Virginia/Maryland/NC touring
 

Hello folks,

Okay, I dunno if you consider VA-MD-NC northeast or southeast, but, what the heck ;)

I am looking for some route recommandations for a week of touring in mid-november. The point is: I don't have much time to go far, and I want to do it on the cheap. As I start from Qc City (where the weather is usually the crappiest by that time of year), I was thinking about going a little south. Looks like Amtrak tickets are not so pricey (around 300$CAN to go from Mtl to Richmond and back), so I thought about it.

Anyway, do you have any advice about cool routes that I could do around those places or not too far away? I don't want to travel for 3 days to get there, then bike for 4 and get back. Let's say I will have around 6 days of touring. I was thinking about a tour of Cheasapeake bay, but don't know if the roads are very bike friendly there, so I'm asking if you have routes to propose, I'll be glad to hear about it!

I know, november is mostly crappy weather anywhere, but I do prefer to bike in 10C rainy weather than in freezing rain/hail/snow around 0C... So, any suggestions?

Thanks! :thumb:

MD in bf-land is in the Northeast; VA and NC are SE. DC and Northern VA is both (go figure). BF doesn't know of "Mid Atlantic" I guess. November weather can be nice or iffy around here (DC area has had nice fall to blizzards in the time I've lived here), although it won't be close to full winter yet. I would check the Richmond area bike clubs for info and suggestions. There is a bike route under development between Richmond and the Williamsburg/Yorktown area. Mapmyride.com probably has routes you can search for.

From the DC area, the C&O Canal towpath offers up to 184 miles of riding to Cumberland MD, and you can continue north almost to Pittsburgh on the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) trail. Route is packed dirt or gravel double-track, so you'll want something more than a road bike. Lots of information on the C&O and GAP yahoo groups. The Park Service starts shutting off the water pumps at the C&O hiker/biker campsites in November, so that could be a bit late in the season. October would be better in my opinion.

There are also numerous paved trails in the DC area. They are used year round, so the only problem would be an early season snowstorm. Which hasn't happened in recent years. check bikewashington.org and bikepptc.org for ideas.

If you like hills, Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Hwy down into NC are lovely, but November may be too late I think - winter comes sooner in the mountains.

Maryland Eastern Shore roads can be quite nice (Kent County MD, for example). Your risk is encountering early winter storms. The Baltimore and Annapolis bike clubs can probably comment on weather conditions.

I would re-post in the SE forum.

I like the Skyline Drive/Blue Ridge Parkway idea. There is some weather risk in mountains, where it's 5-10 degrees colder than flatland. But if you don't mind lots of hills, it's a beautiful route and there should be little traffic. I've ridden parts in the summer on weekdays and even then it's not too crowded.

There is a bicycling Route 76 (for the year 1776) that goes from near Richmond to the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was more trafficky than I liked, but it is OK.

You could get in a lot of days riding around the D.C. area. It's rare when you can't ride there in Nov. in recent years.

Hey F-C: I believe you gave me some recent Quebec/Mtl beta. In mid-Nov you run the risk of bad weather especially in the mnts of MD/VA?NC. At this time of year I think riding the Eastern shore near the Chesapeake would be your best option. There will still be some fall colors there. The mnts will have almost no leaves at that time. I enclosed 3 links for Delaware map(free) and Delmarva(this is the eastern shore of Maryland, Delaware and Virginia) map(5.00) and an info site for eco tourism.
delaware: http://www.deldot.gov/public.ejs?com...blicMapRequest
delmarva map: http://tinyurl.com/b4g63
delmarva eco tourism site: http://delmarvalite.org/
Keep in mind that once on the Delmarva eastern shore it is not easy to get to SE Virginia and NE North Carolina. There is a long bridge/tunnel that bikes are not allowed onto. There are ferries but am uncertain where to find them.

The central part of the Eastern shore has excellent flat cycling mostly free from traffic. This is especially true if you stay away from the coastline. Many campgrounds but check to see if they are open all year.
Some places to see:
Assateague(MD), Chincoteague(VA), Cape Henlopen(DE); these are all protected seashores free of development. If you can get over the bay and into SE Virginia and NE North Carolina be sure to check out the Great Dismal Swamp and Merchants Mill Pond. Beautiful cypress swamps especially in November(often it's peak color season). You can rent canoes and camp at MMP not certain about GDS. Some wonderful beaches in this area.
Start planning and hit me up with any questions. Post up when you are riding in this forum under "where are the MD people". Some eastern shore riders there and they can fill you in with more details. Some folks may wantto ride with you as well. Best Charlie
PS you have a great country.

Hi from Richmond, VA (hi balto charlie! Used to be velogirl.)

The Richmond bike club is www.raba.org. They are 600 strong and someone ought to have some good suggestions.

As previously stated, the mountains will be tricky weather-wise in November. The Chesapeake Bay is likely to have rain, but not snow. There is very good flat riding in southeastern Virginia north of Norfolk. In and around Norfolk has really bad traffic, but there are folks who ride there. I am not one of them.

I like the Northern Neck/Middle Peninsula of Virginia--east and a little north of Richmond and the "western shore" of the Chesapeake Bay (but no one calls the western shore). The thing you have to be aware of are the bridges (and there are lots of them), as most of them are not safe for bicycles at all. As you plan your trip, if you have specific questions, feel free to send me a PM and perhaps I'll be able to help you with routes.

I've always wanted to try one of these
http://www.thirdwave-websites.com/bi...e-bay-tour.cfm

Very cool. I've done a bit of the Lower tour on the Virginia side. There might be some ferry options that allow bikes.

Hey Velo: Been a long time. How goes the Richmond? Have you been up to DC this summer? Life here has been good. I'm still commuting, still got my train. Take care, Charlie

Thanks for the hints everyone, I'll take a look at that when I'll have time, but thanks for the advices :o)

I rode Skyline Drive in early Nov. and it was fine. Two years ago I did the C&O canal in Nov. and it was also fine (mid 60's). I don't think the weather will be a problem for you. I would take the train to Charlottesville VA and you can ride south on the Blue Ridge Parkway and north on Skyline Drive.

Charlottesville is a very cool town and would be a great hub for riding that region.