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Baddeck, Cape Breton National Park
6 Days, Self-Guided
Boutique Country Inns
From
€ 2150
TRIP HIGHLIGHTS
- Cycle this famous dramatic setting | a real slice of Canadiana!
- Discover the Canadian lifestyle, unique to Canada
- Visit Alexander Graham Bell’s home & the fantastic museum about his life here.
- Visit Canada’s beloved Cape Breton National park & its wild landscape.
- Try Canadian favourites like Poutine, Lobster & delicious home baking like Butter Tarts!
CC Advantage
An Epic Adventure from Halifax to explore this Thrilling area, we’ve cycled & can recommend.
We are Canadian and have family living here in this beautiful area!
Charming Boutique Inns to give you an idea of this Canadian Rustic area.
Nova Scotia is a special place and we are proud to showcase it!
Very well organized, from the routes chosen, the detailed instructions, the unique accommodations to the insider tips on dinning and sightseeing. Loved everything (with the exceptions of some of the hills!). Great seafood!
Maggi, co-founder and owner of Cycling Country, is proudly Canadian and just loves this bike ride! With family residing in Nova Scotia, this is an area we know well and recommend for any cyclist looking for adventure.
This beautiful region of Canada is famed for its history, rugged landscape and unique cultures of past isolated communities. Venture into the Cape Breton National Park with its spectacular views, highland headlands and cycle past sparkling lakes and gorges. Don’t forget to enjoy the home style cooking en-route which is a meld of First Nations, French, Scottish and Irish influences!
Here is a tour with a large and wild landscape and every avid road cyclist will love it. It is one of the Must Do Cycle Tours in the World.
Meander through the Margaree Valley with its Canadian Heritage River and enjoy the pastoral views of lighthouses, boaters and of course lakes filled with fish. This area is really a retro reminder of how holidays used to be with opportunities for viewpoints, swimming and picnicking at every turn. Who knows, you may even spot some wildlife, and this place has it all!
Ancient Acadia is on the route, with its open culture and wonderful culinary treats. A hardy bunch, these people have survived a rough history and harsh weather in their fishing communities to preserve some of Canada’s quite unique French culture. Les Acadiens vous attendant avec impatience! The Acadians are eager to welcome you!
Enjoy the pretty and cosy town of Baddeck where Alexander Graham Bell lived and created his many inventions, including the first practical telephone.
Quite a slice of Canadiana!
Dates
30 Jun 2024 to 20 Sep 2024
30 Jun 2025 to 20 Sep 2025
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Route Map
itinerary
Day 1. Halifax Pickup to Baddeck
Arrive in bustling Halifax (airport or centre meet point) and be transferred to your place for this evening, Baddeck*. Try out the bikes in this pretty town and explore. Such a pretty place, Alexander Graham Bell made it one of his main residences for his life and his family enjoyed summers there. The excellent museum makes for a very interesting visit and illuminates this great man´s life and inventions. Afterwards take a stroll around this pleasant place and prepare for tomorrow´s riding!*If you wish a transfer to Baddeck, you need to be in Downtown Halifax by 12:00 noon (at the latest) or Halifax Airport (12:45 latest) – The Shuttle return costs 90 Euros
Arrive in bustling Halifax (airport or centre meet point) and be transferred to your place for this evening, Baddeck*. Try out the bikes in this pretty town and explore. Such a pretty place, Alexander Graham Bell made it one of his main residences for his life and his family enjoyed summers there. The excellent museum makes for a very interesting visit and illuminates this great man´s life and inventions. Afterwards take a stroll around this pleasant place and prepare for tomorrow´s riding!*If you wish a transfer to Baddeck, you need to be in Downtown Halifax by 12:00 noon (at the latest) or Halifax Airport (12:45 latest) – The Shuttle return costs 90 EurosDay 2. Baddeck to Margaree Valley
Ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Cycle winding and forested hills in this landscape of lakes. You can even go for a swim en route if keen. Arrive at your accommodation which features quaint cabins in an attractive landscape and a good place to get off the bikes for a small hike. The Inn is known to feature local talent on their music nights, and if lucky, you will get a taste of Cape Breton’s famous tunes.More Miles are your thing? Go for another optional 25 km (15.5 miles) once you get to the Inn with a loop ride!
See more
Day 3. Margaree Valley Explorer
Ride: 50 km (32 miles)
A day of pretty vistas awaits in this landscape of lakes and ponds. River life being abundant, there are opportunities for good bird watching and it is actually a very big area for salmon fishing! So big, you can actually visit the Margaree Salmon Museum! Heading toward Cheticamp, you will start seeing some impressive landscape to come with the Highlands. Chéticamp, is one of the main French Acadian centres in Cape Breton, with a great mix of language, fishing heritage and history which is unique in Canada.
Ride: 50 km (32 miles)Day 4. Chéticamp to Dingwall
Ride: 81 km (50 miles)
Enjoy this amazing treat of terrain and thick hilltop spruce forests and a real chance to feel like an explorer. You pass into the famous Cape Breton Highlands National Park. This is an area of high drama with some amazing roads around headlands and the tree covered Highlands give this area a real taste of Canadian wilderness. A wonderful area to spot Canada´s native animals such as fox, deer, moose and beaver, your day on the bike is bound to be an interesting journey. Your destination tonight, is a little slice of Canadian outdoor living in some absolutely quaint wooden cottages.
Love this Area? Want to know a little bit more? Read our Blog on it – “Cycling Canada’s Famous Cabot Trail, A Slice of Wild!“
Day 5. Dingwall to Ingonish
Ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Lovely scenery accompanies your ride today to Ingonish. Tranquil forests and a coastal companion, makes it a very nice route. It is hilly countryside with small rural communities to pass through but keep your eyes open for any bald headed eagles that make their home in some of the swampy areas along the route.
Day 6. Ingonish to English Town
Ride: 46 km+ (29 miles)
You will enjoy today´s ride, a winding climbing route through lakes, forests, rocky outcrops and over Cape Smokey, an absolutely awesome descent with views spanning 360. Simply gorgeous cycling.
Pick up lunch at one of the small quirky cafes and delicious bakeries that line this cycle ride before arriving at Englishtown to get your ride back to Halifax Airport or downtown!
We hope you enjoyed this taster of Canadian Cycling and Exploring!
Love to keep going? Spend some days in Halifax and explore this historic interesting city!
Ride: 46 km+ (29 miles)
Trip details
Leisure Tour : Self Guided
Bikes : Hybrid / Road / E-BIke
Route : Baddeck, Margaree Valley, Cape Breton National Park, Ingonish
Sunday Starts only
Group Size : 2+
Riding Level
Moderate : distances are a daily average of 55 km. Please note this is very hilly countryside with some longer and steeper climbs. It is classed as Moderate as the distances are shorter than those associated with a longer Challenging ride, but be prepared for ascents and a couple steepish long descents.
ModerateAccommodation
Beautiful rural Country Inns & Cabins in Rustic Styles – All bedrooms en-suite
Food
4 Dinners, all breakfasts : buffet / home cooked
Also Included
- Luggage delivered to your next hotel with luggage tags
- Welcome and introduction to the route & area
- Emergency support and contact details
- Tour pack and guide book of history & culture
- Detailed Notes for sights to see
- 5% off your next tour with us
Staff
Our Local Representative will meet and greet in Halifax (if being picked up) and provide daily luggage transfers
Not Included
Good Quality Bike Hire – Quality Hybrid Bike: 195 Eur / Road Bike full carbon frame: 290 Eur / E-bike: 390 Euros
Transfer from Halifax Centre /Airport to Baddeck (Return – 110 euros)
Entrance to Alexander Graham Bell Centre or other museums en-route
Getting Here
WestJet flies from London Gatwick to Halifax throughout the year, other European carriers (Air Transat,BA, etc), access Montreal, Quebec City or Toronto first and then Halifax
Please Note!
This tour is available only for a start on Sunday.
Please contact us for availability.
Lodgings
These Canadian small hamlets and communities have a long winter, so when it is time to get out and enjoy the good weather, they do so with a great gusto. Enjoy how the wild world wakes up in the mornings on your route with birdsong and leaves rattling in the big maple trees. A nice glimpse of Canadian countryside at its best. Encamp and enjoy the greenery in the surroundings of this Inn and its cabins.
Most lovely lodgings, one of them with a close by barn filled with local talented musicians to hear. Discover the Real Cape Breton hospitality here!
Reviews
“Cycling Cape Breton’s Cabot Trail
“We had a brilliant week on the Cabot Trail, ebiking through some of the most dramatic scenery in Atlantic Canada, eating extremely well, staying in varied and interesting accommodation, enjoying the coastal climbs and descents as well as the inland valleys. It’s a natural bike touring trail, with superb vistas, welcoming locals and well-modulated days in the saddle. It’s a self-guided tour, but, in practice, the support provided is perfectly judged. We could not have enjoyed our time more.”
T. Young – UK – Sept 2023
“Canada’s Cabot Trail!
Hi Maggie, Back to work and all is well. We had a wonderful time. It was a real adventure. Thanks for all your help.”
B & J. Bailey – August 2019
DATES & RATES
CABOT TRAIL, CANADA
6 DAYS / 5 NIGHTS
FROM €2150
SINGLE SUPP. FROM €630
June 30th – July 5th
July 7th – July 12th
July 14th – July 19th
July 21st – July 26th
August 4th – August 9th
August 11th – August 16th
September 1st – September 6th
September 8th – September 13th
September 15th – September 20th
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