Bicycle Tours Of Brooklyn

Temperatures are predicted to be in the 80s through the Fourth of July, but with partly cloudy skies and daily breezes, this could be a wonderful weekend for a bike ride.

Brooklyn is blessed with several routes that combine dedicated bike paths with scenic views that pass through some of the borough’s most appealing neighborhoods. If you want to celebrate the holiday outdoors, strap on a helmet and take one of these two-wheeled tours.

If you don’t have a bike of your own, Citi Bike recommends a couple of rides in proximity to their rental stations in Brooklyn.

Prospect Park to Coney Island
Ocean Parkway became home to the country’s first bike path more than a hundred years ago, and it begins just a block from Prospect Park at East 8th Street in Kensington. Trees line the Ocean Parkway Greenway for the trip to Coney Island, about six-and-a-half miles, and the bike path is separated from the pedestrian walkway. (Although that doesn’t always keep pedestrians for walking along the bike path, sometimes pushing baby-strollers or ambling hand-in-hand.)

Brooklyn Waterfront Greenway
A longer route, almost 8 miles, winds alongside the East River from Williamsburg to Red Hook. Start at East River State Park at N 8th Street and Kent Avenue, and follow the bike path past the Brooklyn Navy Yard and through Brooklyn Bridge Park. You won’t find dedicated bike lanes all the way through Red Hook, but traffic usually isn’t heavy, and it’s worth continuing your ride through the neighborhood to take in one of the best-in-Brooklyn views of the Statue of Liberty at Valentino Pier for a seasonably patriotic endpoint to your ride.

Brooklyn Bridge Park
Carve out a smaller section of this route for a 1.3 mile ride suggested by Citi Bike. Start at their Old Fulton Street station under the Brooklyn Bridge, ride from Pier 1 to Pier 6, and drop off the bike at Atlantic Avenue and Furman Street.

Shore Parkway Greenway
To enjoy four-and-a-half miles of ocean views, ride the Shore Parkway Greenway from the 69th Street Pier in Bay Ridge to Bensonhurst Park at Cropsey Avenue. The route offers views of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and Fort Hamilton, and you might spy a ship leaving New York Harbor.

Prospect Park Loop
Just under three-and-a-half miles along the inner perimeter of the park (and car-free on weekends), this bike path is another one recommended by Citi Bike, which has half a dozen stations along the way. The company recommends renting a ride at the Grand Army Plaza and Plaza Street West station, then entering the park at West Street and bearing right to connect to Park Drive. Riding south (counterclockwise), you will pass Prospect Park Lake. Simply follow the Drive and you’ll return to the northernmost part of the park, where you can return your bike.