Fall is a great time for cycling in the Ottawa Valley.


Fall is a great time for cycling in the Ottawa Valley. Renfrew County offers amazing choices for cyclists as the autumn colours blaze and the heat and summer traffic diminish.

There are lots of great local bike routes to choose from that mostly use quiet, township or County roads. For beginners level, there are fairly level and newly repaved roads like Fouth Chute Road from Eganville to the Bonnechere Caves, the Old Barry's Bay Road from Barry's Bay to Combermere, or Queen's Line in Whitewater Region. There are numerous rides of moderate difficulty, like the trip from Eganville to Killaloe via Crimson Maple and Ruby Roads, or the newly paved roads in Whitewater country on the Beachburg Peninsula. And there are spectactularly scenic routes for the expert in the hills of Foymount, Brudenell, Letterkenny, or the Kartuzy or Paugh Lake Roads out of Barry's Bay.

For a taste of what's available, members of OVCATA (Ottawa Valley Cycling and Active Transportation Alliance) have been posting some of our favourite routes online. Routes on the site range from short and sweet to long and tough, and OVCATA enourages riders to share their own favourite routes for posting online.

Renfrew County boasts an expanding network of rail trails. The new Algonquin Trail, on the former CP rail line, will ultimately connect from one end of the County to the other. At this point, it is open for riding between Pembroke and Petawawa and between Renfrew and Arnprior and beyond to Pakenham, Almonte, Carleton Place and Smiths Falls in Lanark County. The K&P trail from Renfrew to Calabogie, and beyond there, to points south in Lanark County and beyond is a great adventure.

Mountain biking opens up a whole different range of fall cycling possibilities, with publicly available trails in many areas. The Beachburg Off-Road Cycling Association maintains a wonderful set of trails, with information on its website. Forest Lea trails, near Pembroke, have been established by volunteers working with the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Year: [All] | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016

April 2024

ONTARIO CYCLE TOURISM & CYCLING ACTIVITY REPORT
A complete and detailed report on the state of cycle tourism in Ontario.

December 2023

2023 OVCATA annual meeting summary and co-chairs' report

October 2023

Action group formed to cash in on cycle tourism by promoting Trail Towns

September 2023

Arnprior brainstorming session will plan how towns can cash in on cycle tourism

August 2023

Trail towns - what are they and how to make YOUR town one of them

February 2023

OVCATA receives 2022 community service award

January 2023

2022 Bike Bank report
2022 Co-chair's report

June 2022

OVCATA Opens Bike Bank Renfrew County for 2022

May 2022

County of Renfrew and OVCATA celebrate expansion of cycling networks
Silver Chain Challenge is back - enter and log your klicks in June

February 2022

OVCATA and MPP John Yakabuski support road safety education and enforcement

November 2021

Volunteers send bikes to Cuba from Eastern Ontario, with sweat and love

July 2021

Bike Bank reaches 100-bike milestone

November 2020

County municipal leaders and staff hear how Petawawa is becoming a Bicycle-Friendly Community "one bite at a time"

October 2020

Fall is a great time for cycling in the Ottawa Valley.
Petawawa Bike-Friendly Communities champion to speak to OVCATA AGM

May 2020

Algonquin Trail Report - May 2020
Citizens partner with County and OPP to make trails work for all despite pandemic - OVCATA

December 2019

Active Transportation is growing in the Ottawa Valley

October 2019

OVCATA launches municipal outreach campaign

August 2019

OVCATA salutes Tour de Whitewater success, setting records for participation, activity

June 2019

The Ottawa Valley is a cycling paradise

April 2019

Renfrew County Council to lead on Active Transportation Month activities in June
Gearheads donates elite E-bike for OVCATA raffle
Volunteering at OVCATA - there's a place for you
Highway 17 rumble strips could have fatal consequences - OVCATA
2018 a big year for Active Transportation in Ottawa Valley

October 2018

OVCATA meets with Ontario's new transportation minister - our own MPP John Yakabuski

June 2018

OVCATA promotes active transportation for seniors with provincial support

March 2018

Join OVCATA - Win A Bike

December 2017

Local cycle routes win big with December provincial funding!
Education is key to bike collision prevention - OPP Sergeant

October 2017

OPP to share bike collision stats at Renfrew OVCATA meeting
OVCATA Co-chair's report for 2017 - a lot accomplished in Year 1

June 2017

New provincial cycling funding could be used in Renfrew County - OVCATA

May 2017

Help Sprocketman fly! Online cycling advocacy music video

April 2017

RIDE OF SILENCE 2017
OVCATA thanks Renfrew County Council and asks for more commitment.
Voyageur Discovery Route Funding a big step toward trans-Canada cycle route.
Community Rides in communities across Renfrew County this spring
Silver Chain Challenge relaunches in June, 2017
Adopt a Road

December 2016

New hardened shoulders in Renfrew County in 2016
The Algonquin Trail - tell municipal councillors you support it
OVCATA's vision for cycling in Ontario

November 2016

Share the Road Cycling Coalition wants to hear from you
MTO Public Consultation on Cycling Program

October 2016

Véloroute Voyageur / Voyageur Cycling Route would connect Northeastern Ontario

September 2016

Alliance responds to Minister Del Duca, presses for public education
Petition for cyclists and hikers in national parks
Partial lane for cyclists on Hwy 17 west of Petawawa