Most Scenic Ride

[WORNH]

My wife and I are anxiously awaiting our new Co-motion tandem with S&S couplers and are dreaming of places we can bike with our frequent flier miles.

So, if you think back to your favorite rides, what was the most scenic ride you have ever done? Both domestic and international rides are acceptable!

See you on the road!

[godfrey1112000]

1. Just about anywhere in Colorado
2. Death Valley, it is like the moon but very interesting
3. Tucson, include MT Lemmon
4. Martha's Vineyard
5. anywhere you can ride and have fun

[oldpotatoe]

My wife and I are anxiously awaiting our new Co-motion tandem with S&S couplers and are dreaming of places we can bike with our frequent flier miles.

So, if you think back to your favorite rides, what was the most scenic ride you have ever done? Both domestic and international rides are acceptable!

See you on the road!

Ride from Lavono in northeast Italia along tree lined roads to Pisa...and back.

Ride from Palermo, north along the coast to a little town that I can't remember the name of, and back.

Caan in France, along the coast, thru Nice to Monaco and back.

[eddief]

Spokane WA into BC. Towns like New Denver and Kaslo and Nelson.

Stock shot of Kaslo:

http://www.melawend.com/p1040233.jpg

Mallorca.

[bikemoore]

This is the #1 most beautiful, scenic loop in the whole world. OK, so I haven't seen the whole world, but enough to know that it sets the bar very, very high: The Sella Ring in the Dolomite mountains of northeast Italy. Climbs and descends the following famous Giro passes in a less than 40 mile loop: Pordoi, Sella, Gardena, Campolongo. Each of those passes is 100% gorgeous and not overly difficult (about 6-8% grades and 2000 ft or so elevation change). Find the town of "Corvara in Badia" on Google maps and look at the loop just to the southwest. I could ride that loop every day for the rest of my life and be perfectly happy and never bored with it.

[skijoring]

Loops (out and back, really) in the Columbia River Gorge, and Acadia Park in Maine.

Oh, and the Icefields Parkway on my MTB, buzzing along on knobby tires. Canadian Rockies are wonderful.

[Vancouverdave]

1. Route 202 through Columbia and Clatsop counties to Astoria, Oregon--roughly the stretch from Pittsburg or Vernonia to Astoria. Crosses the Nehalem River about 20 times.

2. The East Cape of the north island of New Zealand, this is about 100 miles southeast of Aukland and ends near the city of Gisborne.

3. Any road in Tuscany

4. Chukanut Drive, south from Bellingham, WA, towards Mt. Vernon.

[onekgguy]

The Black Hills (http://www.flickr.com/photos/onekgguy/92872897/) in South Dakota including the Badlands once the tourists have gone for the year I imagine would be some fantastic riding. I've only been there during the summer months and I could see it being a bit dicey in spots with so much traffic and not much of a shoulder in areas. It's on my to-do list for when I retire.

Kevin g

[Karin Kirk]

Furkapass in the Swiss Alps. As you can see, the road goes right past the Rhone Glacier. Totally impressive!

http://www.extremeicesurvey.org/files/1012/4984/9755/MM7246_060927_.5436.jpg

While this spot is my favorite, probably anything in the Alps would qualify. There is abundant scenery in every direction.

Also it depends what type of scenery you like. Craggy mountains, coastline, vineyards, bucolic farmland. What's your pleasure?

[gdw]

The Moab area is pretty amazing. Arches and Canyonlands NPs, the La Sal Loop, and Rte 128 are spectacular road rides. Most all of the MTB trails offer great scenery and the White Rim Trail is a classic.

[maxdog]

I have to agree with all of the posts above. Since no one has mentioned the rest of western Europe, throw that in too. In fact I'll bet Eastern Europe, Asia Africa and Central and South America are cool as well, although possibly poor road conditions/dangers of political unrest. If on the other hand you want to stay stateside, I can tell you that from my experience, and I have toured a lot of the U.S., and the west coast is one of my favs. The reason being, not only is the pacific coast incredibly beautiful, but if you like to include camping or hiking at all, it has a state park or other facility about every ten miles right from Oregon thru N. California. You've got mountains, incredible coastal views and beaches, the Redwood forest and an espresso shop on every other corner. They are also very bike friendly out there. As a total package, it's hard to beat imho. As I mentioned on another tandem/touring related thread, my wife and I have some incredible memories from our honeymoon, when we toured from Portland thru San Fran. Good luck and enjoy.

[michael white]

Ride from Lavono in northeast Italia along tree lined roads to Pisa...and back.

Ride from Palermo, north along the coast to a little town that I can't remember the name of, and back.

Caan in France, along the coast, thru Nice to Monaco and back.

when in Cannes, try going the other way along the coast, to or toward St. Tropez. I did that everyday for two months one year, and still can't forget it.

[Uncle Jam's Army]

Colorado National Monument "Tour of the Moon":

[dave thompson]

Soo much to see in this world on a bicycle. My favorites because they were rides to see/taste/experience were along the Danube through Germany and Austria and a week in Italy at the Belvedere Bike Hotel in Riccione doing day-long out and backs coming back to some to the best bike food ever!

[Andreas]

west coast of the south island (NZ)
dolomites (Italy)
massif central (France)
norway's east coast
tuscany
crete and the peleponnes (Greece)
Along the Rhine and Mosel and Donau [Danube] (Germany)

[maxdog]

Excellent thread! Inspiring me to plan a trip for 2011. Thanks

[rdparadise]

If you're up for a little climbing, try Alpe d'Huez and the surrounding countryside. While Alpe D'Huez is a tough, tough climb, the views while ascending and descending of the surrounding alps is spectacular. You can see a number of epic climbs from the Alpe, including the Cul de Galibier, Sestriere, and a number of others.

Whatever you decide, enjoy!

Bob

[RPS]

On a per mile basis my favorite remains Zion Canyon Scenic Drive at Zion National Park. Road is essentially closed to traffic, relatively flat, and packed with views in a short distance. We’ve ridden it a couple of times – once on tandem and once on singles – and I’d love to do it a few more.

Edit: Added picture from stoker's perspective -- pre-digital days. :)

[jr59]

In this country/the lower 48;
The blue Ridge parkway

[haneriali]

. . . but I'm anxious to bike in Zion, too!

[Pete Serotta]

Colorado National Monument "Tour of the Moon":

Very beautiful ride.....PETE

[onekgguy]

In this country/the lower 48;
The blue Ridge parkway

Another good suggestion. Driven it but not on a bike.

Kevin g

[alexstar]

. . . but I'm anxious to bike in Zion, too!


Zion is mind-blowingly gorgeous! Escalante, etc. are also very nice.

Colorado/Utah is beautiful country.

[Hokiemon]

There are so many beautiful rides, but if I had to choose only one, it would be the Blue Ridge Parkway.

[texbike]

Fly into Geneva. Drive South for 30 minutes. Plant yourself in Annecy and spend your days riding beautiful roads, swimming or sailing on the Lake, and your evenings eating great food and listening to music in the park.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annecy

Texbike

[cadence90]

I imagine this one is pretty d****d scenic....

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3044/3015371536_44855f8797.jpg.

http://www.alastairhumphreys.com/adventures/roundtheworldbybike/

[tv_vt]

Certainly a ride up Oak Creek Canyon in Sedona Arizona rates up there. As does the ride from Prescott to Sedona going through Jerome.

But closer to home, for a cheap scenic ride, there's the Kankamangus Highway in the White Mountains in New Hampshire, then over Bear Notch, and then up Crawford Notch.

Some of the century rides through the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont are also quite scenic in a pastoral sort of way (see Tour de Kingdom website fmi).

Lots more close to home - along the Connecticut River, Gap rides in the Green Mountains,...

Thom

[MadRocketSci]

Fly into Geneva. Drive South for 30 minutes. Plant yourself in Annecy and spend your days riding beautiful roads, swimming or sailing on the Lake, and your evenings eating great food and listening to music in the park.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annecy

Texbike

From Annecy, ride up to the Col de la Forclaz. Arrange to have your bike brought back to your hotel. Pay a guy 100 euros or so and take a tandem hanglider back to town. :) How's that for scenery?

[FlashUNC]

Its a relatively small patch of Earth, but Hogpen and Wolfpen in the North Georgia mountains, and teh area around it, make for some pretty fantastic scenery.

[0nelove]

Crater Lake, OR. Actually, all of Oregon is pretty spectacular. I would highly recommend a long tour.

[Sevenrider]

Kolob Reservoir in Virgin Ut. Just outside Zion Nat park spectacular climb same for the desent. Blue Ridge Parkway 50k in 500mi Coast of Ca Monterey Big Sur to Santa Barbara

[texbike]

From Annecy, ride up to the Col de la Forclaz. Arrange to have your bike brought back to your hotel. Pay a guy 100 euros or so and take a tandem hanglider back to town. :) How's that for scenery?


Fer sure! On a nice summer day, there are probably as many hangliders and para-sails floating around over the lake as there are bikes riding the roads...

This is a very bad (taken with a blackberry) pic of my Merckx on top of one of the glider ramps on Forclaz. There's a nice restaurant at the top that is a great place to take a rest from the climb, watch the gliders, and gaze out over the lake.

The waffles are fantastic! :)

Texbike

[PBWrench]

I vote with gdw. Nothing can beat Arches in Moab.

[Minstrie]

Upper Peninsula, MI, esp. Keweenaw Peninsula, is beautific and invigorating to ride. West Maui Loop, or south side East Maui (the untraveled road to Kana). Third the affirmative on Blue Ridge Pkwy. If you don't mind hard pack rail to trails any of the classic rides in WI (Trembleau, Sparta-Elroy, etc.) are great-fine for road bikes, just gotta clean some grit off after the rides, no big deal. East Central PA and foothills of Poconos are great, too, low mountains, no traffic. I've had sublime rides on road bikes in all the above except East Maui, which I hope to do soon.

[etu]

riding through yosemite (not the valley) to mono lake over tioga pass.
incredible views of one of the most spectacular places on this planet.

http://chainreaction.com/tioga2001.htm

[weisan]

I spent 4 days on sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway this past summer, not sure if it's THE most scenic, but it has a nice variety of terrain and side attractions on offer along the way, overall it's quite lovely, probably closer to home and cheaper too...like I said, if I am destined to spend the rest of my riding days on that stretch of road, I won't complain a bit.

http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/1.jpg
http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/11.jpg
http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/35.jpg http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/29.jpg
http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/47.jpg http://alicehui.com/pics/nc/img/81.jpg

More details of that ride can be found on this post:
http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=75111

[RPS]

My wife and I are anxiously awaiting our new Co-motion tandem with S&S couplers and are dreaming of places we can bike with our frequent flier miles.

As a side note, one of the cool things about tandem riding in beautiful scenery is that the stoker can take pictures relatively easy and safely while in motion so you can capture many scenes from the on-bike perspective. If you don’t have one already or are new to tandems I recommend a nice small digital camera with video capability stored where the stoker can get to it readily. On our longer Cannondale tandem I had a medium size bag mounted on the back side of the stoker bar where we kept the camera. On our Co-Motion we don’t have the length for a bar bag so I keep the camera in my jersey pocket where she can get to it.

Obviously the stoker needs to be careful while taking pictures or video, and should always let the captain know in advance so he doesn't end up hitting the brakes hard causing an accident.

[WORNH]

Thanks for all the great replies! We've had a great time looking into all the great places and rides. We especially like the Biking Hotel in Italy! Wow....we need to go there! We rode in Tuscany this past year and fell in love with Italy. The Blue Ridge Parkway, the National Parks, etc, etc!

Keep the suggestions coming!

[Ralph]

One thing about the Blue Ridge Parkway for this flat lander....is it's rideable. I get aclimated to it's elevation rather quickly coming from Florida. I do have problems with elevation when going from Florida to Colorado....unless I spend some time working up to that altitude. Which is why I prefer driving to the west. Gives me 3-4 days to aclimate to higher elevation. Some don't have this problem.

[cnighbor1]

The redwoods along the west coast. Many choice. The one out of Cresent City CA is a great one. I have the complete route on digital file. More rides inland. And of course the redwoods in the Serrias
Charles

[cnighbor1]

''Hello All,

Here's some pics from today's ride out on the Bay Trail.
Thanks to Mark Sapiro for leading the ride!

<http://yu-rides.blogspot.com/2010/11/pre-thanksgiving-ride-bay-trail.html>

"HAPPY THANKSGIVING!"

Eat,drink and be merry!

Nancy''
Check out all the rides nancy did this year
A fellow club member
Charles

[FGC]

Northern Israel in the Galilee and Golan Heights. It's not a popular destination for foreigners but it should be. Lots of good weather, amazing vistas and great food. It's not too crowded because it's far away from the population centers in the middle of the country.

[Birddog]

Places referenced in this thread without any accompanying photos are almost worthless.

[maxdog]

Places referenced in this thread without any accompanying photos are almost worthless.


Wow, what a worthwhile comment.

[Birddog]

Wow, what a worthwhile comment
Didn't mean for it to sound so harsh, but by comparison, the comments with photos make all others pale in comparison. Just my take of course.

[Pete Serotta]

Its a relatively small patch of Earth, but Hogpen and Wolfpen in the North Georgia mountains, and teh area around it, make for some pretty fantastic scenery.
:help: :help:

PETE

[RPS]

Didn't mean for it to sound so harsh, but by comparison, the comments with photos make all others pale in comparison. Just my take of course.
Perhaps some of the hesitation with posting more pictures is due to concerns with attachment space and the clean-up thread.


To Serotta: Has that issue been resolved for good?

[FlashUNC]

:help: :help:

PETE

I did Hogpen exactly once in my life. Was well enough for me.

Took me 90 minutes to get to the top of the 7 1/4 mile climb, and about 16 minutes to get to the bottom on the back-side.

Wolfpen's slightly easier, but much, much shorter. Besides, those scenic views distract you from all the hurt.

[Pete Serotta]

Nice scenic views and I had LOTS of time to see them,,,,, :D PETE


I did Hogpen exactly once in my life. Was well enough for me.

Took me 90 minutes to get to the top of the 7 1/4 mile climb, and about 16 minutes to get to the bottom on the back-side.

Wolfpen's slightly easier, but much, much shorter. Besides, those scenic views distract you from all the hurt.

[jr59]

Nice scenic views and I had LOTS of time to see them,,,,, :D PETE

People who have never ridden 6 gap or 10 gap have no idea.

The first time I rode it, I don't think I saw anything. It got better and the views got better as I rode it more.

One of my fav. HARD rides! made the death ride and triple bypass seem easy!

[Elefantino]

Its a relatively small patch of Earth, but Hogpen and Wolfpen in the North Georgia mountains, and teh area around it, make for some pretty fantastic scenery.
I wouldn't know. Every time I climb the Hog I'm only looking at a small patch of asphalt in front of my wheel!

It's hard to beat the Galibier, climbed up from the Lauteret side.

[FlashUNC]

I wouldn't know. Every time I climb the Hog I'm only looking at a small patch of asphalt in front of my wheel!

It's hard to beat the Galibier, climbed up from the Lauteret side.


Amen to the former. Not had the chance to do the latter quite yet.

I made the same mistake everyone on Hogpen does the first time, went too hard the first two miles and mile marker 3 when the road ramps up, I paid for it.

[michael white]

I spent a lot of the 80s in Utah, and rode Skyline Drive on my trusty Bridgestone MB1 a couple of times, and I'm positive I've never ridden a more amazing road in the US.

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/196675123nIgKEP

[xjoex]

Any chance you get to ride in Colorado is worth it. Maybe make the trek up Independence Pass in Aspen? Riding a bike above treeline is amazing!

Also if you are in the east for any reason, riding the Cheat Mountain Challenge route it so worth it.

Pic from the CMC
http://gallery.photo.net/photo/10843040-md.jpg

-Joe

[haneriali]

provides lots of wish-list options. I'm going to have to head out to Hogpen & Wolfpen, which are not too far from me.

[Pete Serotta]

Copper Triangel (davis Phinney Ride.)

Bruce K, Tiretrax And Many Others Gave Me The Opportunity To Ride With Them Two Years Ago And I Plan On Riding And Seeing Them In 2011. Many Passes And Wonderful Country Sides....

[Elefantino]

provides lots of wish-list options. I'm going to have to head out to Hogpen & Wolfpen, which are not too far from me.
Don't forget Neels. Long, steady, scenic.

[fogrider]

wow, so many great places to ride! and only a passing mention of the San Francisco Bay Area. The great thing about San Francisco is that there is so many other things to do after a ride!

First off, there is Mount Tam...a short ride through Mill Valley and climb through the woods to Pantoll Station and drop down to Stinson Beach. Halfway down the climb, the trees will clear away for the view of the ocean. Ride back along the coast for some pretty great views.

Lots of great riding around Mount Tam...north to Olema, through Nacasico and don't forget crossing the Golden Gate Bridge. Then there is great riding in the peninsula. Start on Cannada Road with a nice warm up. Climb Old LaHonda Road up to Skyline and out to the coast on 84. and further south there are the Santa Cruz Mountains.

[jazznap]

Sorry, I don't get out much, but if you're ever in SoCal, Palomar mountain is my fav. I never get tired of this ride.

[bking]

A few here have already mentioned the Oregon/California Coast. From about 2004 to 2008 I put 90,000 miles (yep) on a 911 Turbo Porsche in search of the perfect roads...all over this country. Some of the best ones were too small to be striped, i left no stones unturned. But, for sheer scenic overload, coupled with a decent road, you cannot trump 101 and 1 on the northwest coast, Oregon to the Redwoods. We're talking hundreds of continuous miles of "oh, nothing can top that", except what's around the next bend.
Here's just a few, and same as always, no pic comes close:
http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Tour-de-Oregon-2009/Le-Tour-de-Oregon-Stage-4-058/678800626_CDD73-L.jpg (http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Tour-de-Oregon-2009/9944674_JvnhY#678800626_CDD73-A-LB)
http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Tour-de-Oregon-2009/Le-Tour-de-Oregon-Stage-5-076/679940865_HwviQ-L.jpg (http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Tour-de-Oregon-2009/9944674_JvnhY#679940865_HwviQ-A-LB)
http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Sundells-Oregon-Coast/P1020230/738256197_24mMA-L.jpg (http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Sundells-Oregon-Coast/10614121_Q9eCv#738256197_24mMA-A-LB)
http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Sundells-Oregon-Coast/P1020311/738211588_T8VDC-L.jpg (http://bking.smugmug.com/Tour-de-Bike/Sundells-Oregon-Coast/10614121_Q9eCv#738211588_T8VDC-A-LB)

Couple of notes: While I'd driven that road many times, I never really paid attention to the shoulder. As we considered riding down (always north to south, prevailing winds) I was concerened about the shoulder and RV's, traffic and people paying more attention to the view then the road as they drove the coast. Shoulder was very good, traffic was not a problem. We did go first of October, had great weather. While lots of folks do this ride in the summer, traffic would pick up considerably.
Still, it is the grandaddy of all scenic drives in the US, for cars, and i'd argue for bikes as well.
Bruce

[weisan]

It's early March and I am dreamin'....

Anything else to add, folks? :p

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . to get back up to Bar Harbor and Acadia in Maine and spend a day on the carriage roads.

BBD

[adampaiva]

just start running down this list

http://www.dangerousroads.org

[Black Dog]

The Izoard loop in the French Alps. Starts and ends in Briançon. Big Mountains, deep gorges, alpine dessert, alpine meadows, nice villages, it has it all.

http://www.mapmyride.com/fr/briancon-provence-alpes-cote-d-azur/col-d-izoard-loop-route-52231408

[cnighbor1]

Spokane WA into BC. Towns like New Denver and Kaslo and Nelson.

Stock shot of Kaslo:

http://www.melawend.com/p1040233.jpg

Mallorca.

Yes north of Washington state in Vancouver is a great riding area
I did the ride twice with the Ultra touring group out of Seattle . One long valley is flanked by mountains on both sides yet your just rolling along a long valley road. than to get to the next north south valley just a long gentle climb.
Little traffic and get roads I have the maps if needed but looking at map of Canada shows the major roads and one can figure out a route Look at Castelgrad (sp) has a starting point.
Charles Nighbor

[donevwil]

I'm certainly not going to claim it's the Most Scenic Ride, but the Meyers Grade descent is one that is forever engrained in my memory. The first time I did it years ago it was completely socked in while the second time a year or so later was similar to the first photo, grey and little contrast. The third time, however, was similar to the second photo. The view, seen in it's entirety for the first time, was so distracting I had to stop.

Imagine this after miles or torturous climbs in the trees (damp and dark) with little horizon hinting just how close to the coast you actually are.

Both pics extracted from the I'net.

1697896214

1697896215

[Likes2ridefar]

If you like to go up, and up, and more up check Taiwan for Alishan Mtn or even more challenging take Taroko Gorge to the peak of HeHuan.

search google for taiwan kom for photos of the second climb. It's simply stunning from the entry into the gorge all the way up.

the first is about a 47 mile climb and the second is 65 miles.

http://www.strava.com/activities/859381
https://www.strava.com/activities/94431170

there are less challenging rides along the Pacific Ocean coast from the same town you'd stay in if going up HeHuan. Or ride around the entire Island.

I love riding there, hope to move there some day in the near future.

[sandyrs]

. . . to get back up to Bar Harbor and Acadia in Maine and spend a day on the carriage roads.

BBD

Hoping to do a weekend up that way this late summer/fall... having ridden the carriage roads, what kind of tire would you suggest?

And to contribute to the photo-fest, this isn't my most scenic ride *ever* but it's the most scenic that's riding distance from where I live. Prospect Hill Rd, Harvard MA on a clear fall day.

https://scontent.cdninstagram.com/hphotos-xaf1/t51.2885-15/10731937_544720455658983_41311462_n.jpg

[Johnnyg]

French Rivera, Cannes to Monaco, Blue Ridge Parkway, Gorge de Tarn, France, Carriage Trails, Mt Desert Island, Maine, Great river Ride, Westfield, Ma., Durango to Urey, Colorado

[joosttx]

Today's ride was scenic enough for me (see the picture below) Marin county has some of the prettiest rides ever. You can patch together a two day tour that would blow minds.


https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8591/16695215151_4a5365772e_z.jpg

[Ti Designs]

Nobody ever considers Newark NJ...

[fiamme red]

Nobody ever considers Newark NJ...The view of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart from Branch Brook Park at sunset is one of my favorite sights in the NYC-metro area.

[rnhood]

The feature segment of the Cherohala Challenge is the ride along the ridge at the top of the Cherohala Skyway and its gorgeous (bridging Western NC and TN). Almost as scenic is the trek through Blue Grass Valley on the Mountain Mama event hailing out of Monterey, VA. Its the headwaters for the Potamac River in the Shenandoah Valley and cuts right down through the two mountain ridges. The tall blue grass swaying in the wind.....gosh its story book pretty. Just like riding in a fairy tale.