Cycling vacation recommendations

[dinneR]

Last year, we went to the San Juan Islands and took our road bikes. Last month, we did a bikepacking trip in Grand Staircase Escalante. We are looking for something this summer. Possibilities so far are Northern California(Pt Reyes area and wine country), Vancouver, BC area, or Vancouver Island.

Any recommendations? Western U.S. or Canada.

[Razors Edge]

I've heard Wyoming is pretty sweet!

[Dottleshead]

Road or Mountain?

[dinneR]

37 minutes ago, Dottie said:

Road or Mountain?

Mostly road, but we have mt bikes too and could take all four. 

[Dottleshead]

Well the SJs are pretty tough to beat in conjunction with Jackson. But I think Haley/Ketchum offers you a lot. They have a 25 mile bike path AND some amazing MTBing. And the food in Haley is quite good. Many of the chefs have moved out of Ketchum to there  I also think McCall offers some great MTBing as well as a large valley to explore by road bike.

[Dottleshead]

And if you want to ride 72 miles in the northern Idaho panhandle, then check out the CDA trail. I have a blog on this site worth checking out.

[Dottleshead]

I'm guessing you have done the Ketchum thing?

[Dottleshead]

Finally, Moab, UT is worth a visit. I don't think I need to tell you about their MTBing but I wanted to ride their roads out to other spectacular park destinations and didn't have time.

[Razors Edge]

25 minutes ago, dennis said:

Mostly road, but we have mt bikes too and could take all four. 

You mentioned Vancouver, so if willing to go that far, then Whistler is worth the extra couple hours.  But that is mostly MTB, but glorious.

[Dottleshead]

Oh yeah. Last one, last one. Monterey is awesome and has a bike path that goes around the bay and the rides through Pebble Beach can't be beat.

[Zephyr]

How long of a trip are you looking for?

[dinneR]

51 minutes ago, Zephyr said:

How long of a trip are you looking for?

Probably 9 days. 

Monterey sounds interesting. Not sure about Ketchum. I might ride the Smoke and Fire this fall. Vancouver and Whistler would be awesome. It could be a stretch, I'll have to look into it more. 

Last year in the San Juans we had a home base on San Juan Island and we island hopped. Each day was a different ride seeing sights, nothing crazy in terms of mileage. Ride, visit a lavender farm. Ride, have lunch. Ride visit a winery. We finished each night with a stop at the grocery store, buy food and wine, cook dinner at our little cottage. All road riding. The San Juans are pretty safe roads to ride. We were able to stay off the main roads and avoid traffic. 

So I am looking for something where we can have a home base and take in a different ride each day. 

[Zephyr]

Stay away from Vancouver Island then.  We are mostly populated on the east side only and so there is mountains on one side and water on the other.  You choices are basically limited to out and back either "up island" or "down island".  The south end, Victoria, is great cycling, but not 9 days worth.

Kelowna would be a nice central location to stage from up here.  you can go a number of different directions and if oyu brought your mtbs too you could even try the Kettle Valley ride which is nice.

Vancouver has lots of traffic and you need to pick your routes to stay away from loads of cars.

[Dottleshead]

5 minutes ago, Zephyr said:

Kelowna would be a nice central location to stage from up here.  you can go a number of different directions and if oyu brought your mtbs too you could even try the Kettle Valley ride which is nice.

Yeah, this would be interesting too. What do you think about Kootenay?

[Dottleshead]

57 minutes ago, dennis said:

Monterey sounds interesting. Not sure about Ketchum.

Monterey is on our to do list.  Lot's of stuff to do there besides biking as well so when you want down time -- you've got options. But if you just want to make it about biking, then you certainly can. As for Ketchum, beautiful place but a tourist trap.  However, both my wife and I liked Haley about 7 miles south and it's not obvious when you pass through there by car.  Certainly enough road riding/bike paths if you want it -- but the real gain there is MTBing.  It's another target destination of ours. We are roadsters first but since introducing my wife to MTBs -- that could change someday.

I also want to add that Coeur d'Alane as an option for you too.  They have the Centennial Trail that you can catch right out of downtown Coeur d'Alane and it's about 40 miles to the bowl and pitcher in the Riverside state park in greater Spokane.  It basically follows the lake and river all the way.  But you can't catch the Trail of the Coeur d'Alanes from there that runs from Mullens, ID to Plummer, ID.  Beautiful ride.  But I'm pretty sure you can hire drivers from a LBS to take you to either trail head. Still, probably enough interesting things for you to see in your 9 days if you include all the surrounding areas.  Lake Coeur d'Alane has a lot of recreation and the drive north to Sand Point is pretty rad too not to mention the Trail of the Hiawatha .  But while that's a beautiful ride, it's commercialized and has a lot of lemmings.

If you are looking for continuous bike riding from a hub with greatest of ease, most things to do, beautiful scenery, and minimal use of car, then my vote is Monterey.  But bring your wallet.

[ChrisL]

13 minutes ago, dennis said:

Probably 9 days. 

Monterey sounds interesting. Not sure about Ketchum. I might ride the Smoke and Fire this fall. Vancouver and Whistler would be awesome. It could be a stretch, I'll have to look into it more. 

Last year in the San Juans we had a home base on San Juan Island and we island hopped. Each day was a different ride seeing sights, nothing crazy in terms of mileage. Ride, visit a lavender farm. Ride, have lunch. Ride visit a winery. We finished each night with a stop at the grocery store, buy food and wine, cook dinner at our little cottage. All road riding. The San Juans are pretty safe roads to ride. We were able to stay off the main roads and avoid traffic. 

So I am looking for something where we can have a home base and take in a different ride each day. 

I have ridden NorCal several times and PCH through Big Sur is spectacular.  South of Big Sur is still gorgeous but not as visually appealing and fairly flat/slight rollers.  South of Morro is boring IMHO but I see the ocean weekly...

Personally I’d hit the Eastern Sierra/Mammoth area.  Elevation is a beotch but lots of good road, MTB (not just DH) and even gravel.  That and good hiking, fishing, canoeing, lots of places to stay ranging from tents to 5 star and good food options.

[dinneR]

10 minutes ago, Zephyr said:

Stay away from Vancouver Island then.  We are mostly populated on the east side only and so there is mountains on one side and water on the other.  You choices are basically limited to out and back either "up island" or "down island".  The south end, Victoria, is great cycling, but not 9 days worth.

Kelowna would be a nice central location to stage from up here.  you can go a number of different directions and if oyu brought your mtbs too you could even try the Kettle Valley ride which is nice.

Vancouver has lots of traffic and you need to pick your routes to stay away from loads of cars.

Kelowna looks awesome and closer than Vancouver. Thanks for the recommendation. 

I've been to Kamloops and a bunch of the provincial parks like Garibaldi, Manning, and Wells Gray. Jasper and Banff were on my list, but they seemed too busy to ride a bike on the road.

 

[dinneR]

2 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

I have ridden NorCal several times and PCH through Big Sur is spectacular.  South of Big Sur is still gorgeous but not as visually appealing and fairly flat/slight rollers.  South of Morro is boring IMHO but I see the ocean weekly...

Personally I’d hit the Eastern Sierra/Mammoth area.  Elevation is a beotch but lots of good road, MTB (not just DH) and even gravel.  That and good hiking, fishing, canoeing, lots of places to stay ranging from tents to 5 star and good food options.

I'm getting a lot to consider. 

We have an elevation buster. GF just bought an Orbea Gain. It is designed for pavement and gravel. 25lbs, not bad.

[BuffJim]

The Columbia River. Start at the Pacific near Astoria and Ride to the Dalles. 

[ChrisL]

4 minutes ago, dennis said:

I'm getting a lot to consider. 

We have an elevation buster. GF just bought an Orbea Gain. It is designed for pavement and gravel. 25lbs, not bad.

There is climbing for sure but much of the mammoth area is above 8 thousand feet going up to 10 thousand.  It was that elevation I was referring to.

I usually don’t do anything strenuous the first day or two I’m up there.  Sometimes just putting on my waders makes me light headed!  I have come across several college cross country teams hold training camps up there for elevation training.

[dinneR]

2 minutes ago, BuffJim said:

The Columbia River. Start at the Pacific near Astoria and Ride to the Dalles. 

On I84 or the historic hwy? Is that safe?

[Dottleshead]

16 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

Personally I’d hit the Eastern Sierra/Mammoth area. 

Yeah, I've driven through there from Tahoe to you -- but I wasn't biking back then.  Looking back, I think you're right.  This would be another great area to ride.

[dinneR]

1 minute ago, ChrisL said:

There is climbing for sure but much of the mammoth area is above 8 thousand feet going up to 10 thousand.  It was that elevation I was referring to.

I usually don’t do anything strenuous the first day or two I’m up there.  Sometimes just putting on my waders makes me light headed!  I have come across several college cross country teams hold training camps up there for elevation training.

We live at 6300 ft. She has summited some big peaks like Rainier, the Matterhorn, the Grand. She can kick my ass at elevation.

What is the riding around Tahoe like?

[BuffJim]

3 minutes ago, dennis said:

On I84 or the historic hwy? Is that safe?

I did a combo. More on the historic highway which has a lot of 600 foot elevation hills. 

[Dottleshead]

9 minutes ago, dennis said:

We live at 6300 ft. She has summited some big peaks like Rainier, the Matterhorn, the Grand. She can kick my ass at elevation.

What is the riding around Tahoe like?

@Page Turner I talked this over with Page when I visited him there.  I always wanted to do it -- but he convinced me not to as there's a bunch of effing loons travelling around that lake on vacation.  Probably a suicide ride.

[Page Turner]

3 minutes ago, dennis said:

What is the riding around Tahoe like?

...around Tahoe or "around " Tahoe ? It's a mountain bike Mecca.  The road around the lake ride is dangerous as hell in some places because the shoulder disappears and there are Winnebago's driven by seniors everywhere you look.

There's a complete trail around the Tahoe basin rim now, called the Rim Trail, but it's not all zoned for MTB use, so you can't do the whole circuit, but you can do a lot of it.  There are other popular off road trails, but they get pretty crowded.

The elevations at the lake and at the passes range from about 6.300 to just shy of 8,500. There's pretty limited bike access to the higher peaks around there.  The Markleeville Death Ride is the big road event for mountain passes, but it fills up pretty fast because everyone wants the t-shirt.

 

I personally will not ride a road bike on the road or shoulders up there, but my brother in law has done the lake loop several times...I think it's about 70 miles around the lake at about 6300 feet in elevation.

[Dottleshead]

It is, however, a great ride by car.  ^^^  

 

?

[ChrisL]

13 minutes ago, dennis said:

We live at 6300 ft. She has summited some big peaks like Rainier, the Matterhorn, the Grand. She can kick my ass at elevation.

What is the riding around Tahoe like?

Oh yeah good point. There are numerous MTB trails but I have never ridden up there. It’s on my bucket list...  

 It’s a reasonable drive from Mammoth if you have 9 days.  

[Road Runner]

None of these suggestions sound like they would be suitable vacations from cycling.  

[Dottleshead]

So @dennis another place my wife and I want to ride is in Jackson.  Speaking of tourist traps -- I suspect it's worth it.  But please tell me about the biking. We'd probably be doing mainly road riding/path riding but MTBing would most likely be an option too.  We're in are young 50s and I wouldn't exactly call us hardcore but we're no puffs like that foul smelling, urine drenching, flatulence ridden @jsharr guy.  

Would you recommend it?  My wife has never been to Jellystone nor the Tetons so we're going to go anyway.  Just trying to get an idea of the biking there.

[Page Turner]

..there is another thing in Tahoe that I personally find odd, but it seems to be taking off, Downhill.  They have these special downhill bikes that are pretty heavy, and designed with large travel suspension and look like small motocross motorcycles. You can rent them at all the ski resorts, and then they sell you a lift ticket to ride up with your bike on the gondola lifts.  Then you ride down.  All downhill is the new black.  The resorts figure it's revenue in the off season, so they're pushing it as a sport.

 

It looks like an excellent way to indulge in the sorts of spectacular falls that lead to chronic injury, but I'm certain if I wee in my 20's-30's I'd be lining up with the rest of the thrill seekers. You can sit at the cafes and bars in the village at Northstar and get a pretty good view of the action up on the mountain, especially if you bring binoculars.  There's a whole orthopedic sindustry at Tahoe based on the skiing, so I'm guessing this downhill biking helps their business model too.  

[late]

This isn't the Pac NW, but something to keep in mind:

https://ciclismoclassico.com/

 

I did Bike Across Italy.

https://ciclismoclassico.com/tours/bike-across-italy/

 

This one wasn't available back then, and it would have been beyond my abilities even then, but this looks fabulous:

 

https://ciclismoclassico.com/tours/epic-italy/

 

 

[Razors Edge]

55 minutes ago, dennis said:

59 minutes ago, BuffJim said:

The Columbia River. Start at the Pacific near Astoria and Ride to the Dalles. 

On I84 or the historic hwy? Is that safe?

I just listened to a Gravel Ride podcast with Tim Clark of Kitsbow.  He talked of discovering gravel with a similar (but S -> N) Klamath Falls to the Dalles ride. A computer transcription:

Tim Clark: And that with a little bit of ingenuity on parts I could create pretty capable off road, drop our bike out of, out of it. And which I did. And at the same, that same year, it might've been in 2013 was the first Oregon outback and it just sparked my imagination. And now I had this bike and they had this Oregon Outback ride that was happening where you started out in Klamath falls, basically California border and you know, through however many days you want to do it right. All the way up to the Dalles, which is, you know, the mouth of the Colbia, the northern most border of Oregon. So you basically ride the state how however long it takes you to do it all on dirt roads. And I just thought, man, this is great. And so a friend of mine whom I met doing some of these local gravel rides, he was also training for it as well.

Some interesting stuff pops up for WA and OR on Jan Heine's blog and in the Bicycle Quarterly magazine.  A few issues back had two interesting stories: "Traversing the Sawtooth Range" and "Solistice Gravel Ride Around Mt. Hood", but there is some pretty good riding in that part of America as DH and Dottles can attest.

We test the Masi Speciale Randonneur and the Frances Farfarer trailer by taking them on a real adventure: our third attempt to traverse the Sawtooth Range. Will a new route bring success? Is the affordable Masi bike enough for such an adventure? And how does the trailer carry its load? Click here to watch a video of this exciting adventure!

Fun on a bike doesn’t get much better than a solstice gravel ride skirting the flanks of Mount Hood, one of the volcanos of the Cascade Range. Join a group of friends as they explore some of the most amazing and challenging roads of the Pacific Northwest.

 

...But, there is always MEXICO!

 

[Page Turner]

17 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

...But, there is always MEXICO !

 

El Desafio Paseo Ciclista Mexicali San Felipe 200 Kms

 

[dinneR]

5 hours ago, Dottie said:

So @dennis another place my wife and I want to ride is in Jackson.  Speaking of tourist traps -- I suspect it's worth it.  But please tell me about the biking. We'd probably be doing mainly road riding/path riding but MTBing would most likely be an option too.  We're in are young 50s and I wouldn't exactly call us hardcore but we're no puffs like that foul smelling, urine drenching, flatulence ridden @jsharr guy.  

Would you recommend it?  My wife has never been to Jellystone nor the Tetons so we're going to go anyway.  Just trying to get an idea of the biking there.

The mt biking is amazing, but hard. Targhee has some great beginner and intermediate trails. 

Road riding is good too. You can ride from town to Jenny lake on a bike path. Jenny lake north to Yellowstone is on the road with cars. The pathway runs throughout the county and you make it to the top of the pass or out to Teton Village and south to Hoback.

[Dottleshead]

Utter crap.

[dinneR]

2 minutes ago, Dottie said:

Utter crap.

Exactly. 

[ChrisL]

A couple of years ago I drove into Yosemite from Mammoth/Lee Vining on 120 through Tioga pass.  Saw a couple of guys riding the pass.   

That would be an epic ride with the scenery, climbs & descents.

[Dottleshead]

Yeah it's a bike trip for sure. Any good bike rental places in town?

[Dottleshead]

1 minute ago, ChrisL said:

A couple of years ago I drove into Yosemite from Mammoth/Lee Vining on 120 through Tioga pass.  Saw a couple of guys riding the pass.   

That would be an epic ride with the scenery, climbs & descents.

I'm not fit enough to ride such things.

[Zephyr]

6 hours ago, Dottie said:

Yeah, this would be interesting too. What do you think about Kootenay?

I don't know that area as well.  We usually do Kelowna so we can ride hard and wine tour hard.  :^)

[dinneR]

6 minutes ago, Dottie said:

Yeah it's a bike trip for sure. Any good bike rental places in town?

Every shop in town has rentals. They are all good.

Thinking about one of these this summer

http://www.bikepacking.com/routes/idaho-smoke-n-fire-400/

http://www.bikepacking.com/routes/three-ranges-cowboy-country/

or the Fitzy Barn or a tour of the Big Holes. Lots of options

[dinneR]

Just now, Zephyr said:

I don't know that area as well.  We usually do Kelowna so we can ride hard and wine tour hard.  :^)

Are there vineyards? That could seal the deal.

[Zephyr]

Yes, It is our "Napa Valley" so to speak.  Some really nice wines come out of there.  Some of the wines are better than the vineyards, Mission Hill is the opposite.  :^)

[dinneR]

5 hours ago, Razors Edge said:

I just listened to a Gravel Ride podcast with Tim Clark of Kitsbow.  He talked of discovering gravel with a similar (but S -> N) Klamath Falls to the Dalles ride. A computer transcription:

Tim Clark: And that with a little bit of ingenuity on parts I could create pretty capable off road, drop our bike out of, out of it. And which I did. And at the same, that same year, it might've been in 2013 was the first Oregon outback and it just sparked my imagination. And now I had this bike and they had this Oregon Outback ride that was happening where you started out in Klamath falls, basically California border and you know, through however many days you want to do it right. All the way up to the Dalles, which is, you know, the mouth of the Colbia, the northern most border of Oregon. So you basically ride the state how however long it takes you to do it all on dirt roads. And I just thought, man, this is great. And so a friend of mine whom I met doing some of these local gravel rides, he was also training for it as well.

Some interesting stuff pops up for WA and OR on Jan Heine's blog and in the Bicycle Quarterly magazine.  A few issues back had two interesting stories: "Traversing the Sawtooth Range" and "Solistice Gravel Ride Around Mt. Hood", but there is some pretty good riding in that part of America as DH and Dottles can attest.

We test the Masi Speciale Randonneur and the Frances Farfarer trailer by taking them on a real adventure: our third attempt to traverse the Sawtooth Range. Will a new route bring success? Is the affordable Masi bike enough for such an adventure? And how does the trailer carry its load? Click here to watch a video of this exciting adventure!

Fun on a bike doesn’t get much better than a solstice gravel ride skirting the flanks of Mount Hood, one of the volcanos of the Cascade Range. Join a group of friends as they explore some of the most amazing and challenging roads of the Pacific Northwest.

 

 

 

Kitsbow's clothing looks great. But $100 for a t-shirt or $220 for a flannel is out of my league. $150 for shorts maybe. Maybe the clearance zone is the way to go.

[Dottleshead]

29 minutes ago, Zephyr said:

Yes, It is our "Napa Valley" so to speak.  Some really nice wines come out of there.  Some of the wines are better than the vineyards, Mission Hill is the opposite.  :^)

It's basically what feeds down through our apple orchards and wine country. Okanagan.

[dinneR]

36 minutes ago, Zephyr said:

Yes, It is our "Napa Valley" so to speak.  Some really nice wines come out of there.  Some of the wines are better than the vineyards, Mission Hill is the opposite.  :^)

This might be the winner. Thanks for mentioning it. I doubt I would have found it on my own. I'll see what my GF thinks. 

[jdc2000]

Dottie:

Another MTB ride to consider is from West Yellowstone to Warm River Campground on the old railroad bed.  There is also another section from Ashton to Tetonia:

https://parksandrecreation.idaho.gov/parks/ashton-tetonia-trail

dennis:

If you want some good road tours, I like the supported ones.  The Tahoe road ride is done in the off seasons, so the traffic is not bad.

Links:

https://www.bikethewest.com/americas-most-beautiful-bike-ride/

https://www.bikethewest.com/tour-de-tahoe/

Other supported tours include the Ride Idaho when they do the North Idaho lakes loop.  You ride on the Trail of the Couer d'Alenes and the Route of the Hiawatha (on rental mountain bikes).  They do that one about every 3 years, so figure on 2021, but check the route each year.

http://www.rideidaho.org

Finally, if you have never done Ride the Rockies, it should be on your list.

https://www.ridetherockies.com/

 

[dinneR]

1 hour ago, jdc2000 said:

Dottie:

Another MTB ride to consider is from West Yellowstone to Warm River Campground on the old railroad bed.  There is also another section from Ashton to Tetonia:

https://parksandrecreation.idaho.gov/parks/ashton-tetonia-trail

 

 

I rode it in July. It's beautiful. I had the trail to myself. The hosts at the campground in Warm River are amazing.

 

 

[Razors Edge]

13 hours ago, dennis said:

Kitsbow's clothing looks great. But $100 for a t-shirt or $220 for a flannel is out of my league. $150 for shorts maybe. Maybe the clearance zone is the way to go.

Yeah - that's not the sort of thing that I would buy a lot of.  I do like the bib options, but those are tough to decide on when buying online.  Size matters

But my point with the Kitsbow interview was just that the podcast was interesting because he has lived a long while now in Oregon, and he painted a nice picture of the gravel (and road) riding scene out there.  Sounded nice for a vacation, and coupled with Heine's various blog posts, articles, and videos, it shows the whole WA & OR areas as pretty nice for a riding adventure.