Empire State Trail Bike Rentals
If you are flying into New York from another state or country to ride the Empire State Trail, a rental bike is a convenient option for your tour. However, the rental bike you choose for the ride will be an important decision.
The important factors to consider are trail and road conditions and if the bikes you want to rent are set up for overnight touring. You will also need to think about if the bikes are well maintained and convenient to pick up on your way to your tour. The rental bikes offered by Gotham Bicycle Tours are specifically set up for this.
- Trail conditions – The Empire State Trail is not a continuous trail maintained by one organization. It is an amalgam of existing trails, with different trail surface types, that were stitched together. Some segments are paved. Some are not. Some are segments are well maintained. Some (especially New York City) are battered and bumpy. This is why we offer Marin Fairfax 2 hybrid-style bikes. They are strong, comfortable bikes that take on all conditions. (For information about what the trail is like, click here)
- Overnight touring – Ideally, your rental bike should be set up for touring. You will at least want a rack above the rear wheel to attach bags to so you can carry some or all of your stuff. You will want tools and a repair kit in case you have a breakdown. You will want tires reinforced against punctures. You will want a helmet, lock and an opportunity to change out the pedals if you bring your own pedals. Just going with the cheapest bike you find online will not meet these requirements. However, the bikes from Gotham Bicycle Tours have all of this. They are set up and accessorized specifically for overnight tours on the Empire State Trail.
- Maintenance – Most other rental bike shops in New York have huge fleets of bikes intended for hourly or daily rentals, where the bikes are used constantly and are serviced by staff periodically. Gotham Bicycle Tours is the opposite. We only have a small fleet of bikes that are serviced after every ride. We understand where you are about to go with the bike and we make sure its ready for several days of riding.
- Convenience – Our rental bikes are stored in Woodlawn Heights, which is northernmost neighborhood inside New York City, near the Empire State Trail. This means you can come pick up the bikes from us and get directly on the trail at the City line (if you want to skip riding in NYC). It is also easy to take the bikes back down to Manhattan using a bike-friendly train (25 minutes back to Grand Central), or you can just ride them back to Manhattan (takes about 60-90 minutes), or we can deliver them to you for an extra fee. If you have flown into NYC but you want to take the train to Albany or Buffalo so you can ride back, we can meet you at the train station with the bike and help you get on the train (which is complicated with a bike). Nobody offers service like this, except us. While you may pay us a little more for the bike or the delivery fee, you will save a lot of time and aggravation, which is worth a lot.
How to get your Empire State Trail rental bike from Gotham Bicycle Tours
To rent a bike for your Empire State Trail bike tour, visit our bike rental page where you can reserve your bike for the days you want. If a bike in your size is not available online, please contact us since our booking system is set up to be conservative with inventory to avoid double-bookings.
You may also want to contact us before you finalize your booking if you have questions, or if you want to set up a delivery or receive your bike at the train station. We can work this out by phone or email before you pay for the rental.
Because we focus on a small fleet of bikes that we mostly rent to long distance riders, we do not have regular store hours or a traditional storefront. When you are ready to rent, we will pick a time to meet, whether we do this at our storage location in Woodlawn Heights, or if we deliver your bike to your hotel or a train station. You always get good service from us. We want you to have a good time here in New York.
Pricing: $85 per day. After three days, the price defaults to the $250 weekly rate.
Rental panniers are available for $100 per pair if you want to carry belongings with you while you ride. (You can also bring your own panniers and they will work with our bikes).
If you have excess baggage that you do not want to take on your ride, you can store this with us for free during the term of your rental.
We can bring you and/or the bike right to your hotel in Manhattan (or elsewhere).
Delivery fees
We are currently the only bike rental company that delivers bikes in NYC or the Lower Hudson Valley. This is a huge convenience for our clients, but we need to pay staff for the time involved with making the delivery. The delivery (or pick up) pricing is as follows:
- Local delivery – Bronx or Lower Westchester County – $75
- Manhattan – $250
- Queens or Brooklyn – $300
- Northern Westchester or Putnam Counties – $200
- Dutchess or Ulster Counties – $400
- Capital Region – $600
The above numbers are all based on travel time. Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn are all very expensive because the TRAFFIC IS SO BAD. However, we will try to make it worth your while. For example, if you are ending your tour at Battery Park in Manhattan, we can come pick up the bikes from you and drive you to your hotel as part of the arrangement for no extra fee. Then you can see for yourself how bad the traffic is.
Planning a Bike Tour on the Empire State Trail in 2025
You already know that you want to go on an Empire State Trail Bike Tour in 2025. But there are many questions:
- Do you know where you want to ride and how many days?
- Do you know where you want to start and end? How will you get there?
- Do you want to use your own bike or rent a bike?
- Do you know where you want to stay along your ride? Will there be services and good places to eat?
- Are you familiar with all of the places you can visit while you ride? Are there particular attractions or experiences that you are interested in? Are there particular foods or local products you would like to try?
- Would you like a reliable GPS program to help you navigate the route and provide you with information while you ride? (If you rely only on Google Maps and signs, you are going to miss a lot and end up on bad roads.)
If you are not at all familiar with New York, you should expect to spend about 30 to 50 hours planning out your tour so that you can be organized enough to satisfy the above questions. If you have some familiarity with New York, perhaps it will take you a few hours less. Our Tour Planning Services are intended to save you this work.
This impressive waterfall involves a short detour from the Empire State Trail. Most people miss it. Make sure you see it!
Tour Planning Services
Using our tour planning services is an up-front cost, where you have us put the logistics, accommodations, and GPS together for you. This service can be tailored to any budget. If you are looking to hold down costs, we can usually alert you to cost savings that are hard to know about without living here. Sometimes you can make back what you pay us in trip planning fees.
Pricing: $500 per segment (Hudson Valley, Erie Canal or Champlain Valley).
$800 for two segments (such as Buffalo to NYC).
There may be additional charges for more complicated tours that require extra hours of work to put together.
Here’s what you get:
- Selecting the best itinerary. Through phone and email consultation, we can go over options with you to create an itinerary that has the ideal mileage per day for your group. This would include a selection of lodging options in locations that best suit your group.
- Getting there and away. We can give you customized options for getting to the start of your ride, and getting back from the end of your ride. This can include logistics for traveling with your own bikes, or for using rental bikes.
Biking in Manhattan is tough, but also fun. We can give you all the info to get the most out of your time in the Big Apple. We also give you updated information about all Manhattan trail closures (which are routine).
- Overview maps. Each day of riding will come with a set of overview maps that describe the highlights of each day, as well as the location of services. Emergency medical facilities and bike shops are identified as well as restaurants, convenience stores, and other services that cyclists may need. Click here to see a sample overview map
- Turn-by-turn GPS navigation. Your entire ride would be programmed with GPS navigation through Ride With GPS. You can run the GPS by using a smartphone app or by downloading it to a Garmin or other device. This GPS will route you directly to and from your accommodations each day, and will help you find restaurants, services, scenic viewpoints, historic sights and more as you ride. Click here to see a sample of the GPS mapping you would receive.
You will pass hundreds of these signs in New York. Are they all worth stopping to read? Our GPS reads you summaries while you ride and gives you pictures of each sign to read later.
- Information, attractions and points of interest. Your overview maps and GPS navigation can be customized to include information about specific attractions, recommended places to eat, good places to take breaks, notable scenic or historical sites and more. The Ride With GPS smartphone app also includes a guide with photographs of every informational panel along your route so that you do not need to stop and read any. The GPS will read you one-sentence summaries about what each sign is about as you pass the sign, so you will know if you want to read it.
New York Metro Area Bike Paths That Are Great for Cross Country Skiing
There’s nothing quite like getting outside on cross country skis after a fresh snowfall. When you can’t get out for a bike tour, cross country skiing is a great form of exercise, since you work both your upper and lower body at the same time. Plus it’s beautiful to ski through a winter wonderland where snow is sticking to tree branches. Unlike downhill skiing, cross country skiing can perhaps best be described as a faster version of hiking where you glide along a trail using your own power to move. But of course those downhills are always a fun part of any day out. The New York area has many biking and hiking paths that offer a wide range of cross country skiing experiences from easy to difficult. There are also a few paths that follow train lines that allow you to ski one way and take the train back to where you started.
In most cases, to ski any of these trails you will need to have your own cross country skis. While this may seem like a major purchase, XC skis cost much less than downhill skis and they will last you many years. Major retailers that sell them include REI and L.L. Bean. There are also a few local retailers who sell them, including Pawling Cycle & Sport and Rock & Snow, both in the mid-Hudson Valley. Rock & Snow also offers rentals if you aren’t ready to buy yet.
Fahnestock Winter Park
Fahnestock Winter Park is perhaps the best choice for New Yorkers who are looking to try cross country skiing for the first time, or if you don’t have equipment. Every winter, the beach area, campground, and hiking trails in Fahnstock State Park are transformed into a nordic skiing center whenever we get a big snowfall. Groomed trails range from easy to difficult and they have rental skis and lessons available. This is the closest nordic skiing center to NYC, so it can get a little crowded. But it is also super easy to get to since it is right off the Taconic State Parkway. You can also get here by public transit by taking the Metro-North Railroad to Cold Spring and then cabbing it over.
Bronx River Pathway
If you are looking to just get out for a short ski trip, you can’t beat the Bronx River Pathway in Westchester County for convenience. This bike path parallels the Metro-North Harlem Line and the Bronx River Parkway so it’s easy to get to by car or train. Plus it offers the advantage of a one-way trip where you can use the train to get to a starting point and then ski back. The scenery is super nice as you pass through dense woods. The nicest segment for skiing is between Hartsdale and White Plains since it has a fair amount of up-and-down and there are no road crossings. If you are looking for a flatter section, try the area between Bronxville and Scarsdale.
The section of the greenway just south of White Plains is great for cross-country skiing when it snows.
Old Croton Aqueduct
With the leaves off the trees, you get a near constant view of the Hudson River and the Palisades from the Old Croton Aqueduct bike trail through Westchester’s river towns. This trail is consistently flat and, since it parallels the Metro-North Hudson Line, it is also very easy to get to by train or do a one-way ski. You also pass through many town centers, which make it easy to stop for lunch.
Rockefeller State Park Preserve
Another regional hot spot for cross country skiers is Rockefeller Preserve in between Pleasantville and Tarrytown in Westchester. This park features a large network of carriage trails that are primarily used by hikers and horseback riders. But after a snowfall it becomes a prime local destination for cross country skiers who ply its ungroomed trails. Probably one of the most scenic parks in our region, this is a great place to check out. You could also get here by train to Tarrytown or Pleasantville in combination with a cab ride.
Ward Pound Ridge
Similar to Rockefeller Preserve, but further north, is Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, which also has a large network of carriage trails that are perfect for cross country skiing. The park isn’t far from the Katonah Metro-North Station, which also has taxi service.
Westchester County Golf Courses
If skiing across open landscapes instead of wooded trails is more appealing to you, all six of Westchester County’s golf courses are open to XC skiing and sledding. These golf courses offer a mix of terrain from steep hills to flat fairways, so there is something for every ability. Plus the parking lots are always plowed and you can even take Bee-Line buses to the Dunwoodie and Saxon Woods Golf Courses. (For Saxon Woods, your best bet is to take the bus to the pool parking area where you can access the parks hiking trails which are also good for skiing).
High Point Cross Country Ski Center
Finally, if you are looking for another large nordic center, but you are willing to travel a little further, High Point Cross Country Ski Center in New Jersey is another place where ski rentals (and even snowmaking and night skiing!) is available.
Resources to find out more
If you want more guidance in figuring out where to go or where the best conditions are, there are a couple of great resources for cross country skiers in our area. Check out Ski the Northeast which is a comprehensive website for skiers from the New York Metro area. Another great resource, particularly if you are interested in updates about ski conditions and other general information, is this fantastic email forum from the New York/North Jersey Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. It’s a great group to learn more about skiing and ask questions.
Advice for tuning up your bike
Now that the spring weather is finally here, if you are getting on your bike for the first few times, you may be noticing that your bike isn’t working completely as it should. Yes, it is still getting you someplace, but maybe the way the gears switch isn’t right. Or you have to really squeeze the brakes hard to get your bike to stop. Maybe your bike makes irritating noises while you ride it? In all of these situations, you’ll find that a good bike tune up will really go far in making your bike riding more enjoyable. So how to go about it?
Find a good bike shop.
The number of independently owned bicycle shops in NYC has, unfortunately, shrunk over the past 5 years. But these small shops can sometimes offer the best customer service, particularly when the person working on your bike is also the owner. So it’s often worthwhile to go a little out of your way if you are looking for a real thorough tune-up or overhaul. In my case, I had a bike that had gone 2 years without a major overhaul with many miles ridden. So I made the trip from the Bronx down to Greenpoint, Brooklyn to Kween Kargo, a shop that specializes in cargo bikes and wheelbuilding. I was lured by their Instagram posts that focused on the quality of their repair work, so I decided to give them a try. The level of service I received from Camille and Chris, the owners of the shop, was unparalleled, and the bike worked flawlessly when I picked it up. Chris also told me that he test-rode the bike to make sure it was perfect. And he said that I had 10 days to bring the bike back for further adjustments. So if it’s service like this that you are after, please support local bike shops!
Do it yourself! (or at least understand more about your bike before you bring it in).
If you have the time available – and the inclination – working on your bike yourself is very rewarding. Even if it’s just the periodic changing of your chain, or occasionally making your own adjustments to your brakes or gearing, any work you do yourself will help you learn more about your bicycle. There are many great books you can buy that provide a good reference for your own repairs. And, of course there are also YouTube videos.
If you are thinking about doing your own tune-up, or if you just want to understand how your bike works a little better, check out Nick Legan’s piece from this month’s Adventure Cycling Magazine “The Unbearable Lightness of Cleaning”. It’s a thoughtful article that will help you identify which parts of your bike may need the most work.
Spring 2019 Bike Path Update
Now that it’s April, many cyclists are dusting off their bikes and heading out for their first ride of the season. And off-road bicycle paths are often the first places cyclists look to for those early season warm-up rides. The good news is that there are a lot of exciting bike path improvement projects heading to our region for 2019. Check out our updates below. And if you know of any other bike path improvement projects in the pipeline for this year, email us and we’ll update this posting again with the new information.
Don’t forget that there are great websites out there that catalog all the bike paths and bike routes in our region. These websites are great resources if you are looking to ride someplace new. Here are a few to check out:
https://www.facebook.com/njbikemap/
OK, on to the updates:
North County Trailway – Westchester County
The North County Trailway is one of three trailway segments that was constructed on the abandoned Putnam Division of the New York Central Railroad. Because the North County Trailway was also one of the first segments to be constructed on this rail line, some portions of the trail are now more than 20 years old and are in disrepair. However, the entire length of this trailway segment, between the Putnam County line and Old Saw Mill River Road in Tarrytown, will be resurfaced and repaired during 2019. If you ride the trail this year, be prepared for trail closures to occur anywhere along the trail. It may be worth checking the Westchester County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation Facebook page to see if they have information about trail closures before you head out for your ride. This trail is the prominent feature of our Hudson Valley Craft Brewery Bike Tour. If you do our tour, we can give you advance information of trail closures and we can shuttle you around them if they are impassible.
Harlem Valley Rail Trail – Dutchess and Columbia Counties
If you’ve ever taken the Metro-North Harlem Line train all the way to the end, you’ll notice that the Harlem Valley Rail Trail begins where the train tracks end. That’s because this rail trail was constructed atop the railroad abandonment, which constitutes all of the rail right-of-way north of the Wassaic station. This is one of the region’s most beautiful rail trails and it is a highlight of both our Hudson Valley Bike Tour and the Harlem Valley Rail Ride and Festival.
Over the years, it has been a challenge to construct a rail trail on top of the entire former rail line. An 8-mile segment has always been missing in between the Village of Millerton and Under Mountain Road in the Town of Ancram, which has necessitated that riders go on hilly (but beautiful) back roads to ride the whole trail.
However, construction has begun on this missing piece of trail and it is expected to be complete by October 2020. This will be a major undertaking requiring 4,100 feet of elevated boardwalks and the rehabilitation of six bridges. But when it is completed, it will surely be an amazing bike path. Read the whole story here.
Ocean Parkway Shared Use Path Extension – Long Island
If you are familiar with Jones Beach State Park, you might know about the Ocean Parkway Coastal Greenway, which is a great bike path that follows Ocean Parkway. Later this year construction will begin to extend this bike path for an additional 10 miles between its current terminus at Tobay Beach and Captree State Park. This bike path will greatly increase the amount of shoreline that is accessible by bikes in both Nassau and Suffolk Counties. The bike path is expected to be completed by the summer of 2020.
Verrazzano Bridge Summer Streets – Brooklyn and Staten Island
Have you ever done Summer Streets in Manhattan? It’s great. For three Saturdays every August, the City shuts down Park Avenue just for bikes.
It appears that support may be building to do the same thing on the Verrazanno Narrows Bridge. https://www.bikesbk.org/verrazzano-summer-streets/
The lack of a bike path or sidewalk on the Verrazanno Narrows Bridge has long been an issue for people looking to bike between the two heavily populated boroughs. The MTA has attempted to address this by providing bicycle racks on the S53 and S93 buses, but there is still a push to allow cyclists to simply ride across the bridge. This may be accomplished this summer if the Verrazzano Bridge Summer Streets intiative moves forward.
George Washington Bridge
A large number of cyclists (3700 per weekend day) routinely cross the George Washington Bridge, which was built in 1931 with narrow 7-foot wide sidewalks. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is currently undertaking a construction project to “Restore the George” which is anticipated to be completed in 2025. Because construction may impact the ability for cyclists to access the bridge sidewalks, the Port Authority recommends cyclists sign up for text or email alerts about sidewalk closures. Find out more at: https://www.panynj.gov/bridges-tunnels/gwb-pedestian-bicycle-info.html
However, it is important to note that the Port Authority’s “Restoring the George” project will not do much to improve bicycle mobility across this bridge, since the project is more or less only considering “replacement in-kind” of the existing sidewalks. To advocate for better improvements, all non-motorized users of the George Washington Bridge are strongly encouraged to go to https://completegeorge.org/ to learn more about how you can advocate for a better plan.
Mario Cuomo (Tappan Zee) Bridge
And finally, as this blog reported back in October of 2018, the long-awaited “shared use path” on the new Mario Cuomo Bridge is set to arrive later this year. This will be a major, major improvement for cyclists and pedestrians in the Hudson Valley. Check it out!
Staying Visible While Cycling
By Rachel Gaffney,
Cycling is one of the healthiest ways to get from A to B, but unfortunately it’s sometimes impossible to avoid motorists during your daily commute. One of the best ways to avoid any incidents with motorists is to stay visible at all hours of day. Here are some top ways you can increase your visibility and ensure everyone on the road sees you.
1. Dress Accordingly
You don’t have to string a bunch of Christmas tree lights to your bicycle, but it’s also not a great idea to dress all in black either. You can adjust your attire depending on what time of day you’re going for a ride. In the daylight, florescent colors are most important. Think bright green, yellow, and orange here. At night it doesn’t really matter what you wear because nobody can see you anyway. What’s more important is wearing something reflective so you’ll stand out against a car’s headlights.
2. Don’t Pass on the Right!
While it’s very tempting to creep alongside a bunch of idling cars and get to the head of the line, it’s usually safest to just wait directly between cars at an intersection. When you pass on the right you set yourself for the right hook, one of the most dangerous crash scenarios for cyclists. If you really want to get to the head of the pack, consider passing a car or two on the left. You’ll run the risk of getting stuck between two lines of traffic of course, so pay attention to the lights and be prepared to immediately merge into your lane!
3. Ride Loud in Proud in the Center
You’ll usually want to stay to the right-hand side of the road if there’s a wide shoulder or bike lane, but what if the bike lane is obstructed or there’s parked cars next to the shoulder (setting you up for getting doored)? You’re never obligated to ride in a bicycle lane if it’s not safe to do so, and if you’re as fast as other cars it’s much safer to ride smack in the middle of the lane.
This makes it easier for oncoming and approaching traffic to see you, but it also prevents motorists from unsafely attempting to pass you in a single lane. As far as preventing any door crashes, a good rule of thumb to follow is if you can reach out and touch a car’s side mirror, you’re too close.
4. Buy a Better Bell
This isn’t necessarily about staying visible, but if you cycle in an area with a lot of pedestrians you’ll likely run into situations where they tend to cross in front of you. Pedestrians often look for just cars, and if they don’t see any they could step directly in your path. A loud bell does wonders for alerting pedestrians to your approach. BikePacking wrote a great article on the pros and cons of some of the most popular bells available today.
While some of these tips are inconvenient, they’ll go a long way in helping you stay safe on the road!
This article was created by www.personalinjury-law.com, an organization dedicated to providing the public with information about personal injury and safety information. Nothing in this article should be construed as legal advice, and it is intended for informational use only. Be sure to review your local cycling ordinances to ensure you ride safe and legally.
Bike Hack: Crossing the Bronx-Whitestone and Verrazano-Narrows Bridges by Bike
Getting between the various NYC Boroughs can be enormously frustrating if you are traveling by bicycle, thanks to bridges that were only designed for cars. While most of the bridges owned and maintained by NYC DOT have now been retrofitted with bike lanes or sidewalks, MTA-controlled bridges are another story.
Unfortunately for cyclists, MTA bridges are the only link for people traveling between Queens and the Bronx, or between Brooklyn and Staten Island. Ever since the sidewalks were removed from the Bronx-Whitestone bridge in 1943, cyclists have been out of luck, forced to detour to the Triborough Bridge. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge never even had a sidewalk in the first place, meaning that you could never ride a bike between Brooklyn and Staten Island (except for the one day a year when they do the 5-boro bike tour). You’d have to ride into Manhattan first, then take the ferry with your bike.
Forcing cyclists to take such long detours is beyond ridiculous in today’s world, where cycling is more popular than ever. Thankfully, the MTA has finally understood this and has implemented a bike rack program for local buses that go across both the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge and Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, to help cyclists use bridges that should have been open to them in the first place.
Unlike virtually every other public bus system in America, New York City Transit has never had bicycle racks on any of their buses. This new policy changes this – finally! – at least for 4 bus routes, 3 of which cross bridges. You can read all about the new bike rack service here: http://www.mta.info/press-release/nyc-transit/mta-running-bus-routes-new-bike-racks-summer
And if you are unsure of how to use a bus bike rack, there is a dull instructional video you can link to from the MTA’s press release. Or, for a more entertaining tutorial, click here!
Bike Hack: The Little Green Signs
A “little green sign” for Route 23
Source: By Fwgoebel – Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10054106
Have you ever been driving (or biking) along somewhere in New York State and wondered about the little green signs that you keep seeing over and over on the side of the road? These little signs are actually reference markers put up by the NYS Department of Transportation after the Highway Safety Act of 1966 required that “each state shall have a highway safety program….(that) shall include, but not be limited to, provisions for….surveillance of traffic for detection and correction of high or potentially high accident locations”.
In short, in a pre-computer and pre-GPS world, each state needed to figure out their own way to reference every segment of state-owned roadway for traffic, maintenance and crash reporting purposes.
And, of course, New York State being what it is, came up with an ingeniously confusing, complicated, yet workable solution, which culminated in these little green signs that show an almost nonsensical jumble of numbers and letters.
But these signs are a great resource if you are ever lost on your bike and you need to figure out what road you are on. The top row of these signs is (almost) always the route number for the state road on which you are traveling. So in the absence of other signage, these little green markers can at least help you figure out what road you are on. On most 2 lane roads, they are every 0.2 mile, so you don’t have to bike far to figure it out. If you are riding on a 4-lane road, you’ll see them every 0.1 mile.
If you are interested in the real nitty-gritty about how these little green signs work, check out the NYSDOT Reference Marker Manual. It’s fascinating. It will make you appreciate the lengths that people had to go to to code highway segments before computers and GPS could just assign everything a coordinate.
And keep in mind, you will only see these signs in New York State. Other states have their own signs, which may or may not make sense.