Any good riding in Hawaii big island

[SummitAK]

Originally Posted by s4life

Thanks you all, really nice tips!

Are there any good bike rentals in the island? I am not sure yet if I'll take my bike or rent around there.

Cheers!

Bikeworks now owns all the west side bike shops fully or in partnership. So, Kona-Bikeworks, Kona Sports, Waikoloa Beach Resort and Waimea. Just pick the most convenient for you to pick up and drop off.

No idea on poster that won’t ride BI due to lack of shoulders. I’ve ridden all over the world and don’t see much difference on BI from many other places. The only routes I mentioned that lacks some shoulder is Holualoa above Kona and some of Kohala Mountain Road.

I’m on the BI right now. We have a place here and have visited 4-5x per year for 25 years. The diversity of riding here is fantastic. Tourist drivers, impaired drivers and distracted drivers are something you take a chance with in many locales. Such is the risk of riding outdoors. We mitigate with bright clothes, lights and Varia radars.

[Elefantino]

When we went in August I wished I'd brought my bike.

[Kirk007]

Originally Posted by SummitAK

No idea on poster that won’t ride BI due to lack of shoulders. I’ve ridden all over the world and don’t see much difference on BI from many other places.

You mean me? Yeah I'm just letting the OP know both sides of it. I never said I won't ride there; what I did say (or imply) is that for most trips, for me, the juice just isn't worth the squeeze. I don't personally consider the BI a cycling destination.

I've ridden over a lot of the BI off and on for the past 20+ years. Living in Seattle it is our go to "trip for sunshine" destination. Spent 3 months there with a tandem and a single road bike but hey what do I know?

I've had some good rides and I'm sure the OP can as well if he decides to ride (and the rental options are pretty good which makes life easier), but I've also been run into a ditch on the Old Mamalohoa Road just north of Holualoa town by a pickup whose driver wasn't paying attention. Early morning or after 4 pm are times I would choose to not be on that road (and a few others) as locals are going to from work, and on some of those roads there's a high chance you will be impeding them (briefly yes, but too many drivers get frosty over anything in their way when coming/going home). Traffic on Kona side, particularly Kona town, seems to get heavier each year. And who the heck wants to ride the Queen K with all the traffic fumes I do not know.

The OP might be advised to drive some of the roads first to scout them out and see what he thinks. If I was to pick one ride it would probably be Waimea to Hawi on rt 250, then back along the coast to Kawaihae and then back to Waimea. Great ride, low traffic, although some of the locals can get a wee impatient on 250. Depending on where you're staying that ride can be most of a day - driving to Waimea, etc. If OP does that route, I suggest you check the days the Farmers Market in Waimea is happening - good food, coffee, great prices on fruit and produce. The other one i like is to explore the side roads down from Captain Cook to the bay, and as far south as Place of Refuge. Light traffic and it's moving slow particularly on those narrow roads. Good work out riding up and down the slopes. Gets hot out on the lava fields though. There's water at the National Historic site at Place of Refuge (Honaunau for short). And if you want to snorkel, the lava bench, known locally as 2 Steps, right beside Honaaunau, is outstanding.