Following are four alternation biking trips:

Madaket Mountain Biking
Terrain Covered: Madaket Bike Path to Eel Point and Head of Plains and back
Theme: Bikes, Birds, Beaches and Banquets
Meet at: Madaket
Duration: 4+ hours
Level: Challenging
Distance: 16-20 miles, including paved bike paths and rolling dirt roads
Activity: Gourmet picnic and beachcombing; sketching lesson using flowers or birdwatching lecture
Description: Pedal along winding bike paths past Nantucket's sandplain grasslands, home to the elusive short-eared owl and habitat for many wildflowers, including the ethereal wild indigo.

Take a break at Eel Point, a barrier beach often overlooked yet filled with treasures. Enjoy a gourmet picnic while watching the abundance of shore birds including snowy egrets and least terns. Participate in a sketching lesson, birdwatching lecture or beachcomb on your own.

Continue on to Head of the Plains over rough, rolling dirt roads for a birdwatching or sketching break, then return to Millbrook Road.

Options: Yoga class may be substituted for sketching lesson or birdwatching lecture

Miacomet Meandering
Theme: Rustic Sensuality
Meet at: Madaket
Distance: 4-10 miles
Terrain Covered: Mostly dirt or sandy roads with some paved roads
Duration: 3-4 hours
Level: Moderate
Activity: Visit Bartlett Farm, Cisco Brewery, Nantucket Winery, swim, sunbathe, and create your own picnic
Description: Enjoy an easy to moderate mountain bike ride along backroads. Visit the local farm. Gather your choice of home-grown vegetables, fresh salads, just-baked breads and pastries to take to a secluded South Shore beach. Relax, swim, sunbathe, feast. Continue along sandy roads and quiet trails to Nantucket's microbrewery or the winery for a tasting class.

Options: Volleyball, kiteflying, beach power walk, art lesson, or sandcastle building class at the beach.

Backroads to Siasconset
Theme: Endorphin Overload
Meet at: Nantucket Rotary
Distance: 20+ miles
Terrain Covered: Two-track trails and paved bike paths
Duration: 4+ hours
Level: Moderate
Activity: Sketching class, photography, birding, wildflower walk, ascent of Altar Rock, cranberry bog exploration

Description: Journey to the village of Siasconset via backroads and trails. Mountain bike through the central moors, the habitat for many rare and endangered flora and fauna, such as the short-eared owl and silvery aster. A gently-invigorating climb to Nantucket's second highest point, Altar Rock is rewarded with a startlingly expansive vista of unspoiled fragile heathlands, Polpis Harbor, Sesachacha Pond, Gibbs Pond, and if it's clear-- Martha's Vineyard.

Take a break to photograph or sketch the dragonflies, flowers or the occasional hawk. Continue off-road past Nantucket's vast cranberry bogs to Sankaty Lighthouse and to Sconset Village. Enjoy a catered lunch beachside (Sconset Beach) before a easy, exhilirating trip to Nantucket Town on paved bike paths.

Options: Walk out to Gibbs Pond, one of Nantucket's largest kettle ponds. Visit village shops. Take the longer, scenic Polpis Road bike path back to Nantucket Town.

Squam Sojourn
Theme: Serenity, Sun, Swamps, and Sandcastles
Meet At: Nantucket Rotary
Distance: 15+ miles
Terrain Covered: Paved bike paths and sandy roads
Duration: 4 hours
Level: Easy to moderate
Activity: Photography, Squam Swamp detour, beach hike
Description: Discover Squam, a serene, less-traveled part of the island. Explore Squam Swamp, a lush forest of "larger than lifesize" ferns as well as sassafras trees alive ith the chatter of songbirds. View a spectacular display of rose mallow gracing the roadside.

Visit Squam Beach, a secluded sand shore where we'll swim, beachcomb, or learn the art of sandsculpture.

Replenish with a gourmet picnic here or at Quidnet, a quaint nearby village of cottages reminiscent of Nantucket at the start of the century. Bring your camera and lots of film--this expedition is an excellent opportunity for stunning photographs.

Options: Take a delightful detour to Wauwinet for drinks or to Quaise Beach to search for arrowheads.

Information courtesy Nantucket Chamber of Commerce.