Touring - suggestions for small tours starting in Philly

Hi everyone,
I searched through old posts and couldn't find anything regarding this, so apologies if I missed something and this was already covered.

I'm looking to tour cross-country this summer and want to do some small 3 or 4 day tours to get ready. I was thinking of doing a weekend tour from Philly to DC. Does anyone have any suggestions of good routes to take for this?

Also, if anyone has any suggestions for small tours starting in Philly, I'm all ears.
Thanks!

-Itty

Philly to DC?!?! Are you crazy?
Why not do the Delmarva penninsula?
Can you drive out of town an hour?? Or take Amtrak to Newark, Del?
There are lots of out of backroads and camping areas in state parks and state forests that are fabulous in the spring - just avoid the beaches.
I'd start below the Delaware and Chesapeake Canal since it has only a few bridges with heavy traffic. Also, once you get down to Virginia, the backroad options decrease - sometimes forcing you onto 4-lane US 13. But between Delaware City and Pocomoke City there are many great miles of riding.

Best - J

You could ride to Pittsburgh. Easy Amtrak ride back and lots of fun crossing the Laurel Mountains. I did it last summer (http://www.stubna.com/tour_de_pennsylvania/) (in the opposite direction) and mostly followed the BIKEPA routes, which are nice.

Hi everyone,
I searched through old posts and couldn't find anything regarding this, so apologies if I missed something and this was already covered.

I'm looking to tour cross-country this summer and want to do some small 3 or 4 day tours to get ready. I was thinking of doing a weekend tour from Philly to DC. Does anyone have any suggestions of good routes to take for this?

Also, if anyone has any suggestions for small tours starting in Philly, I'm all ears.
Thanks!

-Itty

Yes, great choice. Go down the Delmarva peninsula to Rehobath Beach MD, then over the bay bridge into Annapolis, and in to DC from there. The Maryland DOT used to always have a pick up truck at the bay bridge, and they would haul you and your bike over the span. Check your maps, the cycling out there is divine if you get the right roads. Hopefully some locals will help with current details, it's been a few years since I did that ride. Might need more than a weekend to do the whole ride to DC, not too sure.

I'm doing a tour this summer from Pittsburgh to Washington DC (ATA and C&O canal trails) and then north through York PA to Harrisburg,
If you can come up with a route west/ SW out of Philly to York PA you could get on the Heritige/ North Central Rail trail to just north of Baltimore then swing around west of Baltimore through Mt Airy through Rockville and then pickup the Rock Creek trail into Washington . I should have a route figured out through that area in a couple of weeks I will post it if you are interested.

Someone mentioned riding to Pittsburg and taking AMTRAK back. AMTRAK no longer allows bicycles on the trail from Philly to Pittsburgh, unless you go through Washington DC and connect with the Capitol Limited train I found that out 3 days ago when I called AMTRAK to plan my tour, I'm riding the "Dog " ( greyhound bus) instead

Someone mentioned riding to Pittsburg and taking AMTRAK back. AMTRAK no longer allows bicycles on the trail from Philly to Pittsburgh, unless you go through Washington DC and connect with the Capitol Limited train I found that out 3 days ago when I called AMTRAK to plan my tour

They may not allow you to carry on bicycles on the train anymore, but you can _always_ check your bike as checked baggage between any two stations that have checked baggage stops. Philly and Pittsburgh are both checked baggage stops. They charge you an extra $10 for the bike box, and you do have to do some disassembly to get it in the box . . . but not more than you'd have to do to put in on the "hound" anyway, right? :D

thanks for everyone's comments! they're all very helpful

i'm not crazy, maybe just naive. it does seem very difficult to get out of philadelphia on bike. sat_cycle didn't seem to have much trouble coming into philly using the bike PA routes though, right?

also septa regional rails allows people to bring bikes i think on weekday off peak trains and on weekends. there are restrictions to this according to the website. has anyone else done this before instead of amtrak? seems like it would be cheaper taking the R2 to newark

http://www.septa.org/service/bike_ride.html
http://www.septa.org/maps/click_map.html

They may not allow you to carry on bicycles on the train anymore, but you can _always_ check your bike as checked baggage between any two stations that have checked baggage stops. Philly and Pittsburgh are both checked baggage stops. They charge you an extra $10 for the bike box, and you do have to do some disassembly to get it in the box . . . but not more than you'd have to do to put in on the "hound" anyway, right? :D

I emailed AMTRAK this morning to complain (again) about bike service and how I could not get to Pittsburgh without a 20 hour wait BLAH BLAH BLAH.

In AMTRAK's reply the CS rep said I got the wrong info from the agent I spoke to few days ago when I asked if I could send my bike 2 days ahead to avoid a 20 hour layover in Cleveland or Washington. and was told no by the reservations agent. Customer service told me you can still send your bike to any station that accepts baggage regardless of the train you ride to get there.

However the CS rep said in her email that the 3 Rivers train from Philly to Pittsburgh is scheduled to be cancelled this spring unless the state of PA continues subsidy of the train. If 3 rivers is cancelled you would take train #157( no baggage car) from Philly to DC and then connect (2 hour layover) to the Capitol limited to Pittsburgh arriving around midnight.

I don't mind some extra hassle with the train, it is a much more pleasant traveling experince than a bus provided the train goes where I need to go.

However the CS rep said in her email that the 3 Rivers train from Philly to Pittsburgh is scheduled to be cancelled this spring unless the state of PA continues subsidy of the train. If 3 rivers is cancelled you would take train #157( no baggage car) from Philly to DC and then connect (2 hour layover) to the Capitol limited to Pittsburgh arriving around midnight.

I don't mind some extra hassle with the train, it is a much more pleasant traveling experince than a bus provided the train goes where I need to go.

Thanks for the info. That'll suck if they cancel the train . . . I agree that it is much more pleasant and not much more hassle than the bus.

Pittsburgh recently cut about 1/2 of the public transportation bus routes because of lack of money. The best thing IMO would be for the state/nation to raise the gas taxes, but that's sure not going to happen anytime soon

i'm not crazy, maybe just naive. it does seem very difficult to get out of philadelphia on bike. sat_cycle didn't seem to have much trouble coming into philly using the bike PA routes though, right?


I have a pretty high tolerance for riding on busy roads compared to most tourers I know. From what I remember though, there were plenty of road options for getting out of Philly (at least heading west). It wasn't bad at all cycling through Valley Forge, etc.

The Bike PA routes are excellent roads to cycle on IMO, but they can be tough to follow sometimes without a map, because all it takes is one missing sign and you missed the turn and are off the route. So, I would print or obtain the maps somehow if I was going to follow it again.

I agree that getting out of Philly is not too bad, especially to Valley Forge. And practicing some city riding is great prep for a cc trip. Philly to NYC is a great ride as well. That can take you through nice backroads of Philly and New Jersey, then you can take a train or bus back from NYC. Helps if you know someone in NYC to stay with at the end, though.

I hear that there is a nice bike path (good enough for road bikes) that goes from the art museum, through Fairmont Park, all the way to Valley Forge.

You could go the other direction and cross the Ben Franklin bridge to NJ and then head for the pine barrens and the shore. I road across the Ben Franklin bridge a few years ago - what a bridge! Once you're in Jersey head for the Cooper River park. That will get you through Camden pretty well.

If you want to come out to the Harrisburg area, my bike club is planning a "Heart of PA" mini tour (3-4 days) that goes Harrisburg - Hanover - Gettysburg – Harrisburg with camping at state parks. If your interested, I’ll send you the details after I get it mapped out. You could ride it with the club or take a solo trip any time.

If you want to come out to the Harrisburg area, my bike club is planning a "Heart of PA" mini tour (3-4 days) that goes Harrisburg - Hanover - Gettysburg – Harrisburg with camping at state parks. If your interested, I’ll send you the details after I get it mapped out. You could ride it with the club or take a solo trip any time.


Hey Mike
This summer I am taking a tour from Pittsburgh through Cumberland MD and Washington DC to Harrisburg. It looks like I now will be leaving my car in long term parking at the Harrisburg International airport and taking a train or bus to to Pitts.
I still need to figure out a route from York ( end of the Heritige railtrail) to the airport in Harrisburg. I don't mind traffic or hills. You can't avoid hills in PA but If I can avoid heavy traffic on roads without a good shoulder that would be great. do you have any suggestions?

Hey Mike
This summer I am taking a tour from Pittsburgh through Cumberland MD and Washington DC to Harrisburg. It looks like I now will be leaving my car in long term parking at the Harrisburg International airport and taking a train or bus to to Pitts.
I still need to figure out a route from York ( end of the Heritige railtrail) to the airport in Harrisburg. I don't mind traffic or hills. You can't avoid hills in PA but If I can avoid heavy traffic on roads without a good shoulder that would be great. do you have any suggestions?
Just yesterday I was given the name of a club member who really knows the area south of Harrisburg (I actually live about 30 miles north). Soon we’ll be working on a route from Harrisburg to Hanover which will go right past York. This route would start at center city, but I’ll ask him about a route from York the HIA.

I should have the details within a month or so. If you want, I could send you a map and directions when the routes are finalized.

When are you coming through?

I'll be riding back through York to Harrisburg probably August 7th (a sunday i think). If you guys come up with a route through Hanover I may well go that way instead of up the Heritige rail trail. After 5 days of the Montour,ATA, and C&O canal trails. I probaly will be wanting to get off the trail and do some road riding for a change .

I'll be riding back through York to Harrisburg probably August 7th (a sunday i think). If you guys come up with a route through Hanover I may well go that way instead of up the Heritige rail trail. After 5 days of the Montour,ATA, and C&O canal trails. I probaly will be wanting to get off the trail and do some road riding for a change . I sent you an email with more details.