route planning
Whether you do your route planning as you go, or plan your trip in great detail before you leave, making right decisions about your route can be crucial to your safety and enjoyment of your trip. The routes we choose are a culmination of many personal inputs including, our purpose for the tour, our past experience, our physical condition, the information we have, the amount of time we have and even our type of bicycles as well as many others. Most of these factors I can't discuss here because they would only be known to you. What is the best tour or route for you would in large part be based in these factors. I do discuss here how I plan for a tour and give tools that I use as well as offer some tips that I have learned along the way. Of course, no one way to plan a trip is right or wrong if it yields the results we want.
my route planning
When I first started touring, I would leave the house with nothing more than a map and a general idea of where I was going. Of course, In some areas of the country this can be easily done, as was the case of the area where I grew up. The roads are on a grid, towns are not far apart, and homes, parks and farms where plentiful if one needed to get water. There really was not all that much risk, and you almost had to try to get lost. Of course, then there are those areas of the country where you really need to plan your route and where you will find your resources such as remote areas, mountainous regions, or even large urban areas.
Over the years I have gradually moved to more detailed planning of trips. I love planning trips. I love the research, putting the route together and the challenge of making the route better. I will draw up numorous tours all winter long. At any given time I usally have 4 or 5 trips planned. When the weather warms up and touring time comes around I simply chose the tours that intrigues me the most.
route planning tips
#1 I recommend locating bike shops along your route before the tour. This could for obvious reasons come in handy. Additionally, along with saving time, extra miles, and avoiding the hassle of trying to locate a shop on the go, knowing where a shop is can allow you to plan your day while on tour if you need to stop and pick something up or have a repair made.
#2 If you’re struggling to find time to tour or have commitments on one of the weekend days, consider doing what I call a ‘mini-weekender’. Pick a location you can ride to in a half day or less and camp. Then return home early the next day. Typically I leave right after work on Friday and return early on Saturday.
#3 Bicycle trails. If possible, I recommend including at least one bicycle trail on your tour route. Taking time off from road travel, can be a welcome change. No car traffic, the chance to meet other cyclist, and usually more shaded areas and protection from the wind are a few of the benefits. For first time tourers, I would recommend starting off with an all trail tour.
#4 Avoiding cities, and major urban areas. Unless it is just not practical, or you are visiting a certain city, I would recommend avoiding urban areas. The travel time is more consuming, there is increased traffic, and during the summer the urban heat island effect makes travel less pleasent. typically, I try to avoid any city greater than 20,000. I do however, when route planning, do try to go through or near smaller towns that have bicycle shops. I also recommend avoiding urban areas at the end of a tour. It has never made sense to me to bicycle hundreds of miles through peaceful countryside, beautiful mountains, and remote forests, only to spend the last 20 or 30 miles drudging around urban/suburban areas. If possible, end your trip just outside such areas.
'Expect the best, plan for the worst, and prepare to be surprised'. ~Denis Waitley, American motivational speaker and author of self-help books
links
Microsoft Streets and Trips
Microsoft Streets & Trips 2008 - Home
Google Earth's satellite imagery, and maps are great tools in assisting route planning for a tour. Google provides several versions including a free one. Advanced versions provide terrain and 3D buildings.
I linked the course creation application tool at greatBikeRouteToaster.com on my training page because it's a great tool for creating training routes, however it can also be utilized as and makes a great route planning tool.
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