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| Thursday 2 October Karen once again made the pilgrimage to JFK, dropping us off with our accumulating luggage. Flick by this stage was an expert at avoiding airport trolley tolls by dashing into the departures concourse and nabbing one left over by travellers who had recently checked in. The short commuter hop to Montreal was on the smallest plane of the trip - only three seats wide. Flying over Montreal on our way in to land at Dorval brought back memories of our 2004 trip, when we spent several days wandering around the city with its very French feel. Corinne picked us up very efficiently (she was only parked for ten minutes) and whisked us down the freeway to Ottawa, in the process taking us from Francophile Quebec into bilingual (though predominantly English) Ontario. Jamie was waiting for us when we arrived at their home, which turned out to be walking distance to the city centre. We ended the day at a local Vietnamese - Pho Bo Ga La, enjoying the house speciality. James and Dave were both Wellington College alumni and used to cycle (and sing) together. James met Corinne in Ecuador while cycling the Pan American Highway (28,000km from Alaska to the bottom of Argentina, with a couple of ascents - by foot - up 6,000m+ mountains thrown in for good measure). Now affectionately known as Jam & Cream and with a “wee Bean" imminent, James is lecturing at a tertiary college while Corinne prepares for motherhood. Friday saw Jam at work, while Cream took us to a baby exchange shop followed by the supermarket to stock up on provisions for our upcoming excursion to her family's log cabin. We also met Corinne's parents who were most hospitable. In the evening we walked a few doors down for a pot luck dinner with a group o J&C's friends, who were very friendly and interesting. First order of the day on Saturday was a quick drive to a "gear sale" on the outskirts of town, where sales reps from various outdoors-wear labels were selling off their sample ranges. Dave scored an excellent Helly Hansen sailing jacket and a cycling top, while Flick picked up a rain coat and Charlie found a lovely winter hat - all at half price or better. None too soon as it was really starting to feel like autumn and as it turned out we all acquired Canadian colds. Actually, let's be honest: even relatively early fall in Ottawa can be about as cold as it gets in a Sydney winter. Then it was off to Lac McGregor in Quebec. A genuine homely log cabin on the shore of a lovely lake in the woods in the middle of nowhere - no cell phone coverage and no Internet. Just a view of water and trees in their fall livery, a cosy log fire, plus good music, books, company, food (thanks largely to Corinne's excellent cooking) and drink. Oh and of course an obligatory bike ride for James & Dave, despite which it was the most relaxing part of our trip.
Dave also had his first experience of driving on the "wrong" side of the road on the way back to Ottawa on Monday afternoon. Luckily we're all still in one piece! On a bright and warmer Tuesday morning Corinne dropped us off on the Quebec side of the Ottawa River at the interesting Museum of Civilisation, the site of which provides a breathtaking view across to the city and Parliament House. Next stop was lunch in the bustling Byward Market followed by a stroll to view the head of the Rideau Canal with its impressive locks, and a famous Beaver Tail pastry. James took Dave out on another ride in the afternoon, traversing a decent section of the canal and river using Ottawa's extensive cycleway network.
Not having had our fill of fall colours (or is that colors), Corinne drove us the next day to the top of the extensive Gatineau Park. Ottawa is certainly blessed with great opportunities for cyclists, bush walkers and even sailors, let alone all the winter pursuits such as skating on the frozen canal.
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