Route Planning
Established Routes Between Major Destinations:
– Downtown South Bend to the airport: Description and Map
– South Bend to Warren Dunes State Park: Ride Report with Maps
Rides for Fun
– Adam Bee’s favorite climbs in the Michiana area: List with Maps
Regional Bicycle Map:
We now have a comprehensive St. Joseph / Elkhart Counties area bike map created by cartographer Jim Moffitt, as described by BMC President Jeff Nixa in a previous post. It is available for $5 in folded hardcopy from local bike shops, but you can also download it as a PDF (note, the file is over 10 MB in size!).
For an interactive online map showing rated routes (in terms of bicycle suitability) see Adam Bee’s post (LINK) or go directly to the map (LINK). Here’s a sample (more information is available on the map’s own website):
For sharing routes or requesting assistance in finding a route, users are encouraged to join the free Bike Michiana Google Group discussion board at the following URL: http://groups.google.com/group/bike-michiana.
Through the discussion board, any user may make posts to either share or request bicycling routes. We hope that other users will then share their experience. Well-established routes will then be added to this website as blog entries under the Routes Category (Categories are listed on the left side of this website, but here’s a direct link as well: LINK).
susan marcotte said
I am looking for a route from LaPorte (Pine Lake area) to the Studebaker museum area and past the Chocholate factory. The route should be no more than 60 miles round trip. I would consider a remote start in a park to make it between 40 and 60 miles.
Adam Bee said
I’ll give it a shot (or a couple shots), and post what the best that I can find on the Bike Michiana Google Group. Thanks for asking!
susan marcotte said
Thanks, this is for a midwest tandem rally to be held in Shipshewanna in 2010, and we are doing the post tour. Since we do not live up there any help will be appreciated. Sue
Jim Moffitt said
I am willing to help, I’m familiar the roads to South end and LaPorte from New Carlisle.
Adam Bee said
Yeah, I think you’d be much better at it than I would, Jim. This is actually a tougher request than I’d anticipated– I’ve never ridden on a lot of those roads. I rode down to southwest SB last nite to scout out some routes, only to find that they’re a bit difficult to come by.
Thanks a ton! I’ll be interested to see what you come up with.
susan marcotte said
Jim: Thanks for your offer to help. We will be up in the area at Amishland and Lakes Bike Ride in early August and are planning on going over to LaPorte to ride some routes we think will be okay. If you have suggestions for the South Bend ride would really like to meet up with you and see what you have come up with.
It was suggested that we do a remote start at a park near SR 2 and Timothy road to make it a slightly shorter route and maybe have a longer route from LaPorte for mileage junkies.
Sue