Rt 7 In Vermont
 

I will be cycling Vermont, South to North. I will be coming up rt 30, and will hit rt 7 in the manchester area. Can I stay on rt 7 all the way to burlington VT? I know it is a rural 2 lane for a long time, but heard that there might be some more expressway like areas, even so, could I still ride on Rt. 7 all the way up? Anybody done other similar routes going S-N on the west side of Vermont State?

I've done the ride from say Whitehall, NY to Quebec via the Hero islands, staying mostly by Lake champlain...

Check out lake Champlain Bikeways, they have a route on their website along Lake Champlain. You'll have to check out the areas around Manchester and from memory, I think Rt 7 down in southern VT is a divided highway. I've hiked Equinox and took Rt 7 from Bennington to Manchester and I think it's a divided highway, big shoulder but I would think there would be nicer places to cycle than Rt 7. I know places near Pittsfield, MA, Rt 7 is a nightmare, 2 lands each way, with no shoulder.

Jay

I would take 30 straight through manchester and continue north on 22a. It parallels 7 but is a much more scenic route in my opinion. Still, there is fast traffic on these roads.

from Vergennes north to Burlington I don't have any experience with

The first 10-15 miles past Manchester would be the worst part, cycling through the Dairy Farms (the liquid fertilizer is tough to get used to;))

I have driven Rt. 7 many times. It is rideable but the others are right, the traffic is very fast. I grew up in Burlington and I drive up Rt. 7 every year when I go up for vacation. Make sure your are very visible and good luck.

Whatever you do stay off 22A. Think of it as a two lane Interstate with no shoulders. Everybody (including me) drives over the posted limit. The police have had a bit more presence the last few years so, the speeding is not a bad as a few years ago but still not a good place for a bike. Route 7 has two lanes but shoulders for most of it's length. If you start in Manchester, the four lane portion will be south of your start point.

If time is not pressing, IMO the best option would to stay on 7 till Brandon and then head over to Lake Champlain. The Green Moutain Bike Club has some routes posted on the website that go down in that direction. Do a connect the back country roads from Brandon to one of our routes. Would be the most scenic and much less hectic. Hope that helps.

If you decide to go route 7 all the way, I'll pray for you. It's the main thoroughfare that 90% of travelers use to go north/south. There are a lot of places with little or no shoulders. I've ridden one section once and swore never again. People whizzing by at 50 to 60 mph 2 feet from you is nerve wracking and dangerous. Years ago there were bumper stickers made up "Pray for us, we drive route 7". That was for cage drivers.!

wow I don't think RT 7 is that bad! Then again I live in NJ now :)

Maybe I'm jaded living here. Went to LBI one year and was amazed Jersey drivers think 80 mph 5 feet from my back bumper is normal. Every time I tried to leave a safe distance from the car in front, 3 cars would fill it in. I don't mind fast but I do like a little reaction time:) The problem with RT 7 is that there are a lot of curves and hills with limited visibility and that combined with limited shoulders on much of the road can be nervewracking. 2 cars coming at each other in those spots leave no room for them to move over or to react and slow down. Having a truck mirror come by at 60 mph a foot away may be thrilling to you city people but scares the crap outta me. I drive it quite a bit from Rutland to Burlington and and see few bikes since there are longer but much safer ways to go

There are other routes to get north. Rt 100 is good. It'll get you up to Waterbury and then you can take other small roads. Be safe and enjoy the trip.