Monday, April 11, 2016

Six Week Bike Tour, Early Summer of 2016

One of my neighbors, Pat White, and I (Mike) are planning a 6-week bike tour this summer. We have both wanted to ride cross country on our bikes since we were young, and now we have the opportunity. We are going halfway this summer because we wanted to take the nicest route, but it would take us at least 12-13 weeks to do the whole thing including travel days and a few rest days. Since we have wives, other interests, homes, and jobs, 12 weeks just isn't a reality. We could have taken a straight shot route and pushed the mileage to fly across in 7-8 weeks, but we want to relax and enjoy the places we are visiting, so the plan is to break it up into two sections. In some future summer, we will do the Colorado to DC (or DC to Colorado) section. 

Another friend, Tom Hardenburger, will join us from Baker City, Oregon to Missoula, Montana. 

We will be using the maps from the Adventure Cycling Association and will be riding the classic "TransAm" trail pioneered in 1976 as part of the BikeCentennial project. The route has been refined over the past forty years and the maps show all of the campgrounds, diners and bike shops. 



The approximate timeline is:


Astoria Oregon - 23 May
Salem Oregon - 28 May or so
Bend Oregon - 31 May or so
Baker City, Oregon - 3 June
Missoula, Montana - 11 June
West Yellowstone, Montana - 17 June

Jackson Hole, Wyoming - 20 June
Pueblo, Colorado - 2 July

If all goes well, Sherry will meet me in Colorado, and we will go out to San Francisco to pick up our 1982 VW Westfalia camper van and spend a few weeks driving around California.