Lancaster Bicycle Club's Scenic Tours

 

The Lancaster Bicycle Club is pleased to offer to the public this 26 ride series, showcasing the beautiful Lancaster County’s rolling farmlands. The tours range from 11 to 58 miles in length. Please note, these are self guided tours. Lancaster Bicycle Club does not conduct any tours or rent bicycles. 

The rides now have starting points from popular tourist destinations. Three popular Pennsylvania State owned museums are the starting point for 17 of these rides Ephrata Cloister Museum, Landis Valley Farm Museum, & the PA Railroad Museum. The Lititz Springs Park, in Lititz, PA is the start point for 8 rides and the Clock & Watch Museum the start point for one more.

The Heritage rides are based on a ride developed for the Pennsylvania Department of Tourism.  Since this ride originally featured the three museums it was easy to adapt it to accommodate the quaint town of Lititz.  The 4 versions of the Heritage Ride are the same and differ only in their start locations.

All rides take you through picturesque, rolling farmland, generally on lightly traveled roads.  The terrain is varied from flat easy loops to rolling farm country to challenging hilly rides.  There are many covered bridges in Lancaster County and where possible the rides pass through these structures of years past.  Lancaster County is known for its Amish and plain Mennonite sects. It is not uncommon to see horse drawn carriages and teams of mules working the fields.

Each ride is rated according to its difficulty. The "Difficulty" classification system is:

A. Difficult terrain. Very Hilly. May include hills of 8% or steeper gradient. Some long (up to three miles) hills may be encountered. Multi-speed bikes with low gearing are advised for comfortable riding.

B. Moderate terrain.  Hilly, usually short and less than 8% gradient. Multi-speed bikes with moderate gearing are suitable.

C. Rolling terrain. Some rolling hills. These are good rides for those new to cycling.

D. Flat. Some rolling hills Good for beginning bicyclists.

Each ride is on publicly traveled roads, and where possible, routes were chosen with low traffic counts.  In Pennsylvania the bicycle is a legal vehicle and riders are expected to know and obey all traffic laws.  There are certain dangers that riders should be aware of and be prepared to meet.  Also be advised that road conditions can change.

Conditions of your use of the Scenic Tours Rides Except as stated below, the Scenic Tours Rides may not be copied, reproduced, distributed, republished, downloaded, displayed, posted or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior express written permission of the Lancaster Bicycle Club.

You may download and copy for personal use only, any of the Scenic Tours Rides on this Website. The distribution other than for personal use to third parties without the prior express written permission of the Lancaster Bicycle Club is prohibited and the Lancaster Bicycle Club is clearly identified as the owner and originator.