Electric Bikes Tours In Vermont
Have you ever ridden an e-bike? Me neither and I had no idea what riding electric bikes might be like. After I recent outing with Lamoille Valley Bike Tours (LVBT), an e-bike rental company in the North East Kingdom, I was pleasantly surprised to find just how easy they are to ride.
What is an Electric Bike?
Electric bikes are pedal-assisted. They are not completely motorized, like a moped or scooter. You still have to peddle in order to for the bike move. However, the motor gives you a little turbo boost when you need it. This is especially helpful for getting up hills or if you are carrying kids on the back of your bike. I was amazed at how much zip they have. Just like a regular bike, there are gears and you can adjust the pedal-assisted motor from low to medium to high.
Lamoille Valley Bike Tours
Lamoille Valley Bike Tours invited my family to try out their bicycles. They are a mobile company that sometimes operates from multiple locations. You will find them in Oxbow Park and on other days in Old Mill Park in Johnson.
They offer several tour options. We choose the self-guided tour so that we could go at our own pace. However, they also offer Bike and Brew, Sunset, Teahouse, and Family Picnic tours. LVBT supplies helmets, maps, and paper ride guides that have suggestions for places to stop along the way.
Where to Ride
After a short orientation, proper bike fitting, and test drive, we jumped on the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail. We set our sights on the town of Johnson which is approximately eight miles away. The scenery along this well-maintained path is really beautiful. As you ride, you will cross over bridges and go through cornfields seeing some of the most beautiful parts of Vermont.
It takes approximately 45 minutes to get to Johnson. It is the perfect destination for a half-day ride. Once in town, we grabbed a quick bite to eat on the porch at Wicked Wings. Although the town is small, there are several restaurants and shops like Johnson Woolen Mills, the Marvin Country store, and Ebenezer Books.
On the way back to Morrisville you can stop and check out the Lamoille River which runs parallel to the bike path. There are several places where you can get down to the water and dip your toes in.
Just before returning to Oxbow Park pop into Lost Nation Brewing for a cold beverage. They have a large outdoor Biergarten, an indoor taproom, and serve pub-style food on the deck.
Family Outings
Electronic biking with Lamoille Valley Bike Tours is a great activity for families of all ages. Their Yuba Spicy Curry Cargo bikes can be outfitted with two child seats (ages 6 months – 6 Years). Alternately, it can have one child seat and one padded rear seat (ages 6 yrs- adult). Despite the extra weight of two people, you can ride along effortlessly thanks to the pedal assist.
Additionally, electronic bikes are great for grandparents or older family members. They will find it is much easier to keep up with younger members of the family or ride for longer distances.
Disclosure: Thank you to Lamoille Valley Bike Tours for providing us with the electronic bikes. No other compensation was received for this review. As always, this post reflects the honest opinion of my experience without outside influence.
