indyfabz

There is a way to sneak out of Lambertville that's not that bad. Just south the entrance for U.S. 202 is Alexaucken Ck. Rd. It's gently rolling (and very pretty). Take that to the T, make a right onto Queen and then a quick left on Bowne Station. This is a climb, but it only gets steep for a short period near the top. After crossing under the RR bridge, make a right on Garboski. This is another climb, but again it's not steep. Then you roll along, make a right to cross the RR tracks on Boss and take that to SR 179 in Ringoes, right near the deli.

In this case, however, it would be out of the way. It's a better option if you are heading northeast towards somewhere like Neshanic Station or Raritan/Somerville. It's how we start off our ride to Brooklyn. I also use this way on a ride out to Oldwick. There is usually zero traffic until you get to SR 179.

rhm

Oh, okay, then. We can have some fun with this.

Remind me why you want to go through Lambertville! It is a cute little city, a fun place to visit, with some excellent restaurants &c but when I'm out riding in that area, I don't usually go through Lambertville.

What other places are you hoping to include in your route?

chipg5

I'm coming down along the Delaware River from Port Jervis, and Lambertville seemed like a logical place to cut over to the Longest Day Route near Princeton, before hitting the whole Trenton area. But again I don't know those areas as all. No strong feelings about places I go through, just would prefer not riding on high-traffic roads -- I've done it and it's not a lot of fun.

rhm

Okay! So you don't mind hills, but dislike traffic. With that in mind, this is the route I'd take from Califon to New Gretna, all of which I've ridden and would ride again.

I have not ridden far north of Califon, nor south of New Gretna, so I'll let others advise on that portion. This route avoids the river entirely. If you've never seen the Delaware, you should definitely take a route that follows the river for a while. But be warned: the parts I know (Riegelsville to Trenton) are some busy roads. It is rather scenic (the river is beautiful, but you can't always see it), and the busy roads can be avoided by taking the canal towpath first on the PA side and later on the NJ side, but the towpath surface varies from really nice to really nasty. The nice parts are lovely riding, but the nasty parts are not rideable at all.

indyfabz

I think the plan you described above to get to the Longest Day route is fine, at least up to L'Ville.

I don't understand this business about traffic south of Reigelsville. Maybe he's confusing it with the PA town of the same name that is across the river. (BTW...The bridge between the tow Reigelsvilles was designed by Robeling of Brooklyn Bridge fame.) There is traffic on the PA side. I ride south from Carpentersville, which is north of Reigelsville, several times a year. Between there and Milford I maybe see a half dozen to ten cars tops. The short section (about 3 miles) from Milford to Frenchtown can have some traffic depending on the day and time, but I wouldn't call it heavy, and there is a shoulder. Rte. 29 south of Frenchtown can vary, but the shoulder is huge. On weekends it's common to see dozens of cyclsist on that road. They actually hold time trial races on that road when it's open to traffic. And you can take the path if you want. (I recommend it south of Stockton as 29 loses its shoulder.) I have done it on 23c tires.

North of Carpentersville, the only section with any heavy traffic is through Phillipsburg. When I came down from Port Jervis back in May I maybe saw 4 cars between Belvidere and P'burg. Between DWG and Belvidere there was also very little traffic. This was on a Saturday in May.

I rode 611 between Portland, PA and DWG back in October on a Friday around 4 p.m. Even that wasn't busy then. The heavier traffic in that area is on U.S. 46 on the NJ side of the river. Stay off that. In addition to the heavier traffic, the shoulder is in bad shape.

rhm

Good to know! Yes, the Riegelsville I refer to, that's in PA. I thought the NJ town on the other side of the river has a different name? No matter. I'll check out the road south of there, that sounds nice.

chipg5

Thanks for all the info!

So combining suggestions from rhm and indyfabz, I ride to Lambertville along the river then cut over via indyfabz's suggestion to get out of L'ville, then hook up with rhm's Califon to New Gretna Route, which then hooks up with the Longest Day Ride route at intersection of Edinburg Rd and New Village Rd in West Windsor. Here's what I've got for this section:

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/1999799

chipg5

checking out routes now, I may stay on the Califon-NewGretna route all the way down to Chatsworth Rd. rhm are all of those roads on that route paved (not sand)?

rhm

The route I gave you is all paved. No sand. There is one section (Mount Misery Road) with poor pavement. It is a very narrow road through the pine woods, with a pretty bad surface in some places. But I wouldn't miss it; it is really a beautiful road.

Looking at the route above... no. I'm sure Alexauken Creek Road is very nice, but since it starts at the northern end of Lambertville you would not actually see Lambertville if you go that route. That's kinda too bad; it's a very cute little city. But then from Ringoes to Pennington you're on nasty busy roads all the way to Pennington. You can do much better. Sticking with Alexauken Creek Road for now, I'd go through Mt Airy and Harbourton. Let's see if this link works:
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/2000182
This includes one road that is, at the moment, closed. They're putting in a new bridge on Titus Mill Road. Should be done by summer.

chipg5

Thanks rhm, this looks great.

chipg5

okay, cobbled together all the suggestions and have come up with this for the Port Jervis to Cape May leg of my trip: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/2027370

249 miles, 9000 ft of ascent, not bad at all. Add to that the 170 miles from my house to Pt Jervis (incl. 12200 ft of ascent); and then from Lewes DE to the tip of the Virginia Eastern Shore (Bay Bridge-Tunnel entrance), about 155 miles and 1200 ft ascent, the total comes to about 575 miles and 22,400 ft of climbing. Probably aim to do it in 6-7 days, just have to hope for nice weather.

Thanks guys for all the help on this!

indyfabz

Same name. The NJ side has a few houses and a really divey road house. That's about it. The NJ side from Carpentersville on down is on a really cool road that parallels the old Bel-Del railroad. Watch out for a couple of the RR crossings. They are at angles. Not long after Carpentersville, at an S curve that is slightly down hill, there is a small fish hatchery on the right. I often see Great Blue Herrons there. At some pioint, if you look up and to the left, there are some historic kilns. As you close in on Milford, the road narrows to almost one lane due to rock outcroppings

OP: Be careful on SR 47. Traffic can be heavy during the summer months depending on day and time. If there is a vehicle waiting to make a left turn across traffic other motorists sometimes like to to sneak past on the shoulder.

chipg5

I was wondering about that, and also thinking about taking alternate side roads once I hit near Cape May, do you know those streets/roads at all indyfabz? How about this as an alternate to 47: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/2037832

indyfabz

Haven't ridden on those particualr road,s but I can't imagine they would be a less desirable ption. You would still have a ways on SR 47. The shoulder is plenty wide. The worst traffic times in that direction are likely Fridays and Saturdays in the summer when people head to the shore points. Mostly Wildwood. You also might have greenhead flies to contend with depending on the time of year. Years ago I flatted on 47 south of where CR 610 ends and got bothered by the buggers. They are fast enough to mess with you even when you are moving, and their bites can hurt.

jfmezei

I am from Montreal but have ridden across NJ 3 times now. I start from the Belford Ferry so my initial track is different.

I end up at Lakehurst, then the 70 for a short bit to Manchester where I turn left through the small town and get on Passadena road (which turns into Savoy) . This begins the long "dry" stretch with limited services. I believe the Lakehurst 7-11 on highway 70 is the last spot to refill on water/drinks. (Don't recall seeing convenience store in Manchester).

There is Micks Place at N39.69858 W74.52679 on the 563 which has drinks , canoe/kayak location at https://www.mickscanoerental.com/

There is also a bar just to the south which will sell soft drinks/water. at N39.6159, -W74.5814 at a corner wher 563 turns.

The road is good and quiet. Burt on a hot day, it is very dry and hot. Do not expect cell phone coverage on that stretch.

At and south of Egg Harbour City, services are more plentiful, so dehydration is less of a problem.

At Egg Harbour traffic picks up on the 50 but not that bad.
There is a bike shop at Tuckahoe/Corbin City
At Tuckahoe, you turn right onto a small road to Dennisville.
At Denisville, you get onto the 47.
It is a busy road, but with good paved shoulders. I have not found it to be a problem.

To get to the ferry, there are 2 options.
You can turn right on Bayshore Rd (CR 603) to Villas and Cape May North where you land on Sandman to the Ferry. You are going through suburban area with some stops and traffic lights.

Or you can stay on the 47 a while longer to intersection of CR-626 (Seashore Rd) which you take south To Cresse Ln , turn left and you end up on the Cold Springs bike path that goes south and gets you to Sandman boulevard. This is about 5km longer than going though Villas.

Note that if you are going to Cape May instead of Cape may ferry, the Cold Springs bike path is likely shorter.

indyfabz

Traffic volumes on 50 and 47 can be very day and time dependant. For a while, 50 was horrible some times through Tuckahoe bedcause people were using it as a detour while the 9th St. causeway into Ocean City was being modernized. Thankfully, that work is done.

The optimal way to go from Tuckahoe is to take the road that angles off 50 just past the deli. Thnink it's CR 664. That dead ends at CR 610. Make a right there and take that all the way to 47.


As another example of traffic volume being variable based on day, time and time of year, look just north of where CR 610 intersects 47. You will see the junction of 347 and 47. Both roads can back up for miles on a Saturday morning during the height of summer. People coming down 47 jump onto 347 at Port Elizabeth because it's straighter, then they merge back onto 347. Traffic volume grew so much that they had to install a traffic light at the merge.

It's incredible how things have changed over the decades. I did my first ride to the shore back in 1987 with two friends. Rode the entire length 47 to Wildwood. South of Vineland there were stretches with no services. Maybe a small farm stand or two a few old motels and some shacks selling fresh seafood. Traffic was minimal until you closed in on Rio Grande. We damn near roasted to death in the heat and humidity.

jfmezei

For my trips, I have generally arrived at Dennisville (where I join the 47) at about 16:00 (4pm) on a summer wednesday. (did it once on a friday and didn't notice much difference), and was able to ride relatively fast on the 19km (11 miles) to the junction to Villas. (CR 603). So it isn't a long stretch on the 47. And going south, there are very few intersections on the right side of road. (And by that time, i am very motivated to catch up on time lost due to heat earlier in day in order to make the ferry at 18:00) :-)

At Dennisville, there are lights between Petersburg Rd and the 47. So you can make the left turn onto 47 easily.
However, if you need to fill up, there is a Wawa. To get to it, it is best to turn left on Main Street before you reach the 47. Gets you to the Wawa. But crossing back onto the 47 from there takes patience to find a hole in traffic (even for cars). (Wondering if it might save time to ride back to Petersburg road and use the light to get onto the 47).

Also, it is my *impression* that traffic is highest near Dennis and cars starts to take the finger roads toward eastern shore from there (657 to court house and other roads further south). So coming in from Tuckahoe, you arrive on the 47 just before traffic starts to go down.

Disclaimer: by the time I get to the 47, I am very focused on schedule to make the ferry with my now tired legs :-( so I don't have much time
to think about traffic. Obviously, if in touring mode with friends, it isn't the type of road where you can ride side by side and not worry about cars. (but you get that on the stretch between Tuckahoe and Dennis, as well as between Manchester and Egg-Harbour).