{"id":3019,"date":"2010-05-17T11:10:16","date_gmt":"2010-05-17T15:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/motorcyclemojo.com\/?p=3019"},"modified":"2020-04-06T15:44:47","modified_gmt":"2020-04-06T19:44:47","slug":"exploring-ontarios-back-roads-to-algonquin-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/motorcyclemojo.com\/2010\/05\/exploring-ontarios-back-roads-to-algonquin-park\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploring Ontario’s Back Roads to Algonquin Park"},"content":{"rendered":"
Picture this: to your right, the shutter-speed effect created by zooming past dark pines with teasing glimpses of open blue sky and sunshine rippling off the surface of a calm lake; to your left, the sun’s light, absorbed by the sharp-edged, sheet-like cuts of huge rusty-brown and grey ancient rock, creating contrasting shadows on the surface. Embedded around these road-cut rock masses are green, golden and red shrubs and trees.<\/em><\/p>\n You only realize how quiet it really is when you silence your engine, secure the bike, step onto the black tarmac, and pause Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” playing on your iPod. You glance over at your riding buddies, exchange a few smirks, nod your head, and before you know it you’re back on the road.<\/em><\/p>\n The beauty of Algonquin in mid-September is mesmerizing, and riding the pristine, scarcely travelled back roads through Ontario’s scenic Muskoka and Haliburton cottage country can literally put you in a zone that encompasses you and machine as one.<\/p>\n Our adventure began with a sunny but cool morning that quickly warmed to above seasonal temperatures by midday. No wind or rain in the forecast, just sunny skies; in other words, perfect riding conditions.<\/p>\n Travelling northward from Vaughan, “The city above Toronto,” we opted to avoid the multi-lane Hwy 400, taking the less congested Hwy 27, meandering through the upscale hamlets of Kleinburg, Nobleton and Schomberg en route to the east hills and valleys of the Niagara Escarpment. Since we had some time, the first leg of our trip was intentionally an indirect route to the Town of Hunstville, where we were to stay overnight.<\/p>\n We made our way west through Loretto toward Terra Nova, where we took the 20th Sideroad, a picturesque narrow road with overhanging trees.<\/p>\n We passed quaint farmhouses and peaceful farmland in a northeast zigzag pattern through Creemore, Stayner and Wasaga Beach, whose claim to fame is the world’s longest freshwater beach at 14 km. Before we knew it, both our stomachs and gas tanks needed a fill-up. We stopped for lunch in the village of Coldwater, an early Chippewas Indian settlement, now a tourist gateway to the Trent-Severn Waterway. As the locals would describe Tiffany Restaurant, “it has everything.” Tiffany resembles a diner typical of the 50s and 60s with retro vinyl-back chrome chairs, laminate tables, friendly service, and a menu that…pretty well had just about anything you wanted. As it is the trio’s third journey together, we try to make a point of finding local eatery gems, and Tiffany did not disappoint.<\/p>\n Before leaving the lower Georgian Bay region northward toward Muskoka, we travelled both the Lower and Upper Big Chute Roads. The wooden bridges, railway tracks and rather rough surface at the onset make for an interesting challenge. The road continues with some fairly decent twists and curves to Severn Falls toward the Big Chute Marine Railway–a national historic site and the only marine railway of its kind still in operation in North America. The Railway is actually quite an innovative carriage-like mechanism that transports leisure boats across the road and winches them down about 18 metres to the lake below.<\/p>\n