Another day where I take my bike to the end of a random NJ transit train line and see what I can find! Moderate success today. More info in the comments.

I’ve been working on a fun little adventure lately: I take my bike on the train and ride it to the end of the line, get out, and explore. I ride as far as I can and then hop back on the train home. Today’s adventure was fun, but I would say it rates below my [prior adventure to Long Branch](https://lightroom.adobe.com/shares/d180d2d4c49749eda7495f39c7841252) due to safety concerns and less things to do. But still an amazing day.

Bike: [Polygon Cascade 4](https://www.bikesonline.com/polygon-cascade-4-27.5-inch-mountain-bike), but I call it my Bike of Theseus. I’ve replaced almost every part at this point, haha. I expect to get crucified in here for this, but it’s a DIY e-bike. I use it to safely navigate in front of traffic in the crazy Northern NJ cities. It goes fast, super comfortable, but it’s super heavy. I am considering getting something lighter for these trips, but I gotta say, the motor saved my ass today. Tons of tough hills. But I’d love any suggestions here!

Start location: Newark Broad St, NJ

Journey legs:

* train to Hoboken

* ride around Jersey City

* train to Suffern

* ride to Harriman Park

* ride to Harriman Station

* train to Secaucus

* train to Newark Penn station

10am -> 6:30pm

Notes:

* Destination: [Harriman State park](https://parks.ny.gov/parks/harriman)
* Cut my leg on my gear right at the beginning as I was hauling the bike down the stairs. Hoboken’s non-level boarding are rough for biking! Gotta haul the bike up and down the stairs to transfer between trains.
* Took the Suffern line all the way to the end – gorgeous ride. The town centers at each of the train stops are blossoming – new development at nearly every one of them. In between, green trees and beautiful scenery.
* Super dangerous to get there – had to ride on highway 15. Speed limit was 30, but it was 4 lanes and people were doing 60+. The shoulder disappears at some points. Had a few close calls.
* Got an awesome meatball sub from B-Balls Meatballs. Amazing place. 15+ kinds of meatball sandwiches. The clerk also had a pulley system so she could open the door remotely from her position behind the counter to allow customers to leave. Really cool engineering.
* Rode around Harriman park on the roads. There are no bike trails. There are a few cool pull-off areas, like the boat launch, that you can chill out and meet people. Everyone was friendly. Someone had parked an RV and was playing some classic rock and having beers. Others were fishing.
* There was a really neat sandy beach on a lake in the park – [Lake Welch](https://parks.ny.gov/parks/lakewelch)
* 100+ families were partying and having a great time at the beach, separately, which was strange as it was a random Monday afternoon. It was definitely not a big organized event.
* To get back out of the park, I took a lovely downhill road through the woods, lots of twisty turns. I probably got up to 35-40mph just coasting. It was great to hear the wind in my ears and felt true freedom.
* Had to take that dangerous highway back to the station
* Made the train just in time!
* Unfortunately got caught in commuting hours on the way back at Secaucus, so I waited a few trains to make sure I wasn’t crowding anyone with my bike.
* Picked up wine on my way home

Cool idea. Couple of thoughts on this ride report:

1) should have stayed on the train to Port Jervis, NY. Very nice riding here.

2) you were on NY Route 17 (well, one of the many R17s in NY, but that’s another story), not 15. Riding around Harriman SP is wonderful. To avoid R17 on the way back to the Suffern station, ride NY Route 17A west to Long Meadow Road to Sterling Mine Road to R17 in Sloatsburg. Cuts out a lot of the busier road.