Bike Touring - Planning a Route

Deciding where to go on a bicycle touring adventure and planning the route is an enjoyable element of the experience. Maybe there’s a part of the country or world which you have always planned to visit, and undertaking it on a bike can certainly be aprofound pleasure.

But…how does onedetermine what the roads are like?…Is the area safe?…..What about auto traffic?….

There are severalexcellentresources for route planning.

The adventure Cycling Association publishesgreat maps outliningalmost 41,000 miles of bike routes which have been explored and refined throughout the previous4 decades. Theseincludedescriptionsofthings tolook forand how to plan. In addition , theymake available supported journeys, a Cyclist’s Yellow pages, and a print publication that constantlyfeaturesgreatuseful articles.

Google Maps isan additionalvery goodresource. Justclick on any area on the planetand you canlook at the topography, with elevations included, or even a satellite view, or the straight up map view. Thispractical applicationalsoenablesyou to displaya photographatalmost anypointalongthe majority of roads, simply by dragging an icon, positioning it over the highlighted road and dropping it. Very, very cool. In google Earth it's possible to “fly” over the route.

Yet anotherstrategyis to use routes identified by companies which specialize inguiding supported tours. These routes are likely to be researched thoroughly and a person mightfind information on camping andadditionalplaces to stay, best places toeat, topography, commuter traffic, etc.

Crazyguyonabike.com is anotherexcellentreference. This is a free, independent website for hosting bicycletouring journals, forums and resources. The content is contributed by everyday people from around the world. There arecurrently (2010) nearly 5000 journalsand over ½ million pictures contributed by peoplecarrying out there ownbiketours. Quite a few of these are updatedday-to-day by people during the tour, so you're able to follow them daily!

Whenthinking about the route, consider how much time you have, yourfitness level, the fitness level of your travelingpartner(s) if any, and anticipatedconditionssuch asweather and elevation changes. Think about where you would liketowind up each evening. With these things in mind plot out your daily miles, remembering that, should you be self supported, you'll be carrying additional weight. Which means, even if you arein great shape and frequentlycomplete 80 to 90 or more mile training rides, those usually are notpractical numbers for touring. Many days 40 miles may wellfeel likean epic ride. Other daysone hundred miles is going to bemanageable. Allowing plenty of timeto complete your route,…more than you imagine you need…will ensure that you gettime tostop atlandmarks, and even just (gasp) relax! Keep in mind, this is supposed to be fun.

For more about bike touring visit biketouringnews dot com