Adirondack Park Loop
Mountain lakes, Olympic legends, and six million acres of forest, all inside the largest park in the lower 48.
- Distance
- 431.5 miles
- Surface
- 100% paved
- 1 week–3 weeks
- Route Type
- Loop
Ride the Adirondack Park Loop
This loop starts and ends in Albany, New York, and is rideable clockwise or counterclockwise. Three alternates let riders skip a big climb, add a ferry detour, or bypass Saratoga Springs.
What to Expect
This loop trades cross-country mileage for a concentrated dose of upstate New York: traffic-free bike paths out of Albany, a climb into the Adirondacks, a lakeside stretch along Lake Champlain, and a return through farm country and small towns. Inside the park, expect balsam-scented forest, glassy lakes, and long, rolling climbs that are challenging but manageable for riders with some touring experience. Towns are never far apart, and most of the route runs on lightly trafficked roads with good shoulders.
The Adirondack Park itself is the headliner: at about six million acres, it’s the largest park in the contiguous United States, and its state-owned Forest Preserve lands are protected as “forever wild.” Lake Placid, host of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics, still has its ski jumps and the arena where the “Miracle on Ice” unfolded. In Saratoga Springs, Saratoga Race Course, one of the oldest sporting venues in the country, sits across the street from the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Farther along, Fort Ticonderoga overlooks Lake Champlain, the Wild Center in Tupper Lake and the Adirondack Experience in Blue Mountain Lake make rewarding stops, and the Burlington Ferry Spur adds a ride across Lake Champlain to Burlington, Vermont.
The route runs mostly on paved local roads and state highways, climbing into rolling and occasionally hilly terrain inside the park before flattening out on the return leg through farmland. Traffic is heaviest near towns, and a few sections around Lake Placid run narrower and busier than the rest of the route.
Services are steady throughout, with towns, bike shops, and lodging spaced along the way. A few stretches thin out, though: the Whiteface Mountain Alternate has scarce services, and traffic can pick up noticeably near park entrances and popular tourist towns once the summer season starts in mid-June.
Ride from late spring through early fall, roughly late May through mid-September. Black flies peak in late spring and early summer, and frost or even snow is possible at higher elevations as early as mid-August. Mountain weather can change quickly, so be ready for cool, wet days even in July.
Route Sections
Albany, NY to Albany, NY, 431.5 miles
From Albany, the route follows the Mohawk-Hudson Bikeway before climbing north through Saratoga Springs and into the Adirondack Park. It continues along Lake Champlain through Ticonderoga, up to Lake Placid, then loops back south through Tupper Lake and Blue Mountain Lake toward Gloversville and home to Albany. Riders choose a clockwise or counterclockwise direction about 39 miles in.
Alternates:
- Whiteface Mountain Alternate, 23 mi. A gentler route around the mountain instead of over it. Services are scarce.
- Burlington Ferry Spur, 43.4 mi. Detours north from Port Henry to Port Kent for a seasonal ferry connection to Burlington, VT. The ferry runs mid-June to late September only.
- Great Sacandaga Lake Alternate, 32.7 mi. Stays within the park boundary and skips Saratoga Springs. Best for riders not starting or ending the trip in Albany.
Adirondack Park Loop Photos
Plan Your Ride
Loop routes like this one make it easy to start and end your trip from a single point, but the Adirondacks’ seasonal crowds and limited camping mean it pays to book ahead.
Trip Planning & Logistics
Albany is the easiest gateway, with Albany International Airport and Amtrak service to Albany-Rensselaer station, and the route heads straight out on the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail for a traffic-free start. Burlington International Airport also works for riders who time their trip to the seasonal Burlington ferry.
As a digital-only route, this loop is available for purchase through Adventure Cycling’s shop as a Ride with GPS experience, which includes routing, detailed service information, riding conditions, and field notes for trip planning.
Because the route runs mostly on paved local and state roads with good shoulders, most riders will be comfortable on a standard touring bike or a road bike set up for longer miles. Riders who plan to explore beyond the main route, including some of the rougher stretches on the alternates, may prefer a gravel bike with wider tires for extra comfort and flexibility.
Whichever setup you choose, front and rear lights are worth packing regardless of when you plan to ride: several sections near Lake Placid are narrow and curvy, and low light or overcast weather can make visibility difficult even during the day. A rearview mirror and a bright, visible kit also help on the busier roads near park entrances and tourist towns. Pack bug spray for black fly season in June, and bring layers, since temperatures can swing from warm afternoons to chilly mountain evenings.
You can camp or find lodging along the whole loop, from state campgrounds run by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation to inns and motels in the larger towns. Reservations are recommended, especially on summer weekends. Late in the season, plan ahead, since many campgrounds close after Labor Day. Some campgrounds charge solo cyclists the same as a full tent or RV site, often $10 to $30 per night, though hiker/biker rates are sometimes available.
Saratoga Springs, Lake Placid, Tupper Lake, and Blue Mountain Lake offer grocery stores, cafes, and restaurants for a range of budgets, with smaller towns filling in between. Hours can be limited in the smaller communities inside the park, so check your digital route in Ride with GPS for service phone numbers, and call ahead, especially outside peak season. If you refill from lakes or streams, treat the water first.
Traffic increases near park entrances and popular tourist towns, particularly once New York’s schools let out in mid-June. Riding early in the day helps with both crowds and RV traffic, and lights and reflective gear are a good idea even for daytime riding on the narrower, curvier sections near Lake Placid. The Burlington Ferry Spur’s ferry connection only runs mid-June through late September, so check schedules before relying on it.
Always check Adventure Cycling Route Updates and Corrections before you go.
Routes change. Bridges wash out, businesses close, and construction pops up overnight. We strive to keep routes updated as those things happen. When we learn about a change, we reroute around sections that have become dangerous, update service information as businesses open, close, or move, and reroute around temporary road and bridge closures or construction. Digital routes are updated as soon as we’ve reviewed a reported issue.
You’re often the first to spot these changes out on the road. Help us keep this route accurate for the next rider by reporting anything you notice with our Route Feedback Form.
This Route Is Part of Something Bigger
It’s one piece of the Adventure Cycling Route Network, began in 1976 and built on a simple mission: to empower people to travel by bike. Our team maps and maintains it; our members and donors make it possible.
-
Explore the Adventure Cycling Route Network
Our premium routes are well researched by our cartographers and well traveled by thousands of cyclists.
Adventure Cycling Route Network -
Support Route Development
Our members are the reason we can offer three route networks tailored for specific experiences and riders.
Become a Member -
Stay Connected
Find your stoke with our newsletter all about routes, gear, stories, and cycling news in your inbox twice a month.
Sign up for Bike Bits
Frequently Asked Questions
It’s our flagship, staff-built route network. The one that started it all 50 years ago with the TransAmerica Trail, the route that launched bicycle touring and bikepacking in America. Every route in it is designed and researched by our own team of cyclists and cartographers: months of research and on-the-ground testing go into each one, so what you get is more than a line on a map. Each Adventure Cycling route has detailed logistics, terrain and elevation info, points of interest, camping and lodging, safety alerts, and history, all in one place. It’s the most in-depth of our three networks, available as digital routes and most as paper maps too. It’s the route network we update most regularly as conditions change.
They’re related, but not the same thing. The Adventure Cycling Route Network is made up of routes we’ve researched, ridden, and mapped ourselves, chosen specifically for a great touring or bikepacking experience. The U.S. Bicycle Route System (USBRS) is a state-by-state national system that we serve as technical experts for, made official through each state’s department of transportation. The two overlap in a lot of places, but an ACRN route carries our own on-the-ground vetting; a USBRS route carries official state recognition.
It depends! If you want a route we’ve personally scouted end to end, with services, camping, and terrain notes built in, start with the Route Network. The ACA Route Network has routes of many different lengths and can be a much easier starting place for someone new to bicycle travel. If you’re an experienced cyclist piecing together an officially designated corridor, or riding somewhere the two systems converge, the interactive USBRS map is a good resource to use.
The Adventure Cycling Route Network is a premium network because of everything that goes into it. Unlike the U.S. Bicycle Route System (built by state DOTs) or Short Routes (submittedby cyclists in their own communities), every Adventure Cycling route is researched, ridden, and vetted end-to-end by our own team. Unlike other routes, Adventure Cycling routes come with extensive information on riding conditions, terrain notes, camping and lodging info, logistics, safety alerts, and points of interest. We also keep it current as roads and services change. The price supports that ongoing research and maintenance work, done by a nonprofit whose whole mission is making sure the route in your hands is one you can trust.
Turn-by-turn directions with a bike icon aren’t the same as a route built for specifically touring or bikepacking. Every mile in the Adventure Cycling Route Network has been researched and ridden by our staff and researchers, chosen to avoid dangerous traffic, and mapped with what a touring cyclist actually needs — food, water, camping, hotels, bike shops — spaced out along the way. The Adventure Cycling Route Network was built for cyclists by cyclists, is regularly updated, and comes with the resources and information needed to plan your ride.
No. The network includes routes for a wide range of experience and difficulty levels, from a first multi-day trip to a cross-country expedition. What every route has in common is that it was chosen with a touring cyclist’s needs in mind, whatever kind of trip you’re planning.
Not at all. Alongside iconic long-distance routes like the TransAmerica Trail, the network includes shorter regional routes, so it works for a weeklong vacation or a two-month journey.
For many years, we focused on paved routes, but today the network includes plenty of unpaved gravel riding for bikepacking. In fact, Adventure Cycling mapped the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route in 1998, arguably the most impactful bikepacking route in the world. The Adventure Cycling Route Network also includes the Golden Gravel Trail, Idaho Hot Springs Mountain Bike Route, Arkansas High Country Route, and more. Some routes are a 50/50 mix of pavement and gravel. Some routes follow paved and unpaved bike paths and rail trails. The Adventure Cycling Route Network has terrain for every cyclist.
We revisit our printed maps every three to five years, and push corrections to our digital route data as we learn about changes on the ground. If you have an Adventure Cycling Route in Ride with GPS that we’ve updated, you’ll get a notification when you open the route to update to the newest version of the route. Updating will ensure you have the latest data, information, and points of interest vital to being on route. For cyclists who have Adventure Cycling paper maps, we keep a list of route- and section-specific updates current on our Map Updates and Corrections page.
Change comes from two directions: our own staff research and reports from the cyclists actually out there riding them. If a bridge washes out, a shoulder disappears, a campground closes for repairs, or a town loses its only grocery store, that’s the kind of thing that triggers an update. You can help us keep our routes accurate; fill out our Route Feedback Form.
Most of our Adventure Cycling Routes come as waterproof print maps and digital Ride with GPS navigational data. Our print maps are the #1 longstanding popular resource for traveling cyclists. They are waterproof, highly detailed and always work. For long trips, many cyclists use a combination of print maps and digital routes.
If you’re already comfortable and familiar with a GPS navigational aid such as Ride with GPS or a Garmin, our digital data packages are an excellent choice. We do not recommend GPX data for beginners since there are a few extra steps to installing and troubleshooting.
Once you purchase a digital route, you’ll get an email with a link to unlock it in the free Ride with GPS app — no separate subscription required for basic navigation. From there you get turn-by-turn voice directions, curated points of interest like campgrounds and bike shops, and field notes on the history, geography, and climate along your route, all available 100% offline. If you’drather use a dedicated GPS device, you can export the route as a GPX file to load onto a Garmin, Wahoo, or similar device.
To export GPX files of your Adventure Cycling digital route, use your laptop or desktop to open the email you received after purchasing your digital route. Click on the link that allows you to access your Digital Route. Finally, click on EXPORT ALL at the bottom of the screen. This is the only way to export files that include the route line, points of interest, and services. Files will be exported as one ZIP file.
Adventure Cycling uses abbreviations across its paper and digital routes to indicate particular services, land or road types, route names, direction of travel, and route type. Please see our key to abbreviations.
If you have questions on how to purchase a digital route or about the route content, please contact Adventure Cycling: cartography@adventurecycling.org or 406-721-1776.
If you have questions on how to use your Digital Route in Ride with GPS, please check the Ride with GPS support page or email them at info@ridewithgps.com.
If you’re new to Ride with GPS, please check out the following resources:
Our print map panels aren’t always oriented northwards for space and layout reasons. Refer to the north arrows to help orient yourself if you’re not sure.
No. The Routes and Mapping Department does not do custom routes for individuals. Check out the routes we’ve already mapped, and use the interactive map to piece our route networks together, forming a route that gets you from a point A to point B of your choice.
It started with a single route. In 1976, we mapped the TransAmerica Trail, and more than 4,000 cyclists crossed the country together for Bikecentennial — the nation’s bicentennial cycling celebration our founders organized. That one route became the seed of a network we’ve spent the decades since expanding. Today it’s more than 58,000 miles of mapped routes across the U.S. and Canada, from classic epics like the TransAmerica Trail, Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, and Pacific Coast, to shorter regional routes.