Messages

1

Routes / Re: Albany to Portland, ME

« on: August 29, 2016, 08:10:17 pm »

Rt 20 is one option, which runs all the way from oregon to eastern MA.. It's longer than I-80 (and older!)..   

Once you get outside Albany, it does get a bit better and not a 4 lane highway and once you get east of I-90 it gets a lot better..   

Once you hit pittsfield, MA you could stick to 20 which zig zags around I-90 (mass pike) or pick up Rt 9 which goes towards Northhampton, MA

Once you get to eastern MA, you have a bunch of options as to the Atlantic Coastal route, the east coast greenway or your own route up towards Portland, ME

Jay

2

General Discussion / Re: Getting the bike to Banff for the GDR?

« on: June 15, 2016, 07:52:24 pm »

I had my bike shipped to the hotel I started in, but it's international so it might be pretty costly, be careful with the tax too..

Jay

3

GPS & Digital Data Discussion / Re: Garmin Edge 1000 Explore

« on: June 15, 2016, 07:18:05 pm »

I just picked up an Edge Explore and currently playing around with Garmin's Basecamp and OSMs...  I've found a way to load more than one map onto my laptop (windows) but not a way to display more than one "region" at a time, but I'm still playing...   Found some missing "bike paths" not in OSM or garmin's basemap too..  And the interface is a little awkward IMO. However, some of that is just me not being familiar with it yet..

Is there a way to show more than one region at once? at least with the OSM updates anyway?

Jay

4

Routes / Re: Cycling in Nova Scotia

« on: August 11, 2015, 07:35:49 am »

"The cape Breton route took 14 days 9 years ago (extended) It's pleasant, not spectacular and worth the trip having done it 9 years ago"

Was it paved? I know the loop has gotten a lot more popular recently, and I know it was a lot less developed or paved awhile ago... I did the loop last year and thinking if one wasn't sight seeing/touring, it could almost be like a 2 day trip...with the roads in the national park very nice and better than the outside areas on Cape Breton island.

Jay

5

Routes / Re: Advice on New England/New York routes

« on: August 10, 2015, 07:11:58 pm »

A great resource for rides in the Kingdom is http://www.nvda.net/files/cyclingthekingdom070413.pdf
Some of the services denoted on the maps are no longer in business as of 8.1.15 (when I completed 3 of the loops), yet there are others NOT listed such as private campgrounds, general stores, etc.

http://novastarcruises.com/?gclid=CPLbtu3Qn8cCFdYSHwodCpYJeQ

It's expensive for a car and if you actually want to buy a bunkroom but the nice thing about the Portland to NS ferry is that the ferry leaves Portland at late evening and you arrive in Yarmouth in the morning.   The return trip kind of takes a day as it leaves in the morning....   However, here's a hint since I assume you're adventurous, don't get a room, at most, reserve a seat in the upstairs deck, you'll probably have the entire space to yourself and a few other souls, bring your sleeping pad and sleeping bag and setup under the chairs...  You'll probably have the showers and bathroom to yourself... it's not a private room but its awfully cheaper than one.... 

Jay

6

Routes / Re: Great Divide, Frequency of towns and cell phone coverage

« on: August 10, 2015, 03:10:54 pm »

And you will even have cell coverage in many places high up outside of town on the ridgelines where there is little/less trees and good line of sight. I know my friends had some pretty good cell coverage for most of the trip I was with.

Jay   

7

Routes / Re: Advice on New England/New York routes

« on: August 10, 2015, 10:34:32 am »

The ACA's Adirondack loop can get you to Albany or close to it... also the Lake Champlain Bikeways can help for loops around Lake Champlain and/or getting to Whitehall where there is a bus station.     

You might also check out the Cross Vermont Trail which is in development but passable... it's part gravel but generally supposed to be doable in a road bike with wide tires...  (It's on my todo list)...   

VT state campgrounds are awesome, hard to go wrong with touring in new england, better if you have a gravel friendly bike, vt has some nice dirt roads off the beaten path and so do many states outside the metropolitan area. 

could also consider riding into Canada, La Route Verta has an extensive network of trails around Quebec, etc.   Or take the ferry from South Portand to Yarmouth, NS and just ride from the terminal..... Ride to Halifax, Ride to Cape Breton, etc. etc..  Do the Cabot Trail...

Jay

8

General Discussion / Re: Logistics for GDMBR

« on: February 03, 2015, 03:21:19 pm »

You should be able to meet up in Lima, MT,  A bunch of us stayed at Centennial Outfitters in the 4 man bunk house right by Red Rocks and you could easily drive the road that gets to that ranch...   And there is also a regular town in Idaho before the route hits that famous volcanic ash section... 

Jay

9

Routes / Re: Crossing into Canada?

« on: January 03, 2015, 06:54:53 pm »

One suggestion about the border crossings, not all of them are open 24 hours/day, 7 days a week so research that when the time is near just in case you're doing odd hours... 

Jay

10

Gear Talk / Re: Lights that will attach to the light mounting holes on racks

« on: December 23, 2014, 02:48:51 pm »

Many of the lights come in two parts, a plastic ring meant to go around a seatpost and then the light itself which slides onto the ring part. Well I have an old cateye light and simply used an L bracket that is probably under a $1 at your local hardware store and a spare bolt and nut and I mount the light using the L bracket and not the ring part. Works fine and is a cheap solution.  You'd have to be willing to tinker though...

Jay

11

General Discussion / Re: The North Face Speaker Series / Alex Honnold and Cedar Wright

« on: December 23, 2014, 02:46:20 pm »

they had a short film about their adventure in last winter's Banff Mtn Film Festival and their travelling tour.  I enjoyed seeing it in the Berkshires... 

Jay

12

Urban Cycling / Re: Cat Carriers

« on: December 13, 2014, 01:16:40 pm »

How about an enclosed trailer?   

Jay

13

General Discussion / Re: what kind of bikes on GDMBR

« on: August 18, 2014, 05:53:04 pm »

It was a 2013 El Mariachi with the alternator dropouts...  No, had no issues with bike. I somehow accidentally hit the Shimano brifters somewhere in southern WY/northern CO such that my front der stopped shifting to the granny gear but I figured that out in Steamboat Springs.  The Shimao brifters have a switch which configures the shifter from a triple to a double config which I somehow accidentally hit w/o realizing it.     And yes the elMar is a 29er.  I also ran plain old fashioned tubes, no slime, no tubeless.   

Jay

14

General Discussion / Re: what kind of bikes on GDMBR

« on: August 18, 2014, 07:13:51 am »

Jay

thanks for responding!

did you use  panniers or trailer or ultralight  (revelate bags)?

thanks

Steve

I used a revelate "gas tank" and the revelate frame bag (rebadged for Salsa) but I used a boulder bikepacking drybag harness for the handlebars and I used a thule pack0-n-pedal rack with a Banjo Brother's trunk bag.  I also used a deuter bike daypack for other items...  Most of my friends I did it with had Vicensas (spelling?)...   

If I go back, I'd just ditch the trunk bag and put on my small panniers on my rear rack... and I'd probably configure a small food bag in addition to the harness in front (just to try to reduce the weight in my backpack)...   Especially since I'm done with most of the singletrack already...   

Jay

15

General Discussion / Re: what kind of bikes on GDMBR

« on: August 17, 2014, 06:52:33 pm »

Full suspension rigs have ridden the GDMBR, a friend of mine did it on a fully.  It's certainly a good idea to have a lockout on both sides. Surely there is a greater chance of failure but that doesn't mean it can't be done.   I think you'll find all kinds of bikes on the GD. I did 1700 miles from Banff to CO in a Salsa hardtail but you'll see fatbikes, SSs, etc.   And I didn't see any reason that one can't do it in traditional rack and panniers so long as they are really rock solid.  Vast majority of the trail is not singletrack and even the singletrack that we did do wasn't crazy narrow, in some spots you'd just have to be a little more careful like descending Richmont Mt. Of course, bikepacking is better in the winds across the great basin and I did it that style, but it can be done with traditional touring gear so long as it's sturdy. 

You'll find a lot of water bottle cage failures from the weld points so same issues may affect racks... 

Jay