Best National Park to ride?

Aloha all -

With our new Bike Friday's, hubby and I are anxious to travel with them. Big plan was Yellowstone ride lodge to lodge. But, having driven those roads I know there is no shoulder and room for dorks towing motor homes that are watching bison and not the road. :mad:

So I'm wondering if there is a "best Bike Friendly National Park" list or recommendation from anyone?

Paved to packed gravel/dirt is best.
Will consider tent camping in areas sans bear (black or brown).
Prefer lodge to lodge riding with a sprinkle of camping here and there.
No epic climbs please. But can handle gradual elevation gains over the course of a day.
70-80 miles would be a max day. Comfortable with no more than 60 if possible. 30-40 is a nice FUN distance.
The more west it is the better as we are coming from Hawaii.

Doesn't have to be Natl. Parks, but it's a start.

Thanks!

We just got back from a quick whirl through Death Valley on the way home from Mammoth and I was marveling at the awesome condition of the road. An early morning or late evening ride would be great, but I love heat and find the desert beautiful. For others, maybe something to think about for the winter months.

How long do you want to be riding?
I'm thinking the series of national parks of Southern Utah (going park to park). Zion, Bryce, Capital Reef- or to the east side of the state with Canyonlands and Arches.
We rode in Zion, and it was great!! Even tho the roads were narrow, cars gave us wide berth (although we did have to hitch a ride through the tunnel part as they were doing construction). There were the RV's that sometimes came too close, but you're going to truthfully have that in any national park where the scenery makes you want to gawk as you drive, IMO.

I just LOVE the Southwest. Can't get enough.

http://www.utah.com/nationalparks/


I've heard Glacier NP is amazing, too, but have not ever been there so I don't know what the road conditions are like, nor do I know about lodging and distance between.

Thanks for these...

I think we would do a 1.5-2 week trip. Not riding every day. Ride to location X, stay 2 nights, hike, explore, etc. Ride to location Y, repeat.

A few years back we did a backcountry car camping/off-road trip through Utah. Started in Vegas (easy flight from Hawaii) through Zion, Bryce, Capital Reef, Canyonlands, Arches and then across and down. It was quite nice but it would be a CRAZY ride to do all that. I know REI does a bike trip of Zion and Bryce which I might look into.

GNP is on our "must see" list. Amtrak runs right to the front gate from Seattle so that would be an easy way to get there without a rental car. I might look into that one.

Thanks!

Other thought is Denali but those bears...eeek. I just dunno.

D

Are you bringing your bikes or renting?

(Just curious b/c of the Amtrak reference. I think they still accept bikes as checked bags, but I know that most of the employees are far from gentle when they see bike boxes.)

you should read the book by edward abby called Desert Solitude if you haven't already. It's all about arches and adventures.

You might check out adventurecycling.org for suggested routes, maps, supported tours, etc. They are a great resource for bike touring.

I grew up in Yellowstone and you can tour but do the tour Mid September to early October, substantially less traffic. However you would want to plan on camping some as many of the lodges are closed. Yes Bison are a factor. GNP in the fall is another option for sure. Where ever you go, just avoid peak season - for those parks is Mid July through Labor Day

New York's Adirondack Park isn't a national park exactly, but it is an incredible place to bike. The shoulders are expansive and cars are generally courteous to bicyclists. There are lots of little towns all throughout the Adirondacks, fantastic swimming holes and rivers to wade in, great beer and wonderful camp grounds/lodges. I would definitely recommend it to any cyclist.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by jessmarimba

Are you bringing your bikes or renting?

(Just curious b/c of the Amtrak reference. I think they still accept bikes as checked bags, but I know that most of the employees are far from gentle when they see bike boxes.)

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Yes, I just looked into this recently. You can reserve spots for full sized bikes for $5-$10/bike (pretty incredible) but folding bikes are allowed as carry on luggage! So awesome.

We will bring our Bike Friday's (folding bikes, fit in standard suitcase or fold into a bag) so it looks like we are good there.

Thanks for the references and suggestions. Fall would be a wonderful time to head out - cooler and colorful. Something we don't get much of in Hawaii. ;-)

Denise

Visit a foreign country: Canada.
Banff National Park and Lake Louise in Alberta. These are National Park areas..

Some animal shots seen in Park: http://www.explorerockies.com/wildlife-sightings.aspx

Bus company also goes from Calgary airport to either Banff or Lake Louise.

Cycling around Banff you would enjoy. There are paved roads and mountain bike roads.

I've cycled between Banff and Lake Louise several times. 50 kms. one way I think.

There is the option to take train from Vancouver BC to Jasper, where there is another Canadian national park up. Then cycle south to Lake Louise, Banff.

The federal Canadian govn't website (since there are other promotional websites on these famous areas):

http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/banff/index.aspx
http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/pn-np/ab/jasper/index.aspx

I have been to:

Yoho National Park
Waterton National Park....which then becomes Glacier National Park in the U.S. :)
Marble Canyon neare Yoho is gorgeous....and so on.

Mount Revelstoke National Park is beautiful both in summer and winter.

I love the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. I've only done tiny snippets of it, but drivers are very courteous and the climbs are very challenging. We also did a small stretch of Going to the Sun road in Glacier National Park. The bear fear factor was a big one, since while driving around in our car we had seen more bears than deer!