Bike the North Country is a 501(c)3 organization. We rely solely on grants and donations to fund our initiatives which include promoting and increasing bike safety, education, and accessibility while also increasing bike awareness and making information available for all riders. Please reach out if you want information on our specific goals and projects.
Welcome to Bike the North Country! We are New Hampshire’s year round cycling destination for all types of riding and riders.
Whether you’re new to cycling, riding as a family, or out for a killer workout, we've got great rides for you. We have almost 100 miles of mountain bike trails, many of which are groomed for fat tire riding in the winter. Plus, we have some great rail trails and bike paths, and about 100 miles of great road routes that we’ll tailor to the type of ride you want. For those with disabilities and want to be on the road or trails we have adaptive bikes, guides and lessons through our amazing partner, Adaptive Sports Partners. We also have great amenities for riders – a gear library, rental, repair and gear shops, and of course everything a
rider needs – coffee shops and breweries and of course some great bike-friendly lodging facilities.
We are officially a Bike Friendly Community!
The League of American Bicyclists certified the Tri-Town area of Bethlehem, Littleton, and Franconia as a Bike Friendly Community. We were one of only three communities nationwide that received a new certification!
This only happened through the hard work of a lot of people in the area all committed to making cycling safer and more accessible. Look through our website as well as those of the trail networks and supporting businesses to see all the great things going on cycling related.
The League of American Bicyclists certified the Tri-Town area of Bethlehem, Littleton, and Franconia as a Bike Friendly Community. We were one of only three communities nationwide that received a new certification!
Have You Been to the Gear Library Yet?
Don’t know about the Gear Library? Well, it’s time you learned about it!
It’s a place where you can borrow gear free – focusing on bikes, but there’s lots more.
For bikes we have:
Fat tire bikes
Mountain bikes
All age-appropriate kid bikes (from striders to teen mountain bikes)
And of course, helmets
All free to borrow.
Other Gear Includes:
Spikes for winter hiking
Snowshoes – for kids and adults
Trekking poles
Child carrier back packs
And more!
Go to the Gear Library Website and start borrowing gear now!
Bike Assistance
Need any kind of assistance for ride or bike related resources – see our new tab “Assistance” for lots of information including:
- Where you can find local restrooms
- Repair stand and pump locations
- On-the-road quick bike repair instructions
- Local bike shops
- Where to rent or borrow a bike
- No rider left behind
- Bike Information Kiosks
Logan’s Run Trail
Logan lost his life while he was far too young in June 2022 to a tragic motorcycle accident. He was an avid mountain biker and a joy to the community. The Bethlehem Trails Association is so grateful to be partnering with The Logan Brown Memorial Fund and members of his family and the community to have built a trail in his honor.
The trail opened at the beginning of October and is an adrenaline rush of a ride. It’s a true black diamond downhill trail, so make sure you’re ready for it. Once you get to the bottom, the run along the river is spectacular!
The trail is truly a great way to remember, and honor Logan, who loved the thrill of a ride, and the thrill of life.
If you’d like to support the trail build you can donate by mailing a check to BTA, PO Box 751 Bethlehem, NH 03574 or you can donate through BTA’s website here
Commute Smart’s October Challenge
We all love riding for the joy and thrill of riding, but we can also use some of that enjoyment to help the environment by driving less and riding more. Who can complain about that???
NH Commute Smart is doing their annual challenge to see how many car trips you can reduce in the month of October by either riding, walking, carpooling, or any other means other than driving.
Sign up for the challenge now at CommuteSmart and then go to the “Account” tab and select “racing” to sign up.
If you can beat me in the challenge, we’ll put your name into a drawing for a gift card – I’m under “BruceC” – good luck!
Congratulations to the 2 new local organizations that were recently certified as Bike Friendly by the League of American Bicyclists. It’s great recognition for all the great work they’ve done to make the North Country the best place for cycling in the Northeast.
The two new Bike Friendly Organizations are Bethlehem Trails Association and Franconia Area NEMBA – both received GOLD status!!!
This brings the total of North Country Bike Friendly Organizations to 10! (see the full list below).
For context, there were only 8 organizations throughout the rest of New Hampshire that were previously certified as bike friendly – we now have 10 in the North Country. They include:
- Littleton Bike and Fitness – Gold
- Adaptive Sports Partners – Gold
- Bike the North Country – Gold
- Franconia Basecamp – Silver
- White Mountain Bike – Silver
- Rek-Lis Brewing – Silver
- Iron Furnace Brewery – Silver
- Crumb Bum Bakery – Bronze
- Bethlehem Trails Association – Gold
- FANEMBA – Gold
White Mountain Adventure Sports - Now Offering Guided Bike Tours
We are thrilled to let you know that White Mountain Adventure Sports is expanding their offerings and now plans to offer guided rides of all sorts for all levels of riders. Want to try something new? Don’t know where to ride in the area, or want to explore new routes? Not comfortable riding on your own or want so great tips to help you get better? Do a guided tour with White Mountain Adventure Sports. They’ll take you on easy or challenging rides – whatever you’re into on gravel, road, mountain biking or rail trails. And in the winter they’ll get you out there in the snow on fat tire bikes. Go to their website to learn more or to book your adventure. Or email them for more information.
The Unspoken Bike Shop that was in East Haven, Vermont heard about what a great bike community we have in the North Country and has moved to Bethlehem right near the trailhead on Elm Street and next door to Super Secret Ice Cream.
They offer high end mountain bike rentals and bike repairs.
Be sure to stop in and welcome Leif to our community!
10 Things that Make Biking the North Country so Great
- Three great trail networks with over 100 miles of trails for all levels
- Amazing road and gravel riding across hundreds of miles of roads in the scenic White Mountains
- No rider left behind – a program to pick up riders that need help on their bike (see details below)
- A rail trail that stretches 30 miles from Bethlehem to Woodsville (part of the XNHAT)
- The Franconia Bike path
- Free loaner bikes and helmets for all ages
- Lots of great gear and rental shops in a small area including Littleton Bike and Fitness, Franconia Basecamp, White Mountain Bike Shop, Unspoken Bike Shop, and Drummond’s Mountain Shop
- Fantastic supporting businesses like Rek-Lis Brewing, Iron Furnace Brewery, Crumb Bum Bakery, Maia Papaya, Super Secret Ice Cream, The Little Grille, The Wayside, and other great places to eat and stay
- Supporting resources throughout the area including public repair and pump stations
- A great partnership with Adaptive Sports Partners of the North Country so everyone can Ride
No Rider Left Behind
Ever have a flat tire or a mechanical that you just can’t fix while on the road or trails? E-mail us at BiketheNorthCountry@gmail.com or text us at 603-991-1413 and if you’re in the Tri-Town area we’ll do what we can to get someone there to give you a ride home or to a bike shop. Riders helping riders – that’s what it’s all about!
New and Improved North Country Cycling Maps
Bike the North Country Recommended Road & Mixed Terrain Rides
- Easier ride: Franconia Out-and-Back: Route 116. 18 miles for full ride and 700 feet of elevation gain.
- Easier ride: Bethlehem/Carroll Out-and Back: Route 302. 23.6 miles (for full ride) and 1,000 feet of elevation gain
- Easy to moderate: Littleton Lollipop. 19 miles and 1,000 feet of elevation gain
- Easy to moderate: Bethlehem/Littleton/Whitefield Figure 8. 17.5 miles and 1,100 feet of elevation gain
- Moderate: Littleton/Bethlehem Loop. 18.5 miles and 1,250 feet of elevation gain.
- Moderate: Bethlehem/Twin/Trudeau Loop: 18.7 miles and 1,100 feet of elevation gain
- Moderate: Bethlehem/Franconia/Cannon Mountain/Littleton Loop: 24.2 miles and 2,000 feet of elevation gain
- Advanced: Sugar Hill Loop. 23.8 miles and 1,700 feet of elevation gain.
- Advanced: Littleton/Whitefield/Twin Mountain/Bethlehem Loop. 32.5 miles and elevation gain of about 2,300 feet
- Advanced: North Conway Out-and-Back. 85.5 miles and 5,300 feet of elevation gain.
Mixed Terrain Routes
Littleton: Mann’s Hill to Forest Lake Loop 20.6 miles with about 2,150 feet of elevation gain
Littleton: Slater Ledge to Partridge Lake Loop 27.7 miles with about 2,700 feet of elevation gain
Bethlehem: Wing Road/River Road to Trudeau Road/Swazey Lane Loop 14.7 miles with about 1,000 feet of elevation gain
Bethlehem: Lewis Hill Road, South Road, Cherry Valley loop 17.0 miles with about 1,750 feet of elevation gain
Franconia: Mt. Eustis Road Loop 23.25 miles with about 2,150 feet of elevation gain
Franconia: Pearl Lake Loop 27.4 miles with about 2,800 feet of elevation gain
It's an incredible feeling of freedom to be able to bike from my house in downtown Littleton to access a network of mountain bike trails (PRKR) with beautiful forest and clear signage. We also have easy access to the rail trail and river walk in town. We feel very lucky to live here."
Angela