Canada Motorcycle Tours

Cape Breton: The Road to Gampo Abbey

It was just a sign by the side of the road. We wouldn’t have seen it. But we stopped because the day was hot and the road was long and we needed a break. The sign read, “Gampo Abbey, 9 km.” My wife Julie and I were in the

Jul/Aug '22 Premium Content

A Solitary Quest From Anchorage, AK to Portland, OR

It wasn’t supposed to be a solo trip.A group of three or four of us had decided we’d ride from Anchorage, AK, to Portland, OR, taking advantage of the tour company MotoQuest’s seasonal transporter special offer. By agreeing to ride MotoQuest bikes from Alaska to Oregon,

Mar/Apr '21 Premium Content

British Columbia, the Yukon, and Alberta

Oh look, thar she blows! Out in the distance a whale blew, and a column of water fountained up. My eyes widened at the humpback’s gentle beauty. Calmly voyaging for two days from Juneau on the panhandle to Prince Rupert—our port gateway to a week of Canadian wilderness—

Mar/Apr '20 Premium Content

Yukon: Tuk or Bust

Over the years I have motorcycled through many of the world’s most exotic places, but in recent years I have been dithering about options for the next great ride. Can you hear a bit of desperation there? Finally, I was presented with a new road I could not refuse,

Sep/Oct '19 Premium Content

New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Quebec: Upper East Side

We’re passing through Bloomfield, VT, when we stop at the country store for a cold drink. A clearly exasperated farmer named Bob is at the counter, prattling on about the “Moose Fest,” a fair and classic car gathering in the town of Canaan, 20 miles north. (It also happens

May/Jun '19 Premium Content

Penticton, British Columbia: Discovering the Undiscovered

The teacher in The Truman Show, who stated “Oh, you’re too late. There’s really nothing left to explore,” was incorrect. There is always something new to be discovered. Exploration can be as simple as visiting a place you’ve never been—perhaps venturing across the US-Canada border, as

Jan/Feb '19 Premium Content

Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Ontario: The Superior Trip

This story is a gift to my father, Daniel Lynn Swab, the most important person to me on earth. In fact, he’s the reason that I got into photography when I was younger. Not because he enjoyed taking photos, but because there were no photos taken of him.Born

Mar/Apr '18

City Escape: Québec City to the Island of Orléans

The tour starts at the Fontaine de Tourny, travels around Québec City and the Plains of Abraham to Quai des cageux along the Promenade de Champlain to the point where you can see the old Québec Bridge over the Saint Lawrence River. It continues through the historic part of Québec

Mar/Apr '18 Premium Content

Nova Scotia: Prince of Rides - The Cabot Trail

For the fourth time in one day, I am mangling the pronunciation of town names in Nova Scotia. Is it Why-COCO-maw or Why-COG-ama? Anti-GONE-ish or An-TIG-anish? Meredith and I have been in Canada for three days, but I haven’t gotten any better at this.Meanwhile, our traveling companions, Jimmy

Nov/Dec '16 Premium Content

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula: Northern Exposure

I’ve been curious about Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (aka the U.P.) for a number of years. This northern exposure has plummeting wintertime temperatures and lake-effect snow piling high. The U.P. constitutes 29 percent of Michigan’s total landmass, but the unforgiving winter weather explains why only three

Sep/Oct '16 Premium Content

Revelstoke, BC Shamrock Tour®: The Unexpected Motorcycling Mecca

To many drivers, Revelstoke is just a stopover between Vancouver and Calgary. But for motorcyclists, the Kootenay-Columbia region around the city contains some of British Columbia’s best highways and byways, from sublime cruising to cuss-word challenging.Salmon River RaidIt’s a brisk June morning when my buddy Bevin Jones

May/Jun '16 Premium Content

Prince Edward Island: Carving Coastal Canada

Thomas Wolfe said you can’t go home again, but every summer I try to prove him wrong by taking a motorcycle trip to Prince Edward Island, where I grew up and learned to ride. In 2015, I tried something new; I took my brother-in-law Ty on his first two-wheeled

Jan/Feb '16 Premium Content

British Columbia and Washington: The Border Tour

The Canada-U.S. border disproves the old saying that good fences make good neighbors. It’s famously the world’s longest, undefended international border and, in much of the West, it’s simply a line drawn along the 49th parallel. There are no walls or fences, just a column of

Nov/Dec '15 Premium Content

Newfoundland, Canada: Licking Ice

I’m a Newfoundlander born and bred and I’ll be one till I die. I’m proud to be an Islander and here’s the reason why. I’m free as the wind and the waves that wash the sand. There’s no place I would rather be than

Sep/Oct '15 Premium Content

Reader Ride: Kaslo, British Columbia “Lookout” for Your Friends

Our 2010 KTM 990 Adventure easily rolls along the smooth forest service road adjacent to the Columbia Wetlands, the largest of their kind anywhere in the province of British Columbia. This portion of our tour was unplanned, but we did take the advice of our innkeeper the night before to

Sep/Oct '15 Premium Content

Labrador, Canada: Just Keep Riding North

Bouncing down the endless gravel roads of the Trans-Labrador Highway (TLH), it becomes clear why Labrador is nicknamed “The Big Land.” It’s vast with a capital V.“How far north can I ride from Lake George, NY?” That question arises with an email from Tom Nelson, an architect, sports

May/Jun '15 Premium Content

Québec: Epicurean and Moto Delights in Nouvelle-France

A trip to the Canadian province of Québec is like going to France but skipping the long plane ride. Having been to Montreal and Québec City on a previous occasion, though, I’m looking for deeper immersion into the province’s culture and exquisite cuisine. Riding my BMW F 800

Mar/Apr '15 Premium Content

Ontario, Canada: Riding Explorers' Edge

It’s early afternoon, and the sky is overcast with intermittent drizzle filling the air. I’m in the little town of Severn Bridge, ON, about 60 miles north of Toronto preparing to “Ride the Edge.” Up here, the locals still don’t think they’re that far north, citing

Jan/Feb '15 Premium Content

Reader Ride – Cape Breton, Nova Scotia: Island Hopping

Sometimes you have an idea you know isn’t smart, but you go ahead regardless. Sometimes it turns out you were worried about nothing. Sometimes it turns out you were dead right, but things work out anyway. That’s what happened when I went off-roading in the Cape Breton Highlands—

Jul/Aug '14

City Escape: Québec City to the Charlevoix Area

Panoramas, mountains, history, geography, and gastronomy are along this route. Venture on Avenue Royale (Route de la Nouvelle-France), one of the oldest roads in Canada. Take the side roads to quaint villages on the shores of the St. Lawrence and enjoy bakeries and local cheeses.LengthApproximately 200 miles Meet-up spotFontaine

May/Jun '14 Premium Content

Ontario, Canada: O Canada? Fugghedaboutit!

“What?!” It’s Canada Day weekend, and it seems like everyone and their grandmother is getting out of Toronto and hauling all sorts of pop-up campers, canoes, motorboats, and bored teenagers with them. Back home in Jersey, there would be tailgating, passing in the right lane, and cussing as well

Mar/Apr '14

City Escape: Victoria, British Columbia

Ride west from historic Victoria via Vancouver Island’s rugged coastline to Port Renfrew, then cross the island through remote villages and ancient forests as well as along rushing rivers back to the Trans Canada Highway by Lake Cowichan. Admire the totem poles in Duncan, and ride the spectacular Malahat

Jan/Feb '14

City Escape: Toronto, Ontario

Use Kingston Road and Highway 2 to escape Canada’s most populous city; then let the twisty backroads of the Kawarthas take you away from the crush of traffic. Keep watch for the Buckhorn, Dyno, and Northeys Bay Road. The best times to ride are late September, early October, or

Jan/Feb '14 Premium Content

Reader Ride: Nova Scotia, Canada - The Cabot Trail

The shrill announcement is loud and awakes us from a sound, gently rocking sleep to proclaim we are one hour away from docking at North Sydney, Nova Scotia. Four of us, on adventure motorcycles, are traveling on the North Sydney-Port Aux Basques ferry from Newfoundland to the northeast coast of

Nov/Dec '13 Premium Content

Lake Erie Circle Tour, Canada: Our Neighbors to the North

Crossing the Peace Bridge into Ontario is a mostly benign experience. I present my passport and answer a few questions: “Citizenship?” “How long will you be in Canada?” “Do you have any weapons?” Wait, what? Do I have any weapons? Well, I guess I am an American, and this is