csi56

Another local 5.5 miles near Kissena Park - I would have gone much longer but I got nervous because I forgot my helmet! Enjoying my new Downtube 9FS very much.

Papa Tom

Hey, everybody.

Not fa nuttin', but there's no need to apologize for short rides or slow ones. If we were talking about good DRIVES we took in our automobiles, would we feel we had to make excuses for why we didn't go further or faster?

Some of my best experiences on a bike have occurred within 2-3 miles of my house.

GRVR6

Good point. I took a short but nice ride tonight.

Papa Tom

Chiro:

On the heels of your video, I have updated the Brooklyn page at my website. It's a little more streamlined and a little less detailed now, but I don't want to be giving out bad information.

Thanks!

Papa Tom

I'm watching the weather for this Wednesday and Thursday, as I have both days off and plan to ride Syosset to Pt. Jefferson, then ferry to Bridgeport, CT and ride to Milford for the night to see an old musician buddy.

There's an alternate route provided by Mark WW that I want to try. It apparently gets you around some construction in the Kings Park area. Does anybody know if that's still going on?

GlennR

Went for a easy 20 mile north to Bethpage and back, but the "A"holes were out in force. Got hit by one mirror and almost by 2 others. I guess people don't understand the 3 foot law.

The humidity was high and the sweat was just pouring out of me... then it started to rain. All i needed was some mud and to be on cobble stones and I would know how it feels to be in the Tour de France.

That's what I get for such a late start.

csi56

I rode about 12-1/2 miles in a loop from Fresh Meadows to Flushing Meadow Park. As I got near the Unisphere I was treated to a soft but briefly heavy rainshower, almost a sunshower - it was beautiful to look at as it gently settled over the grass. And it was light enough and short enough that I could stand under a tree for until it eased, and stay dry.

Days like this let me miss my Long Island rides less - Queens has a lot to offer!

FIVE ONE SIX

i think i've seen you post about riding the Cedar Creek Park bike path in the past. have you ever ridden it early Saturday morning? i always see the same older guy around 8:30am or so coming back to the park. he runs what looks like a mountain bike with REALLY wide bars, which look like they have reflectors on both ends of them, and i SWEAR it looks like he has aero bars on it too cause every time i see him it looks like he's in the drops. the wingspan of his bars would make Michael Phelps jelly. SO annoying that you have to be REALLY far right and he has to be REALLY far right to not touch him. you would know if you saw him, he kinda looks like Sam Elliot with long hair and a pony tail, like Road House Sam Elliot...

GlennR

I was referring to car mirrors.

GlennR

Got up early and did 45 miles. Headed west on Rt 105 then north on Post Road. I rattled around Muttontown, Syosset and headed for Fish Hatchery. Down Rt 108 and home via Round Swamp.

Did 15.1mph average and could of done more.

Papa Tom

Here's the ride I did Sunday, July 20th, with an overnight. Technically, it's in Connecticut, but it's a great day or overnight ride from the Orient Point Ferry on eastern Long Island. I do this as an overnight in Mystic, CT (one of my favorite destinations), but I usually ride into Rhode Island and then backtrack to my hotel at the end of the day. I don’t really have mileage figured out, but I can tell you that it will only take about an hour or so to get to Mystic from the New London ferry terminal. How far you travel from there is up to you. NOTE: You will need knobby tires for part of this ride!!

The 2014 version of my ride goes like this:

Get off the ferry in New London and exit the parking lot. Cross the railroad tracks and make an immediate right onto Water Street. Proceed to the first light and turn right onto Crystal. Go to the end of Crystal and turn left onto State Pier Road. Turn right onto Mill Road and check out the historic mill on your left. Turn left on Cole. Turn right on Williams. At Mr. G’s Pizza, turn left onto Bailey and look for the small path that leads to the Gold Star Bridge. This first piece of the ride is through a questionably safe neighborhood. Just keep your eyes open and you’ll be OK.

Climb the bridge (this is a huge one…not a little foot bridge) and enjoy the short downhill on the other side. At the end of the bridge, the path will come to a “T” intersection. Turn right and proceed to the end of the path. Turn right and climb Riverview Avenue. Bear left onto Walker Hill Rd and cross Rt. 12/Rt. 1 (Subway Sandwich Shop w. outdoor seating and a convenience store at this corner). The name of the road changes to Toll Gate Lane. Continue to the end of Toll Gate and turn left onto Rt. 184. Make first right onto Buddington Rd. Enjoy the reservoir views on this quiet, but wide road.


At the end of Buddington, turn left onto Rt. 1. Go a short distance, cross a small bridge and turn right onto the Poqquonock River Boardwalk. (This is a wooden boardwalk, but it’s in decent shape. I’ve never gotten a flat tire here). You will likely be alone on this boardwalk, but watch your speed. At the end of the boardwalk, you will enter a small park that faces Depot Road. Turn right on Depot Rd and enter Bluff Point State Park. Follow the dirt and gravel road toward the parking area and turn left onto the dirt and gravel path through the woods. (The other path here, which runs along the water, eventually loops around and joins the other, but if you choose to explore it, you’ll have to figure out for yourself where and how this happens.)


For me, the ride through the woods was a highlight of my most recent trip through this area. An avid mountain biker in the 90’s, I had to give it up when my back problems became more severe. Although this trail is dead flat and fairly “smooth” (except for the part that runs along the rr tracks) it brought me back to the desolation of riding alone in the woods, with the crunching of leaves beneath my wheels the only sound to be heard. Anyway, as noted, the trail gets rocky as it leaves the park and skirts the AMTRAK line for a short distance. Eventually, you reach a junction, where a small dirt trail to the left leads up a short, steep hill, and the path you’ve been riding leads to a green steel fence separating the trail from Neptune Drive, gateway to a private neighborhood.

I opted to leave the people of Neptune Drive in peace this year, and to take the dirt trail to the left. With my bike fairly loaded, I had to walk it up this very short hill and continue pedaling once I reached the top. Now back to turn-by-turns…

Take the dirt path to an old, abandoned AMTRAK bridge and cross it. After crossing the bridge, count two utility poles and turn right, back into the woods. You are now headed into Haley Farm State Park. At the end of this (mostly dirt) trail, bear right onto Haley Farm Lane. Turn right onto Brook Street. Cross Groton Long Point Road and turn left onto Elm Street. (Be careful! Both GLP and Elm are marked “Rt. 215.” Be sure to go to “Elm Street!”) Take Elm all the way to Rt. 1 at the beginning of the Mystic Downtown District. Turn right to downtown Mystic and left onto Rt. 27 to get to all the hotels near I-95.


I have a few side trips I take around Mystic, including one that goes around the water adjacent to Mystic Seaport and one to Old Stonington Village, where ferries from Greenport used to meet LIRR trains that completed farmer’s rides from New York City to Boston in the mid 1800’s. You’ll probably find your own places to go in this area, but you can also continue on Rt. 1 to Westerly, Rhode Island, home of Misquamicut Beach, or even to Narragansett, another favorite destination of mine when I have more than two days off from work.

If anybody has any questions, post them here or PM me. I can help with places to stay, places to eat, places to visit, etc.

csi56

I thought I'd get in a couple of laps at Caumsett Park this evening but...

https://nysparks.com/regions/attachme...nformation.pdf

Summer Run Series: Caumsett State Park 5k in Lloyd Harbor, NY, United States | MapMyRun

You know what they say,

Plan ahea
d
.

Billy1111

nice ride papa...today i did the South County path in yonkers, well, 11 miles of it for 22 RT. thats a real nice path....started to go into van cortland park and the dirt trail, i would have liked to go deeper but i was alone and it seemed kinda desolate and thought it would be the perfect place to get robbed!!

Papa Tom

Billy:

Which direction did you travel? North, or south?

What I like to do is take the South County heading north as far as Elmsford, then turn left onto Rt. 119. At Rt.9, I turn left again and go about 3/4 mile to Lyndhurst Mansion, where there's an opening in a brick fence that leads you onto a narrow dirth path, which eventually becomes the southern section of the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail.

Details of how to get back to the SCT starting point are on my website at https://nyrides.freeservers.net

So how do you like the southern section, and where does it begin these days? I was always a "northern" fan, myself!

Steve B.

Tom,

The SCT starts at the NYC/Westchester county line, which is also the north end of Van Cortland Park. The Old Put trail continues south into VCP for 1.4 miles to the golf course clubhouse, then another 1/3 of a mile to W 240st., which is the south end of VCP.

The trail is dirt in VCP, doable on 28mm slick tires and up, or smaller if there's less mud.

The SCT is paved asphalt the entire distance. From VCP to Tuckahoe Rd at Touissant Ave. is 4.3 miles. It's an additional 7.5 miles to the norther terminus of the SCT at Rt 119 in Elmsford.

A good option to link the Old Croton Aqueduct trail at Lyndhurst Mansion, to the north end of the SCT in Elmsord, is to use Taxter Rd./E Sunnyside Lane. This hilly road intersects Rt 9 / Broadway, about 1/2 mile south of where the OCA trail crosses Broadway. Taxter Rd. IS hilly and dumps you out/starts 1/2 mile west on Rt 119 of the SCT. It has a LOT less traffic the Rt 119 and is preferable except if you left your climbing legs in the garage.

Papa Tom

As Long Island's bikeway network continues to grow and improve, and as gas prices continue to soar, I am finding fewer reasons to travel outside of here to find good, traffic-free places to ride. The Westchester County Trails used to be favorites of mine, and I would travel up there several times each summer to ride both north and south. In recent years, I've stayed with the Bethpage and Ellen Farrant Bikeways, as these have taken on a new feeling since they were extended and given some press.

The North & South County Trails were always beautiful, though, and I may take a trip up there in the fall just to check the status of all the links that have reportedly been finished in recent years. So, is Farragut Avenue still a good place to start if I have a car?

Billy1111

I parked on Alan Shepard Drive which is a block away from an entrance to the trail...if u go left it goes maybe .25 to .50 mile and ends at Van Cortland dirt trail, so by making the right turn your pretty much getting the trail at that start. It did have some signs around saying something about a permit for the park. I didnt pay much attention and just parked, I figured at worst maybe get a 25 ticket or something....I didnt get anything

qtoffer

I rode to Jones Beach from Farmingdale HS on Thursday with a buddy - three hours on the saddle, four hour total ride time. Total distance 33 miles with an average speed of 11MPH. I was especially happy because I haven't ridden more than 25 miles in a single ride since I was in my 20s - and I kept my average speed up in my target zone.
I was hurting when I got home; but nothing a shower and good nigh sleep didn't fix. The headwinds coming back on the Ellen Farrant were brutal!

csi56

Friday early evening I parked across from Cedar Creek Park and rode the 18 miles all the way to Tobay and back. I might have stayed and spent some money at Tobay but the sign said that bikes were not permitted, so I ate dinner when I finished the ride back - after dark and away from the area. Their loss, I'd say. By the way, that sure is a long, desolate, even boring ride from the Canon Theater to Tobay.

Billy1111

is there ever a time of year where the winds are generally calm...ever since im riding for the past few months it always seems like there's wind....

Papa Tom

I totally agree about the loss of revenue from prohibiting bikes to enter TOBAY; however, as a Town of Oyster Bay employee, I understand why it is that way. The concessions are privately owned by a company that pays a lot of money to be there, whether they MAKE money or not. The concession owner takes the risk expecting that revenue from beach goers alone will pay the bills and generate a profit. The Town's main concern is liability, and it is not obligated to ensure that the concessions turn a profit.

This is one of those cases where the Town is actually looking out for its taxpayers.

Regarding the wind, I've been riding this bikeway for almost twenty years and have rarely caught a break where there was no wind in either direction. I prefer the headwind on the way down and the tailwind on the way back, but at certain times of certain days, it can be reversed. I feel really bad for newbies who go out on this bikeway for the first time and end up turning around right away because they can't take the wind and have never experienced the rush of the return trip.

Yes, the extension to TOBAY is desolate and, in my opinion, kind of boring. The one and only time I've done it so far, my immediate reaction was that it needs some type of stop - perhaps an ice cream stand - at the mid-point to motivate people to use it...especially if there's nothing to do once you get to TOBAY (given that you have to walk a really long way to get to the beach). Otherwise, the Jones Beach boardwalk, on which you are permitted to walk your bike, is a much more entertaining destination.

csi56

And starting in October until April, I believe, you can actually ride on the paths and boardwalk around Jones Beach. I have done that on a warm day in winter and it was neat, added a few interesting and pleasant miles to my exercise.

As for the wind, Tom is right, better to have the wind at your back while you cruise northward. My other question is, why does it sometimes feel like the trail is uphill in both directions?

Steve B.

Was completely off LI yesterday, visiting a buddy in Bucks County, PA, rode the Delaware Canal and Delaware -Raritan Canal paths. With 3 other riders, started just north of Stockton, NJ on the PA side, rode the PA side 16.5 miles down to Yardley, then return same way to Washingtons Crossing, came over to the NJ side and took the DRC trail north back to Stockton, across the river and back to car. 33 miles total, all on gravel, so a bit of a grind.

The west side path is far more enjoyable, in my opinion. More scenic and interesting. The east side, the DRC is wider, straighter and as result, boring at times. Less shade as well though we got out late so caught the sun at midday.

Theres a lot of trail to ride here though, easily 40 miles one way, more if you head NE on the DWC to New Brunswick, which is next on the agenda.

I do love riding dirt and gravel paths though !

Papa Tom

>>>>I do love riding dirt and gravel paths though !<<<<

I'm not sure if I mentioned this in my post about the Connecticut ride, but one of the highlights was riding along the water at Bluff Point State Park and feeling the hard-packed sand kicking up against my calves. The other favorite part was crunching the rocks and gravel beneath my wheels as I traveled the path around the park.

Yes, there is sure something cool about riding on an au natural bikeway. Too bad most of the ones we have here on LI are technical mountain bike paths!

csi56

Does Queens count as Long Island? I'm really enjoying the late sunsets this time of year, gives me time to get out after work while it's still light. Last night I rode again down to Flushing Meadow and back to Fresh Meadows, round trip about 11 miles, with the wind at my back going home. With this folding bike I have an ambition to ride all the way into Manhattan, probably on a Sunday morning, noodle around Central Park, and take the subway back to Queens when I get tired.