Best bike trails near New York City for families

Hudson River Greenway

TrailLink calls this one of the most popular places to ride, walk and jog in New York City, and it runs down the whole west side of Manhattan from Inwood Hill Park to Battery Park, separated from traffic. Along most of its length riders and walkers get their own lanes, which is what makes it workable with kids even on a crowded Saturday. There are parks, picnic areas, playgrounds and the Little Red Lighthouse under the George Washington Bridge along the way, plus restaurants and restrooms from about 79th Street south. The one real climb is the short, steep pitch up to Inspiration Point near the north end, and there is no designated parking anywhere on the route, so most families arrive by subway.

East River Greenway

Manhattan's east-side counterpart to the Hudson River Greenway, tracing the water from the Governors Island ferry up to Harlem with big views of the bridges and Roosevelt Island. It is a good ride for families in two chunks rather than one, because the path is still broken by a gap around the United Nations where you have to use street bike lanes and sidewalks. Highlights on the way include Stuyvesant Cove Park, Carl Schurz Park and Thomas Jefferson Park's playground and fields. The FDR Drive runs alongside for much of it, so it is scenic but not quiet.

Ocean Parkway Trail

America's first bike path, opened in 1894, runs down the tree-shaded mall of Ocean Parkway from the edge of Prospect Park to a block short of the Coney Island boardwalk. It is flat, short and lined with playgrounds, which makes it a natural first real ride for a kid who has just come off training wheels, with the beach as the reward at the end. The catch is the street grid: the path crosses several busy intersections, so it is a hand-on-the-brakes ride rather than a free-wheeling one. Riders say the surface was resurfaced recently and is in good shape.

Shore Parkway Greenway

Two separate waterfront stretches along the Belt Parkway, and for families the western one is the one to ride: five flat miles from Bensonhurst Park to Owl's Head Park with the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, the Statue of Liberty and passing container ships in view the whole way. That section is fully paved with separate lanes for bikes and walkers, and has restrooms, benches and parking along it. The longer eastern segment out to Howard Beach is a different experience, with steep bridge ramps, no shade and a dangerous signalled crossing at Flatbush Avenue. Reviewers note the eastern half can be noisy and, near the old Fountain Avenue landfill, smelly.

Joe Michaels Mile (Cross Island Parkway Trail)

A short, flat waterfront path in northeastern Queens, running 3.2 miles beside the Cross Island Parkway from Little Bay Park down to Alley Pond Park. The draw is the water: views of the Throgs Neck Bridge and the bay at the north end, then Bayside Marina, which has a snack bar and is a pleasant place to rest. Two more parks, John Golden and Crocheron, sit right off the path with athletic fields and picnic spots, so it works well as a there-and-back with a stop in the middle. The parkway runs alongside the whole way, so expect traffic noise.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Boardwalk

Staten Island's beachfront boardwalk, running 2.7 miles along the eastern shore between Fort Wadsworth and Miller Field, with the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge filling the view to the north and the Atlantic on the other side. It is the shortest ride here and the most self-contained: riders describe playgrounds, fountains, restrooms, playing fields and a fishing pier along the way, and a paved path beside the boards for anyone who prefers asphalt. Regulars say the ride gets noticeably longer if you continue into Fort Wadsworth, which adds a few hills but almost no car traffic. Parking sits at the boardwalk's southern tip off Cedar Grove Avenue and at several points along Father Capodanno Boulevard.

Bronx River Greenway

A 22-mile green corridor following the Bronx River from Soundview Park up to the Kensico Dam in Westchester, passing the Bronx Zoo, the New York Botanical Garden and the restored Bronx River Forest. It is best treated as a set of good rides rather than one: the trail is still being built and has several gaps where you would need to be comfortable on neighbourhood streets. The 1.5 uninterrupted miles through Soundview Park and the stretch through Concrete Plant Park and Starlight Park are the family-friendly pieces, and Starlight Park has restrooms and water at the Bronx River House. Bring a map, because the on-street connections are not signposted.

South County Trailway

The southern half of the old Putnam Division railbed, running 14.4 paved miles from Elmsford down to Van Cortlandt Park at the Bronx line, which makes it the way a Westchester family rides toward the city without touching a highway. It is shaded almost the whole way and mostly tucked behind trees from the Saw Mill River Parkway, with V.E. Macy Park's Woodlands Lake and a string of village centres for food along the route. Two things to know: tree roots have pushed ridges into the asphalt in places, and there are a handful of street-level crossings, one of them unmarked in Elmsford. It joins the North County Trailway at its northern end, so the two together make a 35-mile run.

North County Trailway

At just over 20 miles this is the longest of the four rail trails built on the old New York Central Putnam Division line, running from Baldwin Place south to Elmsford where it meets the South County Trailway. The scenery is the reason to come: apple orchards near Granite Springs Road, the Kitchawan Preserve, and a rail trestle crossing high over the New Croton Reservoir. The grade trends gently downhill heading south, which is worth planning around with children. Two short stretches south of Millwood put riders on the shoulder of Saw Mill River Road, so it is not car-free end to end.

Joseph B. Clarke Rail Trail

Four flat, paved miles through three Rockland County hamlets, Tappan, Sparkill and Blauvelt, on the old Erie Railroad main line. The scale is the appeal for younger children: the town centres are close together, so there is somewhere to stop every mile or so, and the route is wooded between them. History is dense here, from the DeWint House where George Washington stayed to the Camp Shanks museum just off the trail in Orangeburg. At Depot Square in Sparkill it forks onto the Old Erie Path toward Piermont, and the Cuomo Bridge shared-use path is close enough to combine.

Bethpage Bikeway

Long Island's north-south spine for cyclists, 13.4 paved miles from Woodbury down to Massapequa, strung between three parks. The northern half runs beside busy roads, including a mile along the Sunnyside Boulevard Extension and stretches on the Long Island Expressway service road; the southern end is the family ride, through Bethpage State Park's wooded two miles and then Massapequa Preserve, a shaded, well-paved stretch past lakes, ponds and the reservoir that TrailLink calls the nicest segment of the bikeway. Restrooms and water fountains sit off the picnic area in the centre of Bethpage State Park. Road crossings are signalled or marked with flashing lights, but there are several of them.

Ellen Farrant Memorial Bikeway

Also known as the Jones Beach Bikeway or Wantagh Parkway Shared-Use Path, this is the 5.5-mile route that carries riders from Cedar Creek Park in Seaford across the bay to Jones Beach. TrailLink describes it as relatively straight and flat, and the three bridges over Flat Creek, Goose Creek and Sloop Channel are the whole point: marsh, tidal flats, fishing boats and long water views. Signs ask riders to walk their bikes up the bridge approaches, which suits younger children fine. There is no shade on the path and the wind off the bay can be strong in either direction, so check the forecast before committing to the round trip.

Hudson River Waterfront Walkway

The New Jersey side's answer to the Hudson River Greenway: nearly 22 miles of riverside promenade from Fort Lee down through Edgewater, Weehawken, Hoboken and Jersey City to Bayonne, with the Manhattan skyline in view the entire way. The best family riding is the concentrated middle, through Hoboken and past Liberty State Park, where Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty are directly across the water. It is a stitched-together route rather than one continuous path, and gaps between finished sections still send riders onto local streets. Ferries across to Manhattan take bikes, which makes a one-way ride home an option.

Middlesex Greenway

A quiet 3.6-mile rail trail on an old Lehigh Valley coal line, running from Metuchen through Edison to Woodbridge, and TrailLink singles it out as a natural draw for families. The path is flat and wide with quarter-mile markers, interpretive signs about the railroad and the Ford Porcelain Works ruin, and seven wheelchair-accessible entrances off the surrounding neighbourhoods. A pedestrian bridge carries riders safely over US 1 in Edison; the other crossings go under traffic or across at street level, and the Woodbridge Avenue crossing is the one to slow down for. It is part of the East Coast Greenway, and it ends abruptly at the Fords end.

Pequonnock River Trail

A 14.5-mile rail trail on the old Housatonic Railroad line, running from downtown Bridgeport up through Trumbull and Monroe toward Newtown, and the closest thing to a country rail trail within reach of the city. The northern four miles through William E. Wolfe Park are the family destination: forest the whole way, plus Great Hollow Lake with a sand beach, swimming, restrooms and picnic tables at the halfway point. The Trumbull section is smooth asphalt and the Pequonnock River Valley stretch is stone dust, both easy going. It is still a set of disconnected segments, with several road crossings, an on-road detour near the stone-arch bridge, and a hazardous crossing at Monroe Turnpike; note too that Trumbull town parks require a parking permit.