NE Road Rides worth traveling for?

[nighthawk]

Originally Posted by Cantdog

If it’s gravel you’re after, riding around Quabbin Reservoir is probably my new favorite route in New England. Wonderful surface, feels incredibly remote, and just beautiful.

I used to do bird research around the quabbin and had access to areas closed to the public. So cool to see remnant stone walls marking fields now reforested and rusted out abandoned tractors surrounded by 75 year old trees. I used to ride on the bike allowed roads, too and always wished there was more legal riding options in there. I do know State Police patrols those roads on ATVs, so best to mind the restrictions.

To the OP, if you can figure out how to get out to western MA and ride Zerah Fiske Rd in Shelburn, I suggest the N to S direction and then Bardwell’s Ferry over the Deerfield River. Those roads are super special.

[Louis]

Originally Posted by merlinmurph

Honestly, I find the road riding in ME not very good. We have spent a lot of time in ME, mostly along the coast, and I find it limited. The roads are sparse, so when there is a road, it can be busy with higher speed limits, and a bit boring. Somebody please chime in if they differ. Plus, it's kind of far from you.

Agreed.

As much as I like Maine as a place to visit (my sister's lived there around 15 years) it hasn't struck me as the greatest place to ride, mostly because of the iffy quality of the roads and the narrow / nonexistent shoulders. Of course my sister didn't go out of her way to show me stuff that would be appropriate for riding, but we have done quite a bit of driving. I can't speak for ME gravel, maybe that's really good.

I went to school in NH so I'm a bit biased, but if I were looking for riding options in NE I'd stick to either NH or VT. (although plenty of folks here rave about the Finger Lakes area in NY)

Have fun.

[November Dave]

Originally Posted by XXtwindad

Your blog has some of the best cycling writing I've seen.

Thank you

[buddybikes]

Of course, not being mentioned thus far are the White Mountains. Some epic rides

[Cantdog]

Originally Posted by nighthawk

I used to do bird research around the quabbin and had access to areas closed to the public. So cool to see remnant stone walls marking fields now reforested and rusted out abandoned tractors surrounded by 75 year old trees. I used to ride on the bike allowed roads, too and always wished there was more legal riding options in there. I do know State Police patrols those roads on ATVs, so best to mind the restrictions.

To the OP, if you can figure out how to get out to western MA and ride Zerah Fiske Rd in Shelburn, I suggest the N to S direction and then Bardwell’s Ferry over the Deerfield River. Those roads are super special.

I’ll just say to the OP that many roads/trails are closed in there but clearly very heavily used based on strava heatmap. 😉

[Dave M]

7 degrees outside of Boston this morning. What a wonderful thread for daydreaming of warmer weather, county NE roads and an old steel bike.

+1 for D2R2 area, western Mass. (N. Adams and Berkshires), and Manchester/Dorset in So. VT.

[glepore]

I'd second the Finger Lakes. A couple years back I supported (sag/route marking)an AIDS charity ride run out of Rochester, which hit a different state park in the Finger Lakes every night. It was a waterfall of the day kind of deal, and all were beautiful. Its hilly as hell, but was a great experience.

[merlinmurph]

Originally Posted by steveandbarb1

Of course, not being mentioned thus far are the White Mountains. Some epic rides

And again, I feel the Whites are similar to my comments about ME - very few roads, and the roads that are there aren't that great for riding. For example, we considered moving to the Glen NH area, right smack dab in the Whites. Thing is, unless you drove somewhere, you would be riding the same route every day. The last two summers, we spent a month in Franconia NH - fantastic area, great place to visit, and very good riding with some brutal climbs. I love it there and we'll be back this summer. Between the hiking and riding and the beauty, Franconia was awesome for a visit. Living there, the riding would get repetitive.

But, as usual, it depends. Where exactly are you talking about and what is one looking for? For a week or two, a stay in the Whites could be fantastic for a visit. Maybe a bit far for the OP? 5-6 hours, probably?

Good luck!

[C40_guy]

Lots of great riding on Martha's Vineyard...

[GregL]

Originally Posted by glepore

I'd second the Finger Lakes. A couple years back I supported (sag/route marking)an AIDS charity ride run out of Rochester, which hit a different state park in the Finger Lakes every night. It was a waterfall of the day kind of deal, and all were beautiful. Its hilly as hell, but was a great experience.

I’ll third this motion. I live close enough to the easternmost of the Finger Lakes that I ride there from my house. Quiet, rural roads, lots of hills, beautiful vistas, and small towns everywhere to refill water bottles. There are varied accommodations (everything from VRBOs to national chain hotels), wineries, breweries, great restaurants, and multiple attractions for non-cyclists. We New Yorkers pay ridiculous taxes, but are rewarded with smooth pavement and wide shoulders. Come on up for a visit!

Greg

[MXLeader]

Originally Posted by David in Maine

I live in Brunswick, Maine about 30 miles Northwest of Portland. I enjoy many great local rides in the Midcoast area. Pretty easy to find some nice back roads, but any coastal rides tend to get traffic in the summer. I wouldn't consider it a "destination" for epic, beautiful rides but it is a great area to live in as a cyclist. The roads right around Portland are pretty congested, but Portland is a great town. If you do end up in Maine, here is a link to my cycling club's website that has maps of the best local loops. https://mwbc.wildapricot.org/

David

I'm a bit north of Dave in the midcoast Maine area and ride some of the same routes his club does. The midcoast area is best defined as a series of peninsulas with limited main roads on and off. It also stretches inland to roughly the I-95 corridor.

My riding tends to stay off the primary access roads of the peninsulas whenever possible. That said, I've ridden routes from 10 miles to 100 miles around the peninsulas that are a mix of shorter stretches of the primary access roads and gravel and paved roads that criss-cross the center and edges of the peninsulas. That's where the really good riding lies. As far as traffic on the peninsulas, it's only July through September that might be an issue and only on the main access roads.

The thing about riding coastal Maine is that you don't often see the coast. Most of the time long gravel driveways and firelanes wind their way towards the water and groupings of waterfront homes. The only way you get to truly experience that waterfront view is by boat.

In the summer and fall, there are thousands of riders on organized and unorganized bike tours that use Rt 1 as their conduit and without a doubt, they are missing the best parts of Maine riding.

On the land side of Rt 1 is where I think the treasured midcoast riding lies. This area is a mix of lakes and farms (and remote woods) with miles and miles of short punchy climbs and fast descents on less traveled roads. I'm talking maybe seeing a car or truck once every mile or so.

This past summer as a bored COVID exercise we drove up Rt 1 past Ellsworth to the newly minted downeast Bold Coast route and all the way to Calais. I did some riding and found the route up there, umm, "remote", but ranging from "no way" to "this is perfect". Once things get back to normal after Covid, we plan on heading to some of the nicer towns and coastal villages for a week and staying at bed and breakfasts while doing day rides on the best parts of the route.

My experience riding Maine roads outside of the midcoast area is limited but whether it's the mountainous area in the west or the farm and lake areas from Sebago up towards Moosehead, there are plenty of nice roads and scenic routes to find and explore.

As far as midcoast towns go, pick Brunswick, Bath, Wiscasset, Damariscotta, Rockland, Camden, and all the way to Belfast as your starting point and you'll find plenty of great riding.

[rolandtiangco]

Incredible. Thank you all. I’ve got a lot of riding to do. Glad I could rope a few of you into daydreaming with me.

[Bittersweet]

Chiming in for W MA. As noted by others this area is fantastic for road cycling. The key is that the hills aren’t so big that they are mountains like northern VT or Whites of NH. Since the plague started I’ve been in Franconia NH and we moved from Amherst MA a few years ago. Franconia is gorgeous with steep climbs and lots to do but it can get repetitive for road cycling as you need to come back and forth up the notch somehow to connect it all. Great iconic mountain loops with lots of climbing but they are one road affairs with few side jaunts. In W MA in the Amherst/Deerfield area those hills are much smaller so they have little paved, or very smooth dirt, roads spidering everywhere you look. This extends into S NH and S VT and depending on mileage and where you base out of you can easily ride all three states on nice quiet roads. There’s very little traffic and most motorists are friendly. You can ride from general store to general store and provision along the way. To give the family something to do I might do a search for a rental near Lake Wyola in Shutesbury as a starting point.

[tv_vt]

Fun to read what others think about my neighborhood. The riding in VT and NH is certainly great, at least in season, which it is not right now. And southeastern NH is a whole 'nuther story with much more traffic.

Outside of home, Acadia NP and the Finger Lakes have been scenes of biking vacations in the past. The carriage roads and the loop road are enough for several days at Acadia. Finger Lakes, we stayed at a B&B just north of Pen Yan and rode mostly south and west over to Canandaigua Lake. Really unique riding with all of the Mennonite farms and long gentle hills.

[Spinner]

Originally Posted by MXLeader

As far as midcoast towns go, pick Brunswick, Bath, Wiscasset, Damariscotta, Rockland, Camden, and all the way to Belfast as your starting point and you'll find plenty of great riding.

Agree with the above as I've had a number of wonderful rides in these locales. Christmas Cove, Pemaquid Point, the Phippsburg Peninsula and Southport offer excellent riding opportunities. And, a day Acadia will delight you.