The route!

Not all posts will end with exclamation points, but right now I'm still pretty excited about everything.

Here's my proposed route:


View Bike Plan in a larger map

You'll notice that it's not very straight, but I can explain. First, I'm heading down toward Asheville, NC. I want to do this so I can bike along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia and North Carolina. This will be a 500-mile long stretch of windy road along the hills (and mountains!) of the western parts of those states. As an extra bonus, the Parkway leads to Mount Mitchell, just outside Asheville. Mt Mitchell is the highest point east of the Mississippi (sorry New Hampshire). There is a road to the top and I, of course, will bike it.

My brother will join me in Asheville. He'll fly down from Chicago, and we will then bike back up to Chicago.

Next, I'll continue (alone, sadly) towards Fargo, ND. I'm not sure there's much to see there, but I've been to the other 47 continental states, and what better way to hit the only one that's eluded me?

From Fargo, I'll somehow get to Denver. I say somehow because there are no roads that go southwest through the Dakotas. This is also the one stretch of the trip where I may be pretty far between towns, and also in an area that few bikers travel through. I'll do my best to be safe.

After weeks on the plains, the fun starts in Denver. I was tempted to head southwest to the 4-corners area and monument valley, but the valley is farther west than I thought, and the area is really, really unpopulated. And it's a desert. I hope to see the National Parks down there someday, but I don't think it will be during this trip. Anyway, I'll follow the Trans America bike route through the mountains. That's a route that's very popular with cyclists, so should remove any fear about being stuck in the mountains with no food or a broken bike (these things can still happen, I just won't be stuck!).

I'll jump off the Trans America (which goes to Oregon) and go north to Seattle, then follow the coast down to San Francisco. Technically, I will finish the trip in San Jose, but that's not on the water so it makes for a lousy final destination.

So that's that. Google claims 5,358 miles. That number will go up as I'm not taking the highway. From previous experience there's about 25% more miles in a bike route compared to the Google directions, so let's go ahead and predict something like 6500. At 75 miles a day, I'll arrive about 88 days later.

I am hoping to average more than that, or to end up closer to the 5500 mile mark. It would let me take some time off in interesting cities or take a rest day if I need it. If I'm running behind I can also skip either Fargo (Chicago straight to Denver) or Seattle (Denver to Oregon). Either would save a good deal of time. We'll see!