Camping - Cycling Trips! Let's hear about them

[PB_NB]

Olympia, WA to Westport, WA.

We did a little charity ride in 2018 going from Olympia to Westport in WA. This was about 100 miles with stops at little towns on the route to the coast.

The day before the ride we camped at Lake Sylvia which was a beautiful little spot. Then we drove about 50 miles to the ride start and finished up in Westport on the Pacific Coast. The ride was very well supported and the route was nice with most of it through farm land and quiet back roads.

We had one more night at Lake Sylvia and then we moved our trailer to Westport and camped at a rather large RV campground for another 5 days. Exploring the area was nice but we did feel that the coastal town was feeling some economic challenges.

All in all, it was a great ride that I would recommend and they also have a ride that runs through Oregon's wine country and ends up on the Oregon Coast. I hope to do this one when the world situation improves.

[jcl]

We have done lots of bike tours in Europe, but none camping, they were all supported. Prague to Vienna, Provence (and Ventoux), Across Italy, Piedmonte, and Costa Brava, all separate trips. We got tired of flying.

A few years back we did a tour we called Epic Rides Across Canada. Notice that rides is plural. We didn't ride across, we drove and took two road bikes in the back of the SUV. No bike racks on the car or trailer for these bikes. Two Cervelos; an R5 VWD with Campy SR, and an R3 with DuraAce. Our goal was an epic ride in each province. From Vancouver, we went to Rossland and rode Strawberry Pass, out and back. Then moved to Banff (usual stay at Tunnel Mountain), skipped the Legacy Trail this time (although it is highly recommended) and from Canmore did Highwood Pass, over Hwy 40. The rides weren't as epic in Regina and Winnipeg (and we skipped the ride altogether in Thunder Bay) but we really enjoyed Ottawa, and Gatineau Park up to Champlain Lookout. In Quebec City, recommend the Littoral, the Chute Montmorency, and Isle d'Orleans, all were great. That trip we stopped at Quebec City, turned around and returned the next year for a loop around the Atlantic provinces. We came back west via London Ontario (stopping in to see CanAm), then US 2 across to Washington.

Photos are at the top of Strawberry Pass, at the Nancy Greene Summit; Highwood Pass; Gatineau; and at the Chutes.

[Jim Flower]

My first epic ride was on a custom made Proctor from High Country Sports in Edmonton. Full camping gear in the front and rear panniers, 45 Lbs total.
It took my son and I five days to go from Jasper to Banff. Others do it unladen in 2 days. I was so sore at the end of day one that I could not get off my bike with out laying it down first. My son was doing jump kicks in the campground. Rubbing it in a bit. That was 35 years ago. I still have the Proctor but my ride of choice is a Colonago that weighs 17 lbs. It also rides inside the Jeep or inside the Airstream. Only on the roof for short hauls.
Jim

[Too tall]

Last year myself, wife and two friends did a tour. We began near Luray, va staying at a local campground and did a few rides from there. Skyline Drive is close by as are nearby mtn. ranges. Next we drove to NellysFord, Va staying at a campground near NellysFord and again did some epic riding. I used to run bicycle training camps from NellysFord so I know all sorts of great routes. After that we headed for Highland Haven Airstream Park and it was rinse and repeat!



The format allowed us to change venue and nobody was stuck driving while the other rode bikes.


Sounds like the OP and others chiming in would make fantastic travel companions for something similar.


FWIIW I'm a retired cycling coach and industry supplier (nixfrixshun.com)



I'd love to organize or be part of something similar.

[jcl]

Too Tall:

Your post reminded me of a ride training camp in Solvang. Their motto was ride, eat sleep, repeat, IIRC. We were headed for a 5 day cross Italy trip with 27,000 feet of climbing over 5 days, up to 90 miles each day, and it was in early spring instead of our usual fall trips. Our winter riding is at a slower pace. We decided it would be worth getting some training in before departing for Italy. There was a supported ride camp available, but we are self sufficient on most of our rides so skipped the training package and did it ourselves. Solvang is a fantastic place to ride. Every day we included the short 20 km circuit from the Tour of California time trial, self timed, so we could track our progress, and did a longer ride as well.

My wife is my riding partner and was apprehensive about the ride across Italy, because we were the only couple. She figured it would be a hammer fest. Several of the riders had just come off the Portland to Portland ride, 41 days, I think. She didn’t need to worry. She finished at the front every day. But it wasn’t a race

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by jcl

We have done lots of bike tours in Europe, but none camping, they were all supported. Prague to Vienna, Provence (and Ventoux), Across Italy, Piedmonte, and Costa Brava, all separate trips. We got tired of flying.

A few years back we did a tour we called Epic Rides Across Canada. Notice that rides is plural. We didn't ride across, we drove and took two road bikes in the back of the SUV. No bike racks on the car or trailer for these bikes. Two Cervelos; an R5 VWD with Campy SR, and an R3 with DuraAce. Our goal was an epic ride in each province. From Vancouver, we went to Rossland and rode Strawberry Pass, out and back. Then moved to Banff (usual stay at Tunnel Mountain), skipped the Legacy Trail this time (although it is highly recommended) and from Canmore did Highwood Pass, over Hwy 40. The rides weren't as epic in Regina and Winnipeg (and we skipped the ride altogether in Thunder Bay) but we really enjoyed Ottawa, and Gatineau Park up to Champlain Lookout. In Quebec City, recommend the Littoral, the Chute Montmorency, and Isle d'Orleans, all were great. That trip we stopped at Quebec City, turned around and returned the next year for a loop around the Atlantic provinces. We came back west via London Ontario (stopping in to see CanAm), then US 2 across to Washington.

Photos are at the top of Strawberry Pass, at the Nancy Greene Summit; Highwood Pass; Gatineau; and at the Chutes.

The local photos are a great reminder of the fantastic riding that we have locally.

I am really jealous of the European riding that you have done. We are in Italy for 2 weeks in April 2019 and 2 weeks in Holland during that same trip. I was scouting out the next ride. I was trying to organize a casual ride from Paris to Normandy a few years ago but I couldn't get my friends on the same page.

In the past we have been involved in the Ride to Conquer Cancer which I did 5 times but the fund raising became tedious. Supported the Ride to Survive when I wasn't able to devote enough time to training. Over the last year, we have been so busy with our business that our leisure life has taken a bake seat. The good part is the riding a bike is just like riding a bike, you never forget! By the way, love the Cervelos, I had an S2 a few years back now I just have some French carbon!

My hope by posting this was to see if this is something that like minded individuals are interested in organizing or planning some rides that could involve the Airstreams as a base camp of sorts. I really think that there are a group of riders in the Airstream family that could have a lot of fun with this sort of thing. Of course, the borders would need to reopen as there are many Airstreamers south of the 49th that would like to join in and participate.

Thanks jcl for showing interest in responding to this thread!

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by Jim Flower

My first epic ride was on a custom made Proctor from High Country Sports in Edmonton. Full camping gear in the front and rear panniers, 45 Lbs total.
It took my son and I five days to go from Jasper to Banff. Others do it unladen in 2 days. I was so sore at the end of day one that I could not get off my bike with out laying it down first. My son was doing jump kicks in the campground. Rubbing it in a bit. That was 35 years ago. I still have the Proctor but my ride of choice is a Colonago that weighs 17 lbs. It also rides inside the Jeep or inside the Airstream. Only on the roof for short hauls.
Jim

Hi Jim,

I have talked to my wife about the ride from Jasper to Banff for many years now. The Ice Fields Pkwy is spectacular, We did about 50km of it a few years back mixing in some mountain biking near the Jasper end of the parkway. Congrats on doing that with your son! That will be a memory that you will cherish!

That route would be one to talk more about as there are places to camp along the route if memory serves me.

Is your dream Colnago a new carbon rig or is it an Italian Classic. Back when i was racing a long time ago, I enjoyed my DeRosa SLX, But by todays standards, that would be a paperweight. Today, I have a bike that is way faster than I am and it often has to slow down and wait for me to catch up!

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by Too tall

Last year myself, wife and two friends did a tour. We began near Luray, va staying at a local campground and did a few rides from there. Skyline Drive is close by as are nearby mtn. ranges. Next we drove to NellysFord, Va staying at a campground near NellysFord and again did some epic riding. I used to run bicycle training camps from NellysFord so I know all sorts of great routes. After that we headed for Highland Haven Airstream Park and it was rinse and repeat!



The format allowed us to change venue and nobody was stuck driving while the other rode bikes.


Sounds like the OP and others chiming in would make fantastic travel companions for something similar.


FWIIW I'm a retired cycling coach and industry supplier (nixfrixshun.com)



I'd love to organize or be part of something similar.

Too Tall, thanks for talking the time to respond to this thread.

You are spot on about the possibility of organizing something which shares our common interests in; 1) Airstreaming; 2) Cycling (with an emphasis on road riding but mountain biking is okay too

I am sure that there is some amazing cycling all over the Eastern States which it sounds like you have be busy doing!

I sort of envision some sort of camp and cycle event while moving around from different campgrounds and enjoying some local routes. I know that it would be something to organize but it worth trying. I do think that we need to get past the current border situation and then pump up the tires and away we go!

I would welcome the opportunity to coached! Allez, Allez, Allez! Well you get the point.

[Too tall]

Peter and others on this thread. I am more than enthusiastic about supporting this potential endeavor. Full disclosure, last year I took the WBCCI caravan leader training after submitting a proposal to form a caravan to cross the usa or possibly eastern seaboard. You might have read a sidebar article in the magazine? That was me.

I got a number of positive responses from members and have retained their emails etc.

After some head scratching I think that a better approach is to have more conversations like this, develop confidence and friendships so that we can have planned events away from formal organizations.

My dream would be to have a group of ten to twelve AS couples for a transcontiential beginning in/around Sandiego, finish on the east coast at some low key beach town. The logistics are easy for me, I’ve done this multiple times albeit sans Airstreams. The concept is nearly the same and I’ve already completed a detailed turn by turn route coast to coast. A boy can dream

First thing, if there is real interest in these informal caravans would be to create a dedicated conversation. This forum is a good start. For the record I am owner/administrator of velocipedesalon.com where I have full autonomy to create sub-forums...which I have done for the bicycle/camping crowd. There is a small cadre of us who meet, camp and ride bicycles. Visiblity to draw in more bicycle / Airstream folks is key and I’m not sure how to solve that. Here is a link to a subforum at velocipedesalon where we talk about camping and riding: https://www.velocipedesalon.com/forum/f62/

I’m thrilled to be part of this regardless of outcome.

*For the record. I retired from coaching and running camps, getting paid to do this was my pleasure but I’m done with that. This is all for fun

[Dan_Rox]

Hi Folks,


I think we have found our people. My wife and I are the other couple that rode and camped in Virginia with Too Tall and his wife last year.



We are fairly new to Airstreams, having bought ours new in October 2016. We had a different brand trailer for 6-7 years prior to that, but are life long cyclists.


We have toured all up and down the east coast with our trailer and bicycles. We both have a few more years till retirement, so west coast trips with the trailer will have to wait for now.



We have done 2 different, 2 week trips to Europe with Erickson Cycle Tours. The first tour was Geneva to Niece on our tandem and the second trip was the Swiss Alps on singles.


We are very interested in meeting, riding, and camping with like minded people. We could definitely participate and help plan any east coast trips. We have done several 1-2 week long trips where we camp and ride from a location for 2-3 days before moving to the next destination.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by Dan_Rox

Hi Folks,


I think we have found our people. My wife and I are the other couple that rode and camped in Virginia with Too Tall and his wife last year.



We are fairly new to Airstreams, having bought ours new in October 2016. We had a different brand trailer for 6-7 years prior to that, but are life long cyclists.


We have toured all up and down the east coast with our trailer and bicycles. We both have a few more years till retirement, so west coast trips with the trailer will have to wait for now.



We have done 2 different, 2 week trips to Europe with Erickson Cycle Tours. The first tour was Geneva to Niece on our tandem and the second trip was the Swiss Alps on singles.


We are very interested in meeting, riding, and camping with like minded people. We could definitely participate and help plan any east coast trips. We have done several 1-2 week long trips where we camp and ride from a location for 2-3 days before moving to the next destination.

Hi Dan_Rox, Thanks for chiming in, we are also still working at our home based business and have several years before we sell or shut it down. I hope that challenges of working around work can be figured out with some lead times and scheduling.

I do think we are on the right track and I hope that we can turn this into some fun adventures.

[jim.waters]

Please keep me in the loop. My wife and I have done numerous week long fully supported bike tours in Europe and the US. Also, I have ridden across the country van supported with Adventure Cycling. It was the Southern Tier from San Diego to Saint Augustine. I am anxious to do more road bike touring. The combination of biking and camping is really appealing.

[Too tall]

Jim thanks


For now let's cross post here and at: https://www.velocipedesalon.com/foru...ml#post1014555 where I've started a thread to gather names and faces.


If you need help registering just raise a hand. Our moderators vet new registrations approximately every 3 beers or once a day whichever comes first.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by jim.waters

Please keep me in the loop. My wife and I have done numerous week long fully supported bike tours in Europe and the US. Also, I have ridden across the country van supported with Adventure Cycling. It was the Southern Tier from San Diego to Saint Augustine. I am anxious to do more road bike touring. The combination of biking and camping is really appealing.

Hi Jim, Thanks for posting to this thread. We should build a contact list but not sure the best way to do that while still preserving our privacy on the WWW.

[TorchRozee]

Plenty of international bragging rights here to, but getting back to the focus of this thread, I think; my wife & I use our Airstream for camping trips with the goal in mind going for bicycle (tandem or Ebike) day trips for sightseeing and getting to know the area. These vary from 10-15 miles to 40 or so. A couple days and move on, if it’s intriguing we stay longer or go back another time.
Unfortunately most of these have been in WA & OR, not this year. The Border being what it is at the moment we’re in the planning stages for Northern B.C. based trip Aug - Sept. Looking to work our way up to the Yukon.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by TorchRozee

Plenty of international bragging rights here to, but getting back to the focus of this thread, I think; my wife & I use our Airstream for camping trips with the goal in mind going for bicycle (tandem or Ebike) day trips for sightseeing and getting to know the area. These vary from 10-15 miles to 40 or so. A couple days and move on, if it’s intriguing we stay longer or go back another time.
Unfortunately most of these have been in WA & OR, not this year. The Border being what it is at the moment we’re in the planning stages for Northern B.C. based trip Aug - Sept. Looking to work our way up to the Yukon.

That sounds great! BC has some amazing rides. One of my favourites is the ride out of Peachland to the Pennask Summit

E-bikes are the great equalizer. I am looking at getting one for my wife as she has been dealing with knee problems for some time and hills don't mix well with the knees! Now a tandem e-bike would be fun and probably very fast!

I do see an opportunity to reach out to provincial and state WBCCI organizers to see if "meet and greet" plans can be formulated along the way. This may be a better solution to find campgrounds that sit on the various routes and are Airstream friendly.

[JonDNC]

Originally Posted by TorchRozee

Plenty of international bragging rights here to, but getting back to the focus of this thread, I think; my wife & I use our Airstream for camping trips with the goal in mind going for bicycle (tandem or Ebike) day trips for sightseeing and getting to know the area. These vary from 10-15 miles to 40 or so. A couple days and move on, if it’s intriguing we stay longer or go back another time.
Unfortunately most of these have been in WA & OR, not this year. The Border being what it is at the moment we’re in the planning stages for Northern B.C. based trip Aug - Sept. Looking to work our way up to the Yukon.

We are in this camp as well, always have wife’s ebike and my mountain bike, longer trips bring road as well. Bike rides just part of the program.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by JonDNC

We are in this camp as well, always have wife’s ebike and my mountain bike, longer trips bring road as well. Bike rides just part of the program.

A buddy of mine did a tour out in the Carolinas last year. He posted some very nice pics of the rides he did.

Quiet roads and some gravel roads too, mostly in the farm land and some coastal areas where he rode. Looks fantastic!

[Too tall]

Originally Posted by PB_NB

Hi Jim, Thanks for posting to this thread. We should build a contact list but not sure the best way to do that while still preserving our privacy on the WWW.

While it is possible to create a password protected space for vetted members we are not "there yet". In my (humble) experience, collecting names and numbers happens after a show of hands. Than feel free to lean on me, I'll do the backroom machinations required and only if needed. These days forums, no offense to airforums the greatest forum on earth, are dinosaurs. With the advent of free interweb tools such as groups.io it is possible to do everything we are talking about and maintain a reasonable amount of privacy.

[PB_NB]

Hi Too Tall, Thanks for that. this does seem to be a topic full that can move forward and become something. Let's see how things progress. I do appreciate that you are interested in gathering up the data. Thanks for offering and you have my vote.