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NYC to Montréal Bike Tour Empire State Trail • Route Verte

Hotel-to-Hotel Touring • Turn-by-Turn Google Maps • Rail Bailout Safety Net

🗺️ Google My Maps KML
Itinerary:
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Total Distance
…
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Schedule / Pace
Sun → Fri (6 Days)
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Total Climbing
… estimated from elevation data
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Rail Safety Net
Amtrak Adirondack Shadows Daily

🌤️ Live Tour Weather & Cycling Risk Tracker

Live ECMWF/NOAA Forecast

Real-time stage forecasts for your tour schedule. Evaluates temperature exposure, rain probability, wind resistance (headwind vs tailwind), and kit advice.

⏳ Loading live forecast for Sunday, Oct 4 departure...
Risk Matrix: 1–3 Low Risk (Optimal) 4–6 Moderate (Advisory / Layers) 7–10 High (Caution / Rain Shell)
Powered by Open-Meteo • Zero API Key Needed

🗺️ Route Map & Waypoints

All Stages 🚴 … ⛰️ … 🌤️ Oct 4–9 Forecast

View stages, hotels, lunch stops, bike shops, and ⚡ Acceleration Checkpoints. Click any stage or pin for directions.

Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 ⚡ Accelerate 🌲 Vermont Islands
Click any route or pin for Google Maps turn-by-turn navigation
🧭 GPS Navigation Downloads Garmin • Wahoo • Hammerhead • RideWithGPS • Google My Maps

Download Turn-by-Turn GPS Tracks & Offline Waypoints

Tracks follow the real roads and trails (routed on OpenStreetMap), so your device can generate turn prompts. For bike computers, load one day at a time using the Day GPX button on each day card; many devices only import the first track of a multi-day file. The combined files below are for planning, and the KML files are for Google My Maps.

✓ Offline Navigation Ready
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GPX Track Files

For Garmin Edge, Wahoo ELEMNT, Hammerhead Karoo

GPX 1.1
6D 6-Day Classic GPX 📥 5D 5-Day Fast GPX ⚡ 7D 7-Day Gentler GPX 📥 VT Vermont Upgrade GPX 🌲
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KML Map Overlays

For Google My Maps, Organic Maps, Maps.me

KML
6D 6-Day Classic KML 🗺️ 5D 5-Day Fast KML ⚡ 7D 7-Day Gentler KML 🗺️ VT Vermont Upgrade KML 🌲
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Per-Day GPX Files

Load one day at a time on Garmin, Wahoo, Hammerhead

21 files

⚠️ Critical Tour Advisories & Operational Gotchas

Essential real-world logistics, October environmental realities, border rules, and transit bailouts.

Read Before Riding
🚆 Amtrak Bike Service Ends at Rouses Point!

The Amtrak Adirondack takes carry-on bikes (coach rack, reservation required) only between New York and Rouses Point, NY. You cannot roll a bike onto the train in Montréal. Southbound train 68 leaves Rouses Point at 2:15 PM (Sun, Tue–Sat). On Mondays it starts at Saratoga, so there's no Monday train from Rouses Point. Northbound runs daily. (Amtrak timetable dated Sep 27, 2026.)

Return A: Ride ~60 mi from Old Montréal to Rouses Point (GPX: return route); leave by ~7:30 AM for the 2:15 PM train, or sleep in Saint-Jean and ride the last ~25 mi next morning.
Return B: Box the bikes in Montréal (call Ça Roule, Quilicot or MEC ahead to reserve boxes) for a bus or flight.
Return C: One-way rental van/SUV from Montréal to NYC.
🏨 Book Early (Peak Foliage)

Early October is peak foliage in the Adirondacks and on Lake Champlain. Book early and ask every hotel about indoor bike storage.

Hudson: the Barlow Hotel is now the Hudson Whaler (542 Warren St, 518-217-4334).
Ticonderoga: Best Western Plus is (518) 585-2378. Plattsburgh: Best Western Plus is (518) 561-7750. Earlier drafts listed wrong numbers for both.
🍂 Daylight & Wet Leaves

Sunrise is about 6:55–7:03 AM. Sunset is 6:33 PM (NYC, Oct 4) falling to 6:18 PM (Montréal, Oct 10). Days 2 and 3 are 77–82 mi: be rolling by 8:30 AM and carry real lights.

Wet leaves: Wet leaves on rail trails are slippery. Brake before corners. 32 mm+ tires are recommended for the canal towpaths (about 8 mi unpaved on each of Days 3, 4 and 7).
🛂 Border: Rouses Point–Lacolle 223

Every itinerary (including the Vermont variant) crosses at US-11 / Route 223, just north of Rouses Point. It's open 8 AM to 8 PM daily on both sides (no longer 24 hours) and bikes use the regular car booths. (The I-87 crossing at Champlain is a freeway: no bikes.)

ID: Passport, passport card, Enhanced Driver's License, or NEXUS.
No cannabis in either direction. No pepper spray (it's a prohibited weapon in Canada).
Bike ownership: Keep a photo of the serial number and receipt (optional: CBP Form 4457 before you leave).
🔧 Food Gaps & Shop Closures

Many small shops are closed Sun/Mon (Yorktown Cycles on the Day 1 trail is closed both days). Be self-sufficient: 2 tubes, plugs, quick-link, pump, multitool.

Day 4: Historic Grounds in Whitehall is CLOSED; use Stewart's (60 Poultney St), then there's nothing for 23.5 mi on NY-22.
Day 5: Essex food is thin in October. Stewart's in Port Henry (mile 15) and Keeseville (mile 56) are the reliable stops.
Day 6: Rouses Point's Lakeside Coffee Roasters closes early afternoon (the Lake Street Cafe has closed).
📱 Cold Battery Drain & Offline Maps

Cold mornings (often in the 40s °F) drain phone and GPS batteries faster, and this web app's background map needs a connection.

Action: Load the day GPX files on your bike computer, download offline maps in your phone app, print the strip maps, and carry a power bank.

📅 Daily Stages & Cue Sheets

Each stage includes curated lunch spots, overnight hotels with phone numbers, bike shops, and ⚡ Accelerate Checkpoints.

🌲 Premium Route Variant Alternative to Days 5 & 6

⛵ The Vermont Champlain Islands Upgrade

From Essex, NY take the car ferry to Charlotte, VT, overnight in Burlington, then ride the Island Line causeway (with the seasonal bike ferry) and the Champlain Islands back to Rouses Point and into Quebec. Designed for the 7-day tour: the bike ferry runs only Fri to Sun in October.

📥 VT GPX 🗺️ VT KML 📖 Master Guide

🔧 Bike Shops & Equipment Master Directory

Reliable repair shops and bike mechanics directly along the corridor.

Stage / Day Address / Location Phone Number Specialty & Notes
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The "Iron Lifeline" Rail Bailout System

The NYC-to-Montreal corridor features uninterrupted passenger rail parallel to the entire ride:

  • NYC to Poughkeepsie (Metro-North): Harlem and Hudson lines allow standard unboxed bicycles without reservation outside peak hours.
  • Hudson Valley to Albany (Amtrak Empire Service): Connects Rhinecliff, Hudson, and Albany-Rensselaer. Roll-on bike racks available.
  • Albany to Montréal (Amtrak Adirondack #68/69): Daily direct service between Penn Station and Montreal Gare Centrale with roll-on bicycle service!
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Canada Border Crossing Protocol

You will cross at Rouses Point, NY / Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, QC (Route 221 / QC-223):

  • Required: Valid Passport (min 6 months validity) or Enhanced Driver's License.
  • Bicycle Procedure: Stop behind the white line at the primary vehicle inspection booth; remove helmet and sunglasses when speaking to the CBSA officer.
  • Strictly Prohibited: Bear spray / pepper spray (felony import into Canada), cannabis/THC products (strictly illegal across international borders), and fresh fruits/produce.

🎒 Interactive Tour Packing Checklist

Check off items as you pack; progress is automatically saved to your browser.