Panza

Hey guys, I'm on vacation to visit my girlfriend's family for 10 days in North York. I'm in the middle of my winter training and I don't want to take any time off the bike while training. I've planned for this week to be relatively easy spending most of my time recovering from this week's hard workouts. I'll also be doing some skiing and snowboarding at Blue Mountain.

1. How are the roads? Should I bring my trainer instead or just my typical winter cycling kit I've been using. I'm from New Hampshire and it's not much warmer or colder than Toronto.

2. Are there any (safe) roads or routes I should try? Scenic is great.

3. Are there any morning group rides I could join in while I visit. Cycling is a sociable sport after all.

Boudicca

Is it too late to get back to you? This forum isn't that active, so nobody checks it much.

Normally it's too #$@#$ cold to do much riding at this time of year, but it's been crazy mild so yes, people are riding. I find you have to get a far ways outside of Toronto for scenic rides -- this city sprawls far too much. Club rides usually start in March or April, but there could be some meet-up rides. TBN (Toronto Bicycling Network) has its routes online, so you could check those out on www.tbn.ca for printed or gps routes. The Sunday Tourist rides start from subway stations, so they will be easier to get to, and the roads will be clear.

Panza

Thanks Boudicca! I'll favorite the website and hit up the club the next time I come up. : )

I ended up doing a handful of exploratory rides and after I explored enough I created a decent 100km route circling round Toronto.







There are a number of recreational parks with bike trails and I went from one bike trail to the next. For a city trail, I think it's quite great! There's also a long stretch of bike path along the coast of the lake which is GORGEOUS. The man-made island off the harbor was closed unfortunately and they are fairly active with lots of pedestrians using them. In the city (downtown) there are a good amount of bike lanes.

Boudicca

You were in my hood!

Yes, there are good trails, and the Spit (closed during the week) is well worth a visit. You can also take a ferry to the no car Toronto Island and ride there. More of a summer activity.

Enjoy.

nondes 

Also bear in mind that the lower part of the Don Valley Trail (south of Pottery Road) is closed - otherwise a major link between the NE part of Toronto and the waterfront trail. There is a detour but not very appealing.

Panza

I noticed a lot of the roads are undergoing construction or closed due to heavy machinery.
Are there any notable climbs in the area or are they all a fair drive away.
I'll be back this summer. : )

Dan Burkhart 

One of the popular climbs is west of town between Burlington and Milton. Appleby Line up to Rattlesnake Point is one that earns bragging rights.

Boudicca

Or Bell School Line.

I hate Bell School Line. It starts of with this sneaky, almost not noticeable hill and it keeps going.

Canuk1w1

There are a couple of decent climbs in the city itself:

1. High Park area - just west of High Park is Ellis Avenue and South Kingsway. The southern entrance to High Park is Colborne Lodge Dr, itself a decent climb.

2. Don Valley - Pottery Road is a good climb (eastern side of Don Valley). There's another just north of Pottery but i can't remember the name - it's a switchback, and Metros finest have their canine unit at the bottom of it.

3. Scarborough - the Bluffs have some excellent climbs including the steepest grade in the city limits. On the Scarboro/pickering border you'll find Twin Rivers Drive.

I recognize that Humber Bridge spot, we start most of our meetup rides there.

awesomeame

The waterfront trail runs all the way to Niagara Falls. You could bike there, or somewhere in between, and take the GO bike train back which runs in the summer time. They add 3 train cars just for bikes Fri-Sun + holidays. Another thought would be to take the bike train to Niagara, and check out wine country for the day...there's some nice riding out that way too

Matt