Looking for route options in Vermont, New Hampshire and/or Maine

[raybo]

I'm trying to plan a route through New England for a month-long tour in September.

I live in San Francisco, have never been to any of these areas, and have no specific knowledge of good routes, places to avoid, and things to see/do.

My tour will start in Lambertville, NJ and end in Boston.  My current plan is to ride the ACA Atlantic Coast trail up to Poughkeepsie, NY Bike Route 5 up the Hudson to Albany, NY Bike Route 9 along the Erie Canal to near Lake Oneida and then north to NY Route 3 (near Watertown) and then through the Adirondacks over to Lake Champlain.

What I have no clue about is how to get from Lake Champlain over to Boston.  The options I see are these:

1) Ride to Vermont Route 100, down to the Green Mountains, turn east, ride to New Hampshire's White Mountains and then, depending on time, either down to Boston or over to Maine and then down to Boston.

2) Ride across the top of Vermont over to the New Hampshire Border and then down the Connecticut River (border) using New Hampshire Biking Maps (here) and then ride around the lakes south of the White Mountains and the White Mountains, as well, and then, depending on time either down to Boston or over to Maine and then down to Boston

 3) Ride a more direct route to the White Mountains, ride around them, head over and explore Maine in a kind of loop and then head down to Boston via the ACA Atlantic Coast route.

4) Ride down to and around the Green Mountains and continue down through Massachusetts to Connecticut and then turn east aiming for Cape Cod and then up to Boston.

I'm sure there are lots of other options that I am unaware of but would like to hear about.

I have to be in Boston October 3.

I'd greatly appreciate any and all comments about the plans.

Thanks,

Ray

P.S. I've posted this in several bike touring forums.

[FredHiltz]

I'll suggest catching the Northern Tier through the Adirondacks to Lake Champlain and maybe further east to the Whites. The Green Mountains Loop duplicates a little bit of that and adds more options from Lake Champlain east, going one way or the other around the loop.

Getting south to Boston: the NH bike maps are good. In both VT and NH, avoid the single-digit routes except US 5, which isn't bad most of the way as I-91 takes a lot of the valley traffic.

In MA, the Rubel bike maps are the standard of excellence.

Fred

[BasilRathbone]

Fred,

Have a look at my tour journal: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/Adirondacks2009. My home stretch was from Rutland, VT to Boston (Greater Boston). I had a decent experience, though I did manage to lose my intended route around Fitchburg, MA. I'll be happy to dig up that intended route if you're interested; it's something I pilfered from a local Randonneur club.

Jon

[FredHiltz]

Hi Jon,

That is very close to a route I took in 1999 from Ticonderoga through Brandon and Brattleboro to Stoneham MA. I spent a night in Brattleboro and stayed north of Fitchburg on Rte 119.

Raybo, this is a nice ride. Rather pretty, particularly on VT 30 along the West River, with frequent small towns.

Fred