Albany to Buffalo Is US 20 a good ride? I see it continues to Cleveland,planning for Oct. Please give me your thoughts if you have ridden it. Thanks
Riding across N Y
Sun, 2013-08-11 21:57
#1
WS Member
Riding across N Y
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Driven it many times. Very scenic but extremely hilly.
You can try using http://www.traillink.com/ for bike trails upstate New York or New Jersey. I hope this was helpful!
No, NOOO! US 20 through NYS is a killer. Unless you insist on suffering, stay away from this road. It's not just that it's hilly but the way it's hilly. Long steep climbs followed immediately by equally step descents, whereupon you immediately face another climb. Hardly any normal terrain. South of 20 it's also hilly but with variations that would make it merely very difficult rather than torture. North of 20 is the Erie Canal corridor where you can find a nearly flat route along the canal towpath or adjacent roads. Write me of you need more details. But, No to 20!!!!
route 20 is a good road-- busy in places-- but good it has a shoulder most of the way but the hills from auburn to bridgewater are tough, just continues hills but a good road to find places eat and sleep. but in some place heavy traffic.
I hace ridden from auburn to Cleveland ohio a good trip
Don't know about 20 but there is a NY Bike Route 5, a signed route between Buffalo and Albany. Very good route. Just Google New York Bike Route 5--there's an online map and you can order a very good paper map as well.
The thing to keep in mind is that every east/west road in the Finger Lakes is hilly. You'd have to go all the way north to the canal path to avoid hills.
I'm familiar with 5 & 20 from Geneva west to the Genesee River. With the exception of a couple of miles in the eastern part of Canandaigua, it's nice, safe road with good shoulders, although maybe not the most pleasant.
5 & 20 is the primary alternative to the Thruway for those who are too cheap to pay the toll. Thus, there's a lot of traffic, much of it trucks. I've never felt I was in jeopardy, but all those trucks rushing past my left ear gets old quickly.
As for Canandaigua, 5 & 20 becomes four to six lanes (divided) through a two-mile ghetto of strip malls. I don't like driving that section, and wouldn't consider cycling it, even with the sidewalk/cycle paths. Better bet is to cut a half-mile north on one of the farm-to-market roads, or a half-mile south to Lakeshore Blvd.
NYS Bike Route 5 is NY RT 31 through the middle of Upstate. It's a nice alternative running through lots of villages along the way, and thus, has less truck traffic. Of course it also runs right through Rochester and its suburbs on several very heavily trafficked roads.
If you decide on NYS BR 5, switch to the canal path in the suburb of Pittsford. Bypass the city, and get back on NYS BR 5 any time after the canal path returns to gravel at Long Pond Rd.