NoWhammies

The winter weather has me thinking about summer and road trips and checking out some new cycling areas. Plus the open road thread has me interested in seeing some other parts of the world/country. So...

What are some of the best cycling destinations you've been to? I'm NOT looking carry all my gear with me in a pannier and camp along the way. That's not my style nor what I'm looking for.

What I am interested in though are areas where you've flown to and done a 'cycling destination' kinda holiday. I'd be interested in reading if you brought your bikes, what the cost was like, if the organizers moved your gear from villa to villa each night, etc.

Either that, or if you did a road trip from where you live to a local in your country/state/provide and set up shop in a B&B (or whatever) and used it as a based camp to launch different routes each day. If you did this, how did you find out about the routes and where to go.

Feel free to share any pictures of your adventures too. Thanks!

1nterceptor

cccorlew

My wife and I rode from the English Channel to the Med with Peak Cycling last summer.
14 days, no off days, tons of climbing. It was hard, but stunning. Every day was more amazing than the day before. Climbing Mount Ventoux was unreal. Riding through Gorges de Verdon was stunningly beautiful. And I can't say enough good things about Peak. our tour company.

https://www.peak-tours.com/shop/channel-to-the-med/

Seattle Forrest

The North Cascades. Seriously. It's my back yard now, but I moved from Connecticut to be near the place. It's the American Alps, you get to ride by glaciers and volcanoes.

Lazyass

Cloudcroft, New Mexico is a hidden cycling gem. I went there when I lived in El Paso. Great roads with killer climbs, mountain bike trails, lots of cabin rentals and they have bed and breakfast's. It's a little village on top of a mountain. In May they have a 2 day bike festival with an XC race.

NoWhammies

North Cascades sounds pretty good. It's relatively close to home for me and the ability to ride by glaciers and volcanoes sound wicked. Where would you recommend setting up a home base to get the most variety of rides?

Thanks for this. Did you bring your bikes with you when you traveled? And did the tour people take your gear with you from location to location?

Would you recommend staying in El Paso and launching your rides out from there? How did you find your rides/routes? Also, we wouldn't be doing mount bike, it would strictly be road. Any issues with that?

cccorlew

We took our bikes, because I love my bike and didn't want to do something this hard on a borrowed bike. They do offer rentals.
We carried them in EVOC bags. United charged too much, but didn't hurt them.
Peak carried our luggage from hotel to hotel.

Another option we've used, and loved: Adventure cycling.
We rode their van supported multi week trips (they carry your stuff, but you camp and share cooking) and ridden fron South Lake Tahoe to Portland and also Portland to Canada.
We also did their fully supported catered rides of a week through Montana and Oregon. Really good folks, really good rides.

Quote:
Originally Posted by cccorlew
My wife and I rode from the English Channel to the Med with Peak Cycling last summer.
14 days, no off days, tons of climbing. It was hard, but stunning. Every day was more amazing than the day before. Climbing Mount Ventoux was unreal. Riding through Gorges de Verdon was stunningly beautiful. And I can't say enough good things about Peak. our tour company.

https://www.peak-tours.com/shop/channel-to-the-med/
Thanks for this. Did you bring your bikes with you when you traveled? And did the tour people take your gear with you from location to location?

datlas 

Girona is quite nice. I have heard same thing about Mallorca.

Lazyass

Stay at Cloudcroft, El Paso is too far away. Plenty of good roads, just look it up on google maps.

diphthong

noted for a future trip. thanks!

diphthong

still trying to get to ncnp...someday.

stevoo

Tuscany Italy is great. Self guided tour. Rented bikes from a company there.

Colorado. Many, many miles riden there. Tons of options to fit whatever you are looking for. Great cycling!!! Love Colorado. Wonderful road cycling and mountain biking. We bring our own bikes.

Gold country California. Volcano, Sutter Creek, Amador county area. All the wine country nearby. Sonoma county, Napa Valley, etc. Bill Oetinger has some nice cycling maps of the are. Wonderful place to tour. We bring our own bikes.

Moab Utah. Great mountain biking destination.

California coast is also really nice. Pair that with side trips into the coast range. Places like Occidental, Fort Hunter Liggett.
Use our own bikes.

Hawaii. Kind of limited but was fun. Brought our bike, rode around Hanna road loop, up Haleakala and some other places.

So much more but these are a few places to consider.

Happy cycling.

Seattle Forrest

Winthrop is a great choice. Excellent hotels and cabins (I can recommend specific ones if useful), a few restaurants, and good coffee. Washington Pass is a great paved climb, so is Sun Mountain, Harts Pass is unbeatable if you can do gravel. About 50 gorgeous miles away there's a turquoise glacial lake with giant mountains towering over it. A little further and you're at Baker, which is a lot like Rainier but nicer.

I'll post some photos and where they're from when I get to a computer.

on the path

Tucson. I was there this past February. I contributed to a previous thread, starting with post 85 (see link below). Read the thread from the beginning when you have time. The OP wrote a great story and posted some great pics.

https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycl...on-pics-4.html

tigat

Shameless plug for my friend, John, the twin son of a different mother, who runs Cycle Holidays Ireland. It is a locally conceived, locally run, magical tour in a magical place. He'll provide the bikes, transfers, lodging, food, history, music and stories. There is no better way to spend a week.

Seattle Forrest

Drop a line when you do!

Machka 

You're talking about hub-and-spoke tours.

West coast of France would lend itself to something like that. You'd stay in cabins & hotels.

Brisbane was really nice a couple Easter's ago. We stayed in a great cabin, rode a 300K randonnee, and then spent the rest of the time cycling in different directions.

diphthong

will do.

SkepticalOne

Sri Lanka seems to attract some of the most eccentric cyclists the world has seen...been meaning to check it out.

I do enjoy Shenandoah Park VA, Vermont, and Lake Placid area.

mercator

I rented a bike when I went to France. Stayed in St Remy - it was awesome
I took my own bike to Spain, stayed just outside Malaga - also awesome but really hot! Flying with the bike was cheaper than renting, but it can be a hassle if you are not flying direct.
I took my bike to Palm Desert, Ca, really good riding there.
Leaving for Hawaii next week, just packing my bike up now

tinrobot

Sticking to the US :

Portland, Oregon - Great cycling city with lots of fun rides just outside the city. Columbia River gorge is spectacular.
Colorado - Tons of great routes, lots of climbing, gorgeous scenery.
Eastern Sierras (California) - Some of the most most epic climbs in the country.
Bay Area, particularly Marin/Sonoma - Tons of great riding, good weather, and good cycling infrastructure.

NoWhammies

Great suggestions. Thanks everyone. So many destinations and so little time/money...

@Seattle Forrest your suggestion for Winthrop might win the day as it's relatively close to home and from the sounds of it great cycling. Any decision will have to be approved by the travel committee (i.e. the wife). The suggestion for places to say is most appreciated. No rush as we won't be doing any kind of cycling trips until the summer. I'm just trying get some ideas so we have something to look forward to over the winter months.

@tinrobot I like the idea of riding down in Colorado too. I love to climb (the wife, not so much) but the scenery is incredible. Might have to look in to some locations/ideas there too. Of course Portland is equally appealing, especially with all of those craft breweries!


All those suggestions to head over to Europe are definitely appealing! Neither of us have ever been over to Europe and I think doing a bike tour (where they drag our gear from place to place, as opposed to using panniers) would be a great way to see the country. I have some friends who have done cycle trips over to Europe, so maybe I need to pick their brains over a beer or three to see what they can recommend too. Of course I do have some concerns with not being able to DO everything Europe has to offer, since a lot of time will be spend riding from a to b, but I suppose no one can do it all.

Leinster

I rented a bike in the Pyrenees and wished I hadn't. Partly because the Kuota I rented wasn't as good as my Cannondale, partly because even if it was better there's a feeling of "not doing it with your own gear." Plenty of hostel and hotel options throughout the region; we stayed in Bagneres de Bigorre and drove to the foot of whichever mountain we wanted to ride that day.

I also rented on Maui, but I only wanted to do 1 ride (Haleakala). The Roubaix I rented was lighter and probably better than my CAAD10, and certainly had better gearing. But I still would have preferred have my own bike.

Machka 

You won't be able to do everything Europe has to offer, even if you rented a car and even if you lived there for several years.


The area of Europe is: 10.18 million km˛
The area of USA is: 9.834 million km˛


Pick several things you'd like to see and do within a reasonable distance of each other ... then keep going back.

atwl77

Although I've not been to Taiwan, but a lot of cycling my friends have done all manner of cycling there -- from touring packages to the "infamous" Wuling climb -- and loved it.