Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour
Since 2022
Go east of the Mississippi and explore the Northeastern US and Southeastern Canada around the Great Lakes.
Sample Unique Regional Food and Culture.
Learn to speak Yankee or Quebecois.
Observe the world’s largest tidal range.
After Getting Up North, c. 4200 mile recommended route.
12 scenic and historic sites in the Northeast US and Canada.
Ride the Northeastern Corner of the US and the Canadian Border Region
Everyone enjoys a weekend at the lake, but have you ever considered more in-depth exploration of these geographic phenomena? How about a ride that features lush mountains, majestic lakes, rocky shorelines, scenic sand dunes, landmark bridges, coastal bays and lighthouses? Add in some great roads, a ferry ride, a little history and a generous helping of regional cuisine and you have the Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour (GLCTT)!
The Tour consists of twelve notable checkpoints, each emblematic of a significant factor in local or regional history. It’s a great opportunity to take in the scenery and heritage of a region shaped largely by its natural resources. You will also find that the Catskills, Adirondacks and White Mountains of the Northeast offer a completely different riding experience than the Rockies, Appalachians and Smokies that you are likely more familiar with.
The GLCTT is a self-guided and self-paced ride and photo tour encompassing the Great Lakes and Canadian Maritimes regions. Our suggested 4200-mile route navigates these regions in somewhat of a figure-8 shape and features 3 international border crossings and travel through 7 states and 4 provinces. See the Rules tab for more information regarding the Tour Checkpoints and Suggested Route before registering.
Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour
Our suggested starting point is the Perry Monument on the Presque Isle peninsula in Erie, PA although riders from western Canada may wish to begin in Thunder Bay, Ontario. From Erie, the next checkpoint is the Sodus Bay Lighthouse and Monument on the southern shore of Lake Ontario. From New York, there are several checkpoints in Vermont and New Hampshire before crossing into Maine. You would then cross the Canadian border into New Brunswick and continue on to Nova Scotia to ride the Cabot Trail. Next is a return to the US with a checkpoint at the Four Corners Park in Madawaska, Maine. The ride then returns to Canada to ride along the St. Lawrence River to the “walled cities” of Quebec and Montreal. The suggested route turns west away from the St Lawrence River, through Ottawa and Sudbury to the north shores of Lake Huron and Lake Superior. The route follows the shoreline of Lake Superior back into the US, turns the corner at Duluth, Minnesota, and then heads east across the Richard Bong Bridge through Wisconsin into the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. After a ride over the famous Mackinac Bridge, the 4,200-mile-long Tour finishes in Mackinaw City, Michigan.
The GLCTT is a PHOTO TOUR. It requires you to visit each checkpoint and take a photo and record your location using the Electronic Journaling tools SpotWalla and SWTracker.
You will use your phone to document your adventure. Recording your ride with Electronic Journaling provides a backup for your checkpoint proofs rather than collecting and protecting a stack of receipts. See the information provided on the Electronic Ride Journaling page.
GLCTT Rules
In order to complete the Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour (GLCTT) and prepare to submit your records for certification when you are done:
Visit each of the 12 checkpoints within the same calendar year
Although we have a suggested route for completing the GLCTT, you may visit the checkpoints in any order and follow any route you desire. It’s an amazing area and side trips are definitely encouraged! To that end you might want to see the Points of Interest list for some interesting optional places to visit while you’re in the region.
Some checkpoints involve specific landmarks; others are up to the rider but must be something that is easily associated with the specified checkpoint location.
ALL checkpoints must be visited in one calendar year.
Document each checkpoint with a photo recorded in SpotWalla. This eliminates the need for a Dated Business Receipt (DBR) at each checkpoint. Refer to the Electronic Journaling for more information about SpotWalla.
When you have completed the ride, members will be able to visit the GLCTT tab on the SCMA website and request to have their ride completion certified. We will announce when the certification process, including ordering swag, is ready later this year.
Certified Finishers will be invited to attend Finishers' celebrations.
GLCCT History
The SCMA Great Lakes Cabot Trail Tour was created by Bob Roger, the former chair, in 2022 to provide a challenging, historic and scenic ride through the Great Lakes and Canadian Maritimes regions that could be completed without traveling West of the Mississippi. Its intent was both to introduce the many Southwestern members of the SCMA to the unique riding available in the Great Lakes and Maritimes regions and to provide a scenic tour of substantial length which did not require travel west of the Mississippi River.
The ride is largely unchanged from its original form except as noted below:
- The Port Kent to Burlington Ferry across Lake Champlain shut down during COVID and never resumed service. The Lake Champlain ferry crossing checkpoint is now between Essex NY and Charlotte VT.
- Niagara Falls was made an optional stop for the 2024 season; the checkpoint for Lake Ontario is now located east of Rochester NY at the Sodus Bay Lighthouse and Museum.
Certify Your GLCTT Ride
Coming Soon!
For further clarification or questions about the GLCTT contact:
Ride Chair – Mark Burdick
cabottrail@sc-ma.com
GLCTT Checkpoints
1. Perry Monument – Presque Isle Peninsula, Erie, PA
2. Sodus Bay Lighthouse and Museum – Sodus Point, NY
3. Whiteface Mountain Summit – Lake Placid, NY
4. Lake Champlain Ferry – runs between Essex, NY and Charlotte, VT
5. Kancamagus Scenic Byway – RT112 Lincoln, NH to Bartlett, NH
6. Cabot Trail – Hwy 19 Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia
7. Four Corners Park – Madawaska, ME
8. Landmark of your choice in either Quebec City or Montreal, the walled cities
9. The Giant Canadian Nickel at the Dynamic Earth Science Museum, Sudbury, ON
10. Kakabeka Falls – TC11 20 miles west of Thunder Bay, ON
11. Split Rock Lighthouse – Hwy 61 Two Harbors, MN
12. Mackinac Bridge between St Ignace, MI and Mackinaw City, MI
GLCTT Additional Points of Interest
You may wish to visit these locations as part of your Tour, but they are optional and NOT required:
- Niagara Falls from either Canada or US side.
- Mount Washington Auto Road to Summit, entrance is on NH16.
- Ausable Chasm on US9, 20 miles NW of Essex NY
- Acadia National Park is a 110-mile round trip spur out of Bangor, ME.
- Confederation Bridge in New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island, is an 8-mile crossing in each direction and adds a 75-mile spur off the main route. On Trans CAN Hwy 2/NS104 at Westmoreland, New Brunswick, take Trans CAN Hwy 16 to the bridge.
- Fortress of Louisbourg, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Spur from the Cabot Trail at St Ann adds 80 miles and 2 hours riding time to the Cabot Trail Loop.
- Toronto Spur (Ottawa > Toronto > Sudbury) adds 180 miles to the Tour.
- Giant Canada Goose in Wawa, Ontario 140 miles north of Sault Ste Marie at the Visitors Center at the intersection of TC17 and HWY 101. There are actually three in the vicinity – can you find them all?
- Aerostitch 8 S 18th Aw W Duluth, MN 55806. From the north: I-35 ex255A, US53 to next exit, Right onto N 21st Ave W., Left onto W Superior St., go four blocks to Aerostitch.
- Tunnel of Trees from Mackinaw City – it’s a 24-mile ride to Cross Village. From there, MI 119 hugs the Lake Michigan shoreline for 21 miles to Harbor Springs.
- Eagle Harbor Peninsula Lighthouse, Upper Peninsula, Michigan. Loop adds about 140 miles to the Tour.