Road and Touring Rides
Many of the main highway routes in the Adirondacks have excellent riding surfaces with wide shoulders. In the mountains, you will encounter hill climbs but there are also level routes which to follow the river valleys. As you move out of the High Peaks into the Lake Champlain Valley, the terrain becomes more rolling and a profusion o lightly traveled back roads opens up more possibilities for road biking.

Ten Plus One (River Road Loop)
Length: (11 miles)
Start: Corner of 86 and Mirror Lake Drive
0.00 Corner of 86 and Mirror Lake Drive, go clockwise around the lake.
1.00 Left onto Northwood Road.
1.6 Left onto Route 86.
4.0 Right onto Riverside Drive.
8.0 Right onto Route 73.
10.0 Left at corner of 86 and 73 onto Main Street.
11.0 Back at the start!

Just Around the Block
Length: (35 miles)
Start: Corner of Routes 73 and 86
0.00 You're at the corner of Route 73 and 86. Take 86 towards Whiteface Mountain
9.9 1 mile past Whiteface Mountain, go right onto Fox Farm Road.
10.75 At the T - Go right on Springfield Road.
14.3 Stop at the stop sign at the bottom of the long hill. Go straight,
you are on Route 9N going South to Keene.
20.3 Go right onto Route 73 - head up the hill towards Lake Placid.
26.8 Look at Stagecoach Rock on the right side of the road.
32.9 Veer right, stay on 73.
33.9 Veer right, stay on 73.
34.5 You're back at the start!

Fantastic Fifty Two
Length: (52 miles)
Start: Saranac Avenue, Lake Placid
0.00 Start at Placid Planet Bicycles on Route 86 in Lake Placid, head towards Saranac Lake Westbound.
5.1 Take a right onto MacKenzie Pond Road.
7.7 Go left at the stop sign - head towards the lake.
7.8 Go straight back on 86.
8.3 At the light, go straight, you're on Route 3 heading towards Tupper Lake.
21.0 Take a right on Co. Rd 45 aka Panther Mountain Road.
23.4 Right at the T - Route 30 North.
31.25 Saranac Inn intersection - right on Fr. Co. 46 to Saranac Inn.
31.8 Left at the stop sign.
32.2 Right onto Route 30 North.
33.8 Right onto Forest Home Road. Fr. Co. 18.
42.0 Left at the stop sign - Ampersand Avenue.
42.6 Right on Broadway into Saranac Lake.
43.3 Veer right onto Main Street.
43.5 Left onto Route 86 towards Lake Placid.
43.8 Right onto Route 86 towards Lake Placid.
52.0 Placid Planet...you've made it!

Ironman Loop
Length: 56 miles
Start: Lake Placid
Test yourself on the Ironman Bike Loop. Take Route 73 south of Lake Placid past the Cascade Lakes and down the infamous Keene Hill. Head north on Rt 9N to Upper Jay and Jay, up to Wilmington on Rt 86 and back into Lake Placid. Real Ironmen do this loop twice!
Course: Click Here for Bike Course Details
Map: Click Here for Bike Course Map

Rapid Descent Trail Loop
Length: 16.0 miles
Start: Whiteface Mountain Ski Center
Head to Upper Jay via Rt 86, turn right onto Fox Farm Road and then Springfield Roads. From Upper Jay, take Rt 9N north along the Ausable River to Jay and back to Whiteface on Rt 86.

Out and Back: Lake Placid to Wilmington and back
Length: 28.7 miles, climbing approximately 1100’
Start: Lake Placid
A modified out and back route dominated by views of Whiteface Mountain, The East Branch of the Ausable River. The seven miles that you travel twice is through some of the most scenic riding areas in the region and the focus of your views will be different each way.

The Long-winded Details...
The first 16 miles of this ride is predominantly downhill or level. Shoulders on Rt 86 are generally wide after leaving Lake Placid and narrow again in Wilmington. Watch for some misplaced shoulder-high diamond-shaped signs marking a curve that can force a cyclist off the shoulder into the traffic lane. Though you will probably be traveling at a good pace heading out, you will be enjoying the long views of the mountain range ahead. Your return along a portion of this route will be somewhat slower as you climb, giving you a chance to enjoy the sights and sounds of the West Branch of the Ausable River, whose banks you will be hugging in places.

At approx 3.4 miles cross a bridge over the Ausable River and continue straight on Rt 86. (You will travel the road on the right on your return leg to Lake Placid.) The Ausable is a prime trout fishing stream and will be on your left for about the next 7 miles. Watch for a narrowing of the road (Wilmington Notch) where the shoulder fairly disappears, with the added feature of a depressed drainage grate to avoid. The rock faces towering over the river are popular climbing cliffs. You may spot climbers on these vertical trails.

High Falls Gorge is on the left at approx. 7.5 miles.
A NY State campground is at 8.9 miles.
Whiteface Mountain Ski Area is on your left at 9.3 miles. Several restaurants and seasonally operated food places can be found as you enter Wilmington.
At approx 12.3 miles, make a right at the stop sign. (see option 1.) Rt 86 turns here also and you will follow it for one block to Springfield Road (mile 12.6) A convenience store is on the corner and a small grocery store (good sandwiches) is another block up Rt 86 on the right.
Shoulders along Springfield Road are narrow but traffic should be very light. There are views of the mountains to the west, even more visible after the leaves fall in autumn.
At approx. 14.5 miles, make a right on Fox Farm Road. The Whiteface Chalet Motel is on the left, opposite the turn. (There is no road sign marking this turn and missing it could add about 10 miles and an extremely serious climb to this ride. See LP-Ausable Forks Loop.) Fox Farm is a short road offering a great view of Whiteface as you head west, returning to Rt 86.
A left at the end of Fox Farm Road onto Rt 86 (15.4 miles) will head you back towards Lake Placid. As you approach Whiteface, you will begin to encounter the hills you cruised down earlier. There will be several places where the road narrows as it hugs the river bank and the opposite cliff. Watch for traffic as a stone wall eats up the shoulder.
The Ausable turns to the left at mile 22.2 and so does this route, onto Riverside Drive, a.k.a. 10th Mountain Division Hwy. (See option 2.) This is a winding and gently rolling stretch following close to the river. As you reach some open fields, in the distance you will see the Olympic Ski Jumping Complex looking very much like a pair of gigantic sea-horses peering over the valley.
At the end of Riverside Rd. (mile 26.2) turn right on Rt 73 (Cascade Ave.) More views of Whiteface Mountain far to your right. You will pass the Jumping Complex on the left and on the right, the North Elba Show Grounds, home of the Lake Placid Horse Shows. Continue on Rt 73 to the light at the intersection with Rt 86 (mile 28.3.) Make a left and ride one block to the ride finish at High Peaks Cyclery. (Mile 28.5.)

Other Options
Option 1: Skip small loop in Wilmington by reversing direction and heading back the way you came. Cuts about 2 miles from ride.
Option 2: Skip Riverside Drive portion, heading straight on Rt 86 for about 3.4 miles. Returns you directly to your start in Lake Placid. Cuts about 3 miles.

Additional Touring/Road Rides

Bike the Adirondacks
http://www.bikeadirondacks.org/btouring.html

Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce
http://www.saranaclake.com/biking.shtml

Lake Champlain Bikeways Guide
http://www.champlainbikeways.org

Placid Planet Bicycles-Rides
http://www.placidplanetbicycles.com/routes.html

LAKE PLACID AREA

Brewster Peninsula Nature Trails
Length: 3 miles
Trailhead: Lake Placid behind Comfort Inn
Terrain: Interconnecting trails, dirt road and hard-packed single track. The Lakeshore Trail section has lots of roots and rocks. A compact network of easy trails traversing gently rolling terrain and winding through a missed forest and along the shore of Lake Placid. A brochure is available from NYS Department of Environmental Conservation or you can contact a local bike shop or chamber of commerce for more information.

Verizon Sports Complex Mountain Biking Center
Length: 30 mile trail network
Terrain: The well-marked double-track trails traverse varied terrain from easy cursing to hill and challenging. Bike rentals, refreshments, retail and repair shop, plus full schedule of clinics, tours, festivals and races.
Route 73, SE of Lake Placid. 518-523-3764.

Whiteface Mountain Biking Center
Ride the chairlift up and revel in the 2,100 vertical feet of descent from the top of the Little Whiteface chairlift.
Terrain: A variety of intermediate and advanced terrain criss-cross the mountain on wide, hard-packed dirt maintenance roads. Make sure your brakes are in good working order. Events and festivals. Refreshments, bike and helmet rentals at base lodge.

Whiteface Mountain XC Trails
Length: 3 mile network
Trailhead: Starts on the north side of the Rt 86 bridge at Flume Falls, Wilmington
Terrain: Old roads and single-track cross-country ski trails parallel the Ausable River.

SARANAC LAKE/RAY BROOK AREA

Fowlers Crossing Trail Network
Length: 4 miles
Trailhead: Rt 86 railroad crossing, Saranac Lake
Terrain: Loops and spur trails lead both north and south from the Rt 86 parking lot

Scarface
Length: 8 mile network of trails
Trailhead: Off Rt 86, Raybrook
Terrain: Single-track and double-track woods roads wind through a peaceful pine forest. The hiking trail, which is not suitable for mountain biking turns left at 1.75 miles.

Bloomingdale Bog
Length: 10 miles from Onchiota south to Rt. 86, Saranac Lake. Actual bog mileage is 4 miles from Rt. 86 just north of Saranac Lake to Cty. Rt. 55, west of Bloomingdale.
Terrain: Sand, dirt, gravel surface, some roots. An abandoned railroad right-of-way provides easy access to an scenic bog—full of birds, conifers and unique plants—with distant views of surrounding mountains. Pine forests surround the northern portion of the route.

Additional Mountain Biking Trails and Rides

Bike the Adirondacks
http://www.bikeadirondacks.org/mbtrails.html

Saranac Lake Chamber of Commerce
http://www.saranaclake.com/biking.shtml

Essex County Mountain Biking Brochure
http://lakeplacidmedia.com/uploads/PDF/MtnBikeEssexCo.pdf

Placid Planet Bicycles-Rides
http://www.placidplanetbicycles.com/routes.html