the quartermaster’s loop
If you like cozy places with cool decor, homemade goodies and a welcoming owner and atmosphere, you will love The Quatermaster’s Store and Quirky Cafe in Tamworth.
I stopped there with my friend Ron Ryan during a 2023 ride, but for some reason I have now forgotten, the cafe was closed. I knew from the look of the outside that it was my kind of spot so I made a mental note to stop there again in the future.
The next opportunity didn’t arise until this spring, when Peter Frey offered to show me around his neck of the Ride the Highlands woods. Peter and I had connected virtually in 2023 when I enquired about booking a room at his beautiful Grasspoint Lodge B&B on Newboro Lake (near Westport) in the Ontario Highlands.
I took one of my regular routes from Almonte to Perth where we met at Hourglass Cafe on a sunny but cool late-April morning. We rode a little way down the the 7 before turning off for a visit to River House Vineyard & Winery in Maberly (I had never been there), then on through Crow Lake and Parham to Tamworth and The Quatermaster’s Store and Quirky Cafe where we stopped for a bite to eat (see the pics in the Relive vid below). While there, we met some local folk and had a lovely chat with Linda Jean, the Quartermaster’s owner (if you decide to visit, tell LJ that Susan sent you 🙂 ) and then it was on to Arden (fabulous twisties), Snow Road Station and McDonald’s Corners where we stopped to say hi to Colleen at Highlands Country Store (again, pics in the Relive vid below).
When Peter turned right at Lanark to head back to Newboro, I turned left and set out for Calabogie, Burnstown, White Lake, Arnprior, Pakenham and eventually home to Almonte.
It was a brilliant day on a cool loop with fun stops and great company.
I invite you to try it. Start at any point on the loop.
Find the loop here on google maps.
© 2024 Susan Macaulay. I invite you to share my poetry and posts widely, but please do not reprint, reblog or copy and paste them in their entirety without my permission. Thank you.
