This section of the route commences in Lakeview
Park, Oshawa. Oshawa is a city of 140,000 inhabitants and
the home of General Motors of Canada. However,
you will quickly leave urban sprawl behind and after 20 min of cycling you
will have entered rural Southern Ontario. The next city that you will
encounter will be Kingston - 200 km to the east.
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| Maps |
Distances |
Route Description |
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W-T Oshawa |
0 km |
Lakeview Park, Oshawa.
Be sure to leave
this park by following the Waterfront Trail. The trail follows a
combination of (paved) quiet roads and designated
cycling paths for the first 25 km. You will need to pay particular
attention to the small, but numerous, green and blue Waterfront Trail
signs if you are to avoid getting lost! This is a far superior route to
busy (particularly between Oshawa and Newcastle) Highway #2 alternative.
For the first kilometre, the Waterfront Trail heads north along Simcoe
Street. |
| |
1 km |
The Waterfront Trail turns east and follows
Harbour Road. |
| |
2 km |
Harbour Road ends but the Waterfront Trail continues
directly ahead along an excellent paved bike path. For the next 2 km, the
trail winds its way through the Second Marsh Wildlife Area,
the largest coastal wetland between Niagara and Presqu'ile. |
| |
5 km |
The Waterfront Trail takes you right past the "front
door" of the General Motors of Canada Corporate Headquarters. |
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W-T Clarington1 |
6 km |
 |
The Waterfront Trail now takes you into Darlington
Provincial Park by the "back door" (through the yellow gate!).
 
Proceed straight ahead at the first fork (after 100 m, where the pavement starts).
Keep your eyes peeled for the green /
blue signs as the Waterfront Trail meanders along paved park roads for the
next 2 km. Alternatively, keep following the EXIT signs as you need to
find the main park entrance! |
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8 km |
Park Entrance. You now leave the park and
follow the Waterfront Trail along Darlington Park Road. |
| |
10 km |
Be sure to follow the Waterfront Trail by
turning right on South Service Road (immediately south of Highway
#401). |
| |
11 km |
After 1 km on the paved service road, you will arrive at
Manheim's
Oshawa Dealer Exchange (on your right). Here you will find that the Waterfront Trail
signs direct you to the south along Osbourne Road. Do not follow the
Waterfront Trail at this stage but, instead, continue to ride along the
South Service Road adjacent to Highway #401. Although there is a nice
6km section of "off road" Waterfront Trail here, it is
definitely not for cyclists with loaded touring bicycles. The surface is
loose gravel, and along the way there are six gates that are next to
impossible to get through with panniers! |
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W-T Clarington2 |
12 km |
Darlington Nuclear Power Station. |
| |
13 km |
Holt Road. Proceed straight across at the stop sign and
continue to follow the South Service Road. |
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14 km |
The Waterfront Trail rejoins the South
Service Road. Be sure to continue riding east on the road. |
| |
16 km |
Waverley Road
and Fifth Wheel Truck Stop. The Waterfront Trail turns
south on Waverley Road for 200 m, and then heads east on a designated
crushed gravel trail through West Side
Creek Marsh (a Class 2 Provincially Significant Wetland).
Although the trail surface is gravel and somewhat overgrown, it is suitable (just!) for riding with a
loaded bike. Besides, enduring 1.5 km of crushed gravel is far better than heading north into
Bowmanville along busy streets. |
| |
18 km |
The gravel trail ends at West Beach Road
(unsigned) and turns left on to a new paved trail and bridge. |
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W-T Clarington3 |
19 km |
Port Darlington.
From here, the Waterfront Trail follows a delightful, quiet,
paved road (very close to Lake Ontario) for one kilometre before joining a
crushed gravel road for another kilometre, and then onto the South Service
Road for a further kilometre. |
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22 km |
Bennett Road. Here the Waterfront
Trail heads south on Bennett Rd. for 500 m before turning east (just beyond
the train tracks) on a new paved trail. |
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24 km |
The paved trail ends and the Waterfront Trail
follows the paved Service Road for 2 km. |
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26 km |
Cobbledick Road. Here the Waterfront
Trail heads east on a picturesque, crushed gravel, trail. However, there is
a short, steep, hill in this section that will be a challenge with a loaded
bike! |
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27 km |
The trail ends at Toronto Street, which is
unmarked. Here you turn right and ride south for 300 m until you reach
Milligan Street. This is a confusing area at the time of writing (April,
2008) as there is a great deal of new housing development taking place. Your
best bet right now is to turn left and ride east along Milligan Street. |
| |
28 km |
Turn left when you reach Port of Newcastle
Rd. Either ride the road or the bike path on the south side of it. |
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29 km |
Turn right at the stop sign and ride south on
Mill Street. |
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W-T Clarington4 |
30 km |
You are now at Lake Ontario and the hamlet of Bond Head.
Lakeshore Road starts here (although it is initially signed as Boulton St.), and you will now follow this for a 25 km ride
into Port Hope. Lakeshore Road is an excellent cycling road: it is paved, it
runs close to the lake, and there is very little traffic on it. At Bond
Head, you will rejoin the Waterfront Trail.
Click here
for additional Ganaraska Freewheelers cycling routes in this area. |
| |
32 km |
The Wooden Bridge.
Did you feel safe cycling over that old bridge? Be sure to
turn right right after the bridge in order to continue following Lakeshore
Road. |
|
Northumberland
County |
43 km |
At the T-junction, be sure to head east (by
turning right) on Lakeshore Road
(and not north on East Townline Road). The Waterfront Trail temporarily
ends here, but you will pick it up again in Port Hope. |
|
W-T Port Hope |
46 km |
Wesleyville Generating Station.
Construction
began in the 70's on this oil-fired generating station, and then the
price of crude escalated. Wesleyville never was completed and it is now
used mainly as a storage area. |
| |
55 km |
Straight ahead at the lights. You are now on
Ridout Street in Port Hope. |
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56 km |
Town of Port Hope.
Be sure to take a few minutes to enjoy our historic and picturesque
downtown area - you may even wish to visit one of our delightful pubs. There are some great bed and breakfast establishments in
town, and there is also some excellent cycling
to be had in the Port Hope area.
Click here for additional Ganaraska Freewheelers cycling routes in this
area.
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