Bike from New York City to Montreal with Teen Treks

Spend an amazing 16 days this summer traveling through the U.S. and Canada with Teen Treks!  Join a great group of high schoolers on our popular New York City – Montreal bike trek for some of the best cycling and most fun stops on the continent.

Head out from NYC early in the morning, following the Hudson River.

Enjoy the gorgeous countryside of upstate New York and go through smaller towns and Albany, the state capitol.

Stop off for the beach and water fun at Lake George.

Dig into Ben & Jerry’s famous (and enormous) Vermonster, a 20-scoop sundae served in, yes, pretty much a giant bucket. 

Come back up through NY state to head into Quebec, Canada. 

Spend 3 days exploring Montreal, hearing Quebec French, eating poutine (Canada’s favorite junk food – fries with fresh cheese and gravy), and seeing some of the world’s most beautiful architecture.

Like all Teen Treks, this trip gives the group flexibility on the daily details of the route.  If everyone wants to bike hard to get to the lake faster so you have more time on the beach, or if everyone wants to take it easy at a park, stop to appreciate a view, or make an extra ice cream stop, you can do that.

 

This trek ends with a bus ride back to NYC, where you’ll spend a day in Manhattan before heading home.

The New York – Montreal trek features moderate biking (30-50 miles per day) and camping as well as stays in hostels and hotels.  Teenagers entering grades 9-12 can enjoy this short trip, which is packed with things to see and do.  We’re running several New York – Montreal treks this summer:

• June 23 - July 8 (trip code JN-23)
• June 30 - July 15 (trip code JN-30)
• July 7 - July 22  (trip code J-7)
• July 28 - August 12 (trip code J-28)
• August 4 - August 19 (trip code A-4)

Visit TeenTreks.com to apply to bike New York City – Montreal with us, or sign up for one of our other super trips: Across America, Pacific Northwest, European Phantom, California Coast, New England Shore, Amsterdam-Paris, Maine Coast -- and more!

Bike Trips for First-Time Explorers

Kids as young as 11 can get in on their first cross-country bike adventure with Teen Treks, on our First-Time Explorers and Easy routes.   These trips stick to quiet trails, tow paths, and little-used roads, and require as little as 15 miles biking per day. 

Some of these popular trips are already filling up!  Reserve your spot now, so you don't have to face the dreaded "SOLD OUT" label on that trip you had your heart set on.

First-Time Explorers trips (15-25 miles/day):

• D & R Canal Trek for students entering grades 6-8
• Connecticut-Rhode Island Trek for students entering grades 7-9
• Niagara-Toronto Trek for students entering grades 7-9

The D & R Canal Trek follows the historic D & R Canal Trail through Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  Ride across the Delaware River where George Washington made his crossing, see 18th century farmhouses, and tour picturesque downtown districts and the Princeton campus on this great six-day introduction to bicycle touring.

The sandy beaches, charming New England towns, and winding back roads along the Connecticut-Rhode Island Trek are a biker's paradise.  This ten-day ride starts in NYC and goes through New Haven, Guilford, Hammonasset State Park, Block Island, Newport, and Providence before coming back to NYC by bus.

Our Niagara-Toronto Trek follows awesome bike trails around Lake Ontario.  We start in Buffalo, NY and cross into Canada on the first day to visit Niagara Falls and Goat Island, then see the lake freighters at on the Welland Canal, spend a day at Confederation Water Park, and head to Toronto for two days to explore Kensington Market, major museums, Chinatown, and the Toronto Islands.  This ten-day trek ends with a bus ride back to Buffalo for wings and last goodbyes.

Easy trips (20-35 miles/day):

• Cape Cod Trek for students entering grades 7-9
• C&O Canal Trek for students entering grades 7-9
• New England Shore Trek for students entering grades 7-9

The Cape Cod Trek heads south out of Boston past Plymouth Rock, to Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard.  Over 14 days, you'll tour fishing and resort towns and enjoy cabin camping as you make your way up to Provincetown, then come back to Boston for two days visiting sites like Fanueil Hall and Harvard Square, seeing Shakespeare in the Park, and checking out trendy eateries and shops.

Bike the New England Shore with Teen Treks for 14 days, and see beautiful coastal towns and all the beaches you can handle.  We meet up in NYC, then take a train out of the city to start cycling up the coast through New Haven, Mystic, Groton, Block Island, Newport and Cape Cod, ending up with two days in lively, historic Boston.  A bus brings you back to NYC for a day, taking the trek full circle.

On the C & O Canal Trek, you'll bike for 16 days from Pittsburgh to Washington, DC, taking the Great Allegheny Passage (Rail to Trail) and the C&O Canal Tow Path -- no cars or traffic.  You'll get to go whitewater rafting, see Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water house, ride a 19th century canal boat, and visit Civil War-era sites at Harper's Ferry.  The last two days, we spend sightseeing in our nation's capital.

  

Our leaders get extensive training in first aid, mechanics, and leadership techniques, and they're all at least 21 years old. Many of them have taken trips just like the ones they're now leading, and many have led for Teen Treks before!

We love to help trekkers of all ages discover how much they can accomplish.  We camp out some, and we stay in clean, friendly hotels and hotels; we make oatmeal around the fire, and we eat out everywhere we go so you get to know places' local cuisine.  You'll make lifelong friends and come away with memories you'll treasure.

For more information on all our treks, including route maps, dates, and costs, visit Teen Treks' website.  Email or call us (716-566-7908) any time with questions.  We'd love to help you choose the best trip for a fantastic, unforgettable summer!

New Trek for 2014: 1000 Mile Challenge

Maybe you’d love to bike Across America, but you can’t get away for long enough this summer.  Maybe you feel like you could handle the New York-Montreal route or the California Coast, but you want to push yourself a little.  Or maybe you’d love to see Chicago, New York, and the stretch of America between them.   If that sounds like you, check out our new 30-day 1000 Mile Challenge Trek!

Cycle just over 1000 miles, starting in Chicago.

See the Great Lakes and miles of beautiful farm country through Indiana and Ohio.

Visit the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, OH, and eat chicken wings in Buffalo, NY, where they were invented.

Visit Niagara Falls before cruising through New York’s lake country and heading into NYC.

Ride along the Hudson River into Manhattan and Coney Island, where your trek ends.

 Camp with your fellow trekkers some nights, and on others, stay in clean, friendly hostels.

Make friendships that will last your whole life!

This challenging ride (50-100 miles per day) will take you through Chicago, Ft. Wayne, Toledo, Cleveland, Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Ithaca, New York -- and everything in between.  It's suited for high schoolers entering grades 10 through 12. We’ll be running 1000 Mile Challenge June 27 - July 26 (trip code 1000-JN27) and July 11 - Aug 9 (trip code 1000-J11).

Visit TeenTreks.com to apply to bike the 1000 Mile Challenge with us, or sign up for one of our other super trips: Across America, Pacific Northwest, European Phantom, California Coast, New England Shore, Amsterdam-Paris, New York-Montreal -- and more!

New Trek for 2014: Green Ireland

We have two new routes this year!  Check out some of the exciting (and beautiful, and all-around awesome) things you'll be able to see and do on our Green Ireland Trek:

Bike through 4 distinct regions of Ireland: Clare, Kerry, Cork, and the Midlands.

Tour medieval castles, the Ring of Kerry, and the Cliffs of Moher.

Get to know charming rural villages and the lush Irish landscape.

Visit bustling Dublin and Galway.

This 28-day trek will take you through Ireland’s major cities and the gorgeous countryside it’s known for.  We’ll travel on bicycle paths and small roads, sometimes sharing them with sheep and cows (yes, really!), climb through Bunratty Castle and other medieval sites, look out across the Atlantic Ocean from the Cliffs of Moher, ride through the green hills of Connemara, and discover traditional Irish music.

You’ll enjoy welcoming Gaelic hospitality in small cities like Limerick, Kilarney, Cork, Kinsale, and Clifden, and get to visit Galway and Dublin, both world-class cities.  Along the way, you’ll experience thousands of years of Celtic history, music, culture, and food.

This moderately challenging ride (30-50 miles a day; some hills, but not too many) is best suited for high schoolers entering grades 10 through 12. We’ll be running Green Ireland June 25 - July 22 (trip code GI-JN25) and July 2 - July 29 (trip code GI-J2).

Visit TeenTreks.com to apply to be one of the first trekkers to bike Ireland with us, or sign up for one of our other super trips: Across America, Pacific Northwest, European Phantom, California Coast, New England Shore, Amsterdam-Paris, New York-Montreal -- and more!

New Season, New Coordinator!

Hello from (very snowy) Buffalo.  My name is Victoria Brockmeier, and I'm working as Program Coordinator for Teen Treks this season.  I'm excited to be joining the team for 2014!  We have two brand new treks -- the 1000 Mile Challenge, running from Chicago to New York City, and Green Ireland, which will take you through small towns, big cities, and ancient landmarks in the Emerald Isle.

To tell you a bit about myself, I have an MFA in creative writing/poetry from Louisiana State University and a PhD in English literature from the University at Buffalo.  My first book of poems, my maiden cowboy names, won the 2008 T. S. Eliot Prize, and I'm at work on second and third books of poems, plus a critical manuscript.  I've previously done web marketing and communications for the UB medical school, and I grew up hiking all over the Missouri countryside.

I'm ensconced at the Teen Treks offices now, with what surely has to be our last snowstorm of the year coming down outside, and I'll be delighted to talk to you about our trips, whether you're looking to take one yourself, asking for your son or daughter, or considering leading for us.  Email me at victoria@teentreks.com or call 716-566-7908 any time.