Day 2 was going to be one of our “easy” days. After our late start but long bike on Monday (+/-80K), we were going to provision and explore the local parks. We were even booked to stay in a park on a lake that very night! The day was warm and partly sunny (yay clouds!) and we were ready for cycling the Eastern Townships near Granby Quebec. Parks, nature, art: it’s all on offer outdoors in this beautiful part of Canada!
Cycling Through Granby
From our Airbnb, we stopped off in the town of Granby. It’s so pretty and full of bike paths. There’s a little river and waterfall, and lots of pretty views. We stopped for photos frequently and it was a beautiful day to do it!
In between photo ops, we stopped to provision at a brand new gourmet shop, Tite Frette, where we bought some local beer and sausages for later.
Artria
The Artria is billed as an open air museum and it’s amazing! I highly recommend taking a hike or bike ride through this area. The Artria was a highlight from cycling the Eastern Townships near Granby Quebec.
We biked along trails through the parklands in and around Granby and environs. One of the parks was right on Lake Bolvin, which was beautiful. We encountered some people along the way, but much of the time we had the paths to ourselves. It was peaceful and beautiful.
All along the Artria, sculptures are placed next to rivers, lakes, or green fields. And the separated bike paths follow these routes alongside nature and art. We saw some wildlife, including a friendly chipmunk. Of course, we took lots of photos.
Yamaska Park
We mostly just cycled along the paths, stopping for photos and a picnic, taking a leisurely route to Yamaska Park. The park has a beautiful clear lake for swimming and paddle boat activities, as well as overnight accommodations. We arrived there on a Sunday so the park was packed with day visitors, but later in the evening and the next morning it cleared out considerably.
For overnight stays, it’s mostly camping, which we didn’t want to do with out small storage on bikes. We chose a cute little cabin with bedding, refrigerator, a picnic table, and a barbecue. Time to cook up the sausages we bought earlier!
Yamaska Park was nice and peaceful. We swam in the lake a few times and relaxed in the shade by our picnic table. It was a nice one night stay. So far, so good! Cycling in this part of the Eastern Townships exceeded my expectations.
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