Lake Shore Avenue, Toronto?

[NYRides]

I've been doing a decent amount of business in Toronto lately and recently
noticed that there's a cool-looking bike path along the water, adjacent to
Lake Shore Drive. It looks like a perfect place to take my wife, a purely
"casual" bicyclist at best, this summer.

My questions:

1. Where would you suggest starting if we stay at a hotel along Lake Shore?
Is the Four Pointes Hotel near the beginning of the path?
2. Is there a place to rent bikes, as we'll probably fly into Buffalo from
Long Island, NY, and drive to Toronto?
3. How far into the city does the path go? Does it maintain its integrity
all the way, or am I correct in noticing that it seems to fall apart as you
get close to the city?
4. How many miles would you say we can get out of it? She can do about
15-20, tops, in a day.
5. Can you suggest points of interest along the way? The Exposition Center
looks like a definite stop. What else is there in the summertime?
6. Any websites, newsgroups, bike clubs to check with on this?

Thank you!

[Brian Huntley]

"NYRides" > wrote in message >...
> I've been doing a decent amount of business in Toronto lately and recently
> noticed that there's a cool-looking bike path along the water, adjacent to
> Lake Shore Drive. It looks like a perfect place to take my wife, a purely
> "casual" bicyclist at best, this summer.
>
> My questions:
>
> 1. Where would you suggest starting if we stay at a hotel along Lake Shore?
> Is the Four Pointes Hotel near the beginning of the path?

I don't know the Four Points, but the path goes all the way across
Toronto (with a few gaps.) The Harbour Castle hotel is nice - on
Queen's Quay, where the trail actually goes across the core (Lakeshore
is almost a highway, there, under the shadow of another hightway. Not
at all nice.)

> 2. Is there a place to rent bikes, as we'll probably fly into Buffalo from
> Long Island, NY, and drive to Toronto?

In the summer, I've noticed cruiser rentals near Harbourfront
(downtown.) If you're at one end or the other, that might not be
useful. Check the links below for lists of bike shops - some of them
might do rentals.

> 3. How far into the city does the path go? Does it maintain its integrity
> all the way, or am I correct in noticing that it seems to fall apart as you
> get close to the city?

It disappears for a while when you're due south of the financial
district but the road there is very ridable. It also has gaps in
Etobicoke, but the car traffic there is much slower so it's not a big
deal.

> 4. How many miles would you say we can get out of it? She can do about
> 15-20, tops, in a day.

No problem. There are several other trails that more-or-less connect
to the Martin Goodman/Lakeshore trail, notably up the banks of the
Humber River (in the west) and the Don River (in the east.)

> 5. Can you suggest points of interest along the way? The Exposition Center
> looks like a definite stop. What else is there in the summertime?

The Ex actually causes a problem in the summer, as does the Molson
Indy, as they cause the trail to be closed in spots. Harbourfront has
lots of antiques and such. The Beach area in the east end is fun, with
cafes and, well, the beach. From the foot of Bay Street, you can catch
a ferry to the islands - very nice on a bike.

> 6. Any websites, newsgroups, bike clubs to check with on this?

Try here: Toronto Bicycling Network http://tbn.on.ca/
and here (big PDF map of the trails, etc.)
http://www.toronto.ca/cycling/cyclingmap_2003.htm

[A mukluk wearing troll]

On 21 Dec 2003 09:33:45 -0800, (Brian
Huntley) wrote:

>"NYRides" > wrote in message >...
>> I've been doing a decent amount of business in Toronto lately and recently
>> noticed that there's a cool-looking bike path along the water, adjacent to
>> Lake Shore Drive. It looks like a perfect place to take my wife, a purely
>> "casual" bicyclist at best, this summer.
>>
>> My questions:
>>
>> 1. Where would you suggest starting if we stay at a hotel along Lake Shore?
>> Is the Four Pointes Hotel near the beginning of the path?
>
>I don't know the Four Points, but the path goes all the way across
>Toronto (with a few gaps.) The Harbour Castle hotel is nice - on
>Queen's Quay, where the trail actually goes across the core (Lakeshore
>is almost a highway, there, under the shadow of another hightway. Not
>at all nice.)

What price range are you aiming for? What other things do you want to
do? This will affect your decision. Hotels are expensive in the
downtown. If antiquing (and you don't mind the Canadian definition of
"interesting neighbourhood", somewhat milder that the American one)
the Day's Inn at Roncesvalles and Queen St W. is a possibility... it's
steps from what's developing as the western second-hand/antique
district (about 15 stores in a two block stretch of Queen. I've found
some interesting bits there) Other possibilities, the King St Holiday
Inn (in the theatre district lots of restaurants within a short walk,
A number of large theatrical productions available, and assorted
smaller local theatre just east of the downtown, short walk/ride up
Spadina to Chinatown.

There are also B&B's scattered through downtown west and downtown
east, a great way to meet the locals.

>> 2. Is there a place to rent bikes, as we'll probably fly into Buffalo from
>> Long Island, NY, and drive to Toronto?

Look at the rates carefully. There are times that airfare into Buffalo
plus car rental will be more than just flying directly in to Toronto.
I don't know if there are direct flights from Long Island... there
certainly are from Newark.

>In the summer, I've noticed cruiser rentals near Harbourfront
>(downtown.) If you're at one end or the other, that might not be
>useful. Check the links below for lists of bike shops - some of them
>might do rentals.

Check. According to TBN's site (I'm a member BTW, great club)
Brown's in the Bloor West Village (my local shopping area) does
rentals, as does an outfit down at Queen's Quay. My hunch is that
you'll get a better rate at Brown's.... they're not quite as handy to
the tourist crowds.

>> 3. How far into the city does the path go? Does it maintain its integrity
>> all the way, or am I correct in noticing that it seems to fall apart as you
>> get close to the city?

There is a gap from I km west fo the Humber River bridge to
about 33rd St in Mimico, IIRC. You will need to have a printed map
for this stretch (or be riding on a busy day) as the turn off
Lakeshore Blvd isn't bleedingly obvious. The trail is on designated
roads through a former summer/factory worker's community. Quite
pretty, really.

A lot of Toronto's bike paths are on quieter neighbourhood roads and
extend right across the city. The hardcore cyclists (me included)
elect to use the main arterials in the downtown.... they are faster
and they don't have as many stop signs. The city has developed quite a
cyclist's culture. The Beltline (an old railway right of way) is a
pleasant ride and can be started or finished at the St. Clair West
subway station. If you start here, you can do a pleasant ride through
city neighbourhoods out to Mt Pleasant Cemetery, then a bit through
Leaside and Rosdale, ending up in the Don River Valley. Follow the Don
River Valley down to the Lake.That would be about a 25 km ride?

The path runs from Scarborough in the east, intor the portlands area
(cheerfully disreputable, very urban and rapidly becoming a popular
recreation area) along the edge of the harbour, and then out along
Lake Ontario to Hamilton. In Hamilton, it turns, and continues down
around the lake to Niagara-on-the-Lake. You must use a lift bridge
across the entrace to Hamilton Harbour.

Portions of it past Clarkson (in MIssissauga) are on Lakeshore Blvd or
other designated roads. Lakeshore Blvd varies quite a bit along it's
length. It's a six lane highway around Humber Bay and in parts of
Mississauga, but narrower (and slower) elsewhere.. Oakville has
deliberately kept it as a narrower road and you get a nice view of
Millionnaire's Row along the lake.

If you are ambitious (and if your wife elects to train over the winter
until the spring) Toronto to Niagara-on-the-Lake makes a pleasant two
day ride. There are some very nice B&Bs in Niagara-on-the-Lake and
downtown Hamilton (former industrial town, home of McMaster
University, now reconstituting as a bedroom community of Toronto and
affordable housing for the region's arts communities) is starting to
sprout some interesting antique places along King St. Again, B&Bs are
starting to pop up in the downtown.

Worth noting is New York State's plans for a cycling route from
Buffalo to Rochester. I'm not sure what the current status on that
is... I'm really looking forward to the day that I can do a moderate
ride from Toronto to Rochester and then take the (new!) ferry home.

>It disappears for a while when you're due south of the financial
>district but the road there is very ridable. It also has gaps in
>Etobicoke, but the car traffic there is much slower so it's not a big
>deal.
>
>> 4. How many miles would you say we can get out of it? She can do about
>> 15-20, tops, in a day.

Oh my gosh. Lots. As much as you want. As well as the Waterfront
Trail, there are trails up the Humber and Don Rivers (the Humber one
goes by my front door) and designated routes through the downtown.
There is a a free city trail map available through most bike shops.
More information about it can be found at www.toronto.ca/cycling.
There is also a short flat trail (about 3-4 miles total, one way) out
on the Toronto Islands. You can make a lovely evening out of it by
taking the ferry over ($5.00) and having dinner at The Parsonage (or
the Vicage?) Restaurant or whatitsname restaurant over in the
Centreville amusment park. Another option is to stop at the Queen's
Quay Loblaws, pick up a picnic dinner and take it with you. There are
no-car neighbourhoods on Ward's Island and Algonquin Island, a small
amusement park, naturalized areas, and beaches (including an unoffical
clothing optional beach on Hanlan's Point).

There is also an interesting ride out from the foot of Cherry St. in
the port lands out on the Leslie St. Spit, also known as Tommy
Thompson Park. Bring your binoculars. This is a major bird colony.

Worth noting: You can take your bicycle on the subway
during non-rush hours. I believe the current hours are from 9-3 and
7-midnight weekdays, and all day on weekends. This will expand
your urban cycling range, as you can ride one way and take the
subway the other way.

>No problem. There are several other trails that more-or-less connect
>to the Martin Goodman/Lakeshore trail, notably up the banks of the
>Humber River (in the west) and the Don River (in the east.)
>
>> 5. Can you suggest points of interest along the way? The Exposition Center
>> looks like a definite stop. What else is there in the summertime?
>
>The Ex actually causes a problem in the summer, as does the Molson
>Indy,

Last weekend in July. Google Molson Indy Toronto to confirm the race
dates.

Don't try to ride the Waterfront Trail around the Humber Bay on the
first weekend of August either. This is the weekend of Caribbana/
If you like mardi gras and Island culture, it's a great time to be in
the city. However, the crowds are very thick and impossible to ride
through. A stretch that normally takes me fifteen minutes took me an
hour and a half the one and only time I made that mistake.

Victoria Day Weekend (Columbus Day for the US) is also pretty hectic
down there, as is the Labour Day weekend.The Airshow runs that
weekend. It is set up to be best viewed from the CNE and Ontario
Place.

> as they cause the trail to be closed in spots.

Not to mention horrendous crowds.

> Harbourfront has
>lots of antiques and such.

Not as much now. The Harbourfront Antiques Market has
been closed.

>The Beach area in the east end is fun,

Plethora of furniture stores along King St E, featuring local
designers. Queen St. E of the Don has lots of funky shops
(furniture, used furinture, clothes, stuff) and Little India East is
on Gerrard St E just west of Coxwell. Lots of cheap yummy
stuff to eat. I especially recommend The Dosa Hut and Upadi Palace.
Upadi Palace is vegetarian, and makes fabulous mango lassis, just the
thing to finish a ride with.

Just my Canadian two cents worth

Shirley Hicks
Toronto, Ontario

[Tanya Quinn]

"NYRides" > wrote in message >...
> I've been doing a decent amount of business in Toronto lately and recently
> noticed that there's a cool-looking bike path along the water, adjacent to
> Lake Shore Drive. It looks like a perfect place to take my wife, a purely
> "casual" bicyclist at best, this summer.

This is the Martin Goodman trail which is part of the larger
waterfront trail which is a connection of miscellaneous trails around
Lake Ontario from Niagara Falls to Kingston.
http://www.waterfronttrail.org

> My questions:
>
> 1. Where would you suggest starting if we stay at a hotel along Lake Shore?
> Is the Four Pointes Hotel near the beginning of the path?

If you are staying at a hotel near Lakeshore West in Etobicoke, you
can start from anywhere along there. The Humber Bay bridge which you
can see from the Lakeshore (cool looking white bridge for bicycles and
pedestrians) is pretty much the "end" of the trail from the
perspective of the dedicated path. Then if you ride on Lakeshore
itself for a short distance, you can hook up with the rest of the
Waterfront trail- there are paths again separate from the road in
Mississauga. But another nice ride if you want to head westward along
the waterfront trail is up the Humber River trail which you can
probably travel on until your wife gets tired.

Check out the city of Toronto cycling map which marks the waterfront
trail, Humber Trail, Don Trail, etc.
http://www.toronto.ca/cycling has a link to the map.

> 2. Is there a place to rent bikes, as we'll probably fly into Buffalo from
> Long Island, NY, and drive to Toronto?

The places close to the waterfront trail to rent bikes tend to be
popular and a bit pricey. (a friend rented the last bike they had
(sorry I don't remember the name of the joint) - a crappy bike there
for about $20 a day) For $25 a YEAR (good if you are going to come
back to Toronto again) you can get a membership for the yellow bikes
program.
http://www.bikeshare.org/bikeshare.html

> 3. How far into the city does the path go? Does it maintain its integrity
> all the way, or am I correct in noticing that it seems to fall apart as you
> get close to the city?

You can ride maybe 5 km east (?) from the Humber bridge, then you need
to ride along Queen's Quay through the downtown to rejoin with the
other end of the trail. Once you get to Cherry street you have a
couple of choices. You can take the shorter way across the spit area
and just ride on the Lakeshore path. You can head north along the Don
trail. Look at the city map, you can ride north about 15 km on the
trail before it breaks up, then you can follow residential streets to
the other end of the Don trail and ride it up to Steeles. You can head
down Cherry street and along Unwin which goes close to the water (I
believe the bike trail goes to the side so you can follow the water
off the road) Once you get to Leslie street (by either directly across
or the longer scenic route) you can head south through Tommy Thompson
park aka "the spit" which is a nice peaceful route. I think its about
7 km long (?) and when you get to the end there is a hill with a
lighthouse where you can get a nice view of the downtown (esp at
sunset)

East of Leslie street, you can continue on either the north or south
side of Lakeshore (there is a trail on both sides, but stick to the
south if you want to head to the end of the trail) You will then pass
through a neighbourhood called the Beach/Beaches (depending on who you
talk to) - here you will have an unobstructed view of the lake and
there will be a boardwalk to the side of the trail. If its a weekend,
there will be tons of rollerbladers and others on the path so it will
be slow going but its fun for people watching and you can sit on the
trail and enjoy the view of the lake. Just beyond the end of the trail
(you may have to push your bikes through the sand) is the water
filtration plant - which is up on the bluffs with an excellent view,
and its a neat 1930's art deco building.

Beyond the end of the trail here, if you want to rejoin the waterfront
trail you would have to ride about 13 km along Kingston Road to
connect with it. Its reasonably busy and fine for an experienced
cyclist but would not suggest it for a casual cyclist. However if you
got bored and wanted to try points east, you can take you bikes on the
Go trains on the weekend so you could take the bikes to the Rouge Hill
Go train stop and then ride on the trails in Pickering from here.

> 4. How many miles would you say we can get out of it? She can do about
> 15-20, tops, in a day.

Really as many as you want if you connect up with the Humber or Don
trails, or the other parts of the waterfront trails that go through
other cities. A nice ride is actually to take the bikes on the ferry
to the island (costs about $6 return) and ride around there. Its
car-free and pleasant. Its only a couple km around but there's three
sections - Ward's island, a residential section where people live,
Centre Island, a children's amusement park, and Hanlan's point
(clothing optional beach) There are also some nice normal beaches
along here so you may want to hop off the bikes and go for a swim. The
ferry docks at the foot of Bay street along the trail.

> 5. Can you suggest points of interest along the way? The Exposition Center
> looks like a definite stop. What else is there in the summertime?

Humber Bay bike bridge (nice view), Ontario Place, Harbourfront Centre
(art gallery), Harbourfront Antique market, ferry to the island,
Leslie spit (view), boutique stores in the Beach area (once you see
boardwalk head north on one of the side streets and the first main
street you hit is Queen), water filtration plant (I think has tours on
the weekend) Most anything you want to do downtown is only a short
bike ride north off the trail as well. There are a lot of post and
ring bike stands everywhere downtown making it easy to lock your bike
and check out attractions.

> 6. Any websites, newsgroups, bike clubs to check with on this?

See the sites I listed above - definitely look at the Toronto cycling
map, the waterfront trail site (though their maps on their site seem
sparse, they do publish a handy map booklet) TBN (Toronto bike
network) has rides on Sunday mornings that you might be interested in
joining up with - they have a Leisure Wheeler and Easy Roller
categories for more casual cyclists, and Tourist and Sportif
categories for serious cyclists. http://www.tbn.on.ca. ont.cycling
might be able to help answer your questions as well.

Enjoy your visit!

[A mukluk wearing troll]

<massively snipped>

Hey Tanya,

Were you riding with TBN this year? Once again I bought my membership,
and once again, work interfered with my riding!

Shirley Hicks

[Tanya Quinn]

A mukluk wearing troll > wrote in message >...
> <massively snipped>
>
> Hey Tanya,
>
> Were you riding with TBN this year? Once again I bought my membership,
> and once again, work interfered with my riding!
>
> Shirley Hicks

Hi Shirley,
Only managed to get on one ride this year with them. I just pay the $5
per ride rather than buy a membership because I figure I won't go with
them often enough. I like the fun of self-guided explorations (though
I tend to get lost, and sometimes end up picking not-so-pleasant
routes) Did you manage to get some TBN rides squeezed in with work?

Tanya

[A mukluk wearing troll]

On 6 Jan 2004 14:04:34 -0800, (Tanya Quinn) wrote:

>A mukluk wearing troll > wrote in message >...
>> <massively snipped>
>>
>> Hey Tanya,
>>
>> Were you riding with TBN this year? Once again I bought my membership,
>> and once again, work interfered with my riding!
>>
>> Shirley Hicks
>
>Hi Shirley,
>Only managed to get on one ride this year with them. I just pay the $5
>per ride rather than buy a membership because I figure I won't go with
>them often enough. I like the fun of self-guided explorations (though
>I tend to get lost, and sometimes end up picking not-so-pleasant
>routes) Did you manage to get some TBN rides squeezed in with work?

No, not this year.::(

Where have you gone riding in the city?
I've done the lower Humber from Lawrence south, but not the upper
section. Haven't successfully found the exit up to the surface road
that you have to take to connect the two bits.

Have been up and down the various branches of the Don. the Beltline,
out to the Guildwood Inn and the Scarborough Blluffs. I've explored
most of the neighbourhoods from downtown and uptown west to the
Mississauga border, but have only ventured into the neared edges of
out Scarberia this far.

The Leslie Street Spit is cool, as are the Islands.

One bit Ihaven't done yet is to follow Etobicoke Creek north of the
Quensway to the bottom of the Markland Woods Golf Course at Dundas.
The official trail ends at the park south of the QEW, but the
unofficial trail continues north to the old Sherway bridge (erected in
deepest countryside in 1909 according to the marker, on the side of
the bridge, but now an inner suburb footbridge) . Haven not gone north
of that yet. It's on my "must do" list, if for no other reason to get
a decent off-road route from my place up to the parental unit's house
in the Applewood area of Mississauga.

Shirley Hicks
Toronto, Ontario

[Tanya Quinn]

A mukluk wearing troll > wrote in message >...
> Where have you gone riding in the city?
> I've done the lower Humber from Lawrence south, but not the upper
> section. Haven't successfully found the exit up to the surface road
> that you have to take to connect the two bits.

For fun rides this year I have done Don Trail (lower and upper),
waterfront trail (all sections in the city itself), rode up to
Stouffville (used 9th line/Reesor Road coming back which hits the city
near the zoo, very pleasant country road), Humber trail until I got
lost (think I ended up around Eg), a Mississauga ride with TBN, rode
up to Kleinburg (Weston Road through Woodbridge has crazy drivers, not
recommended), rode east to Pickering (mostly using Kingston Road),
Leslie Spit, the island, Beltline, Cedarvale ravine, Mt. Pleasant
cemetary, Moore Park ravine, rode to Brantford (128 km - longest ride
this year, went on waterfront trail or Lakeshore Road to Hamilton, and
then rode on the Hamilton-Brantford rail trail which actually runs all
the way to Cambridge), loops along Commissioners/Unwin, Ride for Heart
(always fun biking on highways without cars, oh ya also rode on Allen
Expressway when it was closed to cars for the Stones concert)

Haven't tried Etobicoke creek yet, must try that out. Always looking
for new places to go exploring.

For commuting and shopping biking I usually bike on Queen,
College/Gerrard and Bloor/Danforth. Have explored neighbourhoods in
downtown, a few in midtown, and gotten lost in some in Etobicoke, but
haven't done much Scarborough exploring or north of 401
neighbourhoods. Any recommendations of fav neighbourhoods (anywhere in
the city) for exploring?

[NYRides]

Okay, okay...you guys are having WAY too much fun with my original post,
which was just a simple request from a naive Yankee for suggestions about a
short ride on the waterfront path this summer. I want to take my wife up
there and she's not much of a cyclist. She can only do about 20-25 miles at
a pop, but she loves every second of it. We're willing to combine biking
with a ferry ride, etc. Sorry to get back on the subject :), but can
anybody suggest a starting and ending point that includes:

1. Restaurants and/or places to stop for a pint along the way
2. Cool stuff to see and do, like the Canadian Exhibition Center, etc.
3. Toronto
4. Places with bathrooms
5. A place to rent bikes
6. A decent hotel at which to leave our baggage
7. LOTS and LOTS of waterfront!!!

Thanks!

Tom from New York www.geocities.com/NYRides

[Margot]

Here's a plan... (BTW I got everything from our CycleCanada Directory
except for bike friendly accommodation, but I am working on that.)

Stay: Roehampton Best Western Hotel and Suites.
http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do?propertyCode=66068
This is a smallish and reasonably priced hotel in a really nice
residential area of Toronto. Steps from the famous Chicken Deli Jazz
club on Mt. Pleasant and an easy walk to a number of outstanding
restaurants on Yonge at Davisville like Granos, Stork on the Roof.
It's also close to the bike rental shop. You'll be a little north of
the downtown but not far from the ravine recreational paths.

Rent Bikes: CyclePath (Yonge north of Davisville)
http://twowheeltravel.ca/

Getting around: You should be able to get a cycling map of Toronto at
CyclePath which will help make sense of the route below. But any
detailed map of Toronto will do as well. There is a pdf version of the
cycling map here: http://www.toronto.ca/cycling/cyclingmap_2003.htm

Roughly the route: Head east from the hotel to Sunnybrooke Hospital.
Mostly on residential back roads for 10 minutes or so, then you'll be
on Bayview a bit where you head north to get to the hospital (5
minutes or so). From the hospital you work your way through the
hospital grounds and head down to the ravine. The ravine has a network
of shared parths that are popular with cyclists. You can get to
Edwards Garden from here and also follow the path south to the
Lakeshore. At the Lakeshore you can head east to the Beaches on the
Martin Goodman trail or west towards downtown, take the ferry to the
island or keep going west along the lake.

Heading home you can retrace your route on the paths or simply head
north Sherbourne, following a marked bike route (it used to be better
before they striped it with a bike lane but that's my personal view).
This will take you through Rosedale, which is very pleasant and onto
Bayview again. Heading north on Bayview for a short distance you can
either deak thorough the Mount Pleasant cemetary to Mount Pleasant
Ave. (if the gates haven't closed) or take Moore. At that point you
aren't far from the hotel.

If you find that once downtown you have had enough riding you can
always hop on the Yonge subway to Eglinton and it's a couple of blocks
to the hotel. As long as it's not rush hour, no problem getting the
bikes on the subways. You'll find our subway system quite pleasant.

It's easy to navigate in Toronto because of the CN Tower, which is at
the Lake at the south point of the city and viewable from just about
anywhere.

Regards
Margot

p.s. After that, join us on our trip to Montreal. It's a classic http:
www.cyclecanada.com/bique.html







>
> 1. Restaurants and/or places to stop for a pint along the way
> 2. Cool stuff to see and do, like the Canadian Exhibition Center, etc.
> 3. Toronto
> 4. Places with bathrooms
> 5. A place to rent bikes
> 6. A decent hotel at which to leave our baggage
> 7. LOTS and LOTS of waterfront!!!
>
> Thanks!
>
> Tom from New York www.geocities.com/NYRides

[Tanya Quinn]

"NYRides" > wrote in message >...
> Okay, okay...you guys are having WAY too much fun with my original post,
> which was just a simple request from a naive Yankee for suggestions about a
> short ride on the waterfront path this summer. I want to take my wife up
> there and she's not much of a cyclist. She can only do about 20-25 miles at
> a pop, but she loves every second of it. We're willing to combine biking
> with a ferry ride, etc. Sorry to get back on the subject :), but can
> anybody suggest a starting and ending point that includes:
>
> 1. Restaurants and/or places to stop for a pint along the way
> 2. Cool stuff to see and do, like the Canadian Exhibition Center, etc.
> 3. Toronto
> 4. Places with bathrooms
> 5. A place to rent bikes
> 6. A decent hotel at which to leave our baggage
> 7. LOTS and LOTS of waterfront!!!

You can rent bikes at Wheel Excitement which is on Rees street just
south of Skydome. There are probably others as well but this has the
advantage of being downtown (probably near your hotel - Sheraton is
one choice, but there are lots of choices!) and close to the
waterfront trail. Check the Toronto cycling map
(http://www.toronto.ca/cycling has the link) for details of directions
(I'm bad with them) but one suggestion would be:

.. Head east along the waterfront trail to Cherry street. Turn south
along Cherry street - the trail branches and you can either head along
the north side of Lakeshore Road (shorter but no view of the water) or
head down through the portlands (longer, water) Once you reach Leslie
Street you can head north to catch the trail again, or for a nice ride
with lots of water and little cars, head south to Tommy Thompson Park.
Follow the trail through the park to the end and there is a lighthouse
with a great view of the city. I think its around 7 km each way from
the foot of Leslie to the lighthouse (and there are no bathrooms or
food)
.. Once you head east from Leslie you'll come to Ashbridges Park at
Coxwell. From there further east there are bound to be lots of people
(if its summer, and even if its not) and a couple of snack bars, some
public washrooms (usually only open in summer) etc.
If you want a longer loop or decide to head west from the bike rental
along the waterfront trail, you'll start out by going along Queens
Quay (medium busy but lots of cyclists here, not much problem) and
then you will rejoin with the offroad trail again. The trail goes
through Ontario Place, and a nice distance stop point with your wife
would probably be the Humber Bay bridge to turn around (its a big
white cycling and pedestrian bridge, you can't miss it) There's a
snack bar with ice cream right along the trail (I think they have
washrooms as well)

Generally if you head north from the waterfront trail you will hit
Queen street if you are in the Beaches (east end), further west you
will hit Lakeshore (highway), Front (in core), King, Queen. Front or
Queen (and some sections of King) are good bets for finding pubs to
grab a pint. If you don't want to venture far from the trail there's a
largish restaurant near Woodbine right off the trail. There's some
microbreweries downtown you could take a tour of as well
http://www.bartowel.com/amster.phtml
Steamwhistle brewery is right near the bike rental place:
http://www.steamwhistle.ca/tours.htm

Depending on when you come there may be interesting events going on.
There's a Jazz Festival in the Beaches area in late July, the Molson
Indy takes place along Lakeshore Road in July, the Caribana festival
is also in July, various food tasting festivals are held throughout
the summer and the CNE (exhibition) is held the last 18 days before
labour day.

If you let us know what you like to do we can probably make better
suggestions!

Tanya

[Guru_2_u_2]

Tom

You are getting lots of good help here already, but a couple o
pointers

1) Don't stay at the four points on Lakeshore. The back of the hotel i
ON one of the busiest highways in the city

2) The lakeshore path starting at the four points (a nominal startin
location, because it goes to Burlington) and running East to Downtow
is about 12K or so. This is beautiful and has some worthy scenery, i
is slow for cyclists and ideal for 'casual' riding

3) Downtown (using Yonge and Lakeshore as the intersection of choice
has about 100 places to grab a beer, go to the bathroom, etc. withi
a 5 minute ride, 10 minute walk. More detail in the question wil
spur more ideas

4) Cool Stuff . . . Hockey Hall of Fame, CN Tower, SkyDome, Air Canad
Center, Centre Island ferry, Pier 4 shops ($$), Artisan's shops
boats galore, restaurants with cool views, music and theatre in th
summer. Oh yeah, the theatre district too. Kensington Market, Al
within that 5 minute ride/10 minute walk from Yonge and Lakeshore

5) If you like Westin Hotels, the Westin is at the bottom of Yonge o
the water, the Sheraton is a 10 min ride North at Queen an
University, but it is a better hotel in my opinion

Others have suggested the Don Trail. This is probably one of the mos
scenic routes IN the city, but going up the trail might be viewed a
difficult by some (it isn't really that hard, but I don't know you
wife) Coming back down is lots of fun with a slow downhill for abou
15k. You are virtually hidden from the city for almost the whole ride

Per other's suggestions, get a map of the Toronto trails, take a bac
pack and make a day of it. But don't expect lots of stops on the Do
Trail (although there is an exit every Km or so with lots of food/drin
within 2-3 min of each exit.

I hope that helps

Guru


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