An info source for Southwest cycling
Question: Seeking advice on bicycle touring in Arizona and/or New Mexico. We’ll have about 10 days of actual riding time and want to find a good loop or city-to-city route. We plan to camp. Can you point me to good sources of information and maps? Thanks!
Craig Scott
Hingham, MA
NWS::Scott@globe.com
Adventure Adviser: Your best bet is to start with a general idea of the places you want to see and how many miles a day you can knock off. Then talk to the bike-touring whizzes at Adventure Cycling. They’re a nonprofit organization that has mapped three coast-to-coast bike routes through small-town America, via rural highways and scenic
backroads. Their southern route spins from San Diego to Florida, with stops in the Southwest like Quartzite, Hope, Phoenix, and Mesa, Arizona, and then on through southern New Mexico via Silver City in the foothills of the Gila Mountains. The route also includes interesting side trips to national monuments and historic areas. Even if this isn’t the route you want–if, say,
you’re looking for a more northerly route past the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and Canyon de Chelly–at least check out a copy of their Cyclists’ Yellow Pages, an indispensable resource for people wanting to plan their own routes. It’ll give you a blow-by-blow for each state on where to stay, where to find maps, and tips on bike-friendly byways. The
book comes free with a year’s membership to Adventure Cycling ($28 per person), which will also get you decent discounts on their maps. Individual route planners usually cover about 400 miles, include info on where to stay and good bets for supplies, and cost about $6.50 for members. Call Adventure Cycling at 406-721-1776. Happy pedaling!
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