Why Go: With its rolling karst topography, award-winning vineyards and dazzling springtime wildflower blooms, Texas Hill Country features some of the state’s best rural cycling. These hills, while not Swiss Alps caliber, were one of Lance Armstrong’s primary training grounds.
Road Notes: This ride is a Hill Country classic that leaves from the cycling capital of Fredericksburg, a quaint village founded in the 1840s by German immigrants. It’s likely a combination of that continental heritage and a Texas-sized imagination that led to locals naming this route “Little Switzerland” — there are hills with names like Mt. Crabapple, Swiss Miss and Grinder, but none are taller than 300 feet.
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Distance: 41 miles
Elevation Gain: 2,233 feet
Starts From: Fredericksburg, TX