La Bolduc follows well established bike paths through the regions north of Montreal, South of the Ottawa River, Gatineau Parc, Gatineau River Valley and the Laurentides. These bike paths have been built over the remnants of historic rail lines that served the regions in the past. Though some see “rail trail” as unexciting, they offer safe and fairly flat linear green spaces to ride on, often providing users with rest areas and access to water if you are carrying a purification or filtration kit.

The Rail Trails you will ride on include:

• The Russell-Prescott (www.sentierprtrail.com)
• Voie-Verte Chelsea (Voie Verte Chelsea | Municipalité de Chelsea)
• Vélo Route Des Draveurs ( Véloroute des Draveurs - Tourisme
• Vallée-de-la-Gatineau (tourismevalleedelagatineau.com)
• Le P’tit Train Du Nord (Accueil | P'TIT TRAIN DU NORD
  (ptittraindunord.com)
• Vélo Route Seigneurie des Plaines Accueil | (seigneuriedp.org)
• Trans-Terrebonne Piste multifonctionnelle
  

THE ROUTE
The route seen here on Ride With GPS, starts and finishes in Terrebonne at the mountain bike park (GPAT Terrebonne), it is possible to simply jump on the route at any point that is convenient for you. Coming from Montreal, it would be very easy to ride north over the Milles-Iles River and start your ride anywhere along the route! With a first night at the SEPAQ in Oka, you would be well positioned to ride onto the Russell-Prescott trail on Day 2 and make either Alfred, ON or even Ottawa if you are looking for a bigger day.

As you point your bikes northward, the beautiful Gatineau Parc bike paths await you, leading you through lush forests and some of the first climbs on the route. These are manageable hills and feel free to rest along the way, appreciating the change in biodiversity happening before you, a great contrast from the previous days riding south of the Ottawa river.
Leaving the Parc and riding through Chelsea will give you the opportunity to re-supply if needed and visit local coffee shops. Chelsea is an important turn around point for thousands of cyclists every year so the local Café is more that happy to give you bike parking! The Voie-Verte Chelsea is a spectacular trail along the Gatineau river that will have you slowly winding your way towards Wakefield, here you will want to take in a swim at the Municipal Dock which is right beside the bike path.
Leaving Wakefield will require you to re-route onto the road for a few kilometers,
before you will be able to find the Velo Route Des Draveurs. The route will climb here, but you will be rewarded with quite farm roads as you avoid the dangers of riding on the 105 highway. Be aware of the steep descent on this section right before you meet the Des Draveurs.
The Des Draveurs bike path is under construction in July 2024, some sections are being prepared for asphalt and the gravel is very difficult to ride on for several kilometres before Gracefield. There maybe indications for an alternate route for those not wishing to ride this section. In Gracefield, there is a grocery store and Subway Sandwich for resupply.
The next section of the route requires some decision making on the part of the participants. From Maniwaki the trail can be done in one of two ways depending on your confidence, experience and preparation.

The following recommendations are strongly suggested:

• Verify if hunting is active in the area and do not travel during thesebperiods
• A bike that is equipped for travel on rough VTT trails
• A functioning GPS and SOS device as no cell service is available on this trail
• Experience riding off road and first-aid supplies

Further information :

How many days?
Honestly, take your time! I did the loop in 11 days with my partner. We took a rest day in Wakefield and stayed in an auberge there. La Bolduc is about learning what works for you as you start your journey in adventure cycling.

What bikes did you use?
I was riding a Panorama Cycles Taiga EXP 2 with 2.2” tires. This bike was wonderful over every section of the route. It was especially good through the Chemain De Maniwaki section. My partner was riding a Marin Headlands Carbon Gravel bike with 47mm tires. She did feel a little uneasy in the very difficult sections, however she was far more efficient than me on the vast majority of the route.

Where did you stay?
We stayed in RV campgrounds on almost every occasion. We appreciate the access to showers and clean water at the end of difficult or long days.
These campgrounds also tend to have less bugs than stealth camping. We are doing this for fun right?