Welcome. We're your premier source for fun places to explore by bicycle or on foot. Offering guides, maps and articles on road and trail riding for the novice to seasoned cyclist - helping you find your #NextBikeAdventure
This bike pic Monday, with a new coating of snow overnight freshening the trail, hopefully, by mid-afternoon the clouds clear for an enjoyable sunset.
So, get into the zone when continuing your time outdoors and your #NextBikeAdventure. View all the great ideas and bike destinations in the latest Iowa or Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide. Then plan your next outing with family and friends in one of Minnesota’s HaveFunBiking destinations. And now, check out more stories at Let’s Do MN.
Thanks for viewing our latest bike pic
Now rolling through our 19th year as a bike tourism media, enjoy! As we pedal forward, we aim to encourage more people to bike and have fun while highlighting all the unforgettable places you can ride. As we continue to showcase more places to have fun, we hope the photos we shoot are worth a grin. Enjoy the information and stories we have posted as you scroll through.
Do you have a fun bicycle-related photo of yourself or someone you may know we should post? If so, please send your picture(s) to [email protected]. Please Include a brief caption for the image, who shot it, and where. Photo(s) sent to us should be a minimum of 1,000 pixels wide to be considered. If we use your photo, you will receive photo credit and acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram.
As we continue encouraging more people to bike, please view our Destination section at HaveFunBiking.com for your #NextBikeAdventure. Also, check out the MN Bike Guide, now mobile-friendly, as we enter our 14th year of producing this handy information booklet full of maps.
Remember, bookmark HaveFunBiking.com on your cell phone and find your next adventure at your fingertips! Please share our pics with your friends, and don’t forget to smile. We may be around the corner with one of our cameras ready to document your next cameo appearance while you are riding and having fun. You could be in one of our next Pic of the Day.
Have a great day with a safe and memorable year ahead!
A ‘Miles of Sunday smiles’ stop without a bite while biking along the Mississippi River Trail (MRT) in between Bemidji and Grand Rapids, MN. This is one of the many selfie opportunities you will find while pedaling along Old Man River.
Get into the zone when continuing your time outdoors and your #NextBikeAdventure. View all the great ideas and bike destinations in the latest Iowa or Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide. Then plan your next outing with family and friends in one of Minnesota’s HaveFunBiking destinations. And now, check out more stories at Let’s Do MN.
Thanks for viewing our latest Sunday smiles bike pic
Now rolling through our 18th year as a bike tourism media, enjoy! As we pedal forward, our goal is to encourage more people to bike and have fun while highlighting all the unforgettable places for you to ride. As we continue to showcase more places to have fun, we hope the photos we shoot are worth a grin. Enjoy the information and stories we have posted as you scroll through.
Do you have a fun bicycle-related photo of yourself or someone you may know we should post? If so, please send your picture(s) to [email protected]. Include a brief caption (for each) of who is in the photo (if you know) and where the pic was shot? Photo(s) should be a minimum of 1,000 pixels wide or larger to be considered. If we use your photo, you will receive photo credit and acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram.
As we continue to encourage more people to bike, please view our Destination section at HaveFunBiking.com for your #NextBikeAdventure. Also, check out the MN Bike Guide, now mobile-friendly as we enter into our 13th year of producing this handy information booklet full of maps.
Remember, bookmark HaveFunBiking.com on your cell phone and find your next adventure at your fingertips! Please share our pics with your friends, and don’t forget to smile. We may be around the corner with one of our cameras ready to document your next cameo appearance while you are riding and having fun. You could be in one of our next Pic of the Day.
Have a great day with a safe, and memorable year ahead!
As more Minnesotans search for fun, eco-friendly transportation options, several communities around the state are updating or developing their bike share infrastructure to make micro-mobility happen. Apple Valley, Bemidji, Duluth, Rochester, and St. Cloud are just a few examples of the towns upgrading their bike-friendly programs. Minneapolis is collaborating with neighboring communities to make the Twin Cities area the perfect place to practice micro-mobility. Especially with the E-bike Challenge and the global initiative of 30-Days of Biking returning.
30 Days of Biking promotes the micro-mobility experience.
30 Days of Biking works with E-bike Challenge for micro-mobility
Encouraging more people to consider riding a bicycle, especially for short errands, the 30-Days of Biking pledge runs through April. With the E-bike Challenge back at the Minneapolis Convention Center on April 2nd & 3rd. This year’s event will again offer visitors a comfortable setting to compare and ride the latest in e-bike technology on a mammoth test track there. Demonstrating carbon-free options for running those short errands, hauling cargo, or commuting to work without working up a sweat. So, what exactly is micro-mobility, you ask?
The term micro-mobility broadly refers to individuals who use any type of human-powered vehicle, including bicycles, roller blades, scooters, etc. And now, with the rise of EV technology, the definition has evolved, accepting electric motor assistance for bicycles and scooters. Though it still excludes devices with internal combustion engines or top speeds above 28 mph. or 45 km. Making this mode of transportation perfect for health and ecological purposes.
About the Minneapolis Transportation Action Plan
Enjoy the micro-mobility experience for those short trips.
According to Minneapolis and their Transportation Action Plan, over 30% of the trips people take in the city are less than three miles. Sometimes these trips feel a little too far to walk but are not long enough where it is practical to take the bus or drive. Bicycles and other low-power micro-mobility options, such as electric-assist bicycles and scooters, are ideal for these short trips. This MPLS plan also shares that over two-thirds of residents report that they often or sometimes ride a bike to get to school, visit parks, or run errands.
Minneapolis’s commitment attracts European bicycle fair organizer
And Move Minneapolis says, “With the popularity of e-bikes soaring, they are some of the best sustainable commute solutions today. Bicycles, including e-bikes, allow for adequate social distancing and provide a great way to travel while taking in some much-needed fresh air.” This commitment from the city’s leaders is what attracted Hicle, Inc., the organizers of hike and cycle fairs in Europe, to bring the first E-bike Challenge to Minneapolis in 2019.
Compare and test ride many brands at the Challenge.
E-bike Challenge returns the first weekend in April
Now, with the Omicron-fueled surge, on the decline, the E-bike Challenge returns the first weekend in April. Offer consumers a comfortable environment to compare and ride the latest e-bikes. There are several social distancing procedures around the exhibit area next to the enormous indoor test track. Visitors will also discover why most trips within a 10-mile range can be less expensive with an e-assist vehicle, even if they can’t replace a car entirely. And, in many cases, taking less time than a carbon-fueled vehicle for the same journey.
Enjoy the E-bike Challenge, a micro-mobility experience.
E-bike brands at the Challenge
Some e-bike brands already registered for the E-bike Challenge include Giant, GoCycle, Serial 1 by Harley Davidson, Pedego, Riese & Muller, and Skyl Power Bikes. Along with Erik’s Bikes, Now Bikes, Power Bikes, and Trailhead Cycle, to name a few of the local bike shops with brands they carry. The event will also feature several breakout health and tech sessions, a kids’ bike test track, and other fun family activities. Plus, visitors will receive a complimentary 2022 Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide, full of bicycling maps of popular Minnesota destinations to explore, at the door.
For more information about the E-bike Challenge in Minneapolis on April 2 & 3, visit www.ebikechallenge.com.
County level bicycle maps are now available in Minnesota. As the second most bicycle friendly state in the United States, according to the League of America Bicyclists, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has recently announced the first of a series of bicycle maps. These are county by county level bicycle maps for the state. In the link below, you’ll find 125 maps with some counties split into more than one sheet. All at this one link location, click on any County Bicycle Mapand see trails, road conditions, and more.
Selecting One of the County Level Bicycle Maps
Once you have selected a map, you can print out any of the maps by county (on 8.5×11 or 11×17 paper) to take along to help navigate your bike adventure. Please note, there are no printed versions of these county bike maps available, so you will need to print you own.
According to MnDOT, “because this is the first effort to show data at the county scale there are some gaps and we will continue to work with the counties to improve the data and layout of these maps with future versions.” They also welcome your comments on how to improve the maps. Submit feedback or changes by emailing [email protected].
Now available quarterly, the 2016 summer edition of the Minnesota Bike/Hike guide is now digitally available and dedicated to all those fathers, nexy Sunday!
Here is a shot of the e-version of the Summer Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide, now live – enjoy and have fun!.
In our 7th year of printing this handy pocket sized book full of bike travel ideas, HaveFunBiking.com (HFB) has now updated the printed version into a Minnesota e-edition, so check it out. With our new digital platform we are now able to update information on bike travel and tips regularly to help you find your next adventure. Plus, we will be adding additional maps of destinations you may want to explore in the future.
Please take a look at the most recent MN Bike/Hike Guide and bookmark it to your hand held devices for use when on the go. Formatted to fit your mobile phone and note pad the updated e-version offers bike events recently posted and more bike friendly maps, with links, then what is in our print edition. On each map you will find a QR code and link to the HFB Destination landing pages for easy At-A-Glance information when on the go.
From Mankato, over to Stillwater or up to Bemidji, we have highlighted many special landing pages offering you At-A-Glance information when on the go. All offering helpful links while visiting communities you are planning to ride that include: where to eat, where to sleep and other pertinent information that correlates with the maps to help you make your next adventure fun.
After reviewing the latest edition please share the link of the 2016 MN Bike/Hike Guide with your friends. Give them a chance to find their next bike adventure too. Maybe you will ride together or share your escapades the next time you get together. Either way, the guide opens up many opportunities for bike travel and memories that will last a lifetime!
Thanks for viewing the Bike Pic of the Day here at HaveFunBiking (HFB).
Now, rolling into our 10th year as a bicycle tourism media our goal is to continue to encourage more people to bike, while showcasing unforgettable places to ride. As HFB searches and presents more fun cycling related photos, worth a grin, scroll through the information and stories we have posted that may help you find your next adventure. Then, while out there if you see us along a paved or mountain bike trail, next to the route you regularly commute on, or at an event you plan to attend, be prepared to smile. You never know where our camera’s will be and what we will post next!
Do you have a fun bicycle related photo of yourself or someone you know that you would like to see us post? If so, please send it our way and we may use it. Send your picture(s) to: [email protected] with a brief caption (of each), including who is in the photo (if you know?) and where it was taken. Photo(s) should be a minimum of 800 pixels wide or larger for us to consider using them. If we do use your photo, you will receive photo credit and an acknowledgment on Facebook and Instagram.
As HaveFunBiking continues to encourage more people to ride, please reference our blog and the annual print and quarterly digital Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide to find your next adventure. We are proud of the updated – At-a-Glance information and maps we are known for at the HFB Destination section on our website and in the guide. Now, as the Guide goes into its seventh year of production, we are adding a whole new dimension of information, now available for mobile devices.
So bookmark HaveFunBiking.com and find your next adventure – we may capture you in one of the next photos we post.
(Above, Sarah Wilson, Scott Jorgensen, Graham Jorgensen (in trailer) and Finn Jorgensen (in red helmet) take off from the starting gate Saturday for the first Loop the Lake Festival, a 17-mile ride around Lake Bemidji. (Malachi Petersen | Bemidji Pioneer)
Mur Gilman, chairwoman of the Bemidji Loop the Lake Festival committee in Bemidji, said the ride exceeded expectations with 357 cyclists registering for the event. Gilman said organizers had only established a goal of 250 riders, so they were happy to see so many people turn out for the inaugural ride.
“I think it’s going good — the weather helped out a little bit,” she said.
(Above, Mike Guyette, the president and CEO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield MN, helps Bemidji Mayor Rita Albrecht cut a ceremonial ribbon Sunday for the grand opening of Nice Ride. (Malachi Petersen | Bemidji Pioneer)
Gin Forseman, of Bemidji participated in the ride and said she was surprised at the turnout. It’s great. I didn’t think there would be that many the first time, it’s good; good turnout,” she said.
The event was sponsored by more than 40 local organizations and businesses and was staffed by 50 volunteers. The riders included solo cyclists, duos, and households of three to six Bemidji Pioneer readers. About one third of the participants were from outside the Bemidji area.
The 17-mile route started at the Sanford Center at 8 a.m. with a rolling start. Bikers proceeded to cycle down Lakeshore Trail through downtown Bemidji. Rest stops at Ruttger’s Lodge and Lake Bemidji State Park were provided for a “rolling taste of Bemidji,” which included food, drink and live music. Cyclists finished the ride by looping back to the Sanford Center via the Paul Bunyan State Trail.
(Above, Melinda Neville, manager of Nice Ride Bemidji, stands in front of a rack of Nice Ride bikes at the Diamond Point rental location. Bikes will be available at three locations starting Sunday with a fourth location opening in Bemidji State Park in July. Malachi Petersen | Bemidji Pioneer)
Bemidji Mayor Rita Albrecht, who also took part in the ride, praised the festival for its ability to rally people in the community to do something active.
“This is a great sort of festival and event to rally everyone who might think about biking or doesn’t bike regularly, or bikes all the time to get them out and to brush off their bikes and get them going,” Albrecht said. “It’s a way to get people out and make it easy for them. We always say that if you make the healthy choice; the easy choice people will take it.”
David Olson, a cyclist who stopped off in Lake Bemidji State Park for a short rest, said he and his sisters were riding the loop as part of a New Year’s resolution to live a healthier lifestyle.
“I think it’s great. I can’t believe how many people are out here doing this, this is fantastic” Olson said. “This is what the community needs to do; get more people engaged in fitness.”
The Loop the Lake Festival was part of a weekend Mayor Albrecht proclaimed as “Bicycle Days in Bemidji.” As part of Bicycle Days, the bike sharing and rental program Nice Ride Bemidji was hosted in an opening celebration ceremony at the Paul and Babe the Blue Ox statue at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, at the Visitors Center.
(Above, left to right: Tony Desnick, the director of Greater Minnesota Strategies for Nice Ride, poses for a picture Sunday with Bemidji Mayor Rita Albrecht, Blue Cross and Blue Shield president and CEO Mike Guyette, and Executive director of Nice Ride Bill Dossett at the grand opening ceremony for Nice Ride Bemidji. (Malachi Petersen | Bemidji Pioneer)
Local civic leaders, including from the city and Bemidji State University, along with representatives from Nice Ride Minnesota and Blue Cross Blue Shield, held the grand opening Sunday for Nice Ride Bemidji, a bike-sharing program that is the first of its kind for a smaller city in outstate Minnesota. See more on Nice Ride Bemidjihere.
For visiting and biking in and around the first city along the Mississippi River, see HaveFunBiking’sAt-A-Glance Bemidjiarticle.
