GNBR East Day 16 - Deschambault to Trois

43.7 miles, 522’ climbing

Sept 7, 2026

Hotel-Motel Coconut, Trous Rivières

The morning was cool and sunny, and there was little traffic compared to Sunday afternoon. Our ride started out passing small farms and some historic communities. A lot of the old houses have silver metal roofs which curve downwards. Some look pretty rough, but others have been restored to perfection.

Yesterday mid day we went over our last (small) climb for 130 miles until we enter Montreal. The ground undulates, but it’s a pretty flat, easy ride on the shoulder of the highway. Headends were also light today. For much of the ride we were on top of a ridge about 100’ above the Saint Lawrence River. The grander houses and tiny cottages built at the top of the slope all have a view of the side river and the distant shore.

At one point we were hailed by a cyclist on the side of the road. We stopped, and it turned out to be two guys who were riding across Canada. They met and joined up in Vancouver. One was from France and one from Germany. We talked a little about touring. The German guy had pedaled through China, Nepal, and to Jakarta. Pretty impressive.

Before we entered Trois Rivières, we crossed some small rivers. One was the Saint Anne which flowed through Saint Raymond where we stayed several days ago. The river was quite a bit larger here as it prepared to flow into the Saint Lawrence.

We came through some neighborhoods with a lot of small, modest houses as we made our way into Trois Rivières. We got on a bike path by a park as we approached the Rivière Saint Maurice. It was much larger than when we stayed near it in Matawin. The bridge traversed a small island with a sandy shore. Boats were pulled up on shore and people were on the beach, and we heard music. It sounded fun.

We passed by some very upscale condos near an event space. Spying a restaurant, we stopped for lunch at a terrace restaurant near the rivers.

After lunch we went a few more miles before stopping at the Coconut Motel. Our room is nice, but it may be a place whose best days are behind it. We walked through the local school and neighborhoods to reach a market, and it seemed like a great place to grow up: kids playing sports or riding bikes, adults doing yard work, huge shady trees in front yards, and all very safe.