Kingston to Ottawa (Part 1)

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The first day of the trip involved loading everything on to my bicycle and cycling down Yonge Street to Union Station in Toronto. There I dismantled my bicycle (removed the peddles and rotated handlebars) and loaded it into a box for VIA rail. I had rehearsed this so things went smoothly for me but a cyclist who arrived shortly after me, could not get his peddles off and damaged my peddle wrench in the process. I arrived in Kingston in the early afternoon, assembled my bike and cycled downtown from the station.

In Kingston, I had a reservation at the B&B on board the Alexander Henry, a former Coast Guard ship but now part of the Great Lakes Maritime Museum. I cycled around Kingston, including over to the Fort Frederick Museum at the Royal Military College. Around 5pm, I checked in to the B&B and spent the rest of the evening on foot. I walked through the downtown and past Queens University before having dinner. (more photos from Kingston)

In the morning, the remains of Hurricane Katrina provided torrential rain and wind. I headed off anyway on my bicycle. My first stop was at the Kingston Mills locks just north of Kingston - it was still raining so I barely slowed down. From there, I continued north, along Highway 11 and 10 to Perth Road. There I branched off the highway onto the Cataraqui Trail. After an exhausting ride along this trail, I had lunch at Chaffey's Locks as the rain finally ended. From there, I headed north to Crosby and then west to Westport, arriving at 4:30 (~80 km, see route). After a shower and nap at the Toybox B&B, I walked into Westport for dinner. (more photos from Westport)

After a delightful breakfast in the sunshine, I cycled back toward Crosby and then north along Highway 14 to the locks at the Narrows. After watching a few boats go through, I continued along Highway 14 and then Highway 21 to Rideau Ferry for lunch and again crossed over the canal system. I had a run-in with a snapping turtle that I attempted to move off the highway.

From Rideau Ferry, I headed directly east, bypassing Smiths Falls along the back roads. I cut north through Kilmarnock Island, one of my favourite parts of my trip, then into Merrickville for the night (~90 km, see route). Since my B&B was about 1km out of town, after a shower and nap, I cycled back into town for dinner and to enjoy the sunset.

Merrickville has been named the 'prettiest village' in Ontario. My opinion is that it is a fake town - almost all it has are restaurants, antique stores and jam stores. It has a lovely park beside the canal though. (more photos from Merrickville)