Commute Routes – OttawaVeloOutaouais

Biking from Downtown to the Ottawa International Airport and/or the EY Centre

The Ottawa International Airport is a comfortable 13-15 km ride from downtown. The following route is my favourite. The EY Centre is a huge convention space used for various events and is very close to the airport, so I’ve included a slight detour that’ll get you there as well (orange line on the map).

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Starting off from the corner of Laurier Avenue and Percy St, head south along the Percy bike lane. (Percy and Laurier is an intersection easily accessible from many points within the downtown core via the Laurier Bike Lane).

Percy continues on the opposite side of the Queensway sans bike lane.

Turn right on Fifth Avenue and cross Bronson Avenue at the intersection.

Traffic lights at Fifth Avenue heading across Bronson — Traffic lights at Fifth & Bronson

Once across Bronson continue down Madawask Drive, then onto the pathway that cuts through Commissioners Park.

Access to path through Commissioners Park from Madawaska Drive — Lovely path through Commissioners Park. Always lots of flowers.

Follw this path to the intersection of Preston Street and Prince of Wales Drive.

Cross the lights to get to the bike path that runs through the Arboretum along the edge of Dow’s Lake and the Rideau Canal.

Path through the Arboretum along the Rideau Canal — Path through the Arboretum

Pushed you bike over the canal locks opposite Carleton University and turn right along the Rideau Canal Pathway as far as Mooney’s Bay.

The path continues over the Rideau River along Hogs Back Road. Once over the Hogs Back Falls bridge take the path to the right that goes through Mooney’s Bay park

Once over the Hogs Back Falls bridge take the path to the right that goes through Mooneys Bay park — Path to the right that goes through Mooney’s Bay park

On the other side of Mooney’s Bay Park the path continues along Riverside Drive for a short distance until it ends at Walkley Road. Riverside Drive is a very busy street with lots of speeding traffic. There are raised paved shoulders along Riverside beyond Quesnel Drive, but not between Walkley Road and Quesnel Drive. To avoid this section, ride on the packed grass beside the sidewalk along Riverside for a short distance and cross Riverside to the parking lot of the Anglican Church.

Intersection of Walkley and Riverside Drive

Entrance to church parking lot off Riverside

Ride through to the opposite side of the church parking lot to the short path that cuts through to Otterson Drive.

Path from church parking lot to Otterson Drive

Turn right onto Otterson, and take the short path that links to Quesnel Drive. Follow Quesnel Dr that ends at Riverside Drive. Get back on Riverside Drive and continue south along the previously mentioned raised paved shoulders. They extend from Quesnel to Uplands Drive.

Turn left onto Uplands Drive and follow it for a short distance before turning right along Bowesville Road.

Mid way down Bowesville there’s a NO THROUGH TRAFFIC sign, and a smaller green one below it that asks pedestrians and cyclists passing through to remain on the road. That’s because it cuts through the Ottawa Hunt & Golf Club. There’s a steel gate a bit beyond the signs, however there’s space to ride by just to the right.

Signs midway down Bowesville, and gate a bit further on.

Once beyond the golf club property cross Hunt Club Road at the lights and continue south along Paul Benoit Driveway. This is a very pleasant road to ride along. Traffic isn’t too speedy, the posted limit being 50km/h. There is also a paved path that runs along the west side of the road.

Normally, to get to the terminal turn right off of Paul Benoit Driveway onto Kiowa Pr, cut through the employee parking, then left at the end of the parking lot, which becomes a lane airport employees use to walk back and forth to their cars. This lane leads right to the arrivals doors in front of the terminal. At the time of writing they were constructing the O-Train connection to the airport, which required a slight deviation to the normal route, as per the green line indicated on the above map. i.e., rather than cut through the employees parking, ride to the end of Kiowa Pr to Clear Skies Pr, then turn left onto Clear Skies Pr, which leads to the aforementioned lane that brings you to the entrance to the terminal.

Connection from Clear Skies Pr to path leading to front of airport terminal

There are bike racks infront of the concrete pillars located just outside the entrance to the airport.

Accessing the EY Centre

If you are heading to the EY Centre (orange line on the above map) turn left off of Paul Benoit Driveway onto Breadner Blvd, which has ample room for cars and bikes.

Turn right onto Uplands Drive, which is a busy street, but also has wide paved shoulders. The entrance to the EY Centre is a short distance further along Uplands.

Follow the same route heading back to Ottawa, except for the last stretch north of the Queensway where the bike lane follows Bayswater versus Percy, as indicated by the purple line on the above map.

Et voila!

O-Train Trillium Line closed?! Bike instead. Here’s how.

The O-Train Trillium Line is closed until some time in 2022 as they lengthen the tracks. Here is a bike route that visits each of the original stops, starting from Bayview Station at the northern end of the line. The route is indicated by the blue line on the following map.

Follow the Trillium Pathway heading south under the Bayview Station.

Trillium Path heading south under the Bayview Station

This path continues beside the O-Train tracks.

There is a slight detour one block over along Preston heading under the Queensway.

3 Detour — Short detour along Preston St

Beyond the Queensway the path continues beside the tracks. A bit further along is the second O-Train stop, Carling Station.

Next stop – Carleton University.

Cross Carling Avenue at the lights and continue straight along the Trillium Pathway to where it ends at Prince of Wales Drive. Turn left along the path that runs parallel to Prince of Wales Drive, then cross at the lights at Dows Lake.

Follow the bike path that runs through the Arboretum. This path eventually runs parallel to the Rideau Canal and up to the Hartwell Locks across from Carleton University. Cross the canal at the locks.

Crossing the Hartwell Locks

If Carleton University is your destination then cross Colonel By Drive and you’re on campus. Left on Library Road brings you down to the Carleton Station.

5 Cross to Carleton

If your destination is a stop further down the line don’t cross Colonel By Drive. Instead turn right and ride along the Rideau Canal Eastern Pathway.

Heading up past the locks and under Hog’s Back Road

Turn right onto Hog’s Back Road. The Hog’s Back Road bridge over the Rideau River is presently being rebuilt however there is a detour that runs along the side of this short bridge. Bonus – this affords a spectacular view down onto the falls.

Once over the bridge and back onto Hogs Back Road you can ride along either path on both sides of the street although I would suggest crossing onto the south side so it’s easier to cross busy Riverside Drive at the next lights.

11 Hogs Back Road — View down Hogs Back Road

Crossing Riverside Drive brings you to Brookfield Road which has a bi-directional bike path on the south side of the road. Follow this path all the way to the round-about. Once arrived at the round-about take the first crosswalk to the other side of Brookfield Road.

12 Roundabout — Crossing Brookfield Road at the round-about

If your destination is the Mooney’s Bay Station turn left onto the path that meanders for a short distance down to the station.

13 To Mooney's stn — Left to Mooney’s Bay Station or right to next station

14 Mooney's Bay Station — Mooney’s Bay Station

If your destination is the next stop, Greenboro Station, then turn right onto the Brookfield Pathway that skirts the edge of the round-about before curving under the Airport Parkway and up over a set of train tracks.

15 Brookfield Pathway — Brookfield Pathway heading over the train tracks

Just beyond the train tracks turn right onto the Sawmill Creek Pathway. This path runs mostly alongside the Airport Parkway. It veers off a bit and follows the transitway for a short spell before continuing along the Parkway. You will ride past the Sawmill Creek Wetland, a fantastic series of ponds and a natural habitat for all sorts of birds.

Northern end of the Sawmill Creek Pathway — Exit off the Brookfield Pathway onto the Sawmill Creek Pathway

14 Sawmill creek path — Sawmill Creek Pathway running alongside the Airport Parkway

Continue under the distinct pedestrian/bike bridge, then take the second exit left off the pathway (the first exit is the ramp up over the bridge. Don’t take that) .

This short section of path will take you to a tunnel that leads under the O-Train tracks, then through an enclosed passageway that goes under the transitway. The confusing sign at the entrance of the enclosed section says no bikes allowed, but OC Transpo confirmed you can walk your bike through.

Et voila!

Biking is a great alternative to taking the train.

Biking from Strathcona Park to South Keys

Jeanne was asking about a bike route from Strathcona Park to the South Keys Shopping Centre. Here’s a map. Description and photo’s below.

Starting from the Strathcona Park side of the Adawe bridge River follow the path that runs along the Rideau River heading upstream.

START : Path through Strathcona Park heading upstream from the Adawe bridge

The path continues along the river, going under the Queensway and up behind the University of Ottawa football field, before reaching the Hurdman Bridge. Cross over the Hurdman Bridge bike path beside the O-Train tracks.

Once over the bridge circle down to your left and continue heading upstream along the Rideau River Pathway.

Just after some big power line towers turn left onto a path which will bring you to a signalised crossing at Riverside Drive over to Frobisher Lane.

Rideau River Pathway. Arrow indicates exit path beyond the power line tower.

Frobisher Lane gets you over the transitway. Once over the transitway turn right at the ‘T’ which continues as Frobisher Lane. Travel along to the end of the road where it transitions into a wide concrete walkway. Keep riding along this walkway to the lights across Smyth Road.

Cross Smyth Road and continue through the Riverside Hospital campus. At the south-west corner of the campus there is a path that allows you to continue straight.

Path at south corner of Riverside Hospital

This path then curls to the left over the train tracks. Once over the tracks turn right onto Rodney Crescent.

Sharp right onto Rodney Crescent after riding over the tracks

This brings you to Pleasant Park Drive. Cross Pleasant Park to the path starting slightly to the right on the opposite side. This path merges into Lamira Street.

Continue straight through the round-about along Lamira. The section of this route with the most traffic is the short section along Lamira between the round-about and Bank Street but it usually isn’t too bad.

Lamira St between the round-about and Bank St

Head straight through the intersection at Bank onto Belanger Ave which is a quiet residential street. So is Clementine Blvd onto which you will turn left where Belanger ends.

Follow Clementine all the way to Brookfield Road. Turn right onto Brookfield. At the corner of Brookfield and Junction Ave head straight onto the Brookfield Path.

Accessing Brookfield Path from the corner of Brookfield Road and Junction Ave

Brookfield Path winds its way down a curving wooden boardwalk under the train tracks, then up the other side. It’s quite a lovely little section.

At the top of the hill turn left onto the Sawmill Creek Pathway.

Exit off Brookfield Path to Sawmill Creek Path

Sawmill Creek Pathway mostly runs alongside the Airport Parkway, occasionally veering further away, at one time following the transit way for a short spell.

Sawmill Creek Pathway running alongside the Airport Parkway

Continue under the distinct pedestrian/bike bridge that goes over the Airport Parkway. Once on the other side take the second exit left off the pathway (the first exit is the ramp up over the bridge. Don’t take that) .

Heading under the bridge towards the second exit off the Sawmill Creek Pathway

This short section of path will take you to a tunnel that goes under the O-Train tracks and an enclosed passageway that goes under the transitway. The confusing sign at the entrance of the enclosed section says no bikes allowed, but OC Transpo confirmed you can walk your bike through.

On the other side you will find yourself at the southern back corner of South Keys shopping centre. Follow the road around to the front.

Et voila!

Biking to Algonquin College from Alta Vista

As the new school year begins many students are looking for a bike route to their campus. Susan requested one to Algonquin College from her home in the Alta Vista ward. Here’s what I came up with.

Our ride begins at the corner of Colson Avenue and Saunderson Road. Head west along Colson, a quiet residential street lined with big trees and a beautiful leafy canopy.

Turn left onto Haig Drive then cross Dauphin Road to get to Portage Ave. Portage becomes a dead-end for cars but merges into a bike path that runs along the edge of Lynda Lane Park.

Bike path along the edge of Lynda Lane Park

This leads you to Lynda Lane which is a slightly busier street but there is a bi-directional bike lane on the western side of the road that brings you a block over to Pleasant Park Road.

Bike path along Lynda lane to Pleasant Park Road

Pleasant Park Road is a busy street that cuts east-west through Alta Vista. Many cyclists tend to use it because it is direct and the lanes are wide enough to accomodate a car and bike. There are also a couple of stop signs that help calm down speedy drivers. Unfortunately it doesn’t have bike lanes.

An alternative to riding along Pleasant Park Road would be to cycle down Billings Avenue, which is a calmer street that runs parallel to Pleasant Park as far as Rodney Crescent (see orange line on the above map), however it doesn’t have traffic lights to get across busy Alta Vista Drive.

Pleasant Park dips down to where it meets Riverside Drive. There are lights to get you across Riverside to a bike path that links to the Rideau River East Pathway.

Path across from Riverside leading to Rideau River Eastern Pathway

Ride along the very picturesque Rideau River Eastern Pathway to Bank Street for a few hundred yards. This brings us to the the worst section of our route – crossing the Bank Street bridge over the Rideau River. One may chose to ride in the roadway but that would force you into in a narrow car commuter artery that barely has enough room for the existing four lanes of impatient drivers. There are sharrows (a bike logo with a couple of pointy lines) painted on the surface of the outside lanes that are barely visible. Research has shown sharrows to be worse than useless, they are dangerous as they instil a false sense of confidence in cyclists by suggesting they are safe bike infrastructure when they aren’t. A safer alternative to riding in the roadway over the Bank Street bridge is to walk your bike along the protected sidewalk. One small consolation is this bridge isn’t very long.

View heading north over Bank St Bridge shows two options – riding on the Road ….. or walking your bike along the protected sidewalk. I recommend the sidewalk.

Narrowness of Bank St Bridge over Rideau River, view heading south

Sadly, safe options for biking across the Rideau River in this part of town do not exist. I’ve shown an alternative route on the map at the bottom of this post that continues along the Rideau River eastern Pathway up to Hogs Back Drive, but Hogs Back Bridge is closed for repairs requiring you to walk your bike across the boardwalk detour over the canal. While this detour is nice and accomodating, the time required to access and negotiate it is most likely the same as walking your bike across the Bank Street Bridge. Also, working your way to and through the intersection of Prince of Wales Drive and Hogs Back Drive is a dangerous mess.

So, back to the suggested route. Once across the bridge take the path that circles under the bridge and up past the Olympic medal display to Warrington Drive.

Path continues past the Olympic medal interpretive display

Continue along Warrington Drive, a nice quiet street that runs along the river, then turn right onto Wendover Street which brings you to Cameron Avenue. Cameron is a one way heading east, however there is a bike lane heading west. Very convenient. Follow this path all the way to Brewer Park.

Bike lane heading west along Cameron Ave

Ride along the path that cuts through Brewer Park to the lights that take you across Bronson Avenue.

Lights across Bronson Avenue to the Carleton University campus. Whoever’s at the wheel in the red car is a lousy driver.

Once across Bronson cut through the Carleton University campus over to Library Road as per the above map. The only tricky spot heading across campus is the tunnel under the O-Train tracks. It’s a little narrow and has a sharp turn to the right at the western end.

Take the paved link from Library Road to the crossing at Colonel By Drive.

Paved path off Library Road to the crossing of Colonel By Drive

Once across Colonel By push your bike up the ramp to the canal.

Stairs with ramp to push bike up to the canal locks

Getting across the canal requires carrying your bike up and down a couple of steps and pushing your bike over the locks.

Take the path perpendicular to the canal that leads to a service road which doubles as the start of the Experimental Farm Pathway.

Path perpendicular to the locks that takes you to the service road (take either the dirt path or the paved one these cyclists are using)

Start of the Experimental Farm Pathway along the service road

Now you will be following the Experimental Farm Pathway for quite a distance all the way to Woodroffe Avenue. It is mostly paths with some stretches along quiet roads with a wonderful mix of scenery. Fortunately the pathway is quite well signed.

Sections of the Experimental Farm Pathway between Prince of Wales Drive and Fisher Avenue

The only messy spot is the crossing at Fisher Avenue. Fisher is a busy street that requires lights to get across, but the crossing doesn’t allign with the path on the west side of the Fisher and the trail sign isn’t visible from the lights.

Experimental Farm Pathway continues a short distance north of the crossing at Fisher

There also isn’t a bike lane heading north to get you from the crossing to where the path continues. This forces one to take to the sidewalk or ride along the space between the sidewalk and oncoming bike lane.

View north along Fisher to where the Experimental Farm Pathway continues west

So, the Experimental Farm Pathway at Fisher is a bit of a mess, but once back on the path on the other side of Fisher things continue smoothly westwardly.

Experimental Farm Pathway between Fisher and Woodroffe Ave

The Experimental Farm Pathway ends at Woodroffe Avenue. There are lights to get you across this very busy street. On the other side of Woodroffe the Watts Creek Pathway continues just to the left of the fire station.

Arrow showing where Watts Creek Pathway begins across Woodroffe Ave beside the fire station. My panorama camera setting created those teeny-tiny cars.

The path dips down along the transit way. Take the exit off the pathway where the sign points to Baseline.

Exit off Watts Creek Pathway towards Baseline

This path then crosses the transitway then goes under Baseline Road. Things get a little tricky just south of Baseline where the path circles around an OC Transpo parking lot. Most cyclists don’t bother with this mini detour and just ride infront of the bus parking .

You will see the Algonquin Campus on the other side of Woodroffe. I continued along the path beside the transitway and crossed over to the campus at College Avenue.

Et voila!

Here is the alternative route that continues along the Rideau River Eastern Pathway at and crosses the river at Hogs Back versus at Bank Street.

Biking to Sundae School on Beechwood for some yummy ice cream!

Sundae School is a brand new ice cream parlour on Beechwood Avenue. A couple of Chinatown residents are in need of a bike commute route to get there. The rest of us need a consume route because the ice cream is super delicious!

The blue line on the following map is the route Carla and I rode to get there. The short purple line is a slight variations heading back.

UPDATE – Summer 2018: Sundae School moved a couple of blocks south along Beechwood, on the west side of the street. Their new location is indicated on the map. Bike lanes have also since been added along Beechwood from when this route was originally posted, as indicated by the green line on the map below.

We begin at the corner of Primrose and Empress, right in front of the Dominican University College.

Dominican University College at the corner of Primrose and Empress

We rode east along quiet Primrose Avenue, then turned left on to Cambridge St North. This took us to Laurier Street. The segregated bike lane along Laurier starts on the other side of Bronson Avenue. We followed the Laurier Bike Lane all the way to City Hall.

We then turned off Laurier at the exit ramp just before heading over the bridge, which took us down to Queen Elizabeth Drive. There isn’t a bike lane along the short exit ramp, but the lane is quite wide. That said, some do feel safer taking to the very wide sidewalk, while others cut through Marion Dewar Plaza infront of City Hall to Queen Elizabeth Drive to avoid having to ride along the exit ramp. If I was taking kids for an ice cream outing I would do the same. There are three way stop signs to facilitate cyclists and pedestrians wanting to cross Queen Elizabeth Drive to get on to the Rideau Canal Western pathway.

Riding along the Rideau Canal Western Pathway

Ww rode over the Rideau Canal via the Corktown Bridge.

Up and over the Rideau Canal along the Corktown Bridge

We crossed Nicholas Street at the lights and rode through the Ottawa U campus to King Edward Avenue. After crossing King Edward we sailed down Somerset East all the way to the Adawe bike & pedestrian bridge. This section of Somerset has a potpourri of vanishing and re-appearing painted bike lanes. It usually has lots of other cyclists too, as it serves as a well travelled bike link between the two non-car bridges.

Once over the Adawe Bridge we turned north along the Rideau River Eastern Pathway.

The pathway crosses Montreal Road. Many drivers tend to be extra antsy and aggressive at this intersection. Advance cross lights for pedestrians and cyclists would be helpful.

Crossing Montreal Road heading north along the Rideau River Pathway

We continued along the pathway, eventually arriving at St Patrick St where we could have turned up onto Beechwood but chose not to. That’s because the section along Beechwood for a couple of blocks immediately north of the river is attrocious for biking – very tight space with parked cars offering lots of dooring potential, and impatient drivers roaring up behind you on adrenaline rushes after flying along the St Patrick Street speedway. UPDATE- Fall 2017: This has all changed! as mentioned in the intro, there are now bike lanes along Beechwood (see green line on the above map). That said, the original route described below is still legit. We continued along the Rideau River Pathway under St Patrick before turning onto a short gravel path that took us to Crichton Street.

Gravel path off Rideau River Pathway to Crichton St

We rode east half a block along Crichton to get to Vaughan Street – a quiet residential street heading north.

This brings you to Putman Avenue. Their new 2018 location is at the corner of Putnam and Beechwood.

Sundae School (in their original 2017 location) !

Once we had finished our well deserved treat (I highly reccomend the chocolate flavour) it was time to head back.

The only variation on the route back was getting from the Rideau Canal Pathway to the segregated section of the Laurier Bike Lane that starts west of Elgin street. To get to the inersection of Laurier and Elgin we rode under the Laurier Bridge, then cut through Confederation Park.

Et voila!

Biking to the Ottawa Train Station from Centretown

The Ottawa Train Station is located a few kilometers outside of downtown. Here is a bike route to get there from Centretown.

I started off from the intersection of Laurier & Bronson avenues and headed east along the Laurier Bike Lane.

Laurier Bike lane starting at Bronson Ave — Laurier Bike Lane starting at Bronson Avenue

After passing in front of City Hall I took the exit towards Queen Elizabeth Drive and got on to the Rideau Canal Western Pathway.

UPDATE – July 2018: They’ve installed bi-directional multi-use lanes on the sidewalk just after you exit off Laurier.

Exit ramp off Laurier just beyond City Hall

Crossing Queen Elizabeth Drive to the Rideau Canal Western Pathway

I rode south along the Rideau Canal Western Pathway before crossing the canal over the Corktown bridge.

I traversed Colonel By Drive at the pedestrian lights and rode under the Nicholas Street tunnel, then up through the University of Ottawa campus.

Crossing Colonel By Drive towards the tunnel under Nicholas Street

After crossing King Edward Avenue at the traffic lights I rode straight down Somerset East before heading up and over the Rideau River on the Adawe Bridge.

On the opposite side of the river I turned right onto the Rideau River Easten Pathway.

Just after riding under the Queensway along the Rideau River Easten Pathway I turned left onto a packed gravel path that leads to the intersection of Riverside Drive and Tremblay Road.

Gravel path off the Rideau River Eastern Pathway

Crossing the Riverside Drive and Tremblay Road intersection is the least pleasant spot along this route. Something about Riverside Drive seems to compel drivers to become impatient speedsters. The oncoming left lane is also a Queensway off ramp with a yield sign to compel drivers to let you cross. There used to be a path that went over Riverside Drive, thus avoiding this intersection, but it is blocked off (temporarily I hope) as the new transit line is being constructed.

Approach to Riverside Drive and Tremblay Road intersection

Crossing Riverside Drive and Tremblay Road intersection

Once through the intersection I continued along the sidewalk that runs parallel to Tremblay before it becomes a paved path leading up to the train station.

Path along Tremblay up to the train station

I passed all the taxis lining the circular approach to the front of the station to get to where there is a bike rack just to the left of the main doors. This location, along with the security camera hanging right above it, provides me with the confidence to leave my bike locked up to the rack when I go away on a train trip for a few days. It’s a huge improvement from a long time ago when the only option was to lock your bike to a post near the poorly lit car parking lot. That’s where I discovered my bike was stolen after returning from a weekend trip to Montreal. The bike rack out front is much better.

On the way back I retraced my route, except for the section along Laurier in front of City Hall. That’s because when heading west along the Laurier Bike Lane, the safe segregated section only starts at Elgin and Laurier. To get there I cut through Confederation Park as indicated by the purple line on the above map.

If anyone needs a bike route to the station from another area of town, send me a starting reference point by email or via the ‘Leave a comment’ tag.

Bike route from Greenboro to Downtown

Greenboro is a residential community located just south of Johnston Road and west of Conroy Road. Here’s a route I tested out that’ll get you from Greenboro to downtown.

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I started off from the Greenboro Community Centre and headed west towards Bank Street, following a selection of the many multi-use paths that weave their way through the community.

After crossing Albion Road and cutting through Pushman Park, I turned right on Pebble Road then Left on South Keys Place to Clearwater Crescent. Across Clearwater Crescent there are a series of paths that cut through to Southgate Road.

I rode north on Southgate for half a block before turning into the lane heading into a housing complex called Southgate Square. This I followed a short distance to Bank Street.

The next section of the route is less than stellar. That’s because there is no clear safe way to bike across Bank Street to access the Sawmill Creek Pathway on the opposite side of the South Keys Shopping Mall.

Once at the end of the driveway there is a shortcut that I took up and on to the sidewalk along Bank.

Path to Bank St at the end of Southgate Square laneway

I followed the sidewalk south a short distance to the traffic lights across Bank Street into the South Keys Mall parking lot. The only crossing is on the south side of the intersection. I stayed along the sidewalk on the other side until I was able to access the parking lot.

Sidewalk along Bank to lights....crosswalk at the lights to South Keys Mall — Sidewalk along Bank to lights….crosswalk at the lights to South Keys Mall

Access to the Sawmill Creek Pathway is though a tunnel under the O-Train tracks at the south end of the mall, so I rode through the mall parking lot to get there. The sign at the entrance to the tunnel is confusing, however I have Tweeted confirmation from OC-Transpo that it is meant to be interpreted as ‘no riding your bike’, versus ‘no bikes allowed at all’.

Tunnel under Otrain to Sawmill Pathway..and it's confusing sign — Tunnel under Otrain to Sawmill Pathway..and it’s confusing sign

Beyond the tunnel is the Sawmill Creek Pathway, which is wonderful to ride along all the way to where it intersects the Brookfield Pathway.

Sawmill Creek Pathway - I stayed right — Sawmill Creek Pathway – I stayed right

I turned left at the Brookfield Path intersection which eventually brought me to the Brookfield Road round-about.

UPDATE – 2020 : A separated bike path has been added to the south side of Brookfield Road which is fantastic! Continue along this path to Riverside Drive.

I then crossed Riverside Drive and Hog’s Back Road, then continued along the path on the north side of Hog’s Back Road, which is identified as a shared pathway. That said, the path on the south side is commonly used by riders heading west as it is also paved and twice as wide.

Path along Hog's Back Road — Path along Hog’s Back Road

Update, 2020 – They are rebuilding the bridge over Hog’ Back Falls which requires walking your bike along a tiny detour, identified by the purple line on the above map. Bonus – it affords a spectacular view over the falls.

I then followed the path that dips under Hog’s Back Road then down along the Rideau Canal.

I crossed the canal at the locks near Carleton University. There is a metal u-channel to push your bike up the flight of stairs that gets you to the locks.

Up the stairs...to the locks — Up the stairs…to the locks

I then rode down the hill and along the paved path that runs beside the canal all the way to the Dow’s Lake pavilion. I then crossed Prince of Wales Drive and turned left along the bike path for a short distance and then turned right onto the Trillium bike path that heads north beside the O-Train tracks.

Path along the O-Train just before it heads right up up to Scott St — Path along the O-Train just before it heads right up up to Albert St

I followed the path along Albert Street as far as the crosswalk that leads towards the Laurier Bike Lanes.

The path continues through the intersection at Bronson & Slater before eventually cutting through to the Laurier Bike Lanes.

The laurier Bike Lanes cut west to east across downtown as far as City Hall.

Et voila!

N.B. Here is another route I have ridden. I don’t recommend it as much as the route described above. That’s because while Conroy Road has bike lanes, it is still a major arterial road with lots of speedy traffic.

Bike Route from Centretown to CHEO

Here’s a route from the corner of Somerset & Elgin to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO).
The blue line on the map below is the route I followed. A lot of road and path construction is happening between our start and finish points. The green line is the route I would take after all the construction dust settles. UPDATE – summer 2018: The construction along Hurdman Bridge has been completed so the green line option is once again an option.

I rode down Somerset to the canal and crossed over the Corktown Footbridge.

Corktown Bridge — View downtime canal through the love locks

UPDATE June 2017 – Previous version of this took a detour to north as the Nicholas St underpass was under construction. It’s still partially under construction, but you can ride under it regardless.

I cross Colonel By Drive then ride under the Nicholas St underpass. I continue straight along Marie Curie, across King Edward at the lights, then down Somerset all the way to the Rideau River and the Adawe pedestrian/cyclist bridge.

Looking down Somerset just east of King Edward

Once arrived on the eastern shore I turned right and followed the Rideau River Eastern Pathway.

Rideau River path.jpg — Rideau River Eastern Pathway

After passing under the Hurdman Bridge I turned off the path and rode along the detour past the major construction happening in and around the Hurdman transit station. This path is mostly crushed gravel.

The path becomes paved and continues through to the major traffic intersection at Riverside Drive and Industrial Avenue. Once across Riverside Drive I continued along the path that runs along Industrial Avenue beside the memorial to victims of cancer.

path beyond Riverside — Path along Industrial Avenue

After crossing Alta Vista Drive the path then veers off to the right away from busy Industrial Avenue.

path off Industrial — Path off Industrial at Alta Vista intersection

I then followed Coronation Avenue for a very short distance before turning on to Station Boulevard. At the end of Station Boulevard there is a path that cuts through to the ring road that circles the CHEO campus.

path to cheo — Path at the end of Station Boulevard

I then followed the ring road around to the main entrance of the hospital. Because there are no shoulders along the ring road one may feel more comfortable cutting through the parking lots, as suggested by the yellow line on the above map. I noticed a couple of bike racks right near a small playground, indicated by the yellow drop on the map.

Et voila!

Biking from the Glebe to Centretown

Here’s a suggested bike route from the Glebe to Centretown, in response to a request from a cyclist in search of a commute route that avoids having to ride along busy Bronson Avenue or Bank Street. This ride begins at the intersection of Holmwood Avenue and Craig Street and ends at the intersection of Bank Street and Somerset Street West.

View up Craig St from Holmwood Ave — View up Craig Street from Holmwood

Head north along Craig St. There’s a short jog left where Craig meets Fifth Ave before the route continues north along Percy Street.

There is often a fair amount of traffic along Percy Street heading through the Glebe, and there are no bike lanes, however stop signs at almost every intersection seem to help keep drivers calm.

A bike lane appears just before Percy continues under the Queensway. It requires easing your way over to the centre of the street. There are traffic lights to help get across the busy three lane speed strip that is Chamberlain Ave.

lane under queensway — Percy at Chamberlain

The bike path continues bi-directionally along Percy under the Queensway, however the northbound bike lane disappears a few blocks later at Flora St.

Turn east on Flora, then continue north along Bay St, which has a bike lane.

This stretch of Bay goes past the Powers House designed by architect Francis Sullivan. Sullivan worked with Frank Lloyd Wright before settling in Ottawa. If the works of Sullivan strike your fancy there’s a tour with visits to this and other buildings he designed within Ottawa that can be found by clicking here.

The trickiest part of this route is encountered at the intersection of Bay & Gladstone where there aren’t any traffic lights to help get across busy Gladstone. You have to wait for a break in traffic.

The next busy street to get across is Somerset a few blocks further north along Bay. UPDATE – June 22, 2016: A cross walk with pedestrian activated lights has just been installed at this intersection that greatly facilitate traversing busy Somerset.

Crosswalk Bay & Somerset — Crosswalk at the intersection of Somerset and Bay

Once across Somerset, continue for a block along Percy, then turn right on to Cooper St. Cooper is a quiet one way street. The next two streets that require crossing are Lyon St and Kent St, both of which are one ways that drivers fly along on their way in or out of Centretown. No cross lights at these intersections but the gaps in traffic tend to be quite generous due to lights being one block away. Being one-ways there is also less traffic to contend with.

Once arrived at Bank Street I recommend walking your bike the final block to Somerset because Bank & Somerset is a pretty crazy intersection with cars and buses squeezing around each other or jumping the lights. You can also lock up to one of these sidewalk bike racks.

OR you can lock up to this fine bike rack in front of the Independent Grocery, also popularly known as Hartman’s.

Heading home, walk another short block along Bank to MacLaren, another quiet one way heading west, and follow it all the way to Percy. Another fine building encountered on this route along MacLaren is the old St Elijah’s Antiochia Orthodox church that was successfully converted into apartments, while maintaining it’s original outer form and aesthetic. It’s at the corner of Lyon and MacLaren right across from Dundonald Park, a.k.a. The Beer Store Park.

Speed bump hoping in front of the old St Elijah's Antiochia Orthodox church — Speed bump hoping in front of the old St Elijah’s Antiochia Orthodox church

Once arrived at Percy St, head southwardly along the bike lane back to the Glebe. Fortunately there are lights at the intersections of Somerset and Gladstone along Percy.

et voila!

Biking down Nanny Goat Hill

Nanny Goat Hill is a rise of rock that cuts through a section of Centretown, separating Chinatown from Lebretton Flats. It is roughly defined by the yellow line on the map below and extends from Bronson Ave to Somerset St. A longstanding challenge for many cyclists heading north or west has been how to negotiate a safe way down this mini-precipice.

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One of the few options that avoids having to dismount your bike is to take the steep hill down Bronson, identified by the red line on the above map. But Bronson is filled with speeding traffic at all times of the day flying blindly over the crest of the hill, except at rush hour when it tends to look like this:

Traffic jam on Nanny Goat Hill along Bronson

The recently opened path link that cuts below Nanny Goat Hill Community Garden connecting the Laurier Bike Lanes to the Albert Street Bike Lanes, as per the purple line on the map, has done wonders to facilitate avoiding Bronson. It is also the safest option of all for those pulling a trailer. Here is a clip starting from the intersection of Laurier and Bronson down to the Albert Street Bike Lanes.

Another north-south option is to take the set of stairs that joins the upper and lower sections of Empress St, as shown in orange on the above map. This set of stairs has a trough along which you can push your bike.

Stairs with bike trough joining upper and lower sections of Empress St

Many cyclists ride east-west down Somerset, as per the light blue line on the map, however I’ve seen a number of cyclists get hit by drivers along this stretch. I’ve also seen a cyclist get doored by a someone getting out of their parked car, as well as many other close calls along Somerset. It’s a popular commute route where aggressive drivers have been known to threaten cyclists who dare to take the lane. Suffice to say it is not one I would recommend. UPDATE Augutst 2018 – For example, this cyclist getting hit by a driver, Somerset & Bronson.

My preferred east-west option is to carry one’s bike down the stairs that join the two sections of Primrose – see dark blue line on the map. While much safer than riding down Somerset, this set of stairs unfortunately doesn’t have a trough which makes it difficult for those with heavier bikes, loaded panniers or little kids in tow.

Stairs joining upper and lower sections of Primrose

Et voila – a few options to get down or around this challenging geographical feature.