Bicycling Niagara

by Jane Hughes and Pat Dunphy

 

Niagara by bike adds the fragrance of wild roses and the songs of a mockingbird to the highly-acclaimed pleasures of motoring in this world-class area.  Not to mention the sense of one’s own strength and stamina.  Of course, a bonus is the ability to easily pull off the road to read a plaque, drink in a view or snap a picture.  Whatever their reason, more and more people are choosing to use bicycles as all or part of their tourism experience and Niagara is probably better-suited to bicycle tourism than any other Region in North America.  What’s more, the Region of Niagara is waking up to this potential and doing more every year to promote bicycle tourism!

 

Let’s start with geography:  The Niagara Region is basically flat, always a nice treat for cyclists!  The only major climbs are along the Niagara Escarpment. (Yes, that’s the hill that’s responsible for Niagara Falls.)  The land below the Escarpment along the shore of Lake Ontario is a little warmer and more ‘built-up’.  Rides here are through orchards and vineyards, past wineries and through small towns and our largest city, St Catharines.  Above the Escarpment are many very quiet roads through gently rolling farmland.  The Escarpment itself - sometimes called ‘the Mountain’ presents an exciting but not insurmountable challenge to most cyclists.  The climbing gets harder the further west you go, but the views from the top are worth the work and the descents are thrilling!  All along the crest are smaller versions of Niagara Falls - almost as high and without all the tourists.

 

Another great feature of Niagara’s geography is our long cycling season.  If you pick your weather, there isn’t a month when you can’t cycle.  The St. Catharines Cycling Club has a traditional New Year’s Day ride, and your authors enjoy an annual Boxing Day ride from St. Catharines to the Angel Inn in Niagara-on-the-Lake for lunch.  At the other end of winter, there is the Maple Sugar ride a 38 Km seasonal ‘warm-up’ ride to a local Maple Syrup farm which takes place the first good weekend in March.  So pick your day and don’t limit your Niagara travel to June to September!

 

The first thing you notice when cycle touring Niagara is that Niagara isn’t just the Falls! (or the Casino).  Niagara has a long and interesting history, dating back well before European settlement to archaeological finds of Neutral Indian sites over a thousand years old.  In the more recent past, many of the battles of the War of 1812 were fought in Niagara, including the Battle of Queenston Heights, in which General Brock was killed.  Brock’s Monument commands a breathtaking view of the Niagara River, but cyclists in the quieter rural areas are often surprised by a more modest monument to another hero or battle.  One such is DeCew House (only the foundations remain) in Thorold.  This site marks the end of Laura Secord’s trek to warn the British of an American attack.  Morningstar Mill, also in Thorold, is a faithfully restored, fully working mill powered by one of Niagara’s smaller waterfalls.  Along the old Welland Canal, through the City of St. Catharines, runs the Merritt Trail, a stone-dust trail suitable for mountain bikes or tourers.  Cyclists on this trail can imagine what it was like to live and work on the canals more than one hundred years ago.  Niagara was also a major terminus of the ‘Underground Railway’, which helped slaves escape the United States to freedom in Canada.  Visit one of our Museums (particularly in Fort Erie or St. Catharines) to find out how to explore Niagara’s Black heritage.

 

Tourists and resident cyclists alike agree that the peak Niagara touring experience is probably a Winery tour.  The ‘Wine Route’ is well-marked and visits more than thirty (and growing!) cottage wineries. All offer wine sales, tours and tastings.  Some offer fine dining specializing in fresh Niagara produce.  Wineries are learning to expect cyclists and many have bike racks and all will fill your water bottle and provide a quiet place to rest and regroup. 

 

What sort of facilities can the bicycle tourist expect in Niagara?  First, there are some excellent multi-use trails in place and under development.  Premier among these is the famous Niagara Parkway.  The Parkway stretches more than fifty Km along the Niagara River from Niagara-on-the-Lake on Lake Ontario to Fort Erie on Lake Erie.  For most of the way it is a hard-surface trail completely separated from other traffic.  Some faster cyclists prefer to use the parallel road, since the multi-use trail can become very congested on summer weekends.  Under development is a multi-use trail alongside the Welland Canal from St. Catharines to Port Colborne.  This trail is complete from Lake Ontario about 12K south to the City of Thorold.  Plans are to complete the trail through Thorold to Welland in 1998-99 and then to work north from Port Colborne in following years.  This trail will go through some of Niagara’s most interesting and historical industrial areas, small towns and cities and, of course, past ships of every nation plying the Canal.  The long-range plan is for a ‘circle route’, with the Waterfront Trail along Lake Ontario and the Talbot Trail along Lake Erie closing the circle.  For those with an eye to a challenge, this circle should make an almost-perfect ‘Classic Century’ - 160Km.

 

Venturing out on Niagara’s roads can also be a satisfying experience.  Few roads (except the QEW and ‘400 series’ highways) are really unsuitable for cycling.  Many of our quiet country roads are paved or, at least, ‘tar and chip’ hard-surfaced.  Even most ‘gravel’ roads are quite suitable for all but the skinniest tires.  A program aimed at improving conditions for cycling has been in effect for several years now and paved shoulders (in the country) and dedicated bicycle lanes (in cities) are beginning to appear throughout the Region.  Every year more cyclists are seen on the roads and every year there will be more out there for them!

 

So are you ready to try bicycling in Niagara?  A good start would be the new publication ‘Cycling Niagara’, produced the Niagara Economic and Tourism Corporation (NETCorp) and developed by the Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee.  This booklet describes and maps twelve circle tours covering the whole Niagara Region and touching on most of the tourist sights, towns, wineries and different landscapes.  It is available from NETCorp, PO Box 1042, Thorold, Ontario L2V 4T7 or call 1-800-263-2988 or (905) 984 3626.  Two good books would be:  ‘Exploring Niagara’ by Hans and Allyson Tammemagi, available from the publisher, Oak Hill Publishing House: (905) 641-2732 or Marg Archibald’s new guidebook, ‘Excellent Cycling Adventures in Niagara’, which will be ready for the Toronto Cycling Show spring 1999. For info on Marg’s book: email monday@nucleus.com or fax (403) 270-4414.  You might also check out the NETCorp website: http://www.tourismniagara.com and an excellent site maintained by an enthusiastic local cyclist, Mark Kawabe: http://www.cycle.niagara.com.  No bike?  Some hotels rent bikes by the hour or day as do several of the many bike shops in Niagara.  And to find riding partners, contact the Niagara Freewheelers Bicycle Touring Club through the cycle.niagara website above.   There are several local companies offering guided cycle tours but if ‘deluxe guided touring’ is your style, call Steve Bauer! (905-562-0788)  Steve has retired from an illustrious racing career in Europe (including wearing the Yellow Jersey in the Tour de France) and ‘come home’ to Niagara to host bike tours.  Steve’s tours include fine wines, fine dining and fine bikes to accompany his personal tours of his favourite Niagara roads and sights.

 

Niagara has satisfying cycling for all levels, strengths and interests of cyclist.  Make it your first, or next, cycling adventure.

 

Pat Dunphy has been touring and racing bicycles on two continents since the late 1940’s.   He is a retired Community Development worker.  Jane Hughes is a Regional Councilor in Niagara and Chair of the Regional Niagara Bicycling Committee.  She is a Teaching Assistant in the Geography Department at Brock University and thanks  husband Pat for introducing her to tourist cycling!