How these guides are made
Bike the Parks covers cycling in every US national park: road, gravel, mountain bike, e-bike and family riding. Each guide says where bikes are allowed and where they aren't, the rides worth doing, when to go, car-free windows, shuttles, safety, fees and e-bike rules.
Sources
Every rule, distance, closure and fee comes from a page we read, usually the park's own National Park Service bicycling page, its Superintendent's Compendium, or its fees and conditions pages. Each guide lists its sources and the month it was checked. Where a park's page didn't give a number, we leave it out rather than guess.
The rider score
Each park gets a score from 1 to 5 for cyclists:
- 5, Destination ride: people plan whole trips around riding here: car-free paths, legal trails or famous climbs.
- 4, Great riding: excellent riding that's worth building a visit around.
- 3, Worth bringing a bike: good rides on park roads or a few routes; bring the bike if you have room.
- 2, Limited riding: a road or two you can ride, but it isn't why you'd come.
- 1, Leave the bike at home: bikes are impractical or barely allowed: roadless, boat or plane access, or wilderness.
Independent
Bike the Parks is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Featured outfitter listings are paid and always labelled; they never change a park's score or what a guide says.
Edited by David Bussell.