AVA CONVENTION RECREATIONAL BIKE RIDE #1

 

Saratoga National Battlefield

648 Route 32

Stillwater, NY, 12170

Sanction #TBD;  Rated: 2A;  Wednesday, Thursday & Friday,  June 12, 13 &14

 daylight hours

 GROUP BIKE on Thursday, June 13, 2019, 9:00 am

 

 Option #1 - 10.7 miles (17.2 km), Elevation: 586 feet
 Option #2 - 17.6 miles (28.3 km), Elevation: 727 feet.
The entire route is paved.

 

Note: Protective bicycle helmet is required.


signsign           canons



If you choose, you may conduct this ride on your own at anytime during the convention


The Group bike ride will start and finish at the Saratoga National Battlefield Visitor Center.  Towards the end of the Battlefield loop road, bikers will have the option to return to the Start Point for a 10.7 mile (17.2) ride or continue on to include riding along the Hudson River and visit the Saratoga National Cemetery for a 17.6 mile (28.3 km) ride.  Allow 2 to 3 hours for the ride depending on which option you choose and stops made.

Please visit the Visitor’s Center at the top of the hill from the parking lot.  You will find an excellent video, lighted display board depicting the battles, artifacts, gifts, great panoramic view, and bathrooms.  There are also bathrooms at the cemetery.  Helmets are also required.

Bike Rental:  A limited number of bike rentals are available for this walk only from Plaine & Sons Bike Shop, 518-346-1433.  Bikes need to be reserved in advance and will be delivered at 8:30 am to and picked up from the Start Point.

Registration is made on the Convention website where you will identify if you need transportation and renting a bike.  A group ride (and those renting bikes) starts at 9:00 am.  Bus transportation will leave at 7:30 am for those renting bikes.
 
Directions :   From the Red Lion Hotel on Wolf Road, Colonie, NY, to the Saratoga National Battlefield:  This is a 45 minute scenic ride with minimal traffic, but suggest you allow for an hour to park and unload your bike.  Allow additional time if you wish to tour the visitor’s center before the ride or need to use the restrooms.  For those of you using your GPS, the address for the Battlefield is 648 Route 32, Stillwater, NY.

Leave the parking lot of the Red Lion Hotel and turn right (north) on Wolf Road.  Cross over Albany Shaker Road to get onto I-87 Northway heading north for 18 miles.  Take Exit 12, Route 67 to the right (east) for about 0.4 miles.  At the first traffic circle (Rt. 9) after McDonalds, continue straight to the east (second right) onto Dunning Street for 0.5 miles.  At the second traffic circle, take the second right onto Plains Road for 1.3 miles.  Continue to the tee in the road and at the stop sign, take a right onto Route 9P.  Continue on Route 9P east and then north around the SE corner of Saratoga Lake for 2.2 miles.   Take a right onto Route 423 (you will see signage for the Saratoga Battlefield) for 3.9 miles.  Take a left onto Route 32 for about 2.2 miles, then take a right into the entrance for the Saratoga National Battlefield.  Follow the entrance road into the paved parking lot (one way).  Look for the sign-in table which may be in the lower parking lot.

Option #1: This ride will take you around the loop road at the Battlefield with two stops for historical significance and views. The first stop will be at the Neilson Farm, Stop 2, a short distance from the start of the ride where you can walk up to the red house, read the historical markers and have great views of the Green Mountains of Vermont. The second stop is at the Great Redoubt, Stop 9, which will serve as a rest stop. From there you will
have great views of the Hudson River and the foot hills of the Green Mountains of Vermont.
Distance: 10.7 miles or 17.2 km
Elevation change: 586 feet (one short steep hill you can walk up)
Option #2: This ride is an extension of Option #1. Shortly after leaving the rest stop, riders for Option #2 will depart the Option #1 loop and continue to the Hudson River and the Saratoga National Cemetery. This ride will include a pretty ride along the Hudson River and then continue to the National Cemetery. Bikers are allowed in the cemetery, but must act respectfully. You may skip the cemetery loop, but add 1.25 miles to your odometer reading for the remainder of the ride to correlate with the Cue Sheets. At the very north end of the cemetery loop,
park your bike and walk the Memorial Path. After leaving the cemetery, continue back to the Saratoga National Battlefield Visitor’s Center (Start Point).
Distance including Option #1: 17.6 miles or 28.3 km
Elevation change including Option #1: 727 feet

About the Saratoga National Battlefield:

The Battle of Saratoga was named "most crucial battle of the last 1000 years" by New York Times Magazine in 1999. Here, in 1777, brave Americans decisively defeated an invading British army, winning a victory so powerful that it drew international allies and turned the tide to ultimately win America's War for Independence.

Standing on a bluff above the Hudson River, it is easy to see why the terrain inspired confidence in the American troops in the fall of 1777. Knowing that British General John Burgoyne and his soldiers were heading toward Albany, N.Y., the Northern Army fortified its high position overlooking the key bottleneck of both the river and road. Except for the now-larger forests and the modern cars zipping down U.S. Route 4, little of the landscape that encompasses Saratoga National Historical Park has changed in almost 240 years.

Understanding the terrain and using it to their advantage, the soldiers under General Horatio Gates secured a resounding American victory at Saratoga — and began a chain reaction that ensured the country’s independence for good. America’s victory gave rise to international support, showcased the strength of a diverse army, instigated the complex dichotomy of hero and traitor and gave the country physical evidence of a successful revolution. The multiplicity of lessons that can be understood at Saratoga guarantees a personal connection to not only America’s history, but to the impact that social revolutions have had on this nation. (from the Civil War Trust)

cemetery
About the Saratoga National Cemetery:

Gerald B.H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery is New York State’s sixth national veteran’s cemetery and the 116th in the National Cemetery Administration.

More than 1.4 million veterans live in New York and more than 225,000 reside in the Albany/Saratoga area. The first phase of construction, encompassing 60 acres of the 351-acre cemetery, included 5,000 grave sites, 2,000 lawn crypts, 1,500 columbaria niches and 700 garden niches for cremated remains. At full capacity, Solomon-Saratoga can provide burial space for 175,500 veterans and eligible dependents.

On Jan. 24, 2002, President George W. Bush signed legislation renaming Saratoga National Cemetery as the Gerald B. H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery. Congressman Solomon was known as the champion of veterans' causes. Among his accomplishments, he spearheaded the effort to create the cabinet-level Department of Veterans Affairs and successfully led a drive to establish the national cemetery in which he is now interred.

The cemetery also has a walkway that features a number of memorials erected by various veterans and fraternal organizations in honor of events and fallen comrades.  (from the website for the cemetery).