Self-Guided Maps

BIKING IN OTTAWA IS INCREDIBLE! With 600 km of paved trails including waterfront pathways running along Rideau Canal, Rideau River, Ottawa River and Gatineau River Ottawa and the National Capital Region is a heaven for biking. With lots of flat beautiful pathways separated from traffic, there are loops and itinerary options for cyclists of all abilities and interests. You can bike on the iconic Rideau Canal and along the pathways you can see Ottawa’s major attractions and landmarks such as Parliament Hill, Museums, Farmer’s market, beautiful waterfalls, beaches and much more.
All of our rentals come with routing suggestions based on your interest and time. Whether you plan to stop for sightseeing or go for a long bike ride, we can give you some compelling route suggestions.

Rent a bike from us and cycle in Ottawa with our great selection of self-guided maps/tours of Rideau Canal, Rideau River, Ottawa River Pathway, Experimental farm, Gatineau Park and much more below!

Our Ottawa bike rental includes lock, helmet and pannier bag for your picnic!

Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal allows you to see a large and important part of the manmade section of the Rideau Canal. As the river was too shallow further east, this entire part was dug by the workers to allow for a deeper channel. Start downtown and make your way to the canal. Follow the gentle and beautifully landscaped pathway while keeping the canal to your left. At the lights, cross Queen Elizabeth Drive and continue at the other side of the road for a few hundred meters. Check out Lansdowne with its park, its heritage apple trees, a farmers market on Sundays, cafes and restaurants and a chocolate store. You can peak inside the stadium, home of several sports teams such as the Red Blacks and Atletico Ottawa on the east and west sides.

Continue cycling along the canal, until you arrive at Dow’s Lake with its canoe, kayak and peddle boar rentals. Keep the lake on your left; in May you will see 300,000 tulips blooming on your right in Commissioners Park. After the Pavilion, you enter the Arboretum with its collection of Canadian trees, shrubs and grasses, pathways and ponds. Don’t forget to take a peak in the Fletcher Wildlife Gardens. Cross the locks at Hartwell’s Locks and follow the canal all the way back downtown. Cross one of the two pedestrian bridges to get you back to our store.

Ottawa River
If you want to go for a ride that goes a bit out of downtown, than this one is for you. Make your way to the canal and turn left towards the Ottawa River along the locks that bring boaters from the Rideau Canal to Ottawa River and back. This historic place is a great spot to people watch or have a picnic in the shadow of Parliament Hill. Continue east along the Ottawa River. There is a bit of spaghetti of pathways underneath a major arterial bridge, but just keep following the yellow one in the middle of the pathway. Eventually you will pass the war museum (with a cafeteria) and then continue until you cycle underneath an abandoned railway bridge. Later in spring, you will see a collection of rocks stacked in the river by a local artist. Every year he starts again. Take a close look but don’t touch them, as they are not glued, it is all ‘just’ balance. 

The next bridge is the Champlain bridge (bike lanes only) where you turn north towards Quebec, la belle Provence. Stop halfway on Bates Island for view over the river. If the water is high you might catch some surfing at the north east end of the island. After the bridge you connect to the pathways that run along the Quebec side of the river. Eventually you end up at the Canadian Museum of History, check out the gorgeous views of the Parliamentary Precinct. Take the old train bridge, now a car and pedestrian/cycling bridge, back to Ottawa, turn left into Major Hill park and find your way back along the canal and across the bridge with the love locks. 

Rideau Canal + Rideau River
From downtown, you follow the canal to the Corktown bridge, also known as the love locks bridge and you continue south on the pathway along Colonel By Drive. At some point, you will see Dow’s Lake on your right hand, continue following the path, while noticing the tower of Carleton U on your left. The pathway ends at yet another lake, called Mooney’s Bay: this is the place where the Rideau River and the Canal become two separate entities, both flowing north. The pathway winds a bit, in order to cross the bridges (under construction in 2020 but accessible for cycling), but eventually you find yourself in a large open green space once again. The pathway follows the Rideau River and is mostly protected by greenery, with several open spaces along the way. At the 11 mile point, you will cross over the Rideau river on the Adawe Bridge. Stop for a bit to enjoy the low water level water finding its way between the rocks. Before the bridge was built in 2015, people would sometimes cross the river here by foot. The route continues on a calm road with some convenience stores and coffee/tea places and eventually ends up at the campus of Ottawa U. This brings you back to the canal and you are back downtown.

Aylmer Day trip

If you want to go for a longer ride that goes out of downtown, than this one is for you. Make your way to the canal and turn left towards the Ottawa River along the spectacular locks that bring boaters from the Rideau Canal to Ottawa River and back. Continue east along the Ottawa River. There is a bit of spaghetti of pathways underneath a major arterial bridge, but just keep following the yellow one in the middle of the pathway. Eventually you will pass the war museum (with a cafeteria) and then continue until you cycle underneath an abandoned railway bridge. Later in spring, you will see a collection of rocks stacked in the river by a local artist a bit further west. Every year he starts again. Take a close look but don’t touch them, as they are not glued, it is all ‘just’ balance. 

The next bridge is the Champlain bridge (bike lanes only) where you turn north towards Quebec. Stop halfway on Bates Island for views over the river. The pathway continues west towards Aylmer Marina and parc de Cedres with a quiet beach on the Ottawa River. This is an excellent place for lunch from the Bakery on Rue Court or bring your own to be safe.

Follow the same way back, but you won’t cross the bridge. Instead, you continue in Quebec all the way to the Portage Bridge with protected cycling lanes, crossing Victoria island back to Ottawa and pedalling back towards downtown at the foot of Parliament Hill.

Gatineau Park – Lac Leamy

This tour takes you all the way into Gatineau Park on a beautiful green route, combined with beautiful views of Ottawa. After you cycled across the canal and the Ottawa River, you’ll eventually cross the Ottawa River towards Quebec. Stop halfway for a beautiful view back on downtown Ottawa before you leave the river behind you. Follow the shore line closely for a bit in Quebec and eventually turn north into Gatineau Park. The path goes up gently but can be a bit of a work out for some, so be warned. There is a short stretch with a 12% climb. Alternatively, you could attack the park with an e-bike of course! The path turns east and meanders through greenspaces in the outskirts of Gatineau, past several water bodies all the way to the Canadian Museum of History. Enjoy the museum and the view across the river before you descent back to Ottawa. Cross the locks and you are back in downtown Ottawa. Just in time for a cold beverage after all that hard work.

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