This is the best way to bike to New York City from New Jersey

This ranks up there with one of my best one-day bike rides. You really have to do it.

Three of us biked over 40 miles to the ferry in Highlands, NJ, then took a fast boat to Manhattan, biked up the West Side of Manhattan to Central Park and then back to Penn Station, and then took New Jersey Transit back to Princeton Junction. You know, Central Jersey.

Perfect weather. The view of Jersey City, Manhattan and Brooklyn coming into focus from the water. An easy road route to the middle section of the Henry Hudson Trail and then mostly trail to the ferry terminal.

OK, the Henry Hudson Trail gets a bit bumpy from tree roots. I’ve modified this route to include a bit less trail and a bit more residential streets after Naval Weapons Station Earle.

Apologies, East Coast Greenway (and you know I am a huge fan), but I’ll take this over biking over the Goethals and Bayonne bridges, spectacular as that is.

Before heading out, I was worried about timing. We wanted to make the noon ferry, and on weekends, that means getting to Highlands, right by Sandy Hook. Seastreak operates ferries from two other locations west of there, also on or close to the trail. These are super-comfy three-level vessels, and tickets are $28 one-way. They get plenty of bikes ($3 charge) but unlike the ferries we took in Canada, there’s no bike rack on board.

Go to the top level if you want the wind in your hair.

So how did we do it? We left at 8 am and made great time through Cranbury, Monroe, Englishtown and Manalapan, pedaling 22 miles and reaching the Henry Hudson Trail just before 9:40 am. Our average speed topped 14 mph.

Our pace slowed on the trail — partially the bumps, partially sharing the trail with others, partially more road crossings. But we reached the ferry terminal at 11:30 am, so we had plenty of time to spare.

Too bad the ice cream shop I’d have liked to stop at in Atlantic Highlands, a few miles before the ferry terminal, doesn’t open until noon.

The ferry ride whisked us past so may sailboats, under the Verrazano Bridge, within sight of the Statue of Liberty, then under the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges. So much river traffic!

I’m not denying it — this part is one reason the bike ride was so fun!

The first stop was East 35th Street. To be honest, we had planned to get out there and bike down the East River bike path to the Battery and up the West Side on the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway. But we were enjoying the view from the water so much that we opted to stay to the second New York stop, Pier 11, south of South Street Seaport and near the Staten Island ferry terminal.

I wish I had taken more photos of buildings along the water. This one is new to me. Any info on what’s in it?

We picked up the path just outside the pier, lost it through Battery Park when we stayed within sight of the water (and watched an NYPD water rescue via helicopter — we think it was just practice, not a real thing but ??). Then we were back on the bike path, trying to stop for oblivious tourists without getting run over by other cyclists who ignore red lights or the need to yield to pedestrians. We stopped at Little Island — a stunning public park that exists thanks to a couple of billionaires. Then we kept going, past the Intrepid aircraft carrier museum and then heading inland toward Central Park.

Sunday afternoon in Central Park is a bit chaotic given all the people biking, walking, running. And the horse-drawn carriages too. We stuck to a short loop, then headed down Seventh Avenue toward Penn Station.

But, but … my favorite food cart, which sells kati rolls (Indian burritos for the uninitiated), is only a block away. So we detour to 46th and 6th, and I’m happy. Even if we had to wait to eat them until we were well on our way home using New Jersey Transit. (Tickets are about $19 one way to Princeton Junction unless you qualify for a discount.)