Ride Information and Ratings:
- Date: March 25th, 2016
- Distance: 176km
- Total Ascent: 3.750
- Location: Rio-Niterói-Petrópolis-Sebollas (Inconfidência)
- Total Riding Time: 9:12h riding, 11:16h total
- Scenic Views Rating: 7
- Ride Safety Rating: 6 - Decently safe (worst part was the BR 493 from Itaboraí to Magé)
- Cultural and Tourism: 7 - Several places and things to do (mainly in Petrópolis)
- Level of Exercise Rating: 10
- Type of Terrain: Mix
- Description of Terrain: Included all types of terrains. Good shoulder on the following roads: Niteroi-Manilla, BR493 (Magé to Piabetá) and BR040 (Itaipava to Alberto Torres). Bad shoulder and no shoulder on the Itaboraí-Magé part of BR 493. Cobblestone on the 13km climb on the old road to Petropólis (from Piabetá). And urban cycling, with some road sharing and bike lanes in Rio, Niterói and Petrópolis.
Ride Map:
- https://www.strava.com/activities/526617219
Did you know:
- Petrópolis was home of the royal family during the summers between 1822 and 1889, where the the emperors, their families and court would spend up to 5 months of the year, trying to stay away from the Rio´s high temperatures and yellow fever surge.
Ride Details:
- The ride can be divided into 5 parts: 1) Rio to Itaboraí - 45km; 2) Itaboraí to Piabetá - 45km; 3) Piabetá to Petropólis - 13km; 4) Petrópolis to Alberto Torres - 57km; 5) Alberto Torres to Sebollas (Inconfidência) - 16km.
- The average speed on the first 90km was close to 25km/h, while riding on flat surface and mostly on good shoulder (except for the first 12km on the BR493 between Itaboraí and Magé).
- The only part that does not offer good safety conditions is the first 12km on the BR493, where the shoulder is in bad or no condition, and although there is enough room to share the road with cars, I think that they are not used to seeing cyclists in this area and the speed limit is high around 90km/h.
- Up until the Old Road to Petrópolis, which is a 13km climb on cobblestones, it´s manly highway cycling, without much interesting views. It all changes after you start climbing, as you can begin to see Rio´s "Baixada" from different angles and you also begin to noticed the big rocks that make up the mountain range.
- One thing that drew my attention was how drastically the scene changes from Piabetá, which is a few km off the BR 493 to Vila Inhomirim, which is on the foothill and about 4km from Piabetá. Piabetá is a very densely populated area, and there is noise everywhere, from music, to cars, to people, to bars. While in Vila Inhomirim there are a few houses and most still reflect the colonial architecture and lots of green areas, that can be noticed as you begin to climb on the Old Road.
- There are no businesses on the first 4km of the Old Road, but from that point on, you can certainly find food and drinks and see lots of people beginning their weekends as you climb past their houses.
- The total climb is 850 meters of altitude, ridden in 13km, which took me about 1:30h, including a fixing flat tire and adjusting my seat, as well as a couple of photo stops.
- Once in Petrópolis, it´s about a 15 minute bike ride to the Historic Center, where I would recommend stopping for lunch and enjoying the different tourist entertainment options Petrópolis offers.
- The ride to reach the BR 040, on the União and Industria Road is quite nice, as it follows the turns of river in between two mountains.
- As you reach Itaipava, you switch from city cycling to road cycling, as you hop on BR 040, a very popular route for road cyclists. You will ride for about 30km, mainly downhill, but it's not an easy ride, as there are a few climbs and headwind can be very strong. BR 040 offers great views of the different valleys that are created by the many mountains that surround this area.
- The last part of this trip was the reason I chose a dual sport bike instead of road or foldable bike. There are a lot of dirt roads, that can be very muddy and difficult even for off-road vehicles. The 16km that separate the BR 040 and the ranch in Sebollas can be very demanding, especially after riding for more than 8 hours. Again, the views of the valleys and contrast created from the green of the mountains, the blue skies and the orange dirt roads, make this part of the ride the nicest one for pictures.
Photos:
Videos:
 via Old Petrópolis Road)
