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Extended Vacation Tours, 2010

Tour of New Orleans

This is our third tour of New Orleans. The first two sedition (November 2008 and 2009) were great successes and we are already excited about going back. The route and accommodations for this tour were chosen by three cyclists, New Orleans natives, whom we first met when they joined one of our Katy Trail tours several years ago. They suggested then that we should do a tour around their city and offered to help design the trip and be our hosts. We took up their suggestion, and their warm Louisiana hospitality during the week is one of the keys to everyone’s enjoyment during these tours. They will be with us again in 2010.

The bicycle riding on most days of this tour starts right at the hotel doorstep. Highlights include a ride along the Mississippi River levee where we’ll see much boat traffic on the river and have a memorable lunch stop; a tour of the Garden District of the city with its rich collection of antebellum homes; a day of riding around the north shore of Lake Ponchertrain on the Tammany Trace bike trail; and a day around Hattiesburg, Mississippi on the Longleaf Trail, the most beautiful trail in the South. Total cycling is 180 miles in 5 days.

This tour lasts seven days and six nights. The tour package includes transportation to and from St. Louis, accommodations for six nights, five evening meals, breakfast in the hotels, tour guides, all transportation during the tour including luggage transfers, sag and mechanical support, maps, and a “Tour of New Orleans” commemorative polo shirt. The cost of the tour is $715 per person, double occupancy. The single supplement cost is $200. The tour is limited to 15 people. To reserve a space please call Carol Boedeker at 314-344-9919 to pay a deposit of $200, refundable up to 30 days before the start of the tour. If you have never been to New Orleans, this is your opportunity to see a great city being reborn, and to enjoy Southern Hospitality at its best.

Tour itinerary

Day 1: Saturday, November 6th – St. Louis to Jackson, Mississippi by van (450 miles). We will meet at the Touring Cyclist warehouse in Bridgeton MO early in the morning and depart at 7:00 AM. We will arrive in Jackson at approximately 3:30 pm, where we will spend the night.

Day 2: Sunday, November 7th – Jackson to New Orleans, Louisiana by van (190 miles). We will arrive in New Orleans around 11:00 AM. Once checked in to our hotel, we will get out the bicycles and ride to the Canal Street Ferry (free for pedestrians/cyclists) and cross the river to Algiers, to see the museum and workshop where floats are built for the Mardi Gras parades. Then we’ll return on the ferry and take a biking and walking tour of the French Quarter. Dinner tonight will be a real cultural experience.

Day 3: Monday, November 8th – Cycle tour of New Orleans. Our ride starts at the New Orleans Museum of Art in City Park. We will explore the city, spending most of our time in the Garden District. Neil Hurd will lead the ride today and show us a selection of the most beautiful and historic homes in the District. This part of New Orleans was first built up in the first half of the 19th Century, when the New Orleans Purchase (1803) inspired swarms of people to move to the city and make their fortunes in its booming economy. By the 1850s many successful entrepreneurs, the “nouveau riche”, built elaborate mansions to show off their success. Many of these homes, in architectural styles ranging from Greek Revival to Italianate to Queen Anne Victorian, are still in fine shape today. After seeing the Garden District we will ride through some of the areas of New Orleans that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The city is coming back from that terrible event, but some neighborhoods have many vacant lots where once-flooded homes had to be torn down.

Day 4: Tuesday, November 9th – Cycle along the Mississippi Levee trail. We start at Audubon Park near the City Zoo, and cycle beside the Mississippi River on top of the levee. This trail is part of a cycling route that extends all the way to Baton Rouge. We will ride approximately 10 miles out and back along the levee (total 20 miles with a short optional loop through Audubon Park), then load up the van and trailer to be shuttled to Covington, Louisiana. Covington is north of New Orleans, and on the way we will drive across the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, a 24 mile long bridge that crosses the center of this huge lake.

Day 5: Wednesday, November 10th – Cycle the Tammany Trace, North Shore region of Louisiana. Today we ride along the Tammany Trace, an abandoned railroad corridor and wildlife conservation area that roughly follows the north shore of Lake Ponchartrain. The Trace passes through several small towns, a state park, bayous and wetlands, and visits numerous historic landmarks. We ride from our hotel to the Trace, follow the trace to the other end at Slidell, then return to Covington, a total of 45 miles.

Day 6: Thursday, November 11th – Drive to Jackson, stopping to ride the Longleaf Trace along the way. Today we board the van and travel from Covington to Hattiesburg, Mississippi (130 miles), to the start of the Longleaf Trace. This is another rails to trails conversion, and is considered one of the most beautiful trails in the South. We will cycle 30 miles from Hattiesburg to Bassfield, starting at about 10:00 AM and arriving in Bassfield around 1:00 PM. We’ll eat lunch, then reboard the van and drive on to Jackson and our evening’s lodgings (70 miles).

Day 7: Friday, November 12th – Return to St. Louis by van (450 miles). We will leave Jackson at around 7:00 AM and reach St. Louis by around 4:00 PM.

Notes

Casual, comfortable dress will be the rule as usual on this tour, with possibly something more formal suggested for our night out in the French Quarter. The weather will be in the 70s during the day, 50s or 60s at night, so pack accordingly. Rain is possible so bring a rain jacket just in case, although we had sunny weather throughout last year’s tour. The cycling routes use hard surface roads so hybrid or road bikes are the most appropriate. Bring a lock and cable so you can leave the bike when touring the old homes in the city and when stopping for food.

Registration

Space is limited on this tour, so don’t delay in signing up. The reservation deposit is $200. Refunds are available if requested more than 30 days prior to the start of the tour.

For further information please contact:

Donald N. Humphries
Email: [donaldh AT touringcyclist.com]
phone: 314-739-4648
fax: 314-739-4972

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