Bike About Tri State Loop
June 6, 2025 § 1 Comment
In my last post I wrote about the equipment prep as well as the riding prep for some upcoming bikepacking rides. Now I sit here in the comfort of my home after finishing 8 days riding a giant loop around the Tri State NJ/PA/NY/NJ area, having covered a lot of miles and riding every day. I think I will split this into two posts, and so, start this off with the first few days, and then follow it with the last.
I needed to test out my bikepacking equipment, and I needed to develop my legs. I am recently out-of-work and sort of retired, so while I have been able to put some regular road miles into my legs, I felt a need to get some bikepacking miles into them as well before taking on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route later in June, and so when the opportunity was presented to join another group that was doing a 4 day out and back to Jim Thorpe, I jumped onto that and started planning. I had already mapped a route from Hancock NY to Pier 11 in lower Manhattan, so I just needed to add in a route from Jim Thorpe to Hancock, and thus make an 8 day ride out of this.
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May 19, 2025 § 2 Comments
I have signed on to a ride starting just prior to the Solstice with a couple of people I have met through a local Hiker/Biker group that operates out of the Morris/Essex counties area of New Jersey. I was introduced to this group via my friend Paul that has joined me on some of my backpacking adventures and now that I am nearing the end of my working career, I am looking for bikepacking adventures as well. This particular adventure will be 2 northern sections of the GDMBR (Greate Divide Mountain Bike Ride) from Kalispel MT, to Jackson Wyoming. My plan is to leave them 1 or 2 days prior to their destination, and jump on the Adventure Cycling’s Parks, Peaks and Prairies ride and try to get to Orange City Iowa in time for this year’s Ragbrai (Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa) which some other friends I have are doing this year. I did the 50th anniversary edition of Ragbrai in 2023 and at the end of that ride we all agreed to try again this year. Once I am done with Ragbrai 2025, then the plan is very fluid. More than likely I will simply keep going and work my way back home to New Jersey, however I will probably try and work my way up to Buffalo to get onto The Empire State Trail, and ride to Manhattan and home. In 1981, with my buddy Frank, we rode fairly straight across the states from Iowa, so I am not too keen to repeat that. Another possibility is to head North, and then West and ride to Bend Oregon. That seems very unlikely, but it is not out of the question.
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