fall foliage quote for the day

“Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn.”  - Elizabeth Lawrence


I thought this quote was appropriate for the season as long as Ms. Lawrence meant sitting on a bicycle seat.  (-:

My fall treat for you is a list of good autumn leaf viewing trails:

late September on the Great Allegheny 
Passage trail (GAP) in Pennsylvania

Ammonoosuc Rail Trail in New Hampshire

Great Allegheny Passage Trail in Pennsylvania

Long Leaf Trace in Mississippi

Pikes Peak Greenway in Colorado

Trail of the Coeur d' alenes in Idaho

Spokane Centennial Trail in Washington

Of course there are many more great fall foliage trails so grab your bike and enjoy the autumn colors.

fall foliage quote for the day

Fall foliage voting results and trail snack voting

don't forget to hydrate

The polls have closed and we have a winner.

Our question was, "What is your favorite way to view fall colors?"

58% of you preferred to view them on the seat of a bicycle.
33% of you preferred to view them while hiking or backpacking
9% of you preferred to view them in the comfort of your car.

I wouldn't exactly call the survey scientific since the people who visit our website are usually trail lovers so they have a tendency to enjoy biking and hiking. But I like the results, so I'm glad to publish them.

trick or treat on the trail

Our newest poll (in the column to your left) is a Halloween themed survey. In honor of trick-or-treating, we'd like to know which treat does the trick for you when you hit the trail. Do you prefer Power Bars, Luna Bars, Clif Bars, Gu Energy Gel, or trail mix?
We know there are many other choices, so of course we have the ubiquitous "other" as a choice also.


Cast your vote today and come back on November 10 to see the results.

Fall foliage voting results and trail snack voting

Aspen tops the top ten fall foliage viewing areas

Autumn is my favorite time of year, and the fall foliage is one of the reasons. And just when I started to tire of viewing the autumn leaves in the same old way, I discovered the joys of seeing the golden splendor of mother nature from the perspective of a bicycle seat on lightly used trails.

autumn trails provide fall colors

I would, however, have trouble ranking fall foliage viewing areas on a top ten list. They each have their own splendor. Colorado trails tend to highlight the golden hues of aspen trees in the fall while New Hampshire trails have more of an abundance of oranges and reds. And who knows what I'll see on Pennsylvania paths, Maryland meanderings, West Virginia trails, Virginia byways, and Washington D.C. bikeways next week?

Very few people would argue that September and October are two of the best times to take a hike on a local path or to ride your bike on one of America's beautiful trails. The weather is usually great, the trails less crowded, and, of course, the foliage viewing is wonderful.

So check out the latest top ten fall foliage viewing list and then choose your favorite leaf-looking regions. But try it from the vantage point of  a trail this year. You'll be glad you did.

Aspen tops the top ten fall foliage viewing areas

Fall colors are almost here -Find fall foliage information

If you've only seen fall colors from the seat of a car, then you've missed the true pleasure of fall foliage at its finest.

Autumn glory trail

Just like my experience w/ 4th of July fireworks, I was beginning to tire of the traditional viewing of "the changing of the leaves."

That was until I discovered the pleasures of viewing the annual foliage display from the seat of a bicycle. The difference was amazing. It was much more relaxing, and I saw so much more of the subtle details in the annual autumn colors. It was peaceful and quiet and I saw something new with each bend in the trail. I was free to stop wherever I wanted without fear of being rear-ended.

Now, I truly believe that you haven't seen autumn foliage until you've seen it from the perspective of a New England trail or midwestern path.

If you're interested in viewing the colors of fall on one of the many United States trails, your first stop is to visit this national fall colors website.

Once you have found out the location of the prime foliage viewing, visit a trails locator website such as trailsnet.com to find the ideal autumn colors path. You will never look at the fall leaf show in the same way, once you've viewed them from the peaceful perspective of a perfect path.

Fall colors are almost here -Find fall foliage information

New Hampshire may become the next best bike state

I visited New Hampshire on a bike trip last fall. I was impressed by their great rail trails and had a wonderful biking vacation.

Although NH may not currently be the biking capitol of the world, I predict it may become the #1 bicycle destination in the not-too-distant future.

A friend of mine was there recently and brought back some New Hampshire Bicycle Maps. I didn't see these maps when I was there, so it was fun to peruse them and see the trails I missed. While I was there, I biked on the following trails:

• Ashuelot Rail Trail
• Ammonoosuc Rail Trail
• Cheshire Rail Trail
• Rockingham Recreational Trail
• Northern Rail Trail

After looking at the six regional bicycle maps from New Hampshire, I'm ready to go back and hit some more rails-to-trails. 

In addition to the awesome bike maps, I also recommend you look at  the New Hampshire trails web page by clicking on this link.

This fall, I recommend you visit some bike trails in New Hampshire. You'll see the fall foliage from a whole new perspective.

New Hampshire may become the next best bike state

Northern Rail Trail

One of my favorite trails in New Hampshire is the Northern Rail Trail. It starts in Lebanon, NH and follows the Mascoma River through Grafton County to Danbury at the Merrimack County line. Some of the bridge crossings are absolutely gorgeous.
I was there in early October and the fall foliage was just barely starting to change colors. It gave me just a hint of how spectacular it must be in its full autumn apparel. I have got to make it back to New England during the fall leaf show.
The weather was perfect for biking when I rode the Northern Rail Trail. As a result, there were quite a few trail users inside the town of Lebanon. Keep in mind, when I say "quite a few" it was still far from being crowded. It was mostly families out for a morning stroll.

However, once I got outside of town, the trail population dwindled radically until I pretty much had the path to myself within a couple miles of town.
Besides the pretty bridge crossings, some of the highlights of the trail included verdant greenery (a bit redundant), interesting history, and lovely towns. One of my favorite towns was Enfield. It had New England style and good places to eat. Another nice town was the Canaan town center with a depot and freight house that was reminiscent of the old railroading days along the route of the Northern.
If you decide to ride the Northern Rail Trail sometime, you should be able to find lodging in Lebanon. I saw a number of hotels and bed & breakfasts. Someday, the trail is scheduled to run all the way to Concord. When that happens it would be perfect to spend the night in Lebanon, ride the length of the trail, spend a night in Concord, then head back to Lebanon.
I would recommend this trail anytime from mid-April to mid-October. Of course mid-October would be best for viewing the fall colors along the trail.
Northern Rail Trail information, trail map, & trail photos available at trailsnet.com

Northern Rail Trail