Biking the O&Q (7): Kilometre 80 to Tweed (Kilometre 100)

Fri. 10 June:  Biking the O&Q (7):  Kilometre 80 to Tweed (Kilometre 100)

Reached 100 km mark today

This morning I reached Kilometre 100 southwest from Glen Tay along the old Ontario and Quebec (O&Q) railway line.  Not that I could find the marker post.

Now, beside the waters of Stoco Lake, I was within a stone’s throw of the village of Tweed, the largest community along the trail.   

West of Kaladar, the line headed into a leafy wilderness, with no roads or farms for several kilometres.  This was, looking at the topo map, the last section of Canadian Shield country before reaching the cultivated fields and farms of southern Ontario.  Nevertheless, right up to the edges of Tweed, the countryside remained largely woodland and swamps, now mixed with open fields and quiet roads.

My GPS indicated that the elevation had been gently dropping over the whole twenty kilometres, but despite this, on my return journey I still made good progress.  Perhaps I am just getting better at biking!  Apart from a section of gravel, the railbed was ideal for biking, and many large puddles had dried out over the past weeks. 

There were no major structures along the way, just two short riveted iron bridges over small streams, and one long embankment across the fields at Hungerford.  This place, now a lonely farm, was once busy enough to have its own railway station, no signs of which remain today.

As I approached Tweed, the line made a wide swing to the left.   Crossing a paved road I came alongside Cosy Cove, the northern arm of Stoco Lake.  Here I turned around, at what I calculated to be the 100 kilometre mark, in a low rock cut.  From here into Tweed would be a short ride.

It was a perfect day for a bike ride, with a light northwesterly breeze and cool temperatures under a blue sky.  As usual, I saw nobody on the trail until I was close to my turnaround point.  Here I passed an elderly person on an equally ancient mo-ped, and a couple who were taking a stroll.  Not exactly a crowd.

During my journey, I caught a glimpse of a deer on the trail ahead, and also the tail end of a fox heading for cover.   On my next leg, I expect to head into a much more rural scene of fields and busier roads.  But first, the delights of Tweed await.

Note: click on pictures for full size view.

Riding through the last section of Shield country.
See also the Google Earth map below.

Colorful ponds

Very good surface along portions of today's route

One of two metal railway bridges

A lonely country

On the trail

Mysterious tunnel of trees ahead

First sign of farming land

Embankment above the fields...

... with a farm at Hungerford (once a station near here)

First road crossing at Hungerford, after a long, isolated stretch

More empty country east of  Tweed

Would have been a lot more puddles last month

Trans-Canada Trail also a major ATV and snowmobile route

Cosy Cove on Stoco Lake:  on the edge of Tweed village

Google Earth map shows rugged geology of the area
where the highway swings away from the railway line,
south of Kaladar heading for Tweed.
Note powerline crossing at right-angles.
Scale: this pic shows about 5 km of trail (dotted line)

Marble Rock

Thurs. 9 June:  Marble Rock

Note: click on pictures for full size view.

It’s a responsible job being a hike leader.

One of several duties is to pre-walk the route a few days before the official hike, to check the trail condition and to identify any issues.  Today was such a trip. 

This being a joint hike between the Central and Kingston clubs, the leaders from each club were there, together with a couple of us who wouldn’t be able to make the Saturday hike.

Could there ever be TOO many lookouts on a hike?  We had a good choice today. Which was the most impressive view?  As some philistine friend once said to me: “It’s like cathedrals – once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen the lot”.

The Marble Rock trail consists of two fairly rugged loops totalling about eleven and a half kilometres.  We felt privileged to have its creator on our trip today.  It is a beautiful trail, with several outcrops giving views out across the forested countryside north of the St. Lawrence River.  To the east we could see the outline of Blue Mountain, beside Charleston Lake.  To the south, the hazy outline of distant hills across the international border.  At our feet were valleys and swamps and lakes.

Enough words – enjoy the pictures.

A magnificent RTA "blue trail"

Frst of many lookouts - the leaning rock

A green paradise

Pause for  thought

Admiring a huge downed tree

Hidden foundations of a gigantic barn

Another lookout 

And another

Blue Mountain in the distance

This lake was named No-name Lake!

Checking the signs

Caterpillar on a lichen-covered rock

Last  of the Summer Wine?

This required a scramble...

...but well worth the small effort

Beaver dam and lake below

Trail creators, hike leaders, other important people

A final lookout..

...  or not?

Record-breaker

May 2016:  Record-breaker

Record-breaking month

Not that I’m keeping records any more, but it was a record-breaking month. 

How crazy is that?  Just a few short weeks ago I had arthroscopic surgery on my knee – and then I have a month like this one.

During May I hiked or biked on twenty-five separate occasions.  Total distance travelled was 297 km (160 km hiked plus 137 km biked), which in previous years would have accounted for about one third of the entire year’s total tally.  Not too bad for a retiree!

The Settlers Trek

From a hiking perspective, the great event last month was of course the Settlers Trek, where in six days we walked from Brockville to Perth, a little less than a hundred kilometres.  

On my bike, I have been working my way down the O&Q trail from Glen Tay towards Havelock.  By the end of May I had reached the kilometre 80 marker, approximately half way to my destination.  The distance travelled is double that, since each trip involved returning to my starting point.

On the O&Q

Looking back over the period 2009 to 2015, my previous best month was June of last year, when I was exploring the K&P Trail, racking up 283 km that month. In September 2010 I travelled 207 km, but in the other years (2009-2014) my best months ranged only between 157 and 171 km.  This puts May 2016 into perspective.  And of course I’m not getting younger.

It’s not likely I will keep up this pace in the coming months, but it has been a stellar month, packed with enjoyment – and with a knee that seemed to be back to normal – or now perhaps even bionic?