If you’re spending this winter regretting not booking a trip somewhere warm (like we are), you may have vowed “never again” and started looking at trips for 2015. So we’ll help you out and get some recommendations on some of the best places to feel the wind in your hair if your bike’s in cold storage for the winter.
Lake Pleasant and Castle Hot Springs, AZ – You really can’t go wrong with Arizona in January, with temps in the mid-70s and little precipitation, it’s an ideal time to visit the desert. Leave the interstate and wind up exit 103 through ghost towns, abandoned mines, and onto dirt roads to Lake Pleasant. It’s just one of many pleasant day trips from Phoenix, which is an easy stop for a fly-and-ride vacation. Or, plan to hit Arizona Bike Week in late March/early April, if you can wait that long.
While we’re dreaming, how about Hawaii? Now, we can’t ship your bike there, but you can rent one from one of the many providers . On the Big Island, you can wind your way past botanical gardens, up the slope of a volcano, and past spectacular waterfalls. That sounds like a winter vacation we can get behind.
Of course Florida has to be on your list of warm weather destinations. Why not ship your bike to Naples and head out on a Florida Keys adventure? Try a Naples to Key West route or a scenic wildlife adventure on the Tamiami trail. You can even make a side trip into Everglades National Park for some gator-hunting, and spend some relaxed afternoons in the many charms of Key West, the southernmost part of the USA.
Up for a challenge on your warm-weather getaway? Head to San Diego, pick up your bike, and set out on the Palomar Mountain Loop. It’s rated as the most technical ride in Southern California, so you’ll need to keep your eye on the road, but even with its mountain elevations, the average high in January is 66 degrees, so it should be pleasant when you pull over to enjoy the mountain vistas and lush forests.
South Texas. Meet your bike in Austin or San Antonio and head out to the good ol’ Texas Hill Country. You’ll ride past a refreshing and surprising collection of oak covered hills, spring-fed rivers, crystal clear lakes, impressive limestone cliffs, and acres of colorful wildflowers. Because of its shade-protected valleys, you’ll find sites as GIANT cypress trees and Maple tree groves that you just wouldn’t expect to find in Texas. Average temperature in January and February are mid-sixties to seventies.
HAULBIKES is here to help your warm weather winter vacation happen. Let us get your bike to where you want it and safely back home for you.
Photo by Sai Kiran Anagani on Unsplash
