Cassiel

I'm new to cycling very long distances. I commute every day to school, only about 20 mi round trip. This morning I went out and did a 30 mi loop, but much of it was in the city and I'd love to go out somewhere that doesn't have so much traffic, stoplights, crap in the bikelane, etc. I see cyclists out on country back roads from time to time, but I'm not sure how to determine which routes are best and safest or widely used by cyclists. I'm looking for much longer distances, up to 100 mi if possible. If anyone's from Portland, OR, this is the area I'm looking at. Resources?

Nashville Man

Check your LBS and ask them about rides or clubs in the area. Thats a good place to start.

VanceMac

Local club is, BY FAR, your best bet. In the meantime, check out bikely.com or routeslip.com, and search through the database of routes that have been entered in your area.

Machka 

I find my routes by riding ... I start by cycling down one road and taking a look at the side roads. If I see a side road I like the look of, I'll try it. If I don't like it after a little while, I turn around and go back and try the next one. In this way I've ridden most, or possibly all (they pave more every year), the paved roads in about a 100 km radius of where I live. I've found some really nice loops that way.

Another thing that helps is getting ahold of some fairly detailed maps. I've got land ordinance maps for this area which show me everything, right down to who owns the land ... but if you check a map or book store you should be able to pick up one that is more detailed than the average CAA map (although those are a great starting point too).

eippo1

See if you can find any cycling maps for your area. A lot of LBS's have them or can tell you where to get them. Great for planning first rides and then afterwards, just explore.

DataJunkie

1) I ride
2) Other BF members in the Denver area suggest routes
3) Routeslip or bikely
4) Other riders suggest them

Still, my favorite is #1 through exploring.

urbanknight

+1 on the local clubs. Most of my routes are adaptations from club rides that start about 5 miles from my home. Sometimes when I get bored I play around on routeslip.com or something to make prospective routes, but that sometimes ends up with me turning around because of private roads, rough pavement, or even incorrect maps.

If you live in an urban area (if you're actually in Portland) there are probably plenty of club routes you can find. Suburban areas are more friendly to just exploring at random.

edit: forgot to mention this. People share their routes all the time all over the world.
https://www.routeslip.com/discover/USA/OR/Portland
You can also look at Portlan, Porltand, and (my favorite) Potland since I'm assuming they're just typos.

ratebeer

1. Area maps of best rides (check the web)
2. Municipal maps of MUPs and bike lanes
3. Local road race routes
4. Bikely.com (.org? or .net?)
5. Local bike club
6. Random exploration
7. Local non-club bicycle organizations

buzzman

if you don't know how already then learn to read maps, good maps, cycling specific maps, lots and lots of maps throw one or two in a ziploc bag put it in your back pocket and ride.

SSIndyRider

Maps, plus driving. While driving through the area, I frequently find myself evaluating the roads for rideability on the bike. You might also keep your eyes open for "Dan Henrys". The circle with a line painted on the pavement, indicating straight ahead, left turn, right turn. If you're not familiar with them, they are markers for bike routes set by cyclists, usually a training or club ride. If they've been marked there, it's probably a good road to use.

HWS

+1 on routeslip. It's a great tool.

Machka 

On this topic ... I took a Geography course last year and was surprised how many people in the class couldn't read maps.

Cassiel

Thanks everybody - yeah, I read maps ok, but they don't always indicate much about rideability on the bike. When I first started commuting, I think I went about 3 months using the routes I'd have used while driving - not half as safe or as enjoyable as the ones I found by accident simply by following other cyclists going in the same direction as me. I had no idea about "Dan Henry's" - that's great. Thanks again for all the help.

Machka 

If they are paved, they are rideable. Of course some are nicer than others, but that's where exploring comes in.

And what you say there is exactly what many of us have done ... if you see some cyclists, just follow them and see where they go.

Machka 

And I just discovered a road I haven't ridden in this area!!

I'm creating routes for my brevets and was out checking them yesterday. I came across a road I wasn't expecting, but didn't check it out because I had to get home. I just had a look at my land ordinance maps, and sure enough it is paved!! Well ... I'm going to have to head out and ride that road!!