Touring - Suggest ~4-6d ride from NYC?

Hi there.

I'm going to have about 4-6 days in early summer to tour. I'd be leaving from NYC and will probably be able to do 70-100miles/day. I'm toying with going north and then across Mass or going on toward VT/Canada-ish. Anyone have recommendations for this? I don't mind hills, but I do like shoulders at the least along with fresh air. I'd be camping out w/me hammock.

Thanks for any help!

Try the Adventure Cycling maps for the East Coast route.

Getting out of NYC with a fully loaded bike ought to be LOTS of fun. You'd better hope the south walkway of the GWB is open when you go. :D

Are you used to touring? 70-100 miles a day is pretty ambitious.

Thanks for the idea. I was thinking about riding the subway out of the city...I'll be starting in Bklyn and don't have a strong need to tour in the boros. I went down part of the Pacific Coast in California last summer and was able to do 70-100 miles a day. I haven't looked into the terrain of upstate NY or Western MA much though. Any sharing of experience here would be helpful.

Thank you!

You'd have to work out the exact routes, but here's a plan that in general would work:

Day 1: from Flushing, Main Street (Queens, end of No. 7 train) to Orient Point on the North Fork of Long Island.

Day 2: Ferry to New London, CT; Proceed north to around Amherst, MA

Day 3: Due West to Hudson, NY

Day 4: Rhinebeck or New Paltz area loop ride

Day 5: Either cross Hudson River at Rip Van Winkle Bridge, and ride 9W south to George Washington Bridge and then cross back into New York; or

Follow 9G south to Beacon Bridge, then cross, then 9W south; or

9G South to Cold Spring, NY, then over to Carmel, NY, then follow "North County Trailway," "South County Trailway," Riverdale Avenue, Henry Hudson Bridge back to upper manhattan.

Last leg could easily be two days.

You could try going the other way. Instead of going west/north, go east. Ride out to islip, then either take the port jeff ferry to CT, and ride north to the MA line, or ride farther east, out to montauk/orient point. You could take the orient point ferry to new london, ride to mystic, or go to ledyard, try your luck at foxwoods/mohegan, then either ride back to the port jeff ferry, or retrace your route. Except for the extreme north part of the island, the terrain is pretty easy. CT is tougher, more hills, and NW CT is probably the toughest riding terrainwise.

edit: Dang, someone already beat me to it. Anyway, I think that might be a better route--much less city riding.

That's a great idea for a route Alan, I'll have to try that soon.

You could always ride up the hudson to Burlington and then head up to Montreal. Its a nice ride, I did it this summer. It shouldn't be too hard to bus it back.

I rode from Springfield MA to NYC via backroads and rail trails. You want my cue sheets send me a note.
Check out Rubels bike maps for MA and Conn. has a free state map. NYC published a free bike map that can be found at most shops or try NYC Transportation Alternatives

Ed