The best traffic-free bike rides in Washoe County

Idlewild Park is one of the largest and well appointed parks in Reno. For runners the Crooked Mile Trail along the Truckee River is a highlight. You'll also find restrooms, playgrounds, ball fields, a rose garden and more. Idlewild also plays host to Food Truck Fridays through summer, which is one of the largest food truck events in the country.

Today a great transcontinental bike route, the first coast-to-coast highway in the US, once called the Main Street Across America, was conceived on September 10, 1912, when a group of industrialists led by Carl Fisher of Indianapolis Motor Speedway fame, envisioned a continuous improved highway from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The road would be open to lawful traffic without toll charges and was to be a living memorial to President Abraham Lincoln. When the route was announced in 1913 it was 3,389 miles long and stitched together existing roadbeds. New sections were built to demonstrate state of the art road construction methods and residents were asked to join the Lincoln Highway Association to show their support for this patriotic and private road building effort. That highway still exists, and for many it holds an allure in much the same way that it did in its heyday during the 1920s and ’30s. From the beginning the highway was a real tourist destination, and now it’s even more so because people have to make an effort to go that way and fulfill their desires to travel the back roads of America. Not a highway in contemporary terms, the Lincoln Highway today is a system of existing roadways that crosses 13 states and stretches nearly 3,400 miles from Times Square in New York city to Lincoln Park, San Francisco. But it was soon no longer officially known as "The Lincoln Highway." The US Bureau of Public Roads had eliminated named trails and highways in 1925, so it was US 1, US 30, US 40, US 50 and other, less-romantic, state highway numbers. One of the last actions of the Lincoln Highway Association before it closed 1927, was to order the casting of 3,000 concrete markers. A rectangular head on top of a hexagonal shaped post, the markers featured the Lincoln Highway logo, a bronze medallion and arrows to indicate the route of the memorial highway. The US Bureau of Public Roads allowed the placement of these markers along the length of the old highway. The markers were built to last. The posts are reinforced with steel rebar. The colors in the logo are actually separate pieces of cast concrete, with the color added, that were inserted into the final casting. The bronze medallions are anchored into the concrete and cannot be removed without destroying them. https://www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/news_old/articles/markers

The Tahoe-Pyramid Trail (abbreviated as ‘TPT’) that follows the entire length of the Truckee River, from its source at Lake Tahoe (6225’/1897m) to Pyramid Lake (3796’/1157m). The trail (at 81% completion as of 2023) can be enjoyed by hikers, runners, walkers, or cyclists. Once fully completed the trail will descend nearly 2500′(762m) in elevation over the course of the 114-mile (184km) length, using a combination of existing dirt, paved, and historic roads, bike paths, as well as many newly constructed sections of trail and connecting bridges in both urban and more remote trail areas. https://tahoepyramidtrail.org

More of a field than a park, however there are restrooms on site and some nice restaurants across the street.

Virginia Lake is a popular spot in Midtown Reno. It's great for riding with the family as there are many picnic spots around the lake, a playground for the kids, as well as toilets and water.

The Truckee River runs right through the center of Reno and provides miles of trails in both directions. Everything along the river is part of the Tahoe to Pyramid bike trail that parallels the Truckee River from its source in Tahoe City to its end at Pyramid Lake.

Riverside Drive is the heart of Reno's outdoor loving culture. With towering trees and various forms of public art it's a must for anyone visiting the city. Hub Coffee Roasters sits right in the middle and is basically a required stop for any cyclist passing by. The area is beautiful throughout the year so be sure to check it out no matter when you visit.

Good place to start and finish a ride. Great views, shade, and a few benches make it very welcoming.