Regional Roadtrips: Arnprior is the place to be for bakeries, bistros, bowling and boutiques

If you’re looking for a road trip destination with riverside parks, lots of locally owned shops and restaurants and even an Art Deco-inspired bowling alley, Arnprior — just 40 kilometres west of the Canadian Tire Centre — is the place to go.

Located where the Madawaska River flows into the Ottawa River, Arnprior began as a logging community. Later, it became a hub for textile mills and marble quarries. You can delve into that history at the Arnprior and District Museum (35 Madawaska St.), located in a former Victorian post office with a landmark clock tower.

After your museum visit, leave time to browse the shops of Arnprior’s humming downtown. Kitty-corner from the museum, KOTi 28 (158 John St. N.) stocks housewares and jewelry from around the world, including Swedish blankets and Finnish dishes.

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A few doors down at White Pine Books and Children’s Boutique (152 John St. N.), you’ll find a nice selection of novels, books by local authors, cookbooks, and kids’ clothing. On the same street, you could check out Jade & Laney (108 John St. N.) for local and other Canadian-made clothing and accessories, and Valley Girls Clothing Company (90 John St. N.) for women’s clothing in sizes from small to 4X. Around the corner, Bee Savvy Fine Foods (14 Elgin St.

W.) sells its own line of honey and a wide range of other producers’ gourmet foods.

Fans of vintage clothing, antiques and consignment shops will find lots to enjoy in Arnprior. For instance, The Village Crate (159 John St. N.) sells a mix of new and antique housewares and gifts, from candles and coasters to typewriters and vintage duck decoys. Johnie’s Vintage (54 Madawaska St.) is a great source of stylish vintage clothing and housewares, while Racked Consignment Shoppe (12 Elgin St. W.) has a great mix of casual and upscale apparel. A bit outside the downtown core, Antiques, Treasures and Treats (260 Elgin St. W.) is a packed antiques shop spread across several buildings.

Of course, road-trippers can’t live by shopping alone, which is why I highly recommend you stop by the well-named Mighty Fine Bakehouse (79 Madawaska St.) for a muffin, croissant or brownie. You can also get soups, salads and sandwiches.

One of my other lunch-hour favourites is Krave Bistro (24 Elgin St. W.), where the varied menu features a selection of crepes. The delicious Kashmir crepe is loaded with chicken, mushrooms, peppers and shallots, topped with a goat cheese sauce.

To work off those treats, you could head to Gillies Grove — one of the last remaining stands of old-growth white pine forest in the Ottawa Valley — and hike a two-kilometre trail. There are trailheads at the west end of Ottawa Street and the north end of John Street. If you’ve brought your canoe, kayak or standup paddleboard, the beach at Robert Simpson Park (400 John St. N.) is an easy place to slip it into the Ottawa River.

Alternatively, you could head to Steelheads & Strikes (120 John St. N.). Matthew and Alicia Ott, who also own Bee Savvy, recently gave their five-pin bowling alley an Art Deco spin with a little help from HGTV’s Bryan Baeumler. His show “Bryan’s All In” documented the transformation, which included installing a sleek cocktail bar at the entrance. It’s a popular place for private parties.

Finally, if you’re a music fan, mark June 1 on your calendar. That’s when the free, all-day Priorpalooza music festival will be taking place in Robert Simpson Park.

Award-winning Ottawa travel writer Laura Byrne Paquet shares her sightseeing tips for Eastern Ontario and beyond on her website, Ottawa Road Trips.