Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Thank you Hypnoticmeg! I just checked out the link and some of the photos remind us of the trails here in PA - looking forward to checking them out in person!
psu98 - I rode bike and so does my DH. CT is excellent for biking and we leave from out house have many routes we take and there are many bike clubs and races. There is a very well know race started by one of the men in our area (Greenfield Hill) the which has 3 distances. It's called the Connecticut Challenge, it's a fund raiser and goes by our street every year. I think it's 50, 100 and 250 miles. There are at least 4 races a year that go by our area. We bike mostly in the Greenfield Hill area of Fairfield and through Easton. If/When we move we will miss that. We also bike from our house to Westport's Compo Beach then to Southport's Beach through Southport and back home. It's a 20 mile route. It follows the Gold Coast which is the shoreline of Long Island Sound and is beautiful. I have found drivers to be very patient and cautious with bikers here much more so than where we moved from! I did try the local Mom's club but wasn't my cup of tea and I have met all my friends through the kids schools. I've heard the Shelton Trail is also good for rollerblading which I really miss. I've got to check it out thanks for the reminder!
Good Luck
ps - I also run along the Gold Coast in the summer - it's absolutely beautiful and invigorating.
Last edited by J&A'sMOM; 01-16-2011 at 03:41 PM..
Reason: added info
Thank you Hypnoticmeg! I just checked out the link and some of the photos remind us of the trails here in PA - looking forward to checking them out in person!
Keep in mind that Fairfield County is a pretty densely developed area. You won't find the undistrubed expanses of land you do in PA. Jay
Thank you for the info - my husband just bought a new road bike in September, and he is interested in finding the various road trails so the road routes provided are especially helpful. While he may take out his mountain bike to explore the off road trails once in a while, he is hoping to road bike more regularly and find some nice regular somewhat scenic routes that may be accessible (or close by) from our house. He is used to riding on the roads along the Delaware River, and we understand it won't be the same, but I am sure he'll be interested in the Gold Coast routes mentioned above. Looking forward to taking advantage of our proximity to the water. We do recognize that Fairfield County is more densely populated than Bucks County, PA and thank you for highlighting that. I have been in PA for 20 years, but I am originally from L.I. and travel back from time to time, so I am hoping Fairfield County isn't much worse than Nassau County- the Belt Pkwy and Southern State Pkwy is horrible no matter when you hit it. Feel free to warn me now if it is so I can mentally prepare myself and tell my family to plan on taking the train to come visit! I am hoping the Merritt and 95 are navigable if you time it right, but I may be naive in my thinking...we came in on a weekend and had no trouble at the time and my husband was interviewing the week before Christmas, so the traffic was probably lighter than usual.
Traffic on I-95 and the Merritt is bad during rush hour but once these tiomes pass it does clear up. I don't think it is quite as bad as the LIE but it is getting there. Again, just trying to warn you as to what you should expect. Jay
My MIL lives in Philly and takes Amtrak to visit. She gets off in Bridgeport. Tell you DH to check out Aspetuck Land Trust they own various areas of land and have great mountain biking in Easton/Weston. The entrances sometimes are hard to find but once you get in you'll find maps and many people hiking, running, and biking.
You are right it depends on timing for traffic. I have made it from Fairfield to Philly in less than 3 hours and also had the painful drive that took 7 hours on the way home from Thanksgiving. Now we know a shortcut but still it's all in the timing.
Last edited by J&A'sMOM; 01-17-2011 at 09:17 AM..
Reason: added driving time
He is used to riding on the roads along the Delaware River, and we understand it won't be the same
It definitely won't. That "rails to trails" is nice, but it's well-traveled by bikes and people and dogs. I avoid it for just that reason, too crowded.
To build on CT1010's comment earlier in the thread regarding beach access for towns other than Fairfield and Easton, does anyone know if Trumbull or Wilton has beach rights to the Fairfield beaches? Beach access is going to be a pretty important criteria for us, as our kids love spending their days playing there (we used to take day trips to the beach last summer quite often) and I would want to make sure we can access them since we are going to be so close. thx.
To build on CT1010's comment earlier in the thread regarding beach access for towns other than Fairfield and Easton, does anyone know if Trumbull or Wilton has beach rights to the Fairfield beaches? Beach access is going to be a pretty important criteria for us, as our kids love spending their days playing there (we used to take day trips to the beach last summer quite often) and I would want to make sure we can access them since we are going to be so close. thx.
There are certain beaches in Fairfield to which out-of-towners can buy permits for the season. Check with the Fairfield town hall.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
