lennon_68

UPDATE:

OK, we've finally decided on a tour! We're looking to do Adirondack Park in upstate NY. I'm looking for advice and help planning our route and overnight stops.




I started a thread back in May looking for suggestions on an east coast tour (https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...the-East-Coast). After going through the suggestions with my wife and checking with a couple other people we've decided on coastal Maine. With that out of the way I still need a lot of help with the rest of the questions posed in the original thread. Rather than re-word it I'm going to paste the pertinent stuff from there below:



"...
For this tour everything is wide open. We can pretty much do the tour whenever we want as long as we plan it enough in advance. The start/stop location is completely open. We have no clue what kind of options we'll have for camping, etc. or what routes/roads will work well for riding.


As far as what we'd be looking to get out of a tour here's some random notes:

- 4-5 days, ~40 miles/day.
- Loaded touring - we'd be hauling camping gear and at least some food. It would be nice to be able to eat at a restaurant at least once a day but that's not a must (on the flip side we could eat all our meals "out" if that's an option)
- We like outdoorsy stuff. In my mind we'd be riding rolling hills and winding roads (with no traffic and 20' shoulders lol - just kidding). We'd like to camp every night but preferably not at a campground (that might be necessary to plan this though since we can't just go drive the route and find camping places).
- Paved roads/paths - in Oregon we did some gravel, we'd prefer to avoid that if at all possible (maybe a mile or two of gravel sprinkled in would be doable if a route couldn't work any other way). * I think we'll have to accept some more of this with Maine as the destination but I'm not sure... *
- We'll want to do a loop starting where we parked the car and ending there.
- We'd probably want to stay in a hotel the day before and day after. Maybe we could leave the car at the hotel?
- It would be nice to get to the ocean. When we did Oregon we did a day trip (by car) to the ocean after the tour was done - that might be the best option here as I suspect roads near the ocean will not be ideal for biking.
"


Any input would be greatly appreciated.

GeorgeBaby

Consider stealing the itinerary from Adventure Cycling's Bar Harbor Maine tour.

chefisaac

Where abouts do you currently live if I can ask. Curious because my wife wants to ride some of Maine too minus the touring part.

spinnaker

It depends on where you are starting. Anything north of Bar Harbor and you should be fine. Forget about riding Route 1 south of Bar Harbor. It is the worst tour I ever did. First you are too far from the ocean to see much of anything (which I knew ahead of time). More important the shoulder goes from good to horrible to non existent and the traffic seems to never stop moving at a very high rate of speed. There are a couple of back roads and even a bike path that you can take but most of the ride is on busy route 1.


But it sounds to me like you might be doing the tour as I was going to recommend? And that is move from peninsula to peninsula using the car then ride around the peninsulas by bike. Be prepared for two things. If going during the tourist season, the towns will be VERY crowded. And I did not camp but I understand camping is VERY expensive along the coast so you might want to check that out.

The peninsulas themselves are very tranquil and pretty much have everything you described in your riding requirements. The only way I would ever do a Maine coast tour again is either do it by car

If I am wrong on my assumption, and you plan to ride the coast, say from Portland north, then unless you have a lot of experience riding in very fast and busy traffic then I strongly recommend that you reconsider. But even for the experienced rider, much of the ride is not pleasant.

A great tour at the opposite end of the country and the extreme opposite end traffic wise is the Selkirk loop, north of Spokane and going into BC. Any less traffic and it would be a bike path. You have a few logging trucks other than that traffic is very, very light.

andrewclaus

I cycled a small part of the Maine coast last year on ACA's Northern Tier route and this was my experience as well. The only reason it worked for me was the care and friendliness of the drivers. I saw quite a few cyclists there and I wondered why.

JimDDD

It can be hard to do a coastal tour in Maine while doing distributed (stealth?) camping. South of Portland, there is nice coastal riding and plenty of campgrounds, but not so much wide open forest for stealth camping. North of Portland, the coast is so broken up by bays and pennisulas that you could do 160 miles riding up and back on one pennisula. The long distance routes North of Portland are also not so great nor are they actually coastal.


My preference when riding through this area is to not do a loop, and instead use Amtrak. The Downeaster runs from Boston to North of Portland with roll-on bike service. I've used it a bunch of times, and it works well. If I was doing your tour, I would start in Boston (perhaps parking at Alewife at the end of the red line for cheapish long term parking, ride to Long Wharf, take the ferry to Salem, camp in the very nice town park on the island and explore Salem, then ride up North through Ipswich, Newburryport, coastal New Hampsire, coastal main, and pick up the train back to North Station in Boston. I've done this route as part of a longer tour and it is really nice. Certainly more traffic than inland, but still lots of good coastal riding. And historic towns, seafood shacks everywhere, campgrounds, etc. Shoulder season is best for camping accomodations.

etw

If there is a way that you can incorporate Bar Harbor/Acadia, that would be great. Acadia is stunning and has some nice riding.

mdilthey

Yeah, Acadia is a must-see. it's hilly in inland Maine, but the coast is beautiful all the way down to Portland. I would go South to North if I were you, because ending the trip in Acadia would be ideal.

spinnaker

My experience was pretty much the same with drivers. I would say that most were courteous and gave plenty of room but they can't do much about the constant buzzing in your ears and the close proximity to fast moving traffic.

But I actually saw few touring cyclists.

We really lucked out on rain. It only rained heavy when we happened to be on back roads or good shoulder. The last day into Portland was the worst. Heavy rain with low vis most of the day. I am glad we had a good shoulder all the way back. It was scary enough knowing the drivers had a hard time seeing you on the shoulder. I can't imagine what it would have been like on areas where there was little to no shoulder.


Wish the OP would post back with the final decision.

20_700c

I spent three years stationed in Winter Harbor, Me, actually lived in Milbridge. I'd drive from Milbridge to Winter Harbor daily, from Milbridge to Bar Harbor/Ellsworth weekly and Milbridge to Bangor biweekly. So, my comments are based on that experience.

The coastal route is not something I would personally want to ride during the summer/tourist season for a couple reasons.

First, I don't remember much of a shoulder between Milbridge and Bar Harbor. The traffic is too much of a mixture of tourist RV's, big trucks that simply can't move over, and gawkers/sightseeers who don't pay attention. There are too many memories of one-car accidents on that route for me to ever recommend it despite its great scenery.

Second, what camping there is is relatively expensive compared to other places I've been. It IS a tourist area in the late Sring through early Fall, and again when the leaves turn colors, and prices are set accordingly. Bed & breakfasts abound for sure as do local restaurants with fresh fish/lobster. However, they too are "tourist-priced" unless you're a "local". Just my experience.

YMMV

Now, if you were doing a motorcycling trip, that would be different.

Good luck.

BROOKLINEBIKER

Hi, You may wish to try Downeast Maine from Machias to Calais and on through New Brunswick. The scenery is wonderful though you will not always be seeing coast. There are some backroads t avoid heavy traffic. I am not a Mainer so I do not know routes off hand. I recall Rt 9 being pretty empty of traffic from auto rides. New Brunswick roads are pretty lightly traveled. You could try Rt 776 which goes from St Stephens NB to Blacks Harbour. That is a very scenic ride and keeps you close to Maine. Enjoy!

VT_Speed_TR

Just to echo what's been said,

I've done 4 day tours along the coast of Maine each of the past 2 years (in mid-May), so it low season. This past May I stayed at a motel in downtown Boothbay Harbor and I was the only person their on a Friday night. Once mid-June comes thru Labor Day, forget it. Unless you make advanced reservations. I start in Yardmouth, have used Warmshowers hosts or motels. I use all back roads and only ride Rt 1 for short stretches to get from one peninsula to the next. I sometime have to ride 4 or 5 miles north to find a road that parallels Rt1, but its worth it. The "real" Maine is down each peninsula. I've found many small shops/dinners/lobster huts and very friendly folks. Many interesting little coves/lakes/villages, all uncrowded. I stop often and breal out the camera/tripod and folks pass by with lots of room. The roads are very narrow and winding and I sure wouldn't want to ride with the "summer folk" on the road. This past trip I was riding and had a pickup trail me for near 5 minutes before I found a place to pull over. It was dangerous to pass and he waited! Gave him a very welcoming wave. I don't think that would happen mid summer.

So the rule is the Maine coast (rt1) is not the Oregon coast route. You won't get any views from it (told you Spinnaker ;-) So plan accordingly. It can be a very nice ride in low season, but they don't call Maine "Vacationland" for nothing. In summer its packed!

lennon_68

So sorry I haven't been back and thanks so much for all the input! Things have been really busy lately... Plus I read the first couple replies and immediately started to second guess the Maine coast idea :-/

I did go back and re-read the eails that had led me to choose the Maine coast and found that I had probably over-generalized. Here's what the suggestion said:
"I suggest you check out Mount Desert Island (Acadia). https://bikenewengland.com/acadia.html This is the best cycling area in Maine, which has some of the worst roads otherwise."

I hadn't really done my due diligence though and looking back I found that this would likely be the driving between peninsulas thing which I don't think I want to do unfortunately.


Thanks for all the cautionary tales about the Maine coast, it really doesn't sound like our cup o' tea and it would have probably been a big let down (although that amtrak suggestion could probably work I'm still not a big fan of busy roads and tourist traps...). I guess it's back to the drawing board again. I keep coming back to Burlington, VT but my wife really wanted to see the ocean. Maybe we'll just do the tour there then drive to the coast like we did on our Oregon tour.

spinnaker

As in my PM, consider the GAP / C&O. A very low stress tour. While not the ocean, you will be very close to the Chesapeake Bay to end your trip. The little towns of the east shore are wonderful. St. Micheals, Cambridge (probably my favorite), Oxford (another big fav). Knapps Narrows is tons of fun too, watching all of the sail boats entering the narrows and going aground, The only killer is the Bay Bridge. Miles and mile of traffic. I have always had the luxery of sailing to those places so never had to deal with the traffic.

But I think you wife would love the east shore. Not as good as it used to be before they put in the freeway but still very nice.

You could then proceed eastward below the Delaware Bay, to see the ocean.

Lightingguy

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned the Down East Sunrise Trail. 185 miles of gravel rail trail from Ellsworth to Ayers Junction (North of Pembroke).

https://www.sunrisetrail.org/

1-2 days of rail trail in the woods, stealth camp wherever, then take Rt 1 back to Ellsworth. The downeast section of Rt 1, which is the "east of Bar Harbor" section, is a better touring route with a lot less traffic and a lot fewer towns. No campgrounds though, except Cobscook out near Lubec and Lamoine just south of Ellsworth.

Also no real ocean views unless you head out a peninsula. You could also start in Machias, head NE on the DEST, then over to Eastport, ferry down to Campobello Island (there a provincial park/campground on Campobello), then maybe over to Cobscook, then up to Pembroke and back to Machias. I could easily see 4-5 days of stuff to see and ride out that way. ***** is it's a schlep of a drive from anywhere. You do see the ocean at Quoddy Head, as well as the bays off the Bay of Fundy with the 24 ft tides. Really remote and pretty area.

mdilthey

West of the coast, especially on Route 2 in maine, the proportion of tractor trailers to small cars is about 1:1. A lot of Maine is powered by biomass, which means literally thousands of yellow 18 wheelers full of wood chips. Be vigilant for drafts, as a cyclist was just killed by truck drafts in the US.

lennon_68

Hmm, a couple good looking ideas in here. The GAP/C&O option looks pretty darned good but so does the Sunrise trail... It does look like the GAP/C&O isn't inherently conducive to a loop tour. Any ideas on how to turn it into a ~200 mile 5-day tour (or 160 mile 4-day tour)?

To elaborate a bit more on overnight accommodations we're pretty comfortable camping in most situations but would prefer an actual campground. We'd prefer not to have to step down grass to setup a tent but if we *had* to do so for 1 night we could. We'd be open to hotel/motel/B&B/etc. as well but only if it's cheap...

spinnaker

Five days on the GAP / C&O really should put you in DC from Pittsburgh, it really is very easy and you should be able to knock off 50-60 a day without issue.

If you are still looking to stretch it out, you could do just the GAP. No the GAP is not conducive to a loop. But you could always rent a car or get a shuttle to get you back to your destination. DC is only a 6-7 hour drive with stops back to Pittsburgh.

lennon_68

Hmm, I'll have to look into what options we have for getting back. Living in northern MN we've lived a sheltered life in some ways. Not sure how comfortable we'll be with public transportation

spinnaker

Car rental is an option. If you can find a warmshowers host or bike shop willing to accept a bike rack then you could ship it there before leaving.

Train is public transit but an option too. But it would mean you would have to end your trip in DC as sadly the only place to board with a bike on Amtrak is DC and Pittsburgh.

JimDDD

Since you are interested in traveling a bit, you really should give serious thought to the Route Verte in Quebec. It's actually closer to you then Maine.

https://www.routeverte.com/rv/home

The cycling network in Quebec is simply beyond comparison with anything else in North America, with thousands of miles of well marked routes. We've been on a number of the segments, and they were really awesome. The Quebecois cycle much more than other Canadians or us folks in the US, and it really shows. There are a good number of tourists on the road, along with other riders of all ages.

There are about 3000 miles of designated route. Many campgrounds "welcome cyclists" and will always provide a space without reservation. Some areas (the Eastern Townships, for example) have set up a shuttle system (for $$, of course) which pick you anywhere on the road in event of an emergency or mechanical issue.

There are some truely spectacular rides, such as through the fishing villages and coastal mountains along the gulf of St Lawrence and around the Gaspe penninsula.

Some parts of rural Eastern Quebec are predominantly French speaking, so you will often find yourself struggling a bit to communicate. Just remember to say you are from the US, and the French-speaking Quebecois warm up to you immediately.

lennon_68

This option has come up several times as well and although it really appeals to me. The problem is I took a look at it and found that's it's so large I didn't have a clue where to start or where we'd want to tour

It sounds like you have some first hand experience with it though, if you'd be willing to help me plan it I think it would be right up our alley, especially if we can get to the coast!

Here's the options I'm looking at currently (in no particular order):

1. Try to talk my wife into a bit longer tour and do the GAP/C&O from Pittsburgh to Washington, DC. See Washington DC then rent a car, take a train, etc. back to Pittsburgh. Since this isn't a loop really we could start it anywhere too.

2. The Sunrise trail tour suggest above. This fits the Maine criteria but honestly Maine wasn't the initial criteria just coastal

3. La Route Verte. I'm very interested in this but don't really know where to start planning a tour. If someone would be willing to help me out I think this could be a real winner

4. Burlington, VT. No it doesn't fit the coastal theme but I've heard great things and we could drive to the coast after the tour to check it out


Sorry I'm so indecisive here, I'm having a hard time determining how to prioritize these. I really have no frame of reference here unfortunately

lennon_68

So, I'd all but decided on La Route Verte when I found that we probably won't be able to get our passports in time. So with that out of the way I think I've finally decided on a tour location and date. Unless someone talks me out of it we're looking to do Adirondack Park in upstate NY the week of August 18-25.

I'm looking for advice and help planning our route and overnight stops. I might grab the ACA map for this but if someone here is familiar with the are and camping options I'd prefer to save the $

Leebo

Maine dept of travel and tourism has some nice bike maps and area guides .

endlesshorizon

I've done the GAP and C&O they are very well set up for touring. If you don't want to do any planning and just want to go these are great, water pumps and free camping along the trails and beautiful views. overlander type riding so if it's rainy it'll be really muddy