Community Corner

The Great Escape! A Bike Trip to the Beach

It's nearly all bike path from Prospect Heights to Brighton Beach. And the trip is under an hour.

Want to get out of town today? How about a bike trip to the beach?

Brighton Beach is closer than you think. It's only about 30 minutes on the Q train and under an hour by bike -- 42 minutes (and 7.8 miles) from Grand Army Plaza, according to Google maps

The best part is the trip is nearly all on off-street bike paths: 

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- Take Eastern Parkway's bike path to Grand Army Plaza.

- Go Around the Plaza to Prospect Park

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- Take the bike path in the park and exit at Park Circle at Coney Island Avenue. 

- Take Coney Island Avenue five blocks to Churh Avenue and make a right (note, we're telling you this for simplicity. If you want to take the left a few blocks earlier and wend your way to Church Avenue on the side streets, that works, too). 

- Go three blocks to Ocean Parkway, cross the parkway and make a left onto the sidewalk bike lane.

- Go about 5 miles until you hit the boardwalk at Brighton Beach (I differ from google maps here).

If you get there before 10 a.m. it's legal to ride your bike on the boardwalk. Otherwise you need to lock it, wheel it or take the street. 

Either way, if you go right you'll pass the (well worth a trip) and then hit Coney Island where you can eat fresh oysters, see snake charmers and sword swallers and more at Sideshow by the Seashore or hit the Wonder Wheel, which provides amazing ocean and city views (my favorite activity).

Go left and you'll land at the Russian mecca of Brighton Beach where you can sit at a boardwalk cafe, look at the ocean and eat sushi and borsht. (See more on this, .)

Go straight and enjoy a day at the beach.

If you're too tired after your day of sushi, sand and sun to ride back, jump with your bike on the Q train and it's a straight shot back.


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