Sport Today

My wife and I are thinking of visiting Hilton Head Island, SC for some
riding during the April Easter/Passover break.

Ideally, we'd like it to be 70 degrees or higher during the peak of the day.
Can anybody tell me about the weather in HH in April?

Thanks!

--
Low-Impact Rides in the NY/LI region
www.geocities.com/NYRides

Most days will be above 70 there in April, in fact,  you might get days
in the low 90s. More rain and wind in April in Hilton Head though but
should make for an excellent bike vacation. It is probably the second
best month besides October/early Nov. to ride there.

Can anybody tell me about the weather in HH in April?

I feel that cycling on HH is less than desireable at any temperature.  I have
visited HH on several occasions and was struck by the difficulty in getting
around on a bike.  One sees a lot of bikes but they are apparently mostly used
for short trips.  

The local drivers are definiely hostile to bikes and the gendarmes turn a blind
eye.
Local construction practice puts a serious crimp on cycling about.  Most of the
island is broken up into autonomous villages and you must be a guest/resident
to get in.  That leavbes you with your own village to cycle and the main road.
In addition, getting access from the mainland to HH on a bicycle via the public
roads is rather chancey with few if any paved shoulders and lots of traffic.
On a bike one can cover every permitted area on HH on one afternoon. That is
not much incentive for a cycling holiday on HH.  if you must go there, take
golf clubs instead and leave the bikes at home.

It also appears that the powers that be wish to discourage riders from cycling
onto the island.  (They probably equate them with homeless and they sure do not
want to give those folks an opportunity to reach that expensive real estate.)

signed

Dale (not thrilled with HH as a cycling destination) Lally
Pompano Beach FL
Regards from the Velo Nut

Dale V Lally Jr W0OWF
Pompano Beach FL

I can't address the weather in HH in detail since I won't ride there.  I
live in Charleston that's not far away.  Our weather is typically hot, humid
and rain-free.  This being an exceptional weather year (El Nino/La Nina), it
might be a mite wetter.

The bulk of VeloNut's comments, though, address a more important problem.
Bicycling advocacy in SC is so poorly focussed ('advocating' every thing
from PoB to the Tour Du Pont) that it has given us HH with write ups in the
PCC newsletter.  Look in the Palmetto Cycling Coalition's web site
http://www.pccsc.net for newsletter archives with descriptions of riding and
weather conditions at HH.

Don't ride there since it's a bummer.

Wow...so why do so many people say it's such a great place to ride?  Keep in
mind we're not looking to tear up the pavement.  I'm a fairly serious rider,
but my wife can only take about ten, easy miles a day.

--
Low-Impact Rides in the NY/LI region
www.geocities.com/NYRides

Wow...so why do so many people say it's such a great place to ride?  Keep in
mind we're not looking to tear up the pavement.  I'm a fairly serious rider,
but my wife can only take about ten, easy miles a day

That is the message put out by the Chamber of Commerce and the developers. The
opinions of serious riders will differ drastically.

 IRT daily mileages, I venture to say that 10 miles is about the max one could
ride without doubling back.  Due to the restricted access to the various
villages, there is just no place to go except up and down the main drag - very
nice - but not much too it.

Regards from the Velo Nut

Dale V Lally Jr W0OWF
Pompano Beach FL

Some more info about bike riding in Hilton Head. They have quite a good
bike trail system.

http://www.great-trails.com/hh.shtml

You can rent a bike at a hotel and ride on the beach.
I was there for a sales conference some yars ago, and we had part of an
afternoon free.
This was a fun thing to do, and even my non-biking wife would have enjoyed
it, if she'd been there.

Still, though, we couldn't do anything long like "go around the island". We
ran into a small creek, and couldn't go around because of the "no
trespassing" signs everywhere.

Living in South Carolina, there are plenty of excellent places to ride
in and around Hilton Head. Yes, there are plenty of private community
but also plenty of trials and open riding also available. Trust me, you
will enjoy riding around Hilton Head and the surrounding area.
Especially the surrounding areas. And Charleston and Savannah are pretty
nearby.

I do that a lot in Myrtle Beach.  SC beaches are very flat with well packed
sand, a good riding surface.  When you run out of roads to ride in HH, hit
the beach.

Matt O.

As others have noted, there are few places more hostile to ride than HHI.
One person I know got a ticket for riding on a private road (in one of
those gated communities).  He took it to court; the security guard stated
that the reason he issues cyclists tickets is because so many residents
are old, and cannot see well, so riders are ticketed to discourage
cyclists on the roads.

The court upheld the ticket because in SC, when a side path is provided,
bicycles *must* use it.  Never mind that the majority of the side paths
are shared use paths, with roller bladers, wobblers, joggers, and are all
of 36" wide.  A cyclist on those paths is likely to kill someone.

Go anywhere else but HHI if you want to ride.  Savannah, GA has a good
"share the road" program, as does North Carolina.  Even Beaufort, SC, just
a few miles from HHI, is a lot friendlier.

As for the weather, it could be cool (50s) to blazing hot (90s), rainy or
sunny, take your pick.

-Dondo

Hoo RAh!  Thank you.  There's been so much yap yap yap about how nice they
are and how well paved is their twenty miles of 'bike trail'.

I drove HH once and saw all of the signs.  Especially I saw the stop signs
on each and every driveway crossing of the sidewalk/bike path.  STOP signs
for driveways!

Similarly, I note that another privately owned and gated island that I ride
on has recently removed the last (that I can detect) public notice of its no
firearms policy.

OK.  I'm convinced.  We're not going.  Thanks!  :)

--
Low-Impact Rides in the NY/LI region
www.geocities.com/NYRides

You might print out a copy of this thread, and send it along with a letter
the the HH Chamber of Commerce about why you won't be coming to HH.

Matt O.

You might print out a copy of this thread, and send it along with a letter
the the HH Chamber of Commerce about why you won't be coming to HH.

Frankly, I am sure they are completely aware of that situation.  From what I
understand, the Chamber does not control anything substantive on HH.  It is the
developers who who designed the traffic pattern.  And you will make little
headway along that line.

Regards from the Velo Nut

Dale V Lally Jr W0OWF
Pompano Beach FL