Day Trips
Be a "Section Cyclist"!
Are you interested in day trips on the Cross New Hampshire Adventure Trail or close by? You don't need to be an end-to-ender or "Thru Cyclist" to enjoy the trail!
Below are links to a variety of rides that celebrate parts of the trail on a day or part-day out-and-back or loop ride, suggested by local cyclists. Click on the ride name to link to a map.
Shorter Rides:
Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge, Jefferson:
An 11 mile out-and-back ride on a hard packed dirt trail (Presidential Rail Trail) and some pavement. This ride starts at a small parking area at the rail trail/Wildlife Refuge entrance off of Airport Road. Visit the pondside deck for panoramic mountain views, ride in open marshland and look for birds, beaver and moose. If you like, this route can take you onto some quiet paved roads to the Israel River Campground and be sure to visit their small store which has ice cream bars and cups.
Gravel Bike or Mountain Bike Day Trips:
There are 5 mountain biking trail systems next to or close to the xNHAT: PRKR Mt in Littleton, Bethlehem Trails, Franconia Trails, Coos Trails in Gorham, and Inland Woods and Trails in Bethel, ME. All these 5, plus 4 more in VT, ME and Quebec are part of the "Bike the Borderlands" mountain biking trails coalition. For info and maps go HERE.
Hogan Road Ride
You will LOVE this short ride if you like a good challenge with beautiful scenery! A 16.5 mile out-and-back ride mostly on a dirt road, about a mile of rail trail and a non-motorized "Multi-Modal" dirt road. Hogan Road is a shady, quiet, narrow dirt road alongside the Androscoggin River. Park in Shelburne at the intersection of Hogan Road and North Road in a small dirt parking area. You will ride a part of the Appalachian Trail that follows Hogan Road for a short distance. Hogan has some delightful dirt road riding, and some challenges due to washouts, rocks and rough areas. Be ready to walk your bike in some places. The river is right next to it in some areas, and in these places, the road occasionally gets a new layer of river stones deposited on it. After about 6 miles, Hogan Road connects via a short singletrack to the Presidential Rail Trail at an opening with power lines above. Take the rail trail westward, over the power canal bridge and then the high bridge over Route 16 and the Androscoggin River, then to a parking lot on Route 2. Across Route 2, you will see a gate and a dirt road that will take you into the town of Gorham (onto Route 16, use care on this busy road) where there are many places for food, ice cream, coffee. For coffee and a bakery, check out White Mountain Cafe and Bookstore.
This fantastic 24 mile mostly dirt road ride starts on the Presidential Rail Trail at the Bowman parking lot (Castle Trailhead), travels west to Route 115 and turns right onto 115 to head towards Route 2. Crossing Route 2 it heads northeast onto Ingerson Road, a beautiful dirt road. Follow the map and cues to the Pond of Safety. The gradual climb will reward you with the peaceful remote pond in the woods.
Mostly Pavement Rides:
Bretton Woods to the Lupines in Randolph and Jefferson.
A great 42 mile mostly pavement but with some dirt roads and rail trail ride with panoramic views of the Presidentials. Excellent in mid to late June for the lupine bloom or in October of the fall foliage, or anytime for the mountain views. Start at the parking lot for Bretton Woods Ski Area. Shorten the ride by starting at the large dirt parking area on the north side of Route 302 near Zealand Campground. Shorten it even more, and reduce the amount of pavement ny starting at the Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge.
This is a 31 mile ride in Randolph and Jefferson, mostly on pavement but with 4 miles on a dirt road. This is an excellent ride to view fields of lupine blooming during mid to late June. Park at the dirt parking area on Dolly Copp Road (also known as Pinkham B Road) at the Presidential Rail Trail crossing.
All Pavement Rides:
Shelburne to Bethel, a 39 mile out-and-back ride on a scenic, quiet, paved back road. North Road runs parallel to the Androscoggin River. Davis Park, the terminus of the trail, has a riverside park, picnic tables, porta potty. It is within a short distance of the village of Bethel which has cafes, coffee and ice cream shops. Park in Shelburne at the intersection of Hogan Road and North Road in a small dirt parking area.
A 50 mile loop ALL ON PAVEMENT. Although this ride only includes 1.8 miles on the Cross New Hampshire Adventure Trail, it is a fantastic ride, a local favorite, had to list it here for you. Park in the center of Whitefield near the town green and gazebo.
49 miles, ALL ON PAVEMENT, mostly out-and-back with one small loop. This excellent ride starts in Bethel, Maine at the endpoint of the Cross New Hampshire Adventure Trail. Begin in the parking area at Davis Park. The ride is 50 miles round trip on quiet paved roads that travel northward alongside the Androscoggin River and the Ellis River into the village of Andover. This town is an excellent place for a lunch stop at the Andover General Store and a pleasant shady park with gazebo. This ride could be considered a northward extension of the Cross New Hampshire Adventure Trail further into Maine!