Greetings from Ontario, Canada!

I have a bachelor's in mechanical engineering, and I've been working full-time in the field for about seven years. I would really like to transfer into CS and work with intelligent systems, particularly in machine vision. In the past year I've been learning Python and C and doing small projects on evenings and weekends. Unfortunately my current job doesn't leave me with a lot of free time, and I've been itching to invest more time in learning and making myself employable in a tech career. I've been weighing my options, and my thoughts are as-follows:

- Apply directly for a master's in CS: From what I can tell, this option is basically non-existent in Canada without a prior degree in a related field. There appear to be more options in the US, but from reading here and elsewhere, it seems like it can still make for a difficult transition into a CS career.

- Take time off work to learn CS on my own: This is pretty appealing to me in the sense that I could work at my own pace, save on tuition, and have time to work on projects to build my resume. It seems like a lot of people have gone down this path with mixed results. I'd be worried about having a gap on my resume and not having a degree to help level the playing field with other applicants.

- Go back and pursue a second bachelor's: I'm 30 now, and as much as it would bite to have no net income for 3-4 years, it seems like this would give me the best foundation to start a new career. I'd come out of the program with a degree, and hopefully my age wouldn't make me an unappealing option.

There's a lot to ponder, and I figured I would ask for some input here: does pursuing a bachelor's make the most sense for what I want to do? Are the outcomes for self-taught job applicants as dire as they seem from reading other people's experiences? Are there better options I haven't considered? Any and all advice is greatly appreciated!