This page was last updated Mo 24 April 2023.

Contents: Tours (57)    Trails (2)    Cycling info pages (2)    Organizations and clubs (1)   

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USA (local)

This page lists all reports that for USA only that do not involve other countries.
Click here for a list of all reports involving USA.
All descriptions are in English, unless otherwise noted.

Tours (continued)

Riding the volcano: Haleakela, Maui
by Patrick Morris, tour started 2006, submitted 25 June 2006
America: USA

Seven tips, ride description, and map for a one-day ride from the sea up the mammoth 61-kilometer climb of the Hawaiian volcano Haleakela on Maui. At over 3,000 meters, this climb will take literally into thin air - some planning should be undertaken.

From sea to Haleakala Summit (10,023ft) on Maui
by Mike Jacoubowsky, tour started November 2005, submitted 29 January 2006 : USA

It's just a hill, in the grand scheme of things. Only different. Not because it's 10,023ft at the summit, but because this is one of those rare mountains that you can literally start at sea level... well, not just sea level, but actually at the sea! You don't have to do the ride that way though; you can start at the base of Highway 37 (near the airport), and pretty much eliminate the chance of taking a wrong turn and adding another 1700ft to the climb. But what's the fun in that?

The climb isn't challenging because it's steep (it isn't), but rather the length. You start climbing and never, ever stop, until you reach the top. Lots and lots of photos on our page, along with a printout from a HAC-4 heart monitor/altimeter.

Literally sea level in Paia, the start of the 10,023ft climb up Haleakala
Seattle to San Francisco Bicycle Tour
by Chuck Anderson, tour started October 1991, submitted 28 January 2006
America: USA

A number of articles in rec.bicycles and rec.travel about the Oregon Coast inspired me to take my first long distance bicycle tour. I flew to Seattle from Denver on the 10th of July with a plane ticket to return from San Francisco on the 28th. If there was anything that I didn't like about this trip it was that deadline. I felt free except for the schedule I had to keep. This article is a personal narrative about my journey from Seattle to San Francisco following highways 101 and 1 along the Pacific Coast.

Every day is different. If you bring expectations from yesterday into a new day you increase the chance for disappointment and you waste time and energy trying to overcome that disappointment. Everyday unto itself.

This tour changed my life. I had never felt more alive. I left seeking a new way to see the world and I found me.

See all 5 reports by Chuck Anderson

Overlook - Nehalem Bay, Oregon
Touring Oregon's Columbia River Gorge
by Norman D. Ford, tour started October 2005, submitted 22 January 2006
America: USA

Paved all the way, Oregon's Historic Columbia River Highway takes cyclists on a breathtaking 75-mile ride through the Columbia River Gorge, a region so spectacular that in 1986, Congress declared it a National Scenic Area. Almost every mile of the way, I pedaled past steep, rocky cliffs and evergreen forests and I cycled next to 5 roadside waterfalls, one cascading down a sheer 620-foot drop. Most of the ride is on low-traffic, secondary roads with about ten miles on car-free bikeways. (To by-pass an as-yet unfinished 14 miles, cyclists are permitted to ride on the wide shoulder of I-84.)

Comfortable, affordable motels are spaced every 20-30 miles and you can take either 2 or 3 days to ride the Gorge--surely one of America's most awesome cycling experiences. En route, I pedaled up two superbly scenic--and fairly gentle--climbs, each around 750-feet in elevation gain--and with stunning panoramas from both summits. Along the way, I also spent a couple of hours touring Bonneville Dam where salmon were leaping up fish ladders. My day-to-day report tells exactly how I made this two-day tour and it's packed with advice and map sources for anyone wishing to duplicate my route. (Tip: it's just a six-hour drive between the Gorge and Spokane WA, end of my ``Touring the Northwest'' trip (see report on home page menu) and you can squeeze both tours into a one week vacation.

See all 13 reports by Norman D. Ford

Cycling high above the Gorge near Hood River
Touring New York's Finger Lakes and the Erie Canal
by Norman D. Ford, tour started May 2005, submitted 22 January 2006
America: USA

New York State's long, spindly Finger Lakes are webbed by roads that take you pedaling along lakeshores or over rolling hills, past world-class vineyards and picturesque farms, to quaint towns and villages with elm-lined streets bordered by elegant Victorian houses and gardens. From high ridges, I viewed breathtaking panoramas of the sparkling lakes below. On quiet backroads, I met Amish carriages drawn by high-stepping horses. And I spent the final two days on a flat 90-mile ride along the car-free towpath of the Erie Canal, cycling next to a series of still-operating locks and 19th Century towns, each with a unique lift bridge across the Canal.

My trip took 14 days and covered nearly 600 miles and I spent each night at a comfortable, affordable motel in traditional towns like Auburn, Geneva, Watkins Glen, Penn Yann, Canandaigua, Brockport and Lockport. Small wonder this is one of America's most popular bike tours! And if you'd like to ride it yourself, my full report not only describes my day-to-day cycling experiences but also gives full map and info sources for duplicating my route on your own.

See all 13 reports by Norman D. Ford

Colorful Federal-era houses line bike route through downtown Geneva
Touring the Northwest on the Hiawatha-Norpac-Coeur d'Alenes-Millenium Trails
by Norman D. Ford, tour started September 2005, submitted 22 January 2006
America: USA

Up in Northern Idaho and Washington, a series of 4 car-free bike trails linked together form one of America's newest bicycle tours. My 4-day tour began high in the Bitteroot Mountains with a wildly scenic ride down the Milwaukee Road's Trail of the Hiawathas, former route of the famous Hiawatha Scenic Vista Dome train. The line went bankrupt in 1977 and the Hiawatha stopped running. Today, though, you can enjoy the same scenic adventure on a bicycle, including traveling through the same 9 cavernous tunnels and across the 7 high steel trestles used by the train.

Next, I rode a 12-mile stretch of the former Northern Pacific railbed through emerald forests then switched to a paved stretch of the former Union Pacific Road that led for 66 spectacular miles through a wilderness of tall mountain peaks, rivers, lakes and wetlands and past historic mining towns to the Victorian village of Harrison, perched on a hilltop overlooking beautiful Lake Coeur d'Alene. I completed the trip by riding another 62-miles on the paved Millenium Trail beside Lake Coeur d'Alene then west along a cascading river into Washington and the city of Spokane.

My day-by-day report not only describes how I biked this 160-mile tour but also gives full map and info sources for duplicating my route. Using a unique routing strategy, for instance, I was able to ride the whole way either on the flat or downhill. And I found comfortable motels or guest houses a day's ride apart the entire way.

See all 13 reports by Norman D. Ford

Cycling the paved Centennial Trail beside the Spokane River
Biking and Kayaking at Frisco, Colorado
by Norman D. Ford, tour started September 2005, submitted 21 January 2006
America: USA

Almost every year, I spend a bike touring vacation at Frisco CO, staying in the same motel while each day I bike out and back on a complex of paved, car-free bike trails that wind past colossal mountain scenery to famous ski resorts like Breckenridge, Keystone, Copper Mountain and Vail. One easy trail hugs the shore of huge Dillon Lake to Keystone. Another winds up to the posh resort of Breckenridge. And a third climbs through awesome Ten Mile Canyon to Copper Mountain and on up over Vail Pass (10,600 feet, 3250m) then drops down to the Alpine-style town of Vail.

Using fat tires, I usually spend a day cycling up the unpaved road to Boreas Pass (11,480 feet, 3500m) where America's highest railroad depot still stands. Then for a change, I'll rent a kayak and paddle around Dillon Lake for a few hours. But there's lots more. It's just an hour's drive to nearby Georgetown, an unchanged Victorian mining town and from here a paved bike trail leads up to Silver Plume, a fascinating old mining town still much as it was in 1880. Heading back down, a low-traffic paved road leads to Idaho Springs, your motel base for cycling America's highest paved road that leads for 28 miles to the summit of Mount Evans (14,264 feet, 4360m). And with a mountain bike, still more exciting rides await, all in a world class setting of breathtaking grandeur. My website describes how I biked each trail, then gives loads of advice, and full map and info sources, for riding these trails on your own.

See all 13 reports by Norman D. Ford

Cycling up North America's highest paved road to the summit of Mount Evans CO, 14,260 feet (4,360m)
Rails-to-Trails Touring in America's Midwest
by Norman D. Ford, tour started September 2004, submitted 21 January 2006
America: USA

Trail reports and best strategy for touring 4 of America's longest Rails-Trails conversions that take you cycling through America's rural heartland on former railroad beds, converted to car-free bike trails, with comfortable, affordable motels a day's ride apart. Day-by-day, these reports describe how I cycled each trail plus loads of info and advice for anyone wishing to cycle the same route.

The trails are: Root River Trail, 60 paved miles (100 kms) along Minnesota's beautiful Root River, 2 days, McElroy-Sparta, 105-mile (170kms) trail system along Mississippi River in Wisconsin, smooth-unpaved, 4 days (can be combined with Root River Trail), Mickelson Trail, 109-miles(175kms)on smooth, unpaved trail through historic, Gold Rush country of South Dakota's Black Hills, 3-4 days. The 225-mile (362-km) Katy Trail along the Missouri River in Missouri, smooth-unpaved, 4-5 days. All are fairly level, easy rides through historic railroad towns and scenic countryside rich in Americana and wildlife.

See all 13 reports by Norman D. Ford

One of 100 bridges I cycled across on the Mickelson Trail
To and around Seward
by Mike Dvorak, tour started 2005, submitted 29 December 2005
America: USA

Pictures of my Alaska bike trip/honeymoon this summer.

Tour around Lake Pepin, 2000
by Tim McNamara, tour started October 2000, submitted 24 December 2005
America: USA

In the fall of 2000, my wife and I planned a tour around Lake Pepin for our anniversary, starting and ending in St. Paul, Minnesota. A lovely short tour in easy stages- my first tour!

See all 3 reports by Tim McNamara

Mississippi River at Alma, Wisconsin
Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, CA: Cycling amongst immense mountains, deep canyons, and huge trees
by Steven Hill and Rebecca Heald, tour started August 2005, submitted 25 October 2005
America: USA

Cycling Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

60 photos and movies by Steven Hill and Rebecca Heald.

This past weekend, Rebecca and I participated in a really nice, informal, two-day bicycle tour through the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in the Sierra-Nevada, California. These parks protect some of the most stunning habitats you'll find anywhere. The huge elevational range (1,500' to 14,491') in this region features immense mountains including Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the lower 48 states; huge trees including the General Sherman Sequoia Tree, the largest (by volume) living thing on earth and deep canyons including Kings Canyon which is deeper than the more famous Grand Canyon in Arizona.

See all 5 reports by Steven Hill and Rebecca Heald

Sequoia and Kings Caynon National Parks, Sierra-Nevada, California
Oregon Cascade Mountains and Pacific Coast
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started August 2004
America: USA

Although August is still considered high season, campgrounds are mostly completely empty. Campgrounds here are designed for RVs exclusively, and have RV hookups but no amenities beside a pit toilet and a well with a hand pump that dispenses wonderful cold water to fill my bottles. Well water is safe to drink; river or lake water is not. I normally want a hot shower in the morning and evening, so I got more and more desperate checking out one primitive campsite after another, until some friendly campers told me that the Lava Lake resort campground has showers and groceries. Although it's a RV campground, I highly recommend it - the sites are large and secluded, and the showers are great. Also, it has the first grocery store, or in fact any store, I have passed since Chemult. I am writing this sitting on the campground's boat pier, looking at the sun setting over the mountains all around me.

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

Napa Valley, Redwoods, Coast to San Francisco
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started July 2002
America: USA

In the city of Napa, there is a friendly tourist info downtown on 1st. Stock up on food here because I haven't seen another grocery store for the rest of the day. I decided to take Silverado Road north, because unlike highway 29 it has a wide bike lane and is more scenic. There are beautiful vistas of vineyards and hills all the way. I was warned that both can be dangerous because the Napa valley is California's wine country, which means lots of drunk drivers, but I saw no evidence of that. I cut back to 29 on Bale St, and stayed in the Bothe-Napa State Park. One night costs $1 (like in all State Park campgrounds except the Bicentennial which was free), plus showers, and they never turn cyclists away.

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

Clear Lake
New England loop
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started August 2001
America: USA

I spent the next day and a half in the White Mountains, which were the highlight of this tour. The main east-west road through the White Mountains is route 112, called the Kancamagus highway after an Indian chief. The first half of route 112 to Lincoln is mostly flat, but the second half is moderately steep at about 9%. There are only occasional views of the valley. The pass is about 600m higher than Conway, with a vista point. (Observed there: car stops, fat lady bounces out, leaving the motor running, regards the panorama for three seconds, emits a little squeal of delight, jumps back into the car and drives off.)

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

Barn near Palmer
Crater Lake to San Francisco
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started August 1999
America: USA

Crater Lake is almost circular with a small island. There used to be a volcano there long ago, but its top blew off and left a very scenic lake. Due to its depth it is incredibly blue. In the summer (we rode in August) it is possible to ride around all around the lake; in the winter this road is closed. At the western side there is a mountain with a great view of the lake; the teaser image at the top of this page was taken there. Even in August there is snow there, and the path up the mountain is too rough to ride with road bikes.

After a day at Crater Lake, we followed highway 62 towards Medford. The ride was an exhilarating downhill through dense forest, sometimes alongside lakes or white water rivers and creeks. The area is almost completely unpopulated, and there was suprisingly little traffic (this was on a Wednesday, I expect it would be worse on weekends). We stayed one night in a campground in the Valley of the Rogue, and continued the next morning to Medford.

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

San Francisco to Los Angeles
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started 1995
America: USA

Although Highway 1 closely follows the coast, which means constant postcard motives to the right, it is still hilly because the cliffs vary considerably in height. They are no problem for riding because none exceeds 250 meters, and most days we didn't have more than two of these. Of course, the downside to untouched beauty is that there aren't any grocery stores to stock up on water or bananas either. The Big Sur coast is not completely devoid of human civilisation. There are small ``towns'' like Lucia (population 3 according to the Bikecentennial map) and Gorda with grocery stores and restaurants, but they are few and far in between. Stock up on food whenevr you can, and you'll love the rugged untouched beauty of this section of the Pacific coast. The picture was taken in the town of Gorda. I once ate better fish-and-chips there than in London.

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

Seattle to San Francisco
by Thomas Driemeyer, tour started August 1994
America: USA

Riding in Washington was easy. The roads mostly have wide shoulders and there wasn't much traffic. We had several tunnels, like the one shown in the picture. These tunnels had a button at the entrance for bicyclists to press that turns on flashing lights and warns motorists that there are bicycles in the tunnel and they might perhaps consider driving carefully. We were lucky and always had downhill tunnels, and didn't meet any logging trucks in a tunnel. A logging truck is a huge truck loaded with logs, and can be rather frightening when passing at high speed. They are more indigenous to Oregon though.

See all 20 reports by Thomas Driemeyer

Trails

Mountainbiking in California
by Per Löwdin, tour started July 2004, submitted 21 February 2006
America: USA

In 2004 for we bet on biking in California, to search for some of the best singletrack, in places such as Annadel, Downieville, Truckee, Lake Tahoe and Monterey. Essentially, we did the same thing as the previous summer, when we cycled in Colorado, but in a different part of the United States.

See all 8 reports by Per Löwdin

Colorado Singletrack
by Per Löwdin, tour started July 2003, submitted 21 February 2006
America: USA

2003 we biked in Colorado. The idea was to ride the famous Colorado singletrack, biking between the places with singletrack, to see whether the Colorado singletrack is the best in the world. The question remains unanswered as we have zillions of miles of singletrack to try yet. However, one thing is clear, Colorado singletrack is fantastic. Colorado has some of the best trails in the world.

See all 8 reports by Per Löwdin

Cycling info pages

Explore California's Santa Ana River Trail - A Bicycling Adventure
by Nick Calif, , submitted 30 June 2009
America: USA

The Santa Ana River Trail spans over 120 miles through Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties in Southern California. The trail is one of the largest non-motorized social boulevards in the United States. It is utilized by school kids, workers, walkers, runners, bicyclists, horse riders, bird watchers and its parks and open spaces are social gathering places for kids, families and communities. It is a favorite bicycling route in California. The Santa Ana Rover Trail is paved with handicap accessibility. Along the Trail there are parking areas, picnic tables, restrooms and local restaurants.

Friends of the Santa Ana River Trail is a volunteer community group involved in trail safety education, eco-friendly preservation and recreational multi-use of the Santa Ana River Trail system. Also, known as the Santa Ana River Bikeway, Santa Ana Bicycle Path and SART. Our goal is to encourage a high quality, family oriented trail system that blends an attractive mix of recreational amenities, neighborhood green space, and local cultural heritage allowing people of all ages and abilities the pleasure of outdoor recreation in a fun and safe environment.

As Santa Ana River Trail advocates our community oriented goal has three main parts: 1) to enhance public safety of the Santa Ana River Trail through public education and volunteer community watch; 2) to encourage the socio-economic recreational use of the Santa Ana River Trail as a conduit for connecting local communities, neighborhoods, families, friends and workplaces together; and 3) to act as the Santa Ana River Trail Mediator resolving trail use disputes, complaints, and injury.

Bicycle Shop finder - over 6,000 locations nationwide
by MapMuse, submitted 1 June 2006
America: USA

Finds bicycle shops by state and city, and shows their locations on a map.

See all 2 reports by MapMuse

Organizations and clubs

Bicycle Club finder - over 2,000 locations nationwide
by MapMuse, submitted 1 June 2006
America: USA

Finds bicycle clubs by state and city, and shows their locations on a map.

See all 2 reports by MapMuse

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