By Claire Noack

This trendy neighborhood just south of downtown Minneapolis combines the best aspects of the Twin Cities, from shopping and nightlife to outdoor recreation on the Chain of Lakes. Along with sailing, kayaking and paddle boarding, Uptown is also a great place to bike around the scenic lakes and order a round of local beers with friends at neighborhood taprooms.

Sidle up to the bar at Steel Toe Brewing for refreshing beers with big flavor and almost nightly food trucks. Then ride your metal steed around Lake Calhoun and through the center of Uptown to reach LynLake Brewery and enjoy the rooftop patio, free popcorn and seasonal brews. Continue down Lake Street (or hop on the Greenway Bike Trail) to Eastlake Craft Brewery, where there is a beer to pair with any ethic food of your choosing from Midtown Global Market. Sip on something different at two local distilleries in the area. Du Nord Craft Spirits distills farm-to-bottle spirits and their cocktail lounge serves twists on classic cocktails, while Lawless Distilling Co. mixes up inventive handcrafted drinks made from their Minnesota-themed vodka and gin.

Best time to start pedaling: Wednesday through Sunday starting at 4 p.m.