We’ve just added a new and exciting map for the Twin Cities metro area. Titled “Northstar, You, Your Bike”, this 9 page brochure/pdf file opens up the world of bikes and commuter rail. Hop on the train, ride to another station and begin exploring. The options are endless. Here are just a few:

• Looking for a casual ride and plenty of relaxation? Try the Rum River Loop from the Anoka Station. The trail starts across the street from the station, follows the Rum River north to Bunker Hills Rd, then crosses the river and drops into Rivers Bend. The round trip is about 12 miles, allowing plenty of time for lounging along the river or buying ice cream and hanging out in downtown Anoka.
• How about an overnight trip that isn’t more than 20 miles each way? Take Northstar to the Big Lake Station, ride to Lake Maria State Park, then spend the night at one of their walk-in campsites or camper cabins. Return the next day and pick up the train.
• Feeling strong? Take the train out to any station and ride all the way back to Minneapolis. The longest distance, from the Big Lake Station, is 55 miles. We’ve got two different routes mapped for you.

We’ve mapped out big loops and small ones, routes that follow country roads and routes that take in local trails. The brochure includes train fares, first arrivals and last departures, destinations, points of interest and local riding conditions. As a matter-of-fact, there is so much information, including our unbeatable maps, that each pdf is too large to download from the site. We’ll send it to your email address using YouSendIt. Check out the jpgs on the product page for samples of the route maps and information available for each station.

This is the perfect antidote to riding the same old loops again this weekend, and you don’t have to drive to get there, either!

Printed brochures are available on standard paper or tear and water resistant paper. Choose the delivery style that best fits your needs: Electronic delivery or hard copy.

I met Mike Vanderscheuren at the Living Green Expo last weekend. Mike is one of the owners of Banjo Brothers, manufacturers of panniers, messenger bags and gear for the urban cyclist. This isn’t about their gear. It’s about an annual bike camping trip Mike and a group of dads do with their kids every year. It’s part of a growing trend I’ve seen over the years: Biking families taking short bike camping trips within the metro area. Here’s Mike’s story, in his own words.

Carver Bike Camping

For the past 5 years a small, but growing group of dads have organized
an annual kids/dads 2 day bike camping trip to Carver Park. The trip
architect was Peter Leugers, the brother of my business partner Eric,
(Peter is also a bike rep for RP Active Sports — Bell, Hwy 2, etc) who
mapped the original route from South Minneapolis to Carver. The idea
was to be fully self-supported and to go by bike. Since our kids were
much younger 5 years ago, the early trips were navigated by
trail-a-bikes and loaded bike trailers with gear.

The first few years we split up the responsibility for meals among the participants. So
each dad had a responsibility for feeding the camp dinner night one,
or breakfast day 2. Each dad brought their own snacks.  At Carver their is potable water and Camelback bladders were used to keep a supply at camp for cooking and dishes. Someone brought a collapsible water jug last year.

Typical breakfasts were oatmeal, dry cereal with powdered milk. PBJ and lunch and Mac and Cheese at dinner. Because you were dragging kids and gear, you tried to keep the gear at minimum but you
had to have some creature comforts for the kids, beach towels, fishing rods, etc. Cooking is done on camp stoves and over the fire.

This is not gear intensive trip and bikes range from mountain bikes pulling trailers to co-motion tandems with a trail-a-bike and a trailer attached (How’s that for a rig!). We use a lot of our $40
waterproof panniers as luggage. At 9, the kids on their own bikes could handle a pannier or two packed with lighter stuff, greatly helping out the dads. This trip is within reach for any family with a
little ingenuity and adventurous spirit.

At Carver you can buy firewood, so after tents were set up, someone was dispatched to load a Burley full of wood for campfires. The first few years the kids were all 5 or younger. As the groups got larger the
range was more spread out and ranged from 5-11. At camp, there is a nice playground and as the kids have gotten older, they enjoy the freedom of just playing on their own terms heading over to the park on their own, making up games, with several hours spent down at the beach.

Three years ago, a really nice grocery store opened in Victoria, so now we have less on-board supplies and we usually make one or two grocery runs as the store is only 2 miles away into town. We’re also not that militant about inviting only Dad’s who bike, so we usually have at least  one dad who drives. This person usually ends up with some extra duties (beer – though not sure it’s legal at Carver), chairs, or more ice. I think we’ve topped out at 6 dads and 10 kids.

The trips have always been two nights and we always tried to leave mid-morning on Fridays, meeting up behind Punch on the Greenway and heading west. We usually keep the kids stoked by promising ice cream at the Cottagewood Country Store (http://www.cottagewoodusa.com/). There are always stops for potty breaks, the occasional convenience store stop for drinks or snacks. The shaded trail on the LRT provides a nice canopy and we’ve traveled in both good weather and less than ideal conditions with kids bundled in raincoats and dads pedaling their rear off trying to get out of the rain. Normally, there is very
little complaining on the trip out.

It was a big transition a couple years ago when the older kids started rinding on their own bikes. Some
of that didn’t sit as well with the kids on trail-a-bikes as they weren’t as comfortable being one-upped by their older siblings or friends,  but this is usually pre-trail and once everyone is rolling this dissipates. The nice thing about having oder and younger kids is for the most part they travel in packs and outside of being supervised at the beach the entire group has tended to hand together for the weekend.

Carver is a really nice family park. There are sites with campers but the pit toilets tend to keep out the riff raff.  Outside of the beach, the lake has a lot of vegetation so you don’t have jet skis, etc. Other than maybe being able to hear a little traffic on Hwy 7, it feels very remote. At night, to this point, we’ve resisted letting the older kids bunk together, keeping the families in tact to make sure the kids get enough sleep.

We’ve survived a couple of storms  and some rainy days. It tends to make the stay-at-home spouses more nervous than the dads. It should be noted the park staff is also excellent with weather-updates.  (There is a nature center not too far away.) We also have a tradition of having a really nice dinner one night – we’ve grilled pizza, had steaks. etc.

On Sunday we have group breakfast and then break camp. We stop at Cottage wood on the way back too to break up the trip up.

Several plans have been announced for construction in 2011:

• Hank Aaron Trail extension. Presently the Hank Aaron State Trail ends at 94th Place in West Allis. Bikes can continue west on the old right of way but the pathway is quite rough, more suitable for mountain bikes than road bikes. Plans have been announced to put  in a temporary crushed stone surface connecting the HAST to the Oak Leaf Trail. Following the reconstruction of the Zoo Interchange, plans are to construct a paved surface.
• Lake Country Trail paving. Last year both the western and eastern ends of the Lake Country Trail were paved, leaving the middle section, mainly through Nagawaukee County Park, unpaved. On its website the Waukesha county parks department has announced that paving the middle section will start this spring. This announcement should be treated with a bit of skepticism since the paving of the middle section was originally announced for last year.
• Oak Leaf to Ozaukee Interurban Trail connector. For some time plans have developed, and grants have been announced, to build a trail connecting the Ozaukee Interurban Trail (in the person of the Brown Deer Trail at Brown Deer Road) to the Oak Leaf Trail at Hampton Avenue on the north edge of Estabrook Park. The connector would use both WE Energies right of way dating from the old Interurban tracks and unused railroad tracks. Phase I of this project from Brown Deer Road to Bradley Road, connecting the Brown Deer Trail to the Oak Leaf Trail at Brown Deer Park, scheduled to take place this summer. While short, this section would eliminate a very tricky left turn between Green Bay Road and the old village of Brown Deer, a turn that is dangerous in both directions.
• Downtown to Bay View connector. This path would utilize long-abandoned railroad tracks east of First Street between National Avenue and Kinnickinnic Ave, replacing part on the on-street route between downtown Milwaukee and Bay View. This project was first presented some years ago, unfortunately as an alternative to allowing bicycles on the Hoan Bridge.

I would be very disappointed if these are the only bike-oriented projects in southeastern Wisconsin. Please let me know about those I have missed.

From the City of Minneapolis:

Due to bridge rehabilitation work, the Midtown Greenway will have intermittent and partial closures through June.  The work is taking place to improve safety for bicyclists and extend the useful life of bridges.  Between Cedar Avenue and Hennepin Avenue, a mobile operation is blasting off loose concrete (which has been falling onto the trail) and making repairs on the undersides of approximately 30 bridges.

In order to protect the safety of trail users, the Midtown Greenway will be closed and detoured for short stretches at times.  Detour routes following 28^th Street and 29^th Street will be posted in these instances.  Work will take place on weekdays beginning at 7:00am and last until 4:30pm (although it will typically be completed by 3:00pm).  At times when it is safe for bicyclists to go through the work site, crews will direct trail users to the side.  Please respect your safety and the safety of city crews by following posted signs and closures.  The trail will remain open at all other times (including evenings, nights, and weekends).

Further west on the Midtown Greenway, bridges over Lake Calhoun Parkway, the Lake Calhoun-Isles Channel, and Dean Parkway are also undergoing bridge rehabilitation work.  This work is taking place to widen the trail and extend the useful life of the bridges, and will last through mid-summer.  The trail at these bridges will not be closed, but will be narrowed at times.

From the City of  Minneapolis:

On Monday, April 11^th, Nicollet Mall was closed between Grant Street and Washington Avenue.  The closure will continue for approximately four weeks, and will facilitate curb, gutter, and concrete slab replacement on the Mall.

The suggested detour route follows Marquette and 2^nd Avenues.

Happy Riding,

City of Minneapolis Bicycle Program

In 2008 the pedestrian bridge connecting Bryant Ave on the north and south sides of Minnehaha Creek in Minneapolis was closed for safety reasons. The bridge is now open. A quick survey shows that it has a new wooden deck, new approaches to the bridge from both sides and a new paint job. According to a press release by the Minneapolis Park and Rec Board, structural changes also included reinforcement of the bridge superstructure and enlargement of the concrete piers.

According to reports from neighbors just before the bridge was closed, kids would stand in the middle of the bridge and rock it back and forth for entertainment. In the interest of bicyclist’s safety, I tried to rock the new bridge. It held firm.

Updates to the Twin Cities Bike Map will once again include the bridge as part of bike route options in south Minneapolis.

I will be presenting a new program at the Outdoor Adventure Expo on Friday, April 15 at 4:00. The program will feature metro area trails plus a special segment on combining bikes and the North Star Commuter Rail.

The trails part of the presentation reflects the extensive research I did last year for the latest edition of the Twin Cities Bike Map. That research underscored how rich this area is in bike trails and other bicycle amenities. For Twin Cities residents, it means you don’t have to travel far to ride some great bike trails. For residents outside the metro area, I recommend considering a bicycle vacation in the cities.You will be surprised at just how enjoyable it can be.

Last fall Metro Transit asked me to explore bike route options around the North Star Commuter Rail stations. They see bicyclists as a potential source of “reverse commuters,” who can take the train out to the exurban areas between the metro area and St. Cloud. Metro transit has a brochure and free online pdf showing some of the options. I took it a step further and explored options to Lake Maria State Park, station to station options and scenic loops. We’re developing a downloadable map of the routes and hope to have it posted within the next couple of weeks. Friday’s presentation will give you a sneak preview of the options.

Midwest Mountaineering’s Outdoor Adventure Expo is free. The Expo offers over 100 free outdoor adventure presentations and over 70 exhibitors. Details at OutdoorAdventureExpo.com. I hope to see you there.

The updated 2011 Madison and Dane County Bike Map reflects the ever changing landscape of this bicycle friendly county. We’ve updated the trails, changed some routes to reflect changing traffic and bicycle patterns and made important design changes.

We’ve added Sun Prairie to the urban side of the map, making it much easier to follow the connections between this nearby suburb and the urban center. We’ve also cleaned up the graphics, changed some of the map symbols and generally made the map easier to use.

This is the third edition of the Madison and Dane County Bike Map and it keeps evolving to meet the needs of Madison area cyclists. Some things, however, haven’t changed. We’ve kept the popular tear and water resistant paper. It will hold up to the most rugged daily use, stay fresh in your panniers or jersey pocket and show you the way home even in a drenching downpour.

We’ve also maintained the focus on field research and user needs when evaluating bike routes for inclusion in the map. Roads that don’t meet our standards have been eliminated and new routes developed. New and expanded trails have been added. The transitions from the urban side of the map to the rural county roads are easy to follow and every road or trail leads somewhere. The Madison and Dane County Bike map won’t abandon you on a road that suddenly turns ugly.

The new Madison and Dane County Bike Map is available at bike shops and bookstores throughout the county, or you can buy it online here at bikeverywhere.com

Twin Cities Bike Map 10th Edition

It took over a year of research, primarily by bike, and hundreds of hours of work in our new GIS software, but the results are worth every minute of effort.

Here are some highlights from the new Twin Cities Bike Map.

* Expanded urban detail: The 10th edition extends south to cover most of Bloomington and east to the river crossing between South St. Paul and Newport.
* All new research: New and expanded trails in Apple Valley, Shakopee, Rosemount, Eden Prairie, Maplewood, Woodbury, Cottage Grove and Hastings. New on road routes everywhere
* New design: Bike Trails, busy bike routes, the LRT and North Star Commuter Rail lines, background colors and more have been re-designed for a cleaner, more readable look.

What hasn’t changed is the attention to accuracy and detail, the tear and water resistant paper and the price.

The maps are on their way to bike dealers and book stores now. Stop by soon and ask to look at the new Twin Cities Bike Map. You can also buy the maps directly from Bikeverywhere.com.

When I first researched the Milwaukee and SE Wisconsin bike map, I prepared some notes on the routes and posted them on my website of Wisconsin Bike Routes. They had not been updated since, an omission pointed out by one of our readers.

They have now been updated and can be seen here. I very much appreciated comments and additions.