It's bicycling season! Make the most of east-metro bike trails and routes.

May 28—I've lived in (and loved) the Twin Cities for decades, but I discovered it anew a few years ago when I scored a free bicycle and began exploring local bike routes with a bit of nudging from an avid-cyclist friend.

I was in awful shape at the time and I considered a 10-mile ride to be a huge achievement, but my pal Christopher Hertel saw potential in me and helped me work up to longer and longer trips.

Oh, the adventures we've had! A week ago, we designated Hudson, Wis., as our destination du jour. Pushing east from St. Paul and through Ramsey County's lovely Battle Creek Regional Park, we became trapped for a bit in a Woodbury residential-construction zone we christened the Suburban Heckscape.

Eventually finding our way free, we zoomed across the St. Croix River into Hudson for ice-cream cones at Knoke's Chocolates and Nuts, and a quick ride through Lakefront Park with its signature pier beach.

We returned home via Stillwater, along the gorgeous Gateway State Trail, for a 70-mile roundtripper we won't soon forget (and not just because of the snapping turtle).

Not all of my rides are this epic. Usually, I stick to shorter trips on designated trails. In this regard, the Twin Cities metro area is a cyclist's eden with an ever-expanding array of options I have only begun to tap.

Stillwater is perhaps my favorite east-metro destination, one I hit over and over via the paved Gateway. The city has become all the more alluring in a bicycling context with the recent debut of the St. Croix Crossing Bridge, and the reopening of the classic Lift Bridge. As a result, bikers and pedestrians can now do a 4.7-mile Loop Trail via both bridges.

The Rock Island Swing Bridge in Inver Grove Heights is another favorite stop.

The one-time swing bridge connecting Inver Grove and St. Paul Park is now a recreational pier easily reachable by bike. If Chris and I are feeling ambitious, we can keep pedaling southward along the river to Hastings, Minn. and Prescott, Wis., for a 75-mile round-trip ride from our St. Paul neighborhood.

My other favorite east-metro cycling haunts include the Bruce Vento Regional Trail near downtown St. Paul, and McCarrons Lake in Roseville.

NEW BIKING ROUTES

As you head out on your bicycle, be aware of recently unveiled routes that make local riding all the more alluring.

These include the opening of St. Paul's Robert Piram Trail:

Ayd Mill Road in St. Paul has reopened with a brand-new cycling and walking trail.

Then there's the Johnson Parkway Regional Trail. My pal Chris guides you:

"At the south end of Lake Phalen the Bruce Vento trail follows Johnson Parkway before turning left to follow Phalen Boulevard toward Swede Hollow. That intersection is actually the crossroads of several bikeways. If you stay on Johnson Parkway, it will take you through the Dayton's Bluff and East Side neighborhoods.

"At the south end, the Johnson Parkway trail ends at Mounds Park, which makes this a fantastic route for connecting to other trails. Eastward, you can get to Battle Creek or Warner Road and the Sam Morgan trail. Westward, head through the park and down the hill at Commercial Street to get to the Bruce Vento Trailhead."

CHRIS' CYCLING GUIDE

Chris, a mapping nerd, has figured out all kinds of east-metro bicycling routes. In fact, for readers of this article, he's used Google Maps to create an interactive guide to biking in and around St. Paul, with plotted-out routes going northward to Roseville, southward to Inver Grove Heights and northeast to Stillwater.

Chris has it all — where to park, where to travel from there, and what to look out for in terms of riding conditions and points of interest.

GOOGLE BIKE MAPPING

Use Google Maps on your own to find biking routes.

When figuring out how to reach a particular destination, keep in mind that you can switch from driving or walking directions to bicycling directions. Google Maps then defaults to bike-friendly navigational instructions (keeping you off interstates, for instance).

What's more, you can make visible on a map all designated bike routes, which show up on Google Maps as green lines. On your computer, click the menu button on the upper left and choose "Bicycling" among the options that appear. On your phone, tap the upper-right symbol that looks like two squares stacked atop each other, and choose "Biking" among the options that appear.

Now, with bicycling routes shown in green, you can serendipitously determine out how to pedal from point A to B.

A CYCLING GUIDEBOOK

If Google mapping isn't your style, try a cycling guidebook. Twin Cities Outdoors provides a $12 Twin Cities Biking Guide (along with companion guides focused on hiking, paddling, and skiing and snowshoeing).

Author Sharon Brodin focuses on regional trails, a few state trails and even a couple of U.S. trails.

MORE BIKING RESOURCES

Here are Minnesota-specific bicycling sites:

— Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' state-trail list

— Explore Minnesota's cycling guide

— Minnesota Department of Transportation's cycling site

— Minnesota Bicycle Alliance (or BikeMN), a nonprofit offering resources for cyclists of all skill levels

— Have Fun Biking, an enthusiast site based in Richfield.