Day Trips
Here are some nice rides that build up to a century ride.
These rides start from our house on Emerson St.
Many of these are lovely rides, especially the longer ones. There are generally restrooms and water at the halfway point.
Some of these rides require a state trail pass to make it easier to get out of Madison.
-
Capitol City Shroom (loop), 23.1 miles, pretty flat. Shorter options:
-
19.5 miles: remove the stem by simply continuing on the Capitol City trail.
-
15.5 miles: remove the stem, and slice the cap by turning right on Seminole, then turn right on Arboretum Drive
Approximate route.
-
Verona Vroom (or possibly the Paoli Pump), 23.6 miles, pretty flat. Anyone for lunch/coffee at Tuvalu? Longer options:
-
27.8 miles: Turn left at Fitchrona Rd, left on M, right on Borchart Rd, right on Sunset Dr, right on Range Trail, left on M.
-
30.5 miles: Turn left at Fitchrona Rd, left on M, right on Borchart Rd, left on Purcell Rd, right on Sayles Trail, right on Sun Valley Parkway, right on Range Trail, left on M.
The Paoli pump water tastes terrible; better to wait until Verona.
Approximate route
and cue sheet (two for the price of one!).
-
The Oregon O (loop), 32.0 miles, few hills. For four extra miles, go to Paoli.
Anyone for lunch/coffee at Firefly?
Approximate route.
-
Roxbury Roadtrip, 34.1 miles, long-ish hills.
We'll drive to start at Pheasant Branch. Breakfast/lunch at the Roxbury Tavern.
Approximate route and cue sheet.
-
Farley Center (loop), 38.2 miles, pretty flat except for a couple of hills.
Farley Center for Peace, Justice and Sustainability website.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Frenchtown Fling (loop), 39.8 miles, pretty flat except for Observatory Hill.
Lunch at Tuvalu or Sow's Ear.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Mt. Vernon (loop), 41.3 miles, few hills. Cars go fast on G, but there's a pretty good shoulder and good visibility.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Mt. Horeb, 50.4 miles, some hills. The short option is 36 miles and follows the same route, but stops when you hit the Riley Tavern.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
South of Stoughton, 52.5 miles, some hills.
Approximate route.
-
Brooklyn (with loop) or Oregon, 54.7 or 36.5 miles, few hills.
Approximate Brooklyn route,
approximate Oregon route, and
cue sheet.
-
New Glarus or Paoli (loops), 55.4 or 35.8 miles, few hills until you get near New Glarus, then a long hill and then a steep hill.
Approximate New Glarus route and
cue sheet.
-
Devil's Lake State Park, 64 miles, long-ish hills; great ride! We'll drive to start at Pheasant Branch. If Crystal Lake road is closed, go straight on Gluth Rd., turn left at Hwy 60, and then follow the cue sheet at Oconnor.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Brooklyn and Beyond (loop), 71.8 miles, some nice hills, steep but short. Brooklyn is the last water stop.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
|
|
Rock River
|
Rock River Ramble (with loop), 77.1 miles, some hills. Lunch on banks of the river. NOTE: There is no longer water at Gibbs Lake Park. You'll have to stop at a house or two along the way, or I need to redesign this ride. There are three other options, all with no water:
-
31.4 miles: Instead of turning right on Lake Kegonsa (step 20), continue on Rutland Dunn Townline for 0.3 mi and go straight on Lake Kegonsa Rd (not right on Rutland Dunn Townline). You'll be on step 51.
-
38.9 miles: Instead of turning right on A (step 21), turn left on A for 1.4 miles, slight left on A for 0.3 miles, and turn left on Starr School Rd. You'll be on step 49.
-
52.6 miles: Instead of turning right at Riley (step 28), continue on Stebbensville 0.3 miles and turn left on McGinnis. You'll be on step 43.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Folklore Village, 94.4 miles (47.2 miles one way), some nice roller-coaster hills. See their website to see if there's anything going on.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
|
|
If you do the full century, you might need to stop here and say a prayer
|
Here's the century (with a half-century option) that I did in Sept, 2009; both are loops.
-
Century, 106 miles.
A spectacular ride, this century covers some of my favorite roads and has everything. There are nice roller-coaster hills (nothing huge), cool valleys, ridges with great vistas, some beautiful old stone houses, country churches and schoolhouses, historic cemeteries, meandering creeks, assorted farm critters, rock outcroppings, and even a UFO! It's really quite nice.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Half-Century, 57 miles. The first 34 miles and the last 12 miles are exactly the same as the century. It's a nice ride too, though it misses some of the more spectacular scenery that's further west.
Approximate route and
cue sheet.
-
Another Century Ride:
version 1 and
version 2, ~100 miles, a work in progress.
