A bridge, a bear and unicycles: Biking the Gordie Howe on Day 1

• It's a physical workout, a massive piece of infrastructure to behold, and an experience rife with symbolism.

The tale of my trip:

I packed a small backpack and parked at Clark Park, about 1.6 miles from the port of entry. It's ideal for cyclists, but walkers may want to find street parking closer to the path's 6366 W. Jefferson Ave. entrance.

• The road was pothole-covered at times, eventually giving way to a pristine bike path.
• At 7:30am, a half-hour before opening, as many as 50 people stood in line.
• We early risers were able to enter quickly, but later in the morning after the bridge hit its max, people likely waited an hour or more.

We streamed past a metal doorway into a fenced corridor that eventually let out onto the bridge.

• Then we climbed our way up a steep initial hill, trucks honking in solidarity, as a stretch of white concrete gave way slowly to a full view of the bridge's cable-lined towers.

The morning's first wave of walkers and cyclists from Detroit and Windsor waved as we passed each other, huffing and puffing up the 5% incline or comfortably cruising down the windy descent.

• It's exhilarating doing something that's never been done before. As I overheard one person put it: "We're never gonna forget this."
• Crossing an international border in opposite directions while greeting strangers creates a moment few travelers experience.

Plaques mark the United States-Canada border about halfway, presenting both a photo opportunity and a constant traffic jam.

• It's possible to get a great view of the river between fence posts, though tough to photograph.

Entering into Windsor, I was greeted with a cup of water, some Gordie Howe Bridge swag and a giant, uniformed bear.

• I spent under two minutes waiting for customs on the Windsor side. It was about five minutes on the Detroit side.

In all, with stopping to chat and take photos — plus a Canadian Tim Hortons stop near the bridge — the trip took me around three hours.

Best bridge moments

Tyler Bloodworth of Madison Heights on Wednesday became the second unicyclist ever to cross the Gordie Howe Bridge.

• Bloodworth, who came hoping to take some unique aerial photographs of the river, was adamant that I make it clear he wasn't first — though he had aimed to be.
• The first was standing next to him, after they met on the bridge: Waterford resident James Abbott, who can now say his first time leaving the country was by unicycle.

• Abbott, who describes himself as competitive, told his grandfather he'd be the first and was.

To enter the Gordie Howe, I waited in line next to cyclist Marc Beauregard, hailing from Metro Detroit but living in South Bend, Indiana.

• The dual American-Canadian citizen whose parents are from Montreal traveled here to try out the bridge. He was going to meet a friend in Windsor for breakfast.
• In deciding to come, he told me he'd thought to himself: "I'd like to be in the history of being there on the first day, that'd be cool … With my heritage, it's really cool to be able to just ride over."

While Windsor's first cyclist to cross camped out all day Tuesday, Detroit's first in line — runner Marcel Murray of southwest Detroit — arrived at 4:30am Wednesday morning, he told me.

Windsor resident Bob Munden made custom T-shirts saying "I walked the Gordie Howe bridge Aug. 5, 2026." He described the experience to me simply: "It was impressive. Unbelievably impressive."

Practical takeaways: Expect a potentially long wait to enter the path. Expect to chat. Expect elaborate outfits. Prepare with water, good shoes and your documents to cross the border.

• The 1.8-mile journey should take 20 minutes by bike or 45 minutes on foot one way.
• Hours are 8am to 8pm through Oct. 31, and then 8am to 4pm through March 31. Access ends an hour before closing.
• More on what to expect.