spinnaker

I just got back from my second tour. It was in Italy (I really need to post a review). I am hooked on touring. On this last tour I got a very small taste of the the Alps and I want to see more. My plans for next year are to tour Switzerland or just dip my toes in a little bit at a time (climbing wise) and start with the lakes and just poke my nose a little further into the Alps.

But with the declining dollar, a European vacation just might be out of the picture next year so I'm looking for some ideas.

Here are some of my requirements:

1. Tour somewhere in the U.S. or a country favorable to the U.S. dollar (tall order these days).

2. If outside the U.S. then not too hard or too expensive to get to.

3. Reasonably safe.

4. Decent weather, not much colder than 50F, can be a bit colder if dry climate.

5. Plentiful and reasonably priced accommodations, no camping, would be nice if there was no more than 40 miles between night stops.


6. Good roads, reasonably low traffic.

7. Big mountains. Hopefully with routes with easy climbs but big climbs should I want to try them.


I thought about Yosemite or Yellowstone but unless I went off season and put up with the cold, I'm guessing I would be faced with lots of traffic and little or no choice on accommodations.


Any ideas?

Speedo

Finger Lakes region in upstate New York.

spinnaker

I'm really looking to see some massive mountains. But the Finger Lakes does seem like a decent idea. It would be cheap for me to travel there. Probably a 5-6 hour drive from my home.

Leigh_caines

Well dosn't look like you're coming to OZ as {5- is out if you don't like camping] and [7- our mountains might not be high enough for you]
I just did a tour with the Irish and that was great but maybe 7- not high enough again
..good luck..

acantor

You want mountains? Check out Charlevoix in Quebec. Nearest city with an airport and train station is Quebec City. Ride east out of Quebec City and you will arrive in the Charlevoix region within a day. As you travel east, the hills become longer and steeper. The steepest one I rode on was 18% grade. Many roads have decent shoulders. Food is excellent. Lots of accommodations, including B+Bs for $50 per night. Overall, not too expensive, unless you stay in the fancier places and eat in the chi-chi restaurants, which there are many.

valygrl

New Zealand - hostels and pubs, mountains, towns ~30 miles apart.

Not sure how the $ is doing there.

Cyclist0094

I would second Charlevoix I toured through there from Quebec city through Charlevoix into the White Mountains of New Hampshire and then across the Connecticut river valley into the Green Mountains of Vermont. . BTW roads in Quebec, they don't often bother with switchbacks on mountains they just go straight up and straight down .

If you want to suffer in the US, western NC/eastern TN is a great touring area as is SW Virginia. The climbs there are similar to the Pyrenees in France.

While the climbs in the Sierras and Rockies are often more elevation gain, the climbs in the Appalachians are often steeper.

chrisch

My biased opinion is to go with your plan to tour Switzerland. You'll get lovely lakes, alpine passes, and plenty of trails void of automobile traffic. Switzerland is an expensive country to most foreigners, and especially more now for US visitors with the poor exchange rate. Just remember that Switzerland doesn't use the Euro.

One suggestion while touring Switzerland is the "Schlaf-im-Stroh" accommodations. It's an affordable alternative to a hotel and will add some adventure to your trip.

Good luck with your planning! chris

cyccommute 

Want massive mountains? Can't get much bigger than the Rockies. Try the Great Parks Route with the side trip to Rocky Mountain National Park. If you want something shorter, you could start in Denver and do a counterclockwise tour to Durango, Grand Junction area, Steamboat Springs, Estes Park, to Denver. That hits all the high points

staehpj1

That is one trip I am considering for this summer (2008) myself. We loved the western Colorado section of the Transamerica and were sad to say goodbye to the Rockies as we headed east. Is the southern part of the Great Parks Route more of the same or substantially different? If different, how?

The original poster mentioned Yosemite and the traffic and difficulty finding a place to stay. FWIW: the traffic wasn't all that bad when we arrived on a monday and spent a few days seeing the park, just avoid the weekend and holidays. Ease of finding accomodations wouldn't be a problem if you were camping, but probably is since you aren't.

staehpj1

How much time do you plan to tour?

FWIW: Based on one trip across the US on the Trans America, the Cascades and Rockies were great, but the Appalachians were far more challenging. That opinion may be skewed based on the roads Adventure Cycling chose for the TA, but it is what my impression was.

Which is better? It depends what you want, but I liked the Rockies a lot. The scenery was great and the climbs less steep, but very long.

Bear in mind that this all does come from my limited perspective though.

The Smokester

How about Argentina?

cyccommute 

From Fairplay north, the two routes merge...with the exception of the ride through RMNP which is a spur off the GPR. From Fairplay south, you are riding through a series of horst/graben (HG) valleys. These have flat floors surrounded by towering peaks. You should be familiar with this type of valley anyway because South Park is one.

Trout Creek Pass is the exit to South Park and is a great downhill...if a little heavy on traffic...if you are going south. I might go out of Fairplay to Breckenridge and over Fremont Pass into Leadville instead. Either way,you end up in the Buena Vista area which is where the Collegiates are. From Leadville to Bueny you'd be riding at the feet of Colorado's tallest mountains. The Arkansas River valley is another of those horst/grabens. The Buena Vista Valley is has one of the mildest climates you'll find in Colorado any time of year.

You climb out of the Arkansas River valley over Monarch Pass which is steep and pretty to the Gunnison Valley...one of the harshest climates you'll find in Colorado. Gunnison is a very pretty HG valley but it can be damned cold or pretty hot depending on the season. Out of Gunnison, you ride over a hump that makes up the Black Canyon of the Gunnison which is a scary deep and dark canyon. Places there never see the sun.

Out of Montrose, the ride mapped to Cortez is nice, but I'd be tempted to do Red Mountain Pass. Red Mountain is steep, scary, traffic is slow and the drops are heart stopping but it is quite possibly the most ruggedly beautiful road in the state. And once you've survived Red Mountain, you come to Silverton...a lovely little mountain town but you still have two major climbs...Molas and Coal Bank Pass...before you come to Durango. The mountains around Ouray and Silverton are called the Alps of the Rockies and they are breath taking...so is the riding! If you wanted to relax on the last 40 miles or so of the ride, you could probably arrange a ride to Durango on the Durango-Silverton Scenic Railway...a 19th Century narrow gauge railroad that wanders it's way through those rugged mountains. It's worth the trip.

You probably should make the side trip to Mesa Verde but be prepared. The road into the park is about 30 miles long to get to the ruins and the campground is at mile 15 with several steep miles in between. If you want to see anything at all, you'd have to get a really early start from the campground by bike and hope you got back before dark. There are other accommodations in the park but they sell out quickly! It probably be easier to rent a car in Cortez (Enterprise has an office there) and drive to the park if you really want to see anything.

There's an airport in Durango.

Hope this helps.

staehpj1

Thanks for the info. I will look at a map and try to digest it.

bikebuddha 

Glacier NP to Bellingham WA.

NoReg

Well keep in mind that everyone else other than americans dealt with the high american dollar since WWII. So really it's a little whimpy to cancel your trip on that accord. On the other hand, I would understand since I tend to look at that kind of stuff.

White mountains is good, and so is the Blue Ridge Parkway if you want to push yourself a littel. Amazon has book on those.

Wild adventure touring, what about Jamaica. 7500 foot mountains, according to the guy selling coffee at Sam's Club, anyone know of a trip there? Crazy guy doesn't log anything.

spinnaker

Thanks for all of the ideas. I'll try to respond to most of them!

CA - Once a good deal but that $50 B&B is probably more like $75.

OZ - Campsites - probably not ready for that at this point.

NZ - Sounds very interesting but a long expensive trip to get there. But I do understand it can be very affordable. I'm told that it is actually cheaper for people that live in OZ to travel to NZ for their holiday.

Appalachians - Believe me I'm familiar. My home riding area is in the foothills. Even there the hills are short but very steep. I'm considering Kate's Cove area of Tennessee as one of the places. I have never biked there but have driven the area and it is beautiful.


Switzerland - Not yet off of my list I will check out Schlaf-im-Stroh. Thanks for the tip.


Rockies - moving to the top of the list. What is the best time of year to go? What about traffic?

valygrl

I'm embarrassed I didn't mention this one. It's super rad, and it's right out my front door. cyccommute's suggestions are great.

I did a tour a few years ago where I wound my way through the rockies, trying to cross every paved continental divide pass in the state. I did nearly all of them, plus another dozen non-divides. There are not a lot of roads, but there are also not that many people driving once you leave the front range (colorado springs/denver/boulder/ft.collins) You can pretty much just ride the main highways, and the traffic is mostly ok.

I camped, so it's hard to really know about non-camping touring. You probably want to do your homework, you will probably end up in a few places with the hotels fully booked or outrageously expensive (ski towns). There's a nice hostel in Leadville.

Best time is August-September. June = might be too cold up high, but might be OK. July = great long days, but you'll get thunderstorms almost every afternoon in the high mountains. This is ok as long as you are off the passes by 2-3pm. As it gets later in the year, the t-storms become less frequent, but the days shorter. By end of September, it could start getting cold/snowy up high already.

acantor

I was in Quebec this summer and stayed in a B+B in a century home for $40, which included pancakes topped with dollops of maple syrup mousse in the morning! Another set me back $55, including tax.

Switzerland is cycling nirvana, and of course, there are mountains there. I crossed the Alps via the Gotthard Pass three years ago. If you want serious mountains, this is the place. But the two-day relentless climb to the pass nearly did me in! Physically, it was the hardest trip I have ever done. I probably won't attempt it again.

I have been to Switzerland many times, and I believe it is possible to travel relatively inexpensively by bike. I don't recall restaurant meals in Switzerland being significantly more expensive than at home. Lodging in small towns wasn't too costly, although there were exceptions. I plan to return to Switzerland for another tour one of these years...

spinnaker

So are you going to be my tour guide?

So, what kind of traffic can I expect? Is it "Yellowstone" crazy or just fairly normal traffic on the roads?

spinnaker

If I do Switzerland in 2008 I might actually call it a "taste of Switzerland". I'd launch from Milan and just poke my nose in a bit. There seem to be some roads just north of the border that get you into the Alps but seem to be fairly flat Alp wise. If things get too overwhelming, I could always retreat to the lake region of Italy. But even the area south of Luzern does not seem to be all that bad and I imagine still some fairly spectacular views. There are a number of lakes which would give a break after a day or so of climbing.

lloydy

I'd recommend Costa Rica, it's got plenty going for it. Great scenery, wildlife, cheap as chips accomm & foodwise, plenty of good riding, reliable weather. Also must be pretty cheap to get to from the States.

Re: NZ, I've not cycle toured there, but it really is pretty cheap by western standards and there's so much to see. I definitely intend going back, though from the UK need longer timewise as it's much further away.

cyccommute 

I'd say fairly normal. There are spots where it can be heavy and others where you might not see a car for an hour. Depends on how close to the I-70 corridor it is.

videticj

I just did the Blue Ridge Parkway; it has mountains for sure but will be getting chilly pretty quick. Also it's tough to get between stopping places if you don't want to camp; there are places off the route but you would have to look them up ahead of time since the Parkway maps only show Parkway places.

spinnaker

Both Argentina and Costa Rica sound interesting.

Two things that concern me.

My security and the condition of the roads. Most SA countries are a bit short on both.

I have a friend who lived most of her life there so I could ask her on that but what about Costa Rica?