Overview

Join us on a diverse trail system across the state of Florida starting in St Petersburg and finishing in New Smyrna Beach where you will be shuttled back to the start. The biking will include paved trails, some back roads and some city sidewalks. The terrain will be through cities, wilderness, seaside towns, a college town, and towns that seem to be frozen in time. Don’t forget your can of “oil” as we will even ride by a 15-foot tin man.

We will begin our adventure in St Petersburg on the West coast of Florida. We will have 2 days to explore the city, which is home to the Dali Museum, The Chihuly museum, and St Pete Biking of the history of St Pete as well as a tour of the many murals in the city. We took the Intro to St Petersburg tour this past year which was a great way to explore the city. This time we will have an option to either do the history or mural tour of the city lead by St Petersburg Biking.   Both excellent tours.Think about taking one of these tours.

Day 3 (40 miles) We will start our journey along the Pinellas Trail.  We will cross cities streets as we make our way through the vibrant downtown of Dunedin and Tarpon Springs where you may want to stop for lunch at one of the Greek eateries. This waterfront is where the historic Sponge Docks are a reminder of the once booming sponge industry.

Continuing on after lunch we head north and bike to Odessa, Florida for the night.

Day 4 (60.3 miles) We head out and will soon be biking in the wilds of J B Starkey Wilderness trail, a paved trail in the woods. The trail connects to the Suncoast trail, and we head north and then east on a trail to Brooksville. Take time to stop here to have lunch at the Main Street Eatery or if you want a hot dog, stop at the eclectic Coney Island Drive Inn for quite the variety of Hot Dogs! From there you will hop back on the Good Neighbor trail and then south on the longest trail in Florida, the Withlacoochee trail. Follow the trail south to our destination for the night.

Day 5 (42.3 miles) Once again we head south on the Withlacoochee trail then east on route 50 trail which is separate from route 50. Along the route you can take a quick right off the trail and go “back in time” to the Richloam General store, a 1928 working general store with a vintage vibe offering “penny” candy, hand scooped ice cream and other treats...  It is also a Post Office.

We will pass through Terrytown and  turn onto  quiet roads except for the noisy sand hill cranes who live in the fields.  You finish the day with back roads, some sidewalks, and the South Lake bike trail beside beautiful Lake Minneola. Stop at Salt Shack along Lake Minneola or up the hill for some other fabulous restaurants.  We leave downtown and pass by Lake Minnehaha to the Holiday Inn Express in Clermont for the evening.

Day 6  (46 miles) We will reconnect to the South Lake trail to the West Orange Trail and bike into the beautiful cultural Winter Garden. The trail goes right through the center of the town. This is a great place to stop for lunch at one of the many fabulous restaurants.   From there we head out on the Orange Trail. When the trail ends, we will bike on sidewalks to traverse the “Orlando Gap”. We connect to the paved Seminole-Wekiva Trail. Take your time as this section is part of the Florida National Scenic Trail, so don’t miss the Wooden Fence Art Murals you will pass along the way. There are over 500 pop culture images.

Our stop for the night will be in Sanford.

Day 7 (40 miles) We will head north to Blue Springs State Park where we will board an environmental pontoon boat to enjoy the natural wonder of Florida’s longest River system, the St John River. It is a narrated 2-hour tour. After the cruise, we will head to Deleon Springs where you can explore the Springs or even take a dip in the clear water. At the DeLeon Springs there is the Old Sugar Mill Pancake House Restaurant where any time of day you can cook your own breakfast of pancakes on the griddle at your table. They have the best pancake batter.  You can also lunch here. It’s a great treat to eat there.  

After lunch we head to Deland for the night. This is home to Stetson College, Murals , lots of restaurants, Athens Theater where they may be a play or music that night, and much more.

Day 8 (58.3 miles) We head south out of Deland and jump back on the East Central Regional Rail Trail where we will take the trail to Green Springs State Park, where just a quick ride down the trail will take you to the very Green Springs. There is usually a local alligator in the springs. One may want to stop for lunch at the Osteen Diner for a down-home American eatery serving comfort food in a casual homey space. Then back on the trail don’t miss the very tall “tin Man’ on the left side of the trail. We will continue on the trail and once we are near New Smyrna Beach we will take the river trail to downtown New Smyrna to the Atlantic Ocean and then on to our hotel for the night.

Day 9 –optional- take time to explore New Smyrna, Bike down to the Turtle mound, or Smyrna Dunes and hike on the boardwalk where you can see Ponce DeLeon Lighthouse across the bay, or just take a day off at New Smyrna beach. Life is better in flip flops! Have lunch at Breakers, an oceanfront restaurant. We will have our final dinner that night.

Day 10- we will shuttle and your bike back to Holiday Inn Express, Madeira, St Petersburg.

Health and Safety: Participants are expected to come to the tour in good health and ready to ride. Should someone's health become compromised, and the group’s health and safety placed in jeopardy, a plan will be developed by the ride leader(s) and communicated to all individuals. The expectation is for the group to work together to mitigate any spread of infection or illness as a means of ensuring the tour can continue as planned.

Ride Rating: This is a 1B! ride with 6 required riding days, and 2 optional riding days. Even though the average daily elevation gain is 873 feet, the 1B! rating reflects that there are some long days. The terrain in this part of Florida is mostly flat, although there may be some hills on the back country roads.  Average daily distance is 48 miles; with two days with rides of 60 mile.  The biking will include paved trails, some roads, and some city sidewalks. E-Bikes and Tandems are welcome.

Cue sheets and GPS files: Ride with GPS (RWGPS) files will be provided.  Participants who want printed cue sheets can print them from the RWGPS files. 

Weather: Average daily temperatures in Florida in late March are ideal for cycling. The daily high is 78 F and nightly low is 51 F. However, Florida weather can be quite variable. Participants should be prepared to ride in cold or rainy weather. 

Lodging: Lodging includes 2 nights in St Petersburg, 1 night Odessa, 1 night Brooksville, 1 night Clermont, 1 night Sanford, 1 night Deland and 2 nights in  New Smyrna.  We will be staying in chain hotels.

Logistics:  Arrive on Wednesday, March 17. We will be staying at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites, St Petersburg- Madeira Beach 4816 100th Way North, St Petersburg Florida 33708 

Tampa International Airport is the closest airport.  One can take a taxi or Uber to the hotel.

We will have our first meeting/ Happy hour on March 17 at the Holiday Inn at 4:00 pm  Madeira breakfast area. 

On March 18 we will have our first group dinner at a local restaurant in St Petersburg.and on March 25 we will have our last group dinner in New Smyrna.

On  March 26 in New Smyrna at the Hampton Inn, after breakfast you will be transported back to Holiday Inn Express, Madeira Beach, St Petersburg, Florida with your bike and luggage. We will leave the hotel approximately around 9:30am.  The ride back is approximately 3 hours.

We will leave our vehicles at the Holiday Inn Express Madeira Beach, St Petersburg . It is free to park there while we are on our adventure. 

One can leave your bike boxes at the Holiday Inn Madeira.

Bike Rentals  For rental bikes we suggest contacting ABC Bicycles., Central Ave, St Petersburg They rent hybrids, road and e-bikes. Their Central Avenue location is closest to our start hotel.  Make your reservation well in advance of the ride.  

Cost and Administration Estimated tour cost is $1840 per person which includes: 9 nights lodging, 8 breakfasts, 2 group dinners, cruise on Blue Springs environmental tour, evening social hours, luggage transportation and after the ride transport of rider, bikes and luggage back to St Petersburg on March 26.

The cost also includes Happy hours which will be every night at a specified time and will consist of cheese, chips, veggies, fruits,drinks of wine, beer,soda, etc. If you have an allergy please advise us. We supply the food and beverages but ask for volunteers to help set it up and clean up.

The cost does not include additional lodging before or after the tour or bike rental.

A deposit of $1000 is required within 2 weeks of ride acceptance. The second and final payment of $840 is due by January 17, 2027. The solo rider supplement is an additional $989. Single riders who are willing to share a room are encouraged and we will assist with finding a roommate.

Solos and Singles: A single is a member who signs up by himself or herself and wishes to share a room with another participant.  A “solo” is a member who signs up by himself or herself and does not wish to share a room. It is recommended that singles who want a roommate try to find their own.  However, after receipt of the initial deposit, a single rider without a roommate will be placed on the ride and given until November 15, 2026 to find a roommate. If they are unable to find a roommate, they will have the option to receive a full refund (minus the BAC Ride Registration Fee and Payment Processing Fee) or pay the Solo Supplement and stay on the ride. If a single pays the supplement, they may continue to seek a roommate but must plan to participate without a roommate if necessary. The Ride Leader will assist by attempting to match singles who apply for the ride

A solo supplement for singles who do not wish to share a room is available for an additional $989. This payment is due by January 17, 2027. Solo supplement payments are made by check or by Zelle.  Details for making solo supplement payments by check or Zelle will be shared with solo riders as needed.

Cancellation policy: The $85 BAC ride registration fee and payment processing fees are not refundable unless the entire tour is canceled due to participation below stated minimum requirements. Individual Cancellation Refund:   Refunds of tour payments will depend upon whether a replacement rider signs up, and on costs that can be recouped. The amount refunded will be based on the principle that the tour’s remaining participants will not incur any additional cost resulting from cancellations. If the canceling participant is replaced, a refund will be made at that time. If the canceling participant can’t be replaced, any refund will be determined after the ride and final report are completed. If a single participant cancels and another roommate cannot be found, in addition to other costs that cannot be recouped the canceling roommate may also be liable for the single supplement fee of the roommate remaining on the tour. BAC encourages members to purchase trip cancellation insurance. 

Ride Participant Responsibility: Please remember that BAC Ride Leaders are volunteers, and that successful tours depend on participants providing much of their own support. Participants are expected to come to the ride well trained, in good health and ready to accomplish the required daily riding using well-maintained bicycles. All participants should accept responsibility for a safe and enjoyable tour. We encourage you to read the ride description carefully and respond to requests from the Ride Leader. While on the ride, support your Ride Leader with offers to help with various tasks such as happy hour preparation and cleanup. Please do not interfere with the ride by inviting non-participants onto any portion of the ride or tour. Please keep the Ride Leader informed of any special request you might have and respect the Ride Leader’s decisions

Insurance Statement: BAC maintains two insurance policies: a) United States, and b) Foreign (all other countries). Both the U.S. and Foreign policies are considered secondary policies to your personal medical insurance policy. They are subject to a $1000 deductible and may not cover all expenses related to an accident. Copies of the current policies are located under the “Docs” tab on the BAC website. Before participating in any BAC tour, you should assess whether your medical and travel insurance coverage is sufficient. While touring in the U.S, the BAC insurance includes coverage for injuries due to accidents during the bike trip. Members’ personal insurance will need to cover medical emergencies such as sudden and unexpected illness (i.e. treatment for unexpected illnesses, including Covid, are not covered).

Sign-up: To submit a request to join this ride, use the sign-up links just above the Ride Description. After preliminary acceptance, you will be moved to the pending list and receive an email requesting you to go back to the BAC site to digitally accept the Release of Liability (ROL) and pay the non-refundable BAC fee ($85) and tour deposit of by credit card. As soon as your deposit has been processed, your name(s) will be added to the Participant List. Final payment of $840.00 is due no later than January 17, 2027. BAC members with questions may contact the Ride Director by “clicking” the name at the top of this Ride Description.