Northeast - MD thru PA to NY to Berkshires

I'm planning a 5 or 6 day tour/ride from Olney MD up to the Berkshires in mid-May. I'm thinking of going almost straight north from Olney into PA and making my way up to PA Route 209 and taking that all the way to Port Jervis taking NY State Bike Route 17 across to Route 9 and up from there.

Any suggestions on an alternative route/s is greatly appreciated. And/or any info on my selected route thus far would be a help, too. Especially on Route 209 as to whether it's a good choice.

Here are PA's bike tour routes: http://www.dot.state.pa.us/BIKE/WEB/tour_routes.htm

For MD this is the closest route I can think of for the moment: http://bikewashington.org/routes/dc2thurmont/index.htm

Route 209 is something of a mixed bag as far as safety goes.

If you do select that route you must be very alert in the section running East out of Pottsville towards Tamaqua. Going East out of Pottsville there is a stretch of several miles where the road is rather narrow, lacking any shoulders. Rather windy and the locals fly on that section. Once out of that section there is a long stretch into Tamaqua with very wide shoulders.

To the West of Pottsville there is a long climb going up the side of a mountain with almost no shoulder and the road tilts towards the guard rails with a long drop off. So if pushed onto the narrow shoulder it is very rough broken up asphalt.

You might want to look at the route using something like Map Quest aerial views.

Route 209 is something of a mixed bag as far as safety goes.

If you do select that route you must be very alert in the section running East out of Pottsville towards Tamaqua. Going East out of Pottsville there is a stretch of several miles where the road is rather narrow, lacking any shoulders. Rather windy and the locals fly on that section. Once out of that section there is a long stretch into Tamaqua with very wide shoulders.

To the West of Pottsville there is a long climb going up the side of a mountain with almost no shoulder and the road tilts towards the guard rails with a long drop off. So if pushed onto the narrow shoulder it is very rough broken up asphalt.

You might want to look at the route using something like Map Quest aerial views.

That sounds like some pretty detailed local knowledge. :) Pottsville is my hometown -- do you live in the area?

I live in Reading. Once lived in Auburn.
Twice a month trips to Marlin Market.

When I saw the post about using Route 209 I thought about the section East of Pottsville. Bad enough with a car!

I live in Reading. Once lived in Auburn.
Twice a month trips to Marlin Market.

When I saw the post about using Route 209 I thought about the section East of Pottsville. Bad enough with a car!

Yeah, a lot of the area roads are, unfortunately! :) I've brought my bike with me a few times on trips to visit the family; I've ridden 209 from Port Carbon out to Tamaqua, and the other way into Saint Clair and up towards Locust Lake State Park. I would love to get out on some of those big, swoopy hills around the coal breakers :D but the combination of massive potholes, zero shoulder, and drivers who are *completely* unused to seeing cyclists gives me pause. (And I'm quite comfortable riding with traffic as a general rule; I'm a fairly regular bike-to-work commuter.) Maybe if I set out real early in the morning, when everyone is still sleeping off the hangovers . . .

Yeah, a lot of the area roads are, unfortunately! :) I've brought my bike with me a few times on trips to visit the family; I've ridden 209 from Port Carbon out to Tamaqua, and the other way into Saint Clair and up towards Locust Lake State Park. I would love to get out on some of those big, swoopy hills around the coal breakers :D but the combination of massive potholes, zero shoulder, and drivers who are *completely* unused to seeing cyclists gives me pause. (And I'm quite comfortable riding with traffic as a general rule; I'm a fairly regular bike-to-work commuter.) Maybe if I set out real early in the morning, when everyone is still sleeping off the hangovers . . .

You might want to consider some of the mountain roads around the Auburn area. Use something like MapQuest and look for Deer View Drive. Follow Bear Creek Street South out of Auburn and then where it connects with E. Deer View Drive. Then there are a few tough roads on the north side of Route 895 in that area. This Deer View drive sees only local traffic and the area is still mostly woods.

You might want to consider some of the mountain roads around the Auburn area. Use something like MapQuest and look for Deer View Drive. Follow Bear Creek Street South out of Auburn and then where it connects with E. Deer View Drive. Then there are a few tough roads on the north side of Route 895 in that area. This Deer View drive sees only local traffic and the area is still mostly woods.


Thank you so much for your detailed response- it was exactly what I was looking for. It's been years since I've ridden through that part of Pennsylvania and that sounds like what I remember- winding, rough roads, trucks and traffic that can be a bit unforgiving. I think I might go with some of the PA Bike routes instead of 209- it may mean more mileage but I prefer it over the dangerous stretches of 209 you described.

buzzman,

I have spent the better part of the morning trying to get the pdf map of bike route L off the PenDot website. With no luck.

One of the other posters gave a link to that web site.

It looked to me as if this bike route L would be the best bet. It comes up through Chester and Montgomery counties. I wanted to see what roads they use North of Allentown. Once North of Allentown you are in the mountains all the way up to the New York state line.

If you look at a topographic map of Eastern PA you see the way the mountains run. Roads that run across the mountains have some very long and steep climbs. And some awesome downhill runs. Roads that follow valleys are just sort of undulating.

My wife and I drive up to a nursery in Bradford County about every two years. We use Route 29 out of Nanticoke. That is a long uphill run into Susquehanna County.

buzzman,

I have spent the better part of the morning trying to get the pdf map of bike route L off the PenDot website. With no luck.

One of the other posters gave a link to that web site.

It looked to me as if this bike route L would be the best bet. It comes up through Chester and Montgomery counties. I wanted to see what roads they use North of Allentown. Once North of Allentown you are in the mountains all the way up to the New York state line.

If you look at a topographic map of Eastern PA you see the way the mountains run. Roads that run across the mountains have some very long and steep climbs. And some awesome downhill runs. Roads that follow valleys are just sort of undulating.

My wife and I drive up to a nursery in Bradford County about every two years. We use Route 29 out of Nanticoke. That is a long uphill run into Susquehanna County.

Thanks- I managed to download the pdf's and I'm definitely using them as the basis for my route planning. I remember going through PA after having ridden east to west across Canada and back west to east across the northern US to New England. Some of the hills I hit in eastern Pennsylvania were the toughest of the whole trip. I'd ridden the whole trip and never walked a hill. I thought one of the PA hills had me beat when I had to stop 1/2 way up it to catch my breath. When I got off the bike I slid back down the hill on my cleats! I don't know where I drew the reserves but I got back on the bike and muscled my way to the top. Unbeknownst to me a family was out on their porch and had watched the whole ordeal. When I summitted the hill they broke into wild applause.:p

buzzman,

Last night I was able to download all of the sections of the PA bike route L map.
You will like the section through the Oley Valley in Berks County. Mainly farms. Most of the farm buildings date back 150 years or more. The section around Boyertown up through Oley can be a bit hilly. I am off work today and want to take a look at the rest of that route.

I've biked to the berkshires from NJ, we rode up to New Paltz, crossing the Mid Hudson and rode north to Rhinebeck and east to Millerton into CT and then north from Salisbury CT into Great Barrington.

It's rolling hills as you go east across Dutchess/Columbia County and is really pretty in CT and MA from there.

Jay