Thorold, Ontario to Port Colborne, Ontario
It is so nice to be cycling on trails. When we approach the Allanburg Bridge we are happy to see that it is up, as it means it will be easy to cross over Hwy 20.
We get to the other side and then stop to get some pics. We watch the freighter boat come through. Last year when I was cycling here with my friend, we saw a massive Viking Cruise ship come through here. That was really cool to see. When I was little, we often would go to Niagara Falls with my Mom. We loved when we would get stopped by a boat coming through. My mom would always let us get out of the car and stand on the side to see. I also remember going on a school trip to the Welland canal, where we would sit on the side of the canal having our lunch and watching the boats go through.
When Bart and I were dating, we had many “frugal date nights” right here at the Allanburg bridge. We would pick up a few drinks and some food, and sit here eating, drinking and chatting the night away. Cheers to good memories!!
We stopped along the trail to have a short break. The plant behind us is the Robinhood Flour plant. We saw a big ship coming into the canal, but I was a bit confused. I thought we are currently on the recreational canal, as we just passed the dragonboat and rowing clubs. Maybe this ship only comes in to go to this plant to do drop off/pick ups? Or maybe there is another passage that goes to the new canal? Hmm….I will have to look into this.
We cycled 33 km today from Thorold to Port Colborne. We had great weather and got a lot of sun!
The Wood Fire Pizza restaurant came highly recommended from the Port Bike Shop and also Judith from Tallwood Manor where we are staying. We tried to stop in Welland at Black Sheep Roasters, and Bridgewater Brewery, but we were sad to see they were both closed on Tuesdays! It seems like Monday and Tuesday are down days for many local businesses.
We looked up breweries in Port (this is what the locals call Port Colborne) and we found one that opened up at noon. Breakwater Brewery. But sad when we arrived it was closed, even though their website says they should be open.
West Street in Port Colborne is very nice, on the waterfront. When we were sitting on the patio at Fire Wood Pizza we were sitting right across from a crew ship. I should have taken a pic of our pizzas before we started eating them, but I think we all started gobbling them down before I remembered. We had the New York thin (a favorite – a bit spicy), the Greek and a Hawaiian. 3 great choices!!
We made a stop at the local LCBO! We loved the baskets on our bikes! and we loved our bungee cords. They come in handy!!
Tallwood Manor came highly recommended from the local bike shop when I was booking 6+ months ago. Judith has been so helpful and even mailed me bike maps in snail mail. Her B & B is early 1900’s and is gorgeous!
Judith has 4 rooms. We booked 3 rooms and she told me at the time of booking that she would not book the 4th room. This was great as we had the entire upstairs and we each has our own bathroom. The bathroom Debbie and I had, still has original bathtub and sink. If you are looking for a nice place where you are treated like royalty…..this is your place!
When we arrived we sat out in the garden for happy hour!! Maury (the cat) joined us – he was very sweet. Apparently Port has many spiders (not so sweet!) but harmless!
Emily (Debbie’s daughter-in-law) lives about 15 minute walk away. She came for a walk with Maeve and the dogs. As you can see, she is due to have her 2nd very soon!
We had our own private area downstairs as well – diningroom and livingroom and a porch (not shown here) on the front of the house as well.
We had about 8 breakfasts to choose from, which we pre-orderd a week before. We all choose the same one – delicious!! A sweet potato with caramelized onions and eggs! Local jams and honey. Homemade blueberry blackberry juice. Nice strong coffee. Fresh fruit and yogurt! and a homemade lemon loaf that Judith will pack up for us to take on our trip today.
We had a great stay at Tallwood Manor and sad we couldn’t stay longer and be treated like Queens!! Judith filled up our water bottles with water and ice for us. We also had a safe garage where we could put all our bikes and plug them all in. Everything was just perfect!
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