moonwalker

Hi everyone and Happy New Year.

Been a member a while but seldom post. I will be turning 50 this year and am looking for a "multilday" tour for my wife and I. I do have some things to consider before we choose a tour.
A It will need to be in June or July.
B. We will have to drive to get there and we live near Houston Texas
c. We will need drive time to get there, ride and return. Does not matter if it is an "organized" ride or a route that we could follow at our own pace. We would like something where it is cooler than our 100 degree heat and humidity in the summer months.
D. Because we are driving, i guess a out and back but would prefer a loop so we do not see the same scenery. Flat to rolling is good for us as the only hills we have are overpasses here!!

We have ridden the MS150 from Houston to Austin on the tandem a few times. As far as overnight we can camp, hotel, bed and breakfast. We have never done any touring like this so we would appreciate any and alot of advice.

Thanks

bikex10

I highly recommend Bike Across Kansas, June 4 through June 11. A very well run ride that average's about 65 to 70 miles per day. Have rode it the past 3 years and is always a highlight of the year. Begins on the Colorado border and ends at the Missouri border. Limited to 800 riders. Sleep in school gym's, camp, or motel's if the small overnight towns have any. Always takes the back roads to lets you see what rural Kansas is really like. One of the best run state rides you will find.

tandem rider

Search for the National Tour Directors web site. It lists multi-day tours in the country and links to web site that have ride information. This summer my wife and I are riding GOBA in west central Ohio. We do one or two week long rides each year and enjoy the riding, socializing, and seeing different parts of the country. I agree about the heat, particularly on a camping ride.

DrMarkR

Freewheel (across Oklahoma) ride is fun, as most cross-state events are. Typically second week of June? I haven't done it for many years, but the support should've only gotten better.

WebsterBikeMan

Take a look at the Adventure Cycling Association site, and CrazyGuyOnABike.

Carbonfiberboy 

Big difference between credit card touring/sagged group touring and unsupported camping touring. If you're thinking unsupported, it's time to get out the spreadsheet and start listing and weighing stuff. It took us months of research before our first unsupported camping tour. Not as big a deal with a credit card, but still worthy of a lot of thought.

WebsterBikeMan

+1.

Given that a) it's your first, and b) you list hotel and B&B, I would recommend putting together an itinerary that doesn't require camping or cooking. This makes for a tremendous difference in how much you need to carry. In that category ACA has several supported tours within your time window that may be within range.

Our first multi-day tour was unsupported, but credit-card. This requires more homework - reservations recommended, since you don't have a tent along to fall back on - but can be substantially cheaper than a fully supported ride.

BreakingWind

If you can come to Colorado, check out Ride the Rockies www.ridetherockies.com. Registration is first part of February. Wife and I are 55 and have ridden it five times on tandem.

lovemachine

The Katy trail in Missouri is 225 miles of car free goodness. Its flat hard packed limestone. My wife and I did it twice this year once carrying all the gear on single bikes and a second time with a credit card on the tandem. You get bed and breakfast, wineries, breweries, great dining and scenery. Check out their website https://www.bikekatytrail.com/ it list mileage and all services.

Craig

professorbob

If you have time to drive there, the Route Verte in Quebec. It is a system of trail and bike routes that cover the entire province. The good thing about Quebec is that you're always close to civilization and never have to worry about finding food, water, or lodging/camping. Temps can get hot, but will be cooler than Texas! Oh yes, and it's darned beautiful, too. There is a book called "Cycling Quebec", put out by Velo Quebec Association. Has good maps and all the info you'd need. Caveat... don't assume everyone in Quebec speaks English.

Three places I'd like to try are the Katy Trail, the Natchez Trace, and the Trail(s) from Pittsburgh to DC.

Philly Tandem

+1 for the C&O and GAP trails from Washington, D.C. to Pittsburgh. Not very drivable from Texas, but it really isn't that big of a deal to fly in and do the ride. Either take your bike on the plane or ship it to your start point and then home again. AMTRAK has good prices on shipping tandems. ~$120 each way. Ship it to Washington to start, and then home from PGH. Nice.

Monoborracho

Get up early and head west on I-10. Spend the night in Balmorhea SP. Get there early enough to go swimming in the pool. Arrange to leave your car. Get up and head south to Fort Davis. Spend the night at Indian Lodge. Take a day trip to to McDonald Observatory and back. Bring your climbing legs. Next day head out toward McD O but make a 70+ mile loop to the west, south and back to Ft. Davis. Bring your own water, there's no support. You can then do a Marfa-Alpine-Ft. Davis loop. Go to Marathon then backtrack to Marfa. Spend the night at the Gage hotel. Or extend into Big Bend and back.

June weather is fickle. The climate is dry, and the altitude is high. It can be very cool (think jackets) in the morning and mild in the afternoon, or it can be hot.

But for what it's worth a few years ago I did the Touring Ride in Rural Indiana the first week in June. The temp had not been over 90 a single day in CenTX before I ventured to Indiana. It was 102 the first day of the ride. Go figure.