Greetings Trekkers! I’m Max from the town of Westborough in the great state of Massachusetts. I can’t wait to get out of the classroom and hit the road on bikes this summer with you. For me, the bike is the best way to explore the world. With air blowing through one’s hair and the personal triumph, one gets when conquering massive hills then the joyful downhill afterward making it all worth it. Not to mention the freedom of having the ability to stop and enjoy views, hike on trials, or have a quick swim. I have been to all of the greatest hits of the national parks system. From the bottom of the Grand Canyon to the top of the Acadia. Personal passions of mine besides biking are hiking, running, camping, collecting old video games, and playing them of course. I am currently taking education classes and learning how to not only teach youth information, but life values and skills to use in life. Some of my funniest memories are from my trips as a Teen Trekker myself. So naturally, I’m excited to take part in them once again, this time leading them and making them as great for others as it was for me.
It’s time for some Teen Treks’ story-time. Often we hear from past trekkers who were significantly stamped by there bike touring experience with Teen Treks. They tell us how taking a bike trip inspired future travel adventures, a passion for taking care of the environment, an appreciation for diverse people and cultures, a new sense of independence, and the ability to work together and even lead in a group setting. But sometimes, we get to see how the impact made during a Teen Treks bike trip created a passion and vision for career.
That’s just what happened to past trekker and leader, Kyle Simpson who embarked on several treks with TT, but was most inspired on the Across America Trek. Biking 3,800 miles of roads coast-to-coast generated an interest in city planning and creating better multi-use transportation solutions within American infrastructure. Today, Kyle is a City Planner in the Parking & Transportation Dept. in St. Petersburg, Florida and he will be sharing his story tomorrow-Tuesday, March 1st at 7PM EST as a part of Teen Treks Edu Series Virtual Events. Invite your favorite trekker and tune in for an inspiring story-time!
Topic: Storytime: Mar 1, 2022 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Our Cape Cod Trek is creating a lot of interest this summer! There’s a reason why, this 10-day excursion starting in Boston and traveling through Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and back to Boston by way of Plymouth Rock is the perfect trip for new trekkers. Cape Cod is one of Teen Treks shorter treks and is concentrated with picturesque coastal towns and beachside adventures all the way, making for a short but unforgettable summer camp experience!
Travel over to https://teentreks.org/capecod/ to register for the Cape Cod Trek today, and take advantage of $500 OFF with code HAPPY2022
Join the Teen Treks crew as we talk about one of our most popular summer bike adventures! Tomorrow- Tuesday, February 15th @ 7PM EST, Teen Treks is hosting a live virtual event on Zoom featuring our Cape Cod Trek. In this Q&A format, Teen Treks staff will talk to past leaders and trekkers about what makes this short and sweet bike trip the perfect introduction to Teen Treks adventures. Bring any questions you may have about the Cape Cod Trek or what it’s like to travel with Teen Treks over the summer!
Topic: Trip Feature: Cape Cod Time: Feb 15, 2022 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Are you thinking about signing up for a Teen Treks trip this summer but would like to know more information about how a bike trip works, what makes it different from other summer camps or perhaps learn more about individual trips offered? The Teen Treks Bike Touring Education Series was created just for this reason!
This winter and spring season, we will host bi-weekly Zoom events open to the public as an opportunity to learn more about bike traveling with Teen Treks this summer. Each event will feature Teen Treks staff and former leaders and trekkers in a Q&A format that allows participants to learn more about trip preparation, expectation and features of individual treks.
To join an event, view our Edu Series Schedule below and mark your calendars for any and all Zoom events you’d like to attend! We look forward to seeing you there!
Our Cape Cod biking adventure takes trekkers out of Boston on a ferry to Provincetown, where they bike down Cape Cod, ferry over to Martha’s Vineyard, and return back to Boston by way of Plymouth Rock. This short and sweet 10-day trip is popular every summer as it presents many ideal summer activities like enjoying beach fun, island camping, visiting touristy coastal towns and plenty of stops for ice cream along the route. Find out more during our Cape Cod Trip Feature.
The Great Allegheny Trek is perfect for trekkers who love being outdoors and in beautiful natural surroundings. This 16-day trek follows the iconic Great Allegheny Passage to the C&O Canal Trail from Pittsburg to D.C., and travels through historical Civil War era sites. A trip highlight for most trekkers is the whitewater rafting experience in Ohiopyle, PA and visiting the Frank Lloyd Wright Fallingwater House. Find out more about this trek in our Trip Feature: Great Allegheny Trek.
Mar. 29, 2022 @ 7 PM EST- All About Food on Teen Treks Trips
We get many questions about what trekkers eat while on their bike trek, so this event is dedicated to food on Teen Treks trips. We will display the Teen Treks’ group pot set and talk about how groups shop, prepare and cook on bike trips. Staying hydrated and eating nutritiously is important while bike traveling in the summer sun, so we’ll look into ways groups stay healthy on trips. But not all meals are prepared by Teen Treks groups, we do love to find local cuisine and especially ice cream while traveling to new cities- we’ll cover this and much more in our Teen Treks Food Edu Series Event! A Q&A session will take place!
A perfect trek for younger teens, The D&R canal trek is a 6-day journey through Pennsylvania and New Jersey along the historic D&R Canal Trek. This trek packs a lot into a week of bike travel, with views of 18th century farmhouses and stops in picturesque downtowns of Princeton, Easton, Trenton and Bethlehem. Find out more about this trip in our D&R Canal Trek Trip Feature.
April, 26, 2022 @ 7PM EST- How to Pack Light and Efficiently for TT Trips
As trekkers prepare for their summer bike trips with Teen Treks and make purchases on gear to support their adventure- Teen Treks wants to provide a detailed guide on packing light and efficient to make sure trekkers are comfortable on their trek. We will go over the Teen Treks packing guide, display how to pack panniers, and provide suggestions on gear purchases that will make trekker’s trips more comfortable. Packing light is important for trekkers to not feel weighed down on their bicycle- we will provide hints on what is essential and non-essential to bring on your bike trip. A Q&A session will follow, so please bring any questions you may have about packing and gear purchases.
Our 1,000 Mile Challenge is perfect for trekkers who dream of biking Across America but don’t have limited time available over the summer. This challenging and exhilarating trek starts in Chicago, follows Great Lake cities like Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo and bikes across New York State ending with a celebration in Manhattan. This 30-day trek covering just over 1,000 miles is perfect for older teens looking to accomplish a rewarding challenge and experience an unfogettable summer adventure. Find out more in our Trip Feature all about the 1,000 Mile Trek.
As we get closer to a summer filled with bike trips, parents and trekkers may have questions about their trip with Teen Treks. Whether its about packing, food on treks, shipping bikes or communication during trips- this general Q&A session gives trekker families a chance to connect directly with Teen Treks staff for any questions you may have. We hope to see you there!
This picture was taken at Teen Treks Leadership Training in 2018 and it captures what I believe to be the magic of our leader community.
Every year at leadership training, we take a mini bike trek to give leaders a comprehensive immersion into guiding bike tours. The trip always starts in Buffalo, and apart from last year when the border was closed, we ride into Canada to Grand Island and back to Buffalo. There’s something very special about tracing the same route year after year knowing over twenty years of leaders have travelled together over the Peace Bridge, onto the Friendship Trail and camped along Lake Erie.
It’s always the Lake Erie beach setting where the leaders start to really bond. Some go for a dive in the cold lake, newly thawed from a frozen winter, some start setting up tents while others begin cooking. It’s our first night of the trip where groups cook in teams and around the beach you can hear chatter and laughter while onions and bell peppers are being chopped and chicken sizzles over the campfire. We realize that while we all come from many different walks of life, we all share something in common that brought us together as bike leaders, that is a love for adventure.
There’s usually a bonfire after dinner from wood gathered around the beach and many express their gratitude for being away from the demands of everyday life and getting back to the basics of being outdoors and being present with people. Some years groups have been known to stay up late for stargaze parties, as the dark skies over Lake Erie do not disappoint.
I’ve been a part of Teen Treks for many years and to this day leadership training is one of the highlights of my year. Many leaders go on after a summer of leading trips to be close friends with one another, getting together for their own bike trips around the world. It truly is a special community, one I am grateful to be a part of.
If this sounds like the kind of summer job and adventurous community you would like to be a part of, let us know who you are by applying at https://teentreks.org/leadforteentreks/ for our Summer 2022 Trip Leader Position.
We hope you can experience the magic at this year’s leadership training!
As group tents and pot sets are packed away and kids gear up for school, Teen Treks reflects on the accomplishment and life-changing adventures teens experienced in the many bike trips over the summer.
This year, Pacific Northwest Trekkers weren’t able to go into Canada, but in turn, this opened up more opportunity for San Juan Island hopping and allowed quality time biking, hiking and exploring Olympic National Park.
Our early July Cape Cod Trek dodged a rain storm that led to extra days in Martha’s Vineyard in cozy cabins with adventures exploring the island by bike and kayak!
Meanwhile, the Great Allegheny Trekkers biked on off-road rail trails, camped in beautiful wooded areas, swam in the Potomoc River and made stops at the Frank Lloyd Wright Falling Water House and to whitewater raft on the Youghiogheny River.
Our mid-July Cape Cod Trek biked along the scenic Cape Cod Canal with many great stops on the trip, like Plymouth Rock, Martha’s Vineyard, Hyannis and Provincetown. The group bonded over many delicious meals, beachside fun and reflections over the campfire.
The Maine Coast Trek had a blast discovering iconic Maine attractions like the Portland Observatory, Acadia National Park and Penobscot Bridge. The group especially enjoyed the unique community at the Balsam Cove Campground, exploring the touristy town of Bar Harbor and taking in the views from Acadia’s rocky beaches.
The 1,000 Mile Trek spent 25 days on the road traveling from Chicago to NYC, overcoming long daily mileage and lots of rain. The group wound up in spontaneous adventures like a mud wrestling tournament, a thrift store dress-up challenge and a restful night in a laundromat. They celebrated their 1,000+ mile accomplishment with parents at an esteemed pizza parlor near the Brooklyn Bridge to end a great adventure.
Our D&R Canal Trek followed the historical tow path through Pennsylvania and New Jersey visiting great small towns like Princetown, Easton, Trenton and Bethlehem. The group discovered waterfalls, enjoyed swimming, ate lots of well-deserved food, stayed in comfy hotels and even got to explore the campus of Princeton University.
New York-Burlington was a rendition of the usual NY-Montreal Trek, but luckily one of the leaders was from Vermont, so she knew all the ins-and-outs and the group found great swimming holes, lots of good food, and neat towns to discover en route to Burlington by bike! The group visited the FDR Museum, slept in the atrium of Lincoln Baths, met the 2015 winner of “The Voice” at a farmers market and feasted on Ben and Jerry’s ice cream in Waterbury.
Our last Cape Cod Trek of the summer finished out the trekking season with many great adventures. The group enjoyed visiting the beaches and lighthouses at Martha’s Vineyard, they escaped the rain in Sandwich, MA by touring a glass museum, they biked along the Cape Cod Rail Trail, swam in beaches and ponds along the way and finally explored shops in Provincetown all before ferrying back to Boston.
As the 2021 season comes to a close, we’ve enjoyed hearing stories from groups about the challenges they overcame, the spontaneous moments they experienced and wonderful people and views they encountered throughout their trip.
We hope memories of the adventures had this summer will live on in each of our trekkers and encourage them with a sense of accomplishment and new understanding of people, places and the joy of traveling!
Today we woke up at around 7 and headed to P-Town. Ate good Mmmmmmm. We spent time exploring roads of shops in town. There were street musicians, cool stores, and little crabs on the beach. We had a grand time enjoying each other’s company, exploring the magic of Provincetown, and laughing from a multitude of frivolity along the way. We went to a museum and learned more about Provincetown and the culture. Martha, Quincy, and Britt went to a gift shop. It was splendid.
-Each sentence was written by a member of the Cape Cod Trek! (Authors in order- Daniel, Dash, Mitchell, Martha, Emily, Britt, Quincy, and Calvin). Signing off, Cape Cod Trekkers
Today we woke up and started our day with a delicious breakfast. After some biking, we stopped at Joey’s Mexican restaurant. Calvin and Mitchell got sloppy joe burritos. We continued on our long bike ride and Daniel pointed out all the houses on the water. Later, we went to a sandwich deli and gathered up our strength for the next 10 miles. We finally got to Provincetown and noticed it was about to rain, so we hurried to the campsite and got our stuff prepared for the night. After we got our tents up, it was time to feast. We all agreed to bike in the rain into Provincetown. When we got into town, a woman needed help with her bike. Martha took off the wheel to get a piece of bungee out of her chain while Britt held her bike. After the woman thanked us, we found a New York style pizza joint. Dash was adventurous and had two pieces of pizza while Quincy had some pleasant Chocolate ice cream. After our long day, we finally went back to camp to sleep in the rain.
