info req on cycling the Cabot Trail

Zyggy said:

We are in the planning stage of cycling the Cabot Trail In Nove Scotia
Canada. We plan on taking 5 days in July to do this and see most of the
sites along the way. Is it best to go counter-clockwise or clockwise?

Clockwise vs counter-clockwise has all the aspects of a "religious"
dispute! (Little-enders vs Big-enders etc). But THE ONLY TRUE WAY
is counter-clockwise!! :-)

I don't like coming downhill on steep hairpin turns, it demands
hard braking and "wastes" the downhill run. Besides there are scenic
lookouts at the corners of the hairpins where one wants to stop,
so why not do it on the uphill? Going counter-clockwise one gets
an uphill with the hairpins on Mackenzie Mountain and Smokey,
and fairly straight downhills. YMMV

Quoted message said:

Any
hotel, motels that are recommended or not recommended. Any sites that would
be a must to see?

There are some long stretches without any motels so sometimes
you don't have much choice. It's also getting a lot more crowded
than it was 10 years ago.

The "DOER AND DREAMERS GUIDE" is a good free publication listing
all motels etc in NS, plus things to see. You can order it at:

http://novascotia.com/en/home/planatrip/travel_guides/default.aspx

I think most of the info in the publication is also available
on-line at the above site. (high speed connection and patience required!)

If you have extra time, I would recommend extending the Cabot Trail
loop to include Dunvegan - Lake Ainslie - Whycocomagh (Rt 219, 395).
It only adds about 40 km. If you have even more extra time include
Rt 223 along Lake Bras Dor (Little Brasdor- Iona- Little Narrows)

This is an old description of Cabot Trail which I may
update someday:
http://www.dermott.ca/nstour/cabottra.html

--

David Dermott , Wolfville Ridge, Nova Scotia, Canada
email: [email hidden]
WWW pages: http://www.dermott.ca/index.html

David:

The tour books all seem to say clockwise. I went counter-clockwise.
This way you are always on the sea side rather than the
cliff-face/inland side. There are not a lot of hotels. My wife and I
stayed at a few B&B's and also camped. You can get a list of places to
stay from the tourist bureau. We started in Halifax, did Cape Breton,
took the ferry to Prince Edward Island which was 3 days of riding into
a headwind going from east to west. Cape Breton is very pretty. Climbs
were long but not particularily steep. Not very many bike shops so be
prepared for emergencies (extra spokes, tubes, etc.) Have fun.

Jim Bondra

David Dermott said:

Zyggy said:

We are in the planning stage of cycling the Cabot Trail In Nove Scotia
Canada. We plan on taking 5 days in July to do this and see most of the
sites along the way. Is it best to go counter-clockwise or clockwise?

Clockwise vs counter-clockwise has all the aspects of a "religious"
dispute! (Little-enders vs Big-enders etc). But THE ONLY TRUE WAY
is counter-clockwise!! :-)

I don't like coming downhill on steep hairpin turns, it demands
hard braking and "wastes" the downhill run. Besides there are scenic
lookouts at the corners of the hairpins where one wants to stop,
so why not do it on the uphill? Going counter-clockwise one gets
an uphill with the hairpins on Mackenzie Mountain and Smokey,
and fairly straight downhills. YMMV

Quoted message said:

Any
hotel, motels that are recommended or not recommended. Any sites that would
be a must to see?

There are some long stretches without any motels so sometimes
you don't have much choice. It's also getting a lot more crowded
than it was 10 years ago.

The "DOER AND DREAMERS GUIDE" is a good free publication listing
all motels etc in NS, plus things to see. You can order it at:

http://novascotia.com/en/home/planatrip/travel_guides/default.aspx

I think most of the info in the publication is also available
on-line at the above site. (high speed connection and patience required!)

If you have extra time, I would recommend extending the Cabot Trail
loop to include Dunvegan - Lake Ainslie - Whycocomagh (Rt 219, 395).
It only adds about 40 km. If you have even more extra time include
Rt 223 along Lake Bras Dor (Little Brasdor- Iona- Little Narrows)

This is an old description of Cabot Trail which I may
update someday:
http://www.dermott.ca/nstour/cabottra.html

--

David Dermott , Wolfville Ridge, Nova Scotia, Canada
email: [email hidden]
WWW pages: http://www.dermott.ca/index.html