Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Shipping Supplies to Yourself

« on: April 11, 2013, 06:42:28 pm »

Hi:

I tried mailing stuff "general delivery" as a way to stage what I was carrying last year on the Western Express" route and it was a problem at both places I tried it.

The first post office was in a very small town and closed at noon every day of the week. The second place I didn't snap that I was getting there on a Saturday (my fault) and another early closing.

I thought afterword that I should have arranged with hotels I knew I would be going to stay at to take delivery for me. If you get there after 5, they'll still be open.

pm

2

Connecting ACA Routes / Re: Western Express - North Lake Powell Lodging

« on: March 06, 2013, 07:51:21 pm »

Hi:

This was part of a trip I took  last September and I was also credit card touring.

When I was preparing for the trip I called the phone # listed for Hite Marina and never got an answer. Then on route I heard that Hite was closed due to low water (unlikely to be a problem on your spring trip) so I went through Bullfrog. A couple of pieces of information for you.

1) The lodge at Bullfrog is nice and the prices I paid  were $167.13 for the room & $44.93 for dinner (I still haven't filed the credit card bills off my desk)

2) They had cut out the early morning ferry (8:00) so the first ferry of the day was at 10. That meant I wasn't rolling until 10:30.

3) When Aggie says there's not much between Bullfrog and Blanding, that's a understatement. There is actually nothing (in the way of stores or restaurants) between Bullfrog and Blanding and it's 95 miles. I went through the entire 2 gallons of water I brought with me that day. I happened to have a very strong headwind for the first 6 or 7 hours  and it was over 100° but that's just the luck of the draw.

You're in for a treat though. In particular the sight of Comb Ridge about 20 miles out of Blanding was about as fantastic a sight as I saw on the entire trip.

Pete

3

General Discussion / Re: Need help picking a route

« on: February 16, 2013, 07:21:13 pm »

Hi:

I took this trip last year and I couldn't agree more with the suggestion that you take the Western Express route and that your friend joins you from Cedar City to Blandon. That part of the trip is most stunning part of the whole trip.

But.....there's a couple things to think about.

Be realistic when you evaluate your & your friends fitness. It's likely to feel like a very full five days , 365 miles with some pretty big climbs thrown in and most often long spaces between stores or hotels. It's certainly possible, I did it in 5 days, but were times it was kind of tough.

And how your friend gets back home from Blanding is a interesting question. It's a pretty small town that's not close to a lot. If they can squeeze out another day they can ride into Cortez, Co. which would not be far off route for you and it has a small airport or a car could be rented there for a drive to a bigger city.

None of this is meant to discourage you, Just make sure you're both in shape and carry lots of water.

4

Routes / Re: Missoula to Banff

« on: January 31, 2013, 06:55:00 pm »

Good guess. I travel on the very light side (15± lbs) and I'll be on a road bike w/ tires ill suited for gravel.

I know from my first time touring last year that you miss a lot by riding like I do, pushing the pace and miles and not camping. When I rode passed Zion & Bryce without taking a couple days off to hike and explore I could feel it was a mistake. But 40 years as a "roadie" has left it's mark and when I get on a bike I want to go.

Thanks for the additional info. It will all be carefully notated on my maps. Obviously, the big draw on these trips is the scenery but it's pretty surprising how memories of cool little restaurants and inns stick with you.

Pete

5

Routes / Re: Missoula to Banff

« on: January 30, 2013, 05:03:10 pm »

Hi Dave:

Thanks for the info and your photo's are great. Just what I needed, to get even more primed for the trip while it's still  8 months out.

I'll be at GTS on 9/6 and Yellowstone on 9/12.

And I'm going the way you recommend (2- Fernie, Sparwood..) following the route as it's shown on the Great Parks map. Last year I did Western Express and the East half of the TransAm and the ACA maps did me right so I'm using them on this trip as well.

It's a happy coincidence that you mentioned Wisdom. I have a dot on my map already for spending night nine there. It's only 75± miles from Hamilton (night but after climbing over Lost Trail Pass I think I'll be ready to call it a day when I get there. I'll give the folks at Nez Perce a call.

Pete

6

Routes / Re: Missoula to Banff

« on: January 28, 2013, 06:58:29 pm »

Okay, I've got my maps and done some homework.

The plan as of now is to leave Jasper 9/1, follow the Great Parks North Section 1 & 2, pick up Trans America in Missoula and follow that to Rand, Colorado and then make my way from there over to Denver and fly home.

I've reviewed the maps, I've checked the average temps, I've looked up the sunrise/sunset times, all seems to be good (or good enough).

But I'm making a assumption here I would like some comment on:

I'm thinking that after Labor Day the overwhelming majority of tourists (and their RV's) in Banff & Glacier & Yellowstone will be gone. Is that correct?

Pete

7

Routes / Re: Missoula to Banff

« on: January 14, 2013, 04:49:49 pm »

Ooops! Should have looked more thoroughly.

Thanks

8

Routes / Missoula to Banff

« on: January 13, 2013, 08:09:13 pm »

Hello and Happy new year to All;

I'm looking for a route from Missoula to Banff that does not require a mountain bike or camping so the "Great Divide" route is out.  Suggestions?

Thanks,

Pete

9

Routes / Re: TransAm to Western Express, VA to Califorinia

« on: October 23, 2012, 05:47:08 pm »

Ah yes, but if you don't get killed there, and even if you do, it's spectacular scenery in the Arkansas River Valley.

That's true John, the scenery is spectacular, and despite my unease I was still able to enjoy it. And, if your traveling west to east, it's downhill during that whole stretch as well. So if it turn's out this is the place you take your last mortal breath, you will be surrounded by beauty AND feeling fast & easy.

All kidding aside, as road cyclists we all know we always have to share the road with cars and trucks and some will be more courteous than others. For anyone considering this trip, I can't recommend it enough.

Pete

10

Routes / Re: Timing and weather

« on: October 13, 2012, 06:58:57 am »

Hi:

I'll add one thing to the East/ West part of this discussion.

I took a recent trip similar to this and started in the west. You will be leaving earlier in the year than I did so your days will be longer but do yourself a favor and look up sunrise / sunset times for where you intend to be and when you intend to be there. And plot a couple of places in each state because it varies by an hour across the time zone.

I left from the west figuring every place I've lived the winds were generally from the west or southwest and over the course of the trip they were marginally more with me than against me. But I like to leave early in the morning, particularly when it's hot, and did not feel comfortable leaving until at least 9 AM because I was riding directly into the rising sun. This was especially true out west where there is no tree cover.

I've always felt that drivers that can't or don't see you are are the one's most likely to take you out.

Pete

11

Routes / Re: TransAm to Western Express, VA to Califorinia

« on: October 11, 2012, 07:15:55 pm »

Hi Will:

I just got back from a version of this route 10 days ago. I had a fantastic experience on this ride and you are in for a treat.

I left from San Francisco and took the Western Express to Pueblo then (apostate alert!) drove across Kansas and Missouri and picked up the TransAm route in Illinois and rode that through Va. for 2700 mile in 31 riding days. I was "credit card" touring so every night was a hotel and most meals were in a diner or restaurant. I will keep my comments here to what you directly asked but I will include my email for anything else I can help you with.

Just for some background, I'm 54, started riding at 14, raced for 15 years and have been a recreational "roadie" since. I ride between 3500 to 5500 miles a year depending on work, weather etc. This was the first time I ever had panniers or even a rack on one of my bikes.

- I used a road bike with a compact crank (34/50) and the cassette was 12-28. That gearing was fine for all the hills I ran into (btw: the steepest stuff is in the east), but I was travelling very light.

- Traffic was generally very good as were the roads. There were individual spots that is was unpleasant. For me the worst place was Rt 50 east of Monarch Pass as it runs along the Arkansas River in Colorado. Maybe it was because it was a Saturday but there was a lot of RV traffic and they seemed totally unconcerned if they tagged me or not. This was very much the exception.

- I used clipless pedals with carbon soled road shoes and had a pair of very light weight sneakers bungied to my rack where they were immediately available. I would do the same again.

- I didn't do any camping but it seemed like I passed a fair amount of campsites or places you could wing it.

- Tires were the only real mistake I made. I was riding sew-ups (you may have to look that up) and while they were heavy sew-ups and relatively wide (24mm) they were no match for a thorn that grows out west that I was not familiar with. Five flats in the first 1200 miles, then I didn't have another for the rest of the trip. If I was to do it again I would switch to clinchers and go with a 28mm tire. There are some torn up shoulders you will sometimes be forced to ride and you'll be glad to have the wider tire. My guess is 4 tubes and two tires until you get to Pueblo should be fine and there are bike shops along the way to re-stock. Once you get out west bike shops become MUCH FURTHER APART. You will want to load up in Pueblo.

- I brought 2 pairs riding shorts, 2 summer jerseys, 1 winter jersey,2 pair socks, 1 rain shell, 1 pr tights, 1 pir very light weight street pants, 1 shirt, and 1 pair swim suit. Add your medical stuff, toiletries, and tools....my panniers weighed 15 lbs with everything except extra water which I always had to carry out west. But I had no camping stuff.

- as far as food...you eat and you eat, and then you eat some more, and then you have 2 desserts. On the bike I ate a lot of Nutter Butters and Fig Newtons and I always had Peanut Butter, dried apricots, and a bag of tortillas for lunch if there was no place to stop. I didn't lose a pound on the trip.

- My trip cost $6000 and most of it was hotels and restaurants. I think it can be done for less than a third of that easily.

My final thoughts : Get yourself in really good shape before you leave. The hills is far western Va and eastern Kentucky are steep and they keep coming and when you get out to Nevada (& some places in Utah) there will be days where it is 80 miles + between anything, not even a house or a ranch, and it will be hot, and there will be 2 or 3 mountain passes. You will need lots of carrying capacity for water. I bought 2 pvc 2 litre bags for water that roll up when not in use and weigh almost nothing. Make sure you get these. Link is below.

http://cascadedesigns.com/platypus/water-bottles/platy-bottle/product

If you want, you can email me directly @ pwm2@lehigh.edu

Pete

12

Routes / Re: Credit Card Touring the Western Express

« on: July 01, 2012, 01:55:10 pm »

This forum has really proved to be a great resource. Thanks not only to those that have posted responses but also to those that set it up and run it.

Aggie: I'll make a note of your tip about the Border Inn. I'm happy to add another 5± miles to the day's trip to get a warmer welcome.

Dennis: Thanks for the advice. I've already altered my start so I will be through California & Fallon before Labor day weekend starts. I plan on making my motel reservations early for the Nevada portion of the trip even though that will not leave me with a lot of flexibility about how far I go on any given day, but if your not camping, you're doing the Nevada leg of the trip in 4 days or 5 days anyway. I just need to make up my mind which one it will be from home and not on the road.

Pete

13

Routes / Re: Credit Card Touring the Western Express

« on: June 13, 2012, 06:27:50 pm »

Ben:

Glad to hear you had a good trip and all was safe.

This information feels really useful to me.

Specifically your advice for early hotel reservations, beating the wind with early starts, and your description of the climbing grades gives me a much more assured feeling that when I get there everything will work out fine.

Three flats @ 800 miles...ouch. I'm going to be on a road bike also, with sew-ups. I was going to take 4 spares, maybe I'll take 6.

Thank you,

Pete

14

Routes / Re: Credit Card Touring the Western Express

« on: May 14, 2012, 04:07:21 pm »

To Ben:

Good luck with your trip, I hope it works out great for you.

I am definitely interested in you writing afterwards with any insights you find. I assume since you are heading up to SLC you will be staying on 6 after Baker and I would like to know about that as well as I am considering alternate routes through Utah.

To hlazarus:

The stretch between Blanding and Hanksville (or in my case vice-versa) is the one that really got my attention. The map has a "M" (=motel) at Hite Marina in between those towns but their web site seems to indicate that the only rentals are for houseboats. That sounds very nice but at $325 it's a little excessive. And I can't get a phone call through to the contact phone #.

I saw on a different thread someone's suggestion that you can skip Glen Canyon, go up to Green River, across to Arches NP & Moab and rejoin to WE at Monticello. I may do that.

Thanks for your help,

Pete

15

Routes / Credit Card Touring the Western Express

« on: May 13, 2012, 04:22:56 pm »

Hello All:

I am looking to do a credit card tour (C2C) leaving late August and wrapping up in 30-35 days. I was looking to start in SF, take the WE to Pueblo, Trans America for the balance.

I have ridden seriously for 30 years and the 100± mile days by themselves don't worry me.

Yesterday my WE maps arrived and in reviewing how remote the Nevada & Utah sections are I thought it would be good to know if anyone out there had done this route without a tent or cooking gear. If so, I'd like to hear how it went.

Thanks,

Pete