The Best Bike Tours for Wildlife Viewing
While we can never promise a bike tour of perfect weather, we can almost guarantee you’ll see amazing wildlife on these bike tours! Here is a collection of the best bike tours for fantastic wildlife viewing. Take a look to see which two-wheeled ride has the wildlife you want to see! Is it buffalo, bighorn sheep, moose? Maybe incredible birds like bald eagles, osprey, pelicans, or how about alligators? Bring your camera – in addition to some of the world’s most diverse places in terms of landscape and history, get ready to encounter these special creatures while on tour.
Mickelson Trail and the Badlands
Holy Buffalo!
The American buffalo is now found only in limited numbers in the Rocky Mountain region and Great Plains. It has held sacred importance to Native Americans throughout history. Also called the American Bison, it is an American icon and quite literally a “large cow” (stemming from the French word “boeuff”). Learn more about the differences between buffalo and bison here. Get an idea of old America on this tour as you ride through South Dakota’s Badlands, Needles Highway, and the Mickelson Trail while admiring scores of buffalo, prairie dogs, mule deer, and pronghorns. This tour is a hybrid of rail trail and friendly roads. Details of the South Dakota bike tour may be found here.
Chesapeake Bay Tour
Think like a bird.
Maryland’s Chesapeake region is a nationally recognized bird watcher’s oasis, as the wooded swamplands this tour passes through create optimal living conditions for the 200+ species of birds that nest in the area. This tour takes you through Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge and Pickering Creek Audubon Center for just a sampling of some of the regions’ species. Keep your eyes peeled for some of the most secretive North American birds—Bald Eagles, White-Throated Sparrows, Swainson’s Warblers and Great Egrets. More details of the Chesapeake Bay bike tour may be found here.
Cuba Clásico
Feeling Crabby?
More plant and animal species have taken refuge on Cuba than on any other island in the Caribbean. A mixture of native, Caribbean species and domesticated, agricultural species can be viewed as you bounce between farmland and coastal villages. Slow down as you ride through Zapata National Park and hike through Topes Collantes National Park for quiet moments of wildlife viewing. No worries, though. Cuba is one of the few places where there are no known harmful species, but watch your step as you soak in some sun between rides—the crabs are still known to pinch. This tour is operated in March/ April and explores the central region of the island. Cuba Clasico bike tour information can be found here.
Cycle Colorful Colorado
Living the High Life
Colorado’s Rocky Mountain’s are conducive to hosting different types of animals with its high altitude and low humidity. Get a glimpse of the still “wild” America from mule deer, bighorn sheep, moose, and elk to a variety of birds and the occasional bear (hopefully while you’re in the SAG Wagon). Details of the Colorado bike tour may be found here.
Georgia Gold Coast
Later, Alligator!
There are 400,000 acres of saltwater marshes along Georgia’s coast which creates a habitat conducive to a variety of wildlife. Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge, the Altamaha River, and Tybee Island are just a few of the spots of wild wonder on this tour to see insects, birds, fish, shrimp, crabs, sea turtles, egrets, herons—you name it. Good thing they can fly away from the alligators! More info about the Georgia bike tour may be found here.
San Juan Islands
A Whale of a Time
Thanks to the environmental and topographical contrasts on the San Juan Island chain, there is a surprising variety of wildlife from orcas and seals to fox and deer. With more than 200 species of birds, 30 species of butterflies, 200 species of fish, you are bound to find your spirit animal on this tour. We embark on both a whale watching ecursion and an afternoon of kayaking to further the chances for up close and personal animal watching. Details of the San Juan Islands bike tours may be found here.
Idaho
You don’t want to Moose this.
Lions and tigers and bears…not quite. But Idaho does have caribou, Canadian lynx, bears, wolves and moose. Along with salmon and steelhead trout, this is the sort of wildlife you think to encounter whenever you take to the great outdoors. Bonus: domesticated caribou are what Santa Claus uses to pull his sleigh. Details of the Coeur d’Alene bike tour may be found here.
All above photos were taken on our bike tours. Hope to add to the collection and your wildlife bucket list with your own photos? Take a look at this set of tips from National Geographic on how to photograph animals ethically.
We hope to have you join us! If you have any questions about these tours feel free to call us at 800-272-4141, or request a detailed itinerary here.