Cycling Georgian Bay Shores in Tiny & Tay: A Double Dog Route

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Cycling Georgian Bay Shores in Tiny & Tay: A Double Dog Route Tiny and Tay townships in Simcoe County are known for their rich history, adjacency to Georgian Bay, and… being the namesakes of dogs owned by Lady Simcoe, wife of the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada. There are numerous great cycling routes in these townships, and we have merged a couple of them into a point-to-point route on our  Georgian Bay – Muskoka tour.  We start just outside of Waubashene and end in Wasaga Beach with an optional extension to Collingwood. It is mostly flat, with the notable exception of a hill out of Midland. Much of the ride is along the scenic shores of Georgian Bay. The route is about 77km one way. There is a link to the GPX file at the end of this post. […]

Kids love cycling trips too!

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Kids Love Cycling Trips Too! When kids and adults spend time together outdoors, whether it is hiking, skiing, or cycling, it can be exhilerating, and, in our opinion, leads to the most fabulous family vacations. Everyone involved has the chance to experience the adventure together including the joys and challenges, the camaraderie, and shared pride of accomplishment.  If your family loves to be on their bikes, here are some tips to help you plan a fun and memorable cycling trip.  Make cycling a regular family activity Cycling as a regular family activity allows children to gain skills, confidence, and satisfaction while allowing parents to assess their potential, as well as making sure the equipment fits, especially their bike. For young children, going for 10-15 minute rides is fine. It’s all about empowering them and ensuring they associate cycling with fun […]

A Healthy Dose of Fun with Private, Small Group Cycling Tours!

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A Healthy Dose of Fun with Private, Small Group Cycling Tours! This is the summer of the private, small group cycling tour. Move outdoors to enjoy the warm weather, spin your legs, see the sights and taste the local fare with a group of close friends. Building your own bike tour allows you to decide where you are going, when, and with whom. It keeps things fun, safe and healthy!  Add in some custom support such as luggage transfer and other services and the trip becomes relaxing, low-stress vacation for everyone. Where to ride? Ontario offers every type of cycling in every corner of the province. There are many great resources for some big picture planning, such as Cycle Simcoe, Ontario by Bike and the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail. At Humdinger Bicycle Tours, we operate in Ontario’s loosely-defined “cottage country”, […]

Sunglasses in Haliburton Cycling Route

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Post pandemic planning continues… This week we are checking out the Sunglasses route in  Haliburton Highlands. It is so named for its shape, and it was developed for our Hills of Huntsville & Haliburton tour. A flattish section makes an appearance on our novice-oriented Pedal, Pints & Pubs tour. The route is 68 kilometres and has almost 600 metres of climbing. It starts in the town of Minden and makes a figure 8 that includes South Lake Road, Kashagawigamog Lake Road, Gelert Road, and Bethel Road, and a wee excursion down Deep Bay Road to add on the arm of the sunglasses- see mapmyride link at the bottom of this post. As with all of our routes, this one has great scenery, including a chance to view paddlers at the Minden Whitewater Preserve. Stuff to know before you go There […]

Rent versus Schlep

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If you are flying to your next cycling destination, you may be asking: Should I schlep my bike or consider bike rental once I get there? I went through some thinking on this a few years ago, crunched the numbers, and the definitive, mathematically-derived answer was to schlep the bike. We found carbon frame road bikes for ~500$ per person per week, or about $1000 Canadian dollars for a couple. Or, we could bring our own for a $50 charge on Air Canada. Done. Oh, wait. Fifty dollars each way. Per person. So the cost was now $200 versus $1000 for bike rental. Who wouldn’t schlep to save $800? We could borrow one hard case box from a friend, and rent the other from our local bike shop for $5 a day. We were up to $235, but still well […]

Considering a cycling tour in Ontario? Consider fully supported and guided!

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I have been an active tourism industry consumer essentially my whole life, starting in the 70s, bouncing around untethered in the very back of a fake-wood-paneled station wagon on Ontario’s Highway 401, with thousands of other eastbound families planning to spend March Break skiing in the mountains of Quebec or Vermont. Cycling tours started later, about 1992, when I went on a bike-packing trip to Denmark. It was a self-guided tour. We planned our trip around where we wanted to go in Denmark, not where the cycling would be best. I learned that Denmark is mostly, but not entirely, flat, and that the winds off the North Sea are, well, windy. Since then, I have had the joy of many cycling trips and tours, including road biking in the Netherlands and France; seeing Berlin on a cruiser bike on a […]