pstock

January is a pretty grim month for cyclists in Canada. .
there is just nowhere to escape to.

But it looks like I might have a week free mid-Jan when I could either drive or jump on a plane and go somewhere to ride.(from Torinto)

Where is reasonably warm in the USA? Minimum say.... 60F and has interesting cycling terrain.
Florida is out (as I don't think the cycling is interesting).
California is an obvious choice
What's Virgina like in January? blue Ridge Parkway sounds interesting.
AZ?
the road surfaces in much of Puerto Rico look awful.

And then where - ideally one spot - could I base myself in any of these places so as to have a variety of 60-mile say rides

tcs

If your "60 F minimum" is daily high and not daily lows,
and if your "60 F minimum" is based on average highs and not all-time lowest high,

Then fly into Austin and go to:

Fredericksburg, Texas



RideWithGPS more rides than you can shake a pump at:
https://ridewithgps.com/find#search/...%5Bsort_by%5D=

soyabean

It's really not that hard.

I would go anywhere SOUTH. It won't cost me more than going to other less "south" states.

I've been to California (LA-San Diego), Arizona (Phoenix-Tucson), Florida (South Beach).

I wouldn't even bother bringing down a bike. Just buy one there assembled, then bring it back boxed in pieces. Take my sweet time re-assembling it home.

rosefarts

Road riding? Texas or Arizona.

Mountain, Hurricane Utah.

Sleep in, the morning chill warms up quickly.

terrymorse 

If you do choose California in January, your best bet is the desert. January can be wet in the rest of the state.

Palm Springs, Palm Desert, or Borrego Springs make good base camps.

I know several California cyclists who winter in Borrego Springs. Fly into San Diego and drive there.

wolfchild

Speak for yourself and HTFU.

noimagination

If you want temps in the 60s in January, you can rule out the Blue Ridge Parkway. This week, the highest temp. is forecast to be 46°F, and the lowest 11°F.

Heck, my wife and I were cycling the BRP this past August, and temps were mainly in the 50's and lower 60's. - for sure it never made it to 70. The BRP is beautiful, but it is not tropical. You can run into cool, misty, rainy weather any time of year.

I have no personal experience, but a lot of cycling teams do training camps in Arizona during the winter, I believe. My LBS does a camp there, not sure where specifically.

pstock

I might have got my temp targets wrong. I was trying to speak in F for the American audience while we use Celsius
I'd say 60F daily average would be ideal.

I see that's what it is presently in the Azores at this time of year (55-65)

indyfabz

It's obvious to everyone but you that he's speaking for himself.

easyupbug 

We winter just outside Tucson and have friends who come down every winter for a week or more, same can be said for Phoenix and it's suburbs. Unless there is a cold front coming through like this week you will see 60s and Tucson has a lot of variety from the 130 mile cycling path loop around the city to cycling up the Mt Lemmon Hwy, an incredible ride and will rival some of the best climbs anywhere in the country. Starts off at about 2,557 ft surrounded by saguaros and mesquites and climbs as high as 8,198 ft to pines and snow.

pdlamb

As noimagination says, forget the Blue Ridge Parkway in January. Unless you're cross-country skiing. Long stretches are often closed because of snow, ice, and ice-downed trees until March.

Southern Arizona has some nice riding -- surprising to me, I needed antihistamines in February! New Mexico, Albuquerque and south, might also be a good choice.

Lombard

ClydeClydeson

Don't go to the US, go somewhere nice.

Lombard

How about South America where it will soon be summer?

superdex

+1 for American Southwest. Hill country Texas, too (Austin)

pstock

Sorry, Yes, I should have been more clear.
Road Riding.
and I would be hauling one of my Bike Fridays. (Don't Leave Home WIthout It.)

pstock

agreed but the US = cheap, fairly convenient, direct, farily short duration flights.
Plus, it's simple. I don't want to sightsee on this trip. I just want to ride.

my Go To destination lately has been the Azores Islands (PT) which also has cheap, convenient. short duration (5h) flights from Toronto, excellent cycling, very little traffic, fabulous food and wine, cheap cost of living, and it has a lovely temperate (never too hot, never too cold) climate.
UT january seems rainy.
though in the Azores I've learned, even when the weather report shows "RAIN" it really only means 15 minutes of rain during the day. the rest of the day can be dry.

_ForceD_

Las Vegas. Nice weather. Lots of bicycle rental shops (all styles of bikes), and they will deliver to your hotel, and suggest good routes. For a fee, you can get a group or personal guide. They’ll drive you to where you want to ride. I did that since I didn’t really know the area, and wanted to make sure I got a memorable ride. Varying terrain in the area. And…plenty to do after the day’s ride.

Edited to add — I spent a year and a half in the Azores (Terceria Isl) when I was in the Navy. Cycling there was great. Winters aren’t too cold, but it can get really windy there in the wintertime. So much so that they suspend the use of high-profile vehicles…SUVs, panel trucks, etc. Not great for cycling.

Dan

Lombard

Hmmm. This certainly has piqued my interest. I don't like tropical weather, but I could enjoy this during "shelf season" like Dec. or March as in too cold to bike, but not enough snow to xc ski.

Then again, maybe not.

ClydeClydeson

Great suggestion. The area around LV is beautiful wide open desert and is probably lovely for riding. Also, it might be easy to find cheap flights.

alcjphil

OK, you have a Bike Friday, so flying is a non issue. Have you thought about Cuba? Lots of Canadians go there and have a great time. Canadians are well regarded there since we have been vacationing there for many years when Americans were not able to go. It is easy to find Cuban cyclists to ride with. Hint: if you have clothing and bike parts you no longer need, take them with you, and donate them, you won't regret it

pstock

these are shots from my solo visit in mid-March 2022. (Main island, Sao Migquel - good variety of routes)
https://photos.app.goo.gl/yqPv8euYDAKUnkK88
temps were 15-18C / 55-65F
and that is about what it is all year long. down a few degrees in the winter, up a few degrees in the summer.
ideal for cycling. Lots of hills, uber scenic, very quiet roads.
There were moments of rain even in March. but it's warm enough that it's not uncomfortable.
there are also apparently direct flights from Boston.
Everyone speaks English.
And there is one bike shop in Ponta Delgada that rents decent looking road bikes. (though I always take my own)
I was back again in October (Pico which is small and fairly limited routes, and Terciera - better routes) and we did seem to hit more rain and damp periods. though again, it was like what they say about the weather in Boston "if you don't like it, wiat 15 minutes and it'll change"

I am looking at it again now as a January option. still warm - 55-65 and the charts show that it should be less rainy than Nov/Dec (which are the wettest months).

I have never faced tough wind during either of my two Azores visits. but then ForceD spent much more time there and so has seen more.

pstock

I've cycled while in Cuba (though as cycling was not the focus of the trip I really only managed a few short outings from our resorts. Nice to have almost completely empty roads though.)
My bestitation about Cuba is the lack of tourism infrastructure outside of the big resorts. I am a wimp when I travel - I like a decent meal and a decent bed.
Lynette Chiang wrote about her 2007 three month adventure Bike Fridaying around Cuba.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/...st_Man_in_Cuba
great read. but sometimes the food and accomondation options when freestyle travelling sound pretty grim.
Maybe things have improved since 2007 but I don't think so. if anything it sounds like things are worse.

zandoval 

Its just an 18 hour drive from Hogtown (Toronto) to Five Flags (Pensacola) Florida. Average temp in January in upper 60s. Lots of trails...

pstock

good suggestion.
searching around I found this site/group which seems to have some excellenet and well-curated LV rides.

https://ridewithgps.com/organization...ation_gain=800