“Where are some good places to cycle around Boston?”

( Answer requested by Elynn Quirk.)

This works almost anywhere — not just Boston:

Open Google Maps. Click the three-line Menu icon in the corner. Select Bicyling from the left-hand menu.

That’s all it takes.

Google will then superimpose a color-coded layer atop the normal road map showing you the area’s (1) dedicated bike lanes, (2) dedicated bike paths, (3) ‘bicycle-friendly’ roads; and (4) unpaved/dirt bike trails.

Zoom in for street-by-street detail.

If you ask Google Maps to plot a route for you and select or say “by bicycle,” Google will plot a route that avoids unnecessary hills, and sticks to bike lanes and bike-friendly roads when possible.

Click or say “Navigate,” and Google will then give you turn-by-turn bicycle-specific directions as you pedal.

With that kind of automated support, you can bike an unfamiliar area like a native — and in some cases, better than natives. (I found paths near me I never knew about!)

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