Northeast - NYC Ride questions.

Hi,

I moved to Manhattan about 11 months ago and bought a bike this summer to see more of the city than I could on foot. Somewhere along the way I started to want to get some exercise too. So I am looking for new places to ride.

Normally, I ride the Hudson River Greenway from the bottom of Manhattan to the GWB and back until I don't feel like riding anymore. Or I do some surface ride toward the park and do laps until I am tired. I have tried the East River Greenway a little but it didn't take long to decide I didn't like the poor condition or cobblestone park-type of trail on that side of the city. I have also ventured over the Brooklyn or Manhattan bridges into Brooklyn a couple times, but as spur of the moment trips, I didn't know how to get anywhere on the other side.

So I am looking for advice on a couple things (besides any creative rides I haven't even considered). It sounds like you can cross the GWB and ride in NJ on Rt.9W??? How do you actually get on the GWB?? And once across the river, what should I ride on? Obviously, scenic and protected is better than not. 9W sounded like a nice ride from some of the posts in here (if I am speaking about the correct route).

Also, I want to go out to Coney Island (I think!?). I surfed a lot in Rockaway when I live in NJ, so I drove the belt a lot. It looks like it would be a nice bike ride along the water there. But without a map, I've only gotten as far as the end of Henry St, where it butts up against the BQE or some other highway. Any advice on Brooklyn or Coney Island? I figure I can try to come up with a route on a map, but maybe there is a smart way to get there (or not at all??).

Is there anything worth seeing on the Greenway once you get past the GWB? I rode up the hill once and made the first few turns but it seemed to be pretty sketchy in the woods there so I retreated.

Any other ideas? Incidentally, I looked at the GWB entrance on Google maps and it looks like a tangle of entry points, but none that showed the bike access.

Thanks. Andy

GW bridge:

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/images/bicyclists/gwashington.gif

other than that, there's the search function and the sticky at the top of the regional forum

Look at the map here: GWB Entrance (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&q=W+175th+St,+New+York&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=36.505383,79.013672&ie=UTF8&cd=2&geocode=FeBNbwIdYQmY-w&split=0&ll=40.848696,-73.941333&spn=0.00213,0.004823&t=h&z=18)

The entrance is at 178th & Cabrini, but you have to approach it from Ft. Washington Ave and 177th. It is up against the ramp with the single car on it. Once in NJ, there is also what we call River Road, but is actually called something else, that runs along the river from just south of the bridge to Alpine, NJ. There is a good climb at the end up to Alpine.

For Coney Island, take the Manhattan Bridge, on the bike path side from Canal & Chrystie, and take the brand spanking new separated bike lane to Navy St. Go right on Navy,also a bike lane, to Myrtle, go left on Myrtle in the bike lane to Vanderbuilt Ave. Take Vanderbilt all the way to Prospect Park. Don't go through Grand Army Plaza, but take Plaza St just before it to get from Vanderbilt to the park. Go into the park, exit at Coney Island avenue at the bottom of the hill. Take CIA to left Caton Ave, Right on Rugby Road, right onto Beverley left onto Ocean Parkway bikeway all the way to Coney Island. Rugby Road goes through the prettiest neighborhood in the entire city.

Here, this website is very helpful for me. It gives you a bike route to your location. http://bikingrules.org/ridethecity. Just plug in the addresses and all you have to do is bike!

Get a free hard copy NYC Bike Map at your LBS which shows the approach for all major NYC bridges. You can also try Map My Ride online.
http://nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bicyclists/bikemaps.shtml

Lots of good ways to get to Coney Island. I just tried the "Williamsburg Bridge ->Franklin Avenue-> Eastern Parkway-> Bedford Avenue -> Sheepshead Bay ->Neptune Avenue-> Coney Island" route last week.

Also if you can ride along 5th Avenue without poking your eyes out (as one poster described it) the Shore Parkway Bike Path that runs from Owls Head Park, under the Verrazano, to Bensonhurst Park and then along the bikeway connector to 17th Street and then over a small bridge, is a nice scenic route to Coney Island.

Everyone has a favorite route to Coney Island. Here's mine:

Henry St., Left on Baltic, tiny R on Court St, L to continue on Baltic, R on 3rd Avenue for a long stretch.

Then: L on 14th St, steep little climb here. R on 5th Avenue for a pretty nice stretch, alongside the "park" on the left. Right on 36th St, downhill towards the river.

Left on 2nd Ave, a gem, little traffic. Good stretch.
R on 67 St takes you to Owl's Head Park. Go southwest to get on the Verrazano bike path. Ride all the way down to Toys R Us and the Wendy's with the walk-up window.

Finally: Bay Parkway (time it to avoid traffic, a few blocks), R on Cropsey, L immediately on Bay 31, R on Bath Avenue to the limit, R on Stillwell takes you to the heart of Coney Island. Then ride back thru the middle of the borough including Prospect Park, or take the train.

New York Cycle Club ride library - nycc.org

Here's the old library - plenty of rides in this area (but get a map, too, as other have suggested):

http://cs.nyu.edu/cs/faculty/goldberg/NYCC/ride_library/

Also look at the weekly ride listings for some of the local clubs like the NYCC or the 5BBC. You don't need to be a member to join the rides though you might consider joining afterwards.

Thanks for all the great info! I am going to get a nice big ride map and mark up some of these things. Should be great to have something new to look at along the way!!