hi, i'll be in Manhattan for a few weeks starting this weekend. i'm planning on bringing my Bike Friday (or just finding a half decent beater in the city?) and i'm excited to ride around manhattan but also to do some longer, less trafficked rides outside the city. can anyone offer any recommendations for some longer (day trip to overnights) routes? and perhaps a way to get there, ie. train connections etc.

i'm also thinking of a short tour up the coast or the adirondack loop using the adventure cycling maps.

oh, and is there a generally agreed upon best lock(s) to buy?

thanks!

There are some cycling events during the time you are here that might pique your interest-- The Montauk Century is on May 16 (if that is within your "next few weeks" timeframe) and registration is still open: https://www.5bbc.org/montauk/

There is also the TD Bank NYC 5-Borough Bike Tour (which has a Century route I believe) on May 2, but unfortunately registration is closed for that.

Or if you'd like to ride on your own, you can always do the Hudson Greenway (west side of Manhattan), across the George Washington Bridge then up U.S. Route 9W to Piermont, which is a popular route among seasoned NYC-area cyclists.

Another 70+ mile round-trip ride is the Westchester South County then the North County trail, which will bring you all the way to Lake Glenida in Putnam County. https://www.westchestergov.com/parks/trailways.htm

Or you can take a Metro-North Commuter Railroad train from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan 70 miles north to Wassaic to ride the Harlem Valley Rail Trail (10 miles southern trail section, 8 miles on Route 22, then another 2 miles on the northern trail section to Copake Falls. Round trip 40 miles). Very scenic ride, that one. https://www.hvrt.org/ (Note: To do this, you need to buy an MNRR bike pass for $5 at Grand Central to bring a bike onto a Metro-North train.)

Lots of good riding to be had in the NYC area!

Take a look at the nycc ride library here: https://www.nycc.org/rl_db/home.aspx

awesome! thanks!

The 5BBT does not have a century option. 42 miles, or shorter if you bail, and that's it. Otherwise those are all pretty good suggestions. As an option, cross the GWB and loop around to what we all call River Road, but is officially Henry Hudson Parkway. This is a lightly trafficked road right along the river on the NJ side of the bridge. There are 2 decent climbs too, one in the middle, and then the final climb out at the north end.

River road is still blocked up with trees down from the storm a couple of months ago from all reports I've seen. I think the park said they were trying to get it cleaned up by May 1st, but we'll see if that actually happens.

cool. thanks!

If you're still here on 5/7, there's a nice "midnight ride" organized by Times Up... starts at Columbus Circle at 10:00 PM and makes a circuit around Central Park. The really cool thing is the ride is mostly on normally pedestrian pathways.

The Peconic Bay and Hamptons area of Long Island has some decent riding until the tourists hit the beaches.

Here's a nice ride in the Lakes Region of the Adirondacks

Gordon Harris
www.bikenewengland.com

You can check out Kissena in queens or ride out to Coney Island. if you have an iphone there is a free app called spokes NYC that is better than the google maps cycling thing.

Also, for a day trip you can take NJ transit/Septa to Philly for like $15. Philly isn't the best place in the world to ride but its a pretty cool city to check out if you're here for a while.

Check out the North& South County bikeways in Westchester. Take the #6 train to Pelham Parkway and ride the paths out to Orchard Beach/City Island. From Pelham Pkway you can also take the Bronx Park paths to Van Cortland Park via Moshulu Pkway or ride along the paths of the Bx River Parkway to e 233rd St and then connect to the Bronx River trail to the Kensico Dam. Look at Traillinks.com for routes in NY.

Greetings from Oregon! I came across this thread just as I was about to post the same question as the OP. I will be in NYC for a week in mid-May and will have lots of time during the day when my daughter in Brooklyn is at work. Would appreciate any tips on safe bike routes and maps for easy rides (under ~40 miles R/T) and also decent bike rental options. Thanks.

You can get a free NYC bike map from any bike shop in the city. Check nyc.gov to get one by mail or download one. The map shows bike shops around the city and gives contact info for them. Many shops will rent a bike so give them a call to check their rates and get more info. Transportation Alternatives also lists bike shops, many that rent bikes if you can't wait to get the map. Their list isn't all inclusive since it just lists shops that give TA members a discount.

I usually ride to train in Central Park early mornings or late at night...this morning (Friday), I got out later than usual (9:00AM), and noticed that traffic patterns had changed (They were allowing cars onto Harlem Hill)...thye must open that up after 9 AM ?

Anyway, I am 1/2 way around my lap (I start at 90th and East Drive) and after the 3rd roller on the west side, I am starting the downhill section around Shakespeare Theater when I see the Park Rangers in the middle of the road with their hands up...I see them kind of late (I am going 30 MPH) and slam on my breaks...i skid to a stop and they guy tries to give me a ticket for running a red light??? after some back and forth, I explain that I stopped before the red light where he was standing...

they let me off with a warning, but this as the first time I had seen this...they said they are out weekday AM's around 9-10...good to know!

strange

The link is traillink.com