Tucson wins for the best (and most) art along a trail. But you don’t need something fancy or expensive, let alone Tucson’s budget, to get cyclists to stop for a photo.
Which of course they will then share on social media. So it doubles as cheap marketing.
With all that in mind, I compiled some inspiration for trail-builders looking to create an Instagrammable spot for riders on the cheap. So here are some of the many photo opportunities I’ve stopped for. Proof that it doesn’t have to be an oversized Adirondack chair (though I’ve clambered into those too!).
Can you imagine anything cheaper to make? Especially when your labor is vo-tech students? This was in London, Ohio, on my fifth day of biking along the Ohio to Erie Trail from Cleveland to Cincinnati.
Here’s another relatively cheap-to-make stop, this time on day 4 of my Ohio to Erie Trail adventure. We saw many others stop for a photo too.
So the backdrop doesn’t compare with this picture-perfect one in Quebec City… but how easy is it to build a picture frame to showcase your trail?
This is in Richmond, Virginia, at one end of the Virginia Capital Trail. You flip the numbers to show the distance you’ve ridden. In my case, it was halfway through day 1.
Bikes in art (in Quebec, along the East Bay Bike Path in Rhode Island, along the Virginia Capital Trail):
I stopped for these along the Somerville (Mass.) Community Path:
Some road signs have been given a second life at the Metuchen end of the Middlesex Greenway in N.J. Paint the reverse side!
I love this simple bucket-list chalkboard on the Farmington Trails in Connecticut. Imagine how cheap it us to create using chalkboard paint!
Murals? Always a hit. These two were spotted on my Bruce Springsteen-themed ride that goes through Asbury Park, N.J., but I’ve also seen some along trails:
Also in New Jersey, the Burlington County Troll Trek is an imaginative riff off Thomas Danbo’s Big Rusty troll sculpture, made of scrap metal. Selected artists received a $500 stipend from the county parks department to create their own troll out of upcycled materials. Perhaps sponsors contributed more?
I’ve done bike rides to find most of them, in part along trails. Here are just two of the 17 still up (as far as I know):
Exploring by bicycle 