The bicycle: “A simple solution to many complex problems”

While browsing the website of the bicycle-maker Trek, I noticed the company’s tag line touting not just their brand but bicycles in general. It read: “The Bike. A Simple Solution to Many Complex Problems.”

Whether it’s rising gas prices or carbon emissions or obesity, bicycles are a step in the right direction. Little known fact: Bikes receive infinity miles to the gallon. They’re also incredibly fun to ride.

Bikes can be used not just for urban commuting, but also on long-term trips. Several trails cater to travelers who like to go at their own pace, see a little bit of rural America (or another country), and do it all on the cheap.

One of my favorite places to find such trails is at the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. This site tracks those trails that are created over abandoned rail lines, and as such, are mostly flat and without cars.

The longest of these trails is the 225-mile Katy Trail, which runs almost entirely across the state of Missouri, from St. Charles in the east to Clinton in the west. Along the way, you’ll find charming bed-and-breakfasts, wineries, and historic small towns lining the trail, which has revitalized many of these little hamlets since its creation a decade ago.

Another trail that makes me tired just thinking about it is the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route, a 2,714-mile behemoth stretching from Alberta, Canada, to southern New Mexico. The impressing-people-at-cocktail-parties opportunities that trail provides are really astounding.

Long, mostly rural trails provide a fantastic opportunity to slow down from the break-neck pace of life. In a couple weeks, in fact, I plan to ride and camp along the aforementioned Katy Trail, and I’m really looking forward to some time away from the grind of daily life.

But boy, it’ll be a hot one.

Find a trail near you here.