SWITZERLAND JOHN SWITZER Touring the back roads I love the back roads for the
adventure, the lure of the unknown, the new people you meet. It can be a trip back in time, unlike a city tour that involves challenging newfangled road systems, new one- way streets, restaurants, pubs and elusive parking spots. A tour of the back roads can
often include century-old farms with abandoned outbuildings and old and fading villages − vestiges of a previous age. The old neglected fields, roads and buildings speak to us of outmoded customs or practices and perhaps to a gentler, less hectic and a morally (not politically) correct age. It was a Saturday. We were in
Kemptville, southwest of Ottawa, at a Tim’s, naturally. We headed south on Hwy. 44 to Johnstown with a notion of meandering down old Highway 2 (that hugs the mighty St Lawrence) with sights of majestic ocean-going ships sweeping up or down the river near Brockville. As usual, we were rewarded
with a great tour. We headed east past intriguing views of the river, old stone houses and “nouveau riche” county estates. We inhaled the fresh river air and listened to the roar of the tires on the asphalt (a spring requirement for our two- wheeled friends). The road rose, fell and twisted
along the river’s edge, past locks and old canals. We cranked up the
20 BOUNDER MAGAZINE
radio, listened to the great tunes of today and of our youth, and rediscovered the freedom of the open road. Beyond Iroquois we happened
upon Route 4 (Lakeshore Drive), a previously undiscovered gem of a road clinging to the river, through historic Mariatown and into the seaway municipality of Morrisburg. In Morrisburg, while wandering
the backstreets and searching for the old city centre (now submerged), we discovered that we had inadvertently run out of coffee and were being assaulted with pangs of hunger. So the great search for a
breakfast stop began. Now, some would consult a computer or a dining directory, even an Ouija board. But, being guys, we asked some stranger (newly arrived in town) where to eat. He directed us to The McIntosh Country Inn & Conference Centre. At first sight we were
repelled by the grand size of this establishment (preferring smaller more intimate places) but were happily pampered with prompt, friendly service and good food (Durn! the buffet did not start until 10 am Sundays). If you go, be sure to take the time to peruse the history of the seaway construction, hidden out back by the washrooms. North of Morrisburg, on County Rd. 31, there’s a back roader’s
www.bounder.ca
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72