostly sealed although there may be some gravel sections, also beware of annoying bugs getting all over your face, but it's a superb ride. For somewhere closer to town, you can't go wrong with the Lachine Canal or the trail up Mont Royal beginning at the Sir George-Étienne Cartier Monument (shorter but more challenging). Enjoy your trip!
10:27 I wonder why the flag was at half-mast that day??
If you go back to that area in Dorval where you stopped and took a break, there’s a great restaurant called Natalino. You should check it out 👍
Good onya mate. That was fair dinkum I reckon.
Now go skull a tinny of Fosters.
hey! I have also wanted to bike the circumference of montreal but feel like my legs will give out wayy before i finish Dx
Awesome video Dan! Looks like such a great environment to be! What bike are you on?…it seems pretty handy on all surfaces!
Cheers Joel! Apologies for the Wanderers shirt again haha. I have a Marin Nicasio 2, it's a gravel bike, shaped like a road bike but steel frame & well suited for gravel trails
@@DanSchaumann Haha, I’ll forgive it until the start of the A-league season! Looks like an awesome bike! I need a new one myself! I’ve also become addicted to GeoGuessr after scrolling through a few of your other videos!
@@JoelWende awesome!! GeoGuessr has been a lifesaver over the past 1.5 years of lockdowns. Check out some UA-camrs like GeoPeter and GeoWizard, they're masters at the game, I prefer watching the pros play it than playing it myself!
@@DanSchaumann Awesome!! Will check them out for sure!
what's the application name ? where you tracked your cycling ?
Hey, I use Strava for the cycle tracking, been using it for years and it’s great
Poor old italian guy. Article one of the chart of Montréal: Montréal is a french speaking city.
Can I ask if the cycling route you took around the whole island fairly flat?
It was pretty flat, yeah. I don't remember any particularly hilly areas but I just went back to my Strava log and saw it was a 347m elevation over the 150km
@@DanSchaumann hi thanks for your response. I've been here since Friday morning. I did LaSalle to LaRonde. Then I did the Lachine Canal and some inner city cycling to the Olympic Stadium and today I did the Petit Train du Nord. All an average of about 80 km a day. With this humidity I picked the wrong time to come...there's no way I can do the whole island....lol. Next time it will be in the Fall. Tomorrow I'm heading back down to the waterfront so I can access Petit Voie de Fleuve Trail ,that really narrow strip of land, along the st Lawrence...it's going to be overcast and cooler. Enjoy your videos and look forward to your next adventure...
montreal is bike friendly city, if you don't know what friendly means
Im gonna do it in a few weeks
Do it! It's a great experience
What camera did you use for the MTL circuit?
Hey it was my iPhone 12, it's a great camera for this kind of thing
Is that a Carbon Bike?
Hey, no it’s a Chromoly. Not as light/fast as a carbon bike but still does a great job
@@DanSchaumann i did half the Circumference of Montreal last Summer. If the bikepaths were as nice as the ones in the Netherlands I'd be circling the whole Island every Summer.
I lived in Montreal back in 2010 and moved back home Sydney 2015. If i were to move back in Canada it wll be quebec city. Im surprised you dont live in the english suburbs of Montreal, Westmount! I use to live near the Stadium and botanical gardens. Have you visited The botanical gardens ? When i return for visit i really want to cycle to NYC from MTL. ua-cam.com/video/abl4Hc0oQkM/v-deo.html
Things have certainly changed a bit here since 2015. Actually last year I moved to Cote des Neiges, I prefer it over Griffintown and it’s got a good mix of EN+FR. I’ve been to the botanical gardens twice but it was many years ago, I haven’t been out there recently. When I go biking it’s normally out west or along the south shore, Chateauguay is a great place to ride to on a weekend. Hope you can get back here!