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« on: March 04, 2012, 10:23:27 pm »
I can help from Yosemite forward as I've done the TA on to NJ and a large western loop that included Yosemite and into CO.
From Yosemite take 120 across to hwy 6 and then 264/266 south and east in NV. Then 95 down to Vegas. From Vegas you can follow the road just west of Lake Mead until you get up to Glendale and I-15. You'll be on I-15 to St George, UT. Big shoulders on the interstate so no problems.
From St George head over to Zion NP (incredible). Head east out of Zion and down into northern AZ and the lightly visited North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Head back into UT and to Bryce Canyon NP. Then over to Capitol Reef NP, over to Hanksville, up to Green River and a short jaunt on I-70 and then down to Moab and Arches NP. All of these parks are worth at least a day of exploring with the possible exception of Cap Reef. You'll want to be out of UT no later than June 10 unless you really like the heat.
From Moab head south to La Sal Jct and then east into Colorado. Head to Telluride, another area to take a day to check out. Then head north to Montrose and east from there to Gunnison. If you have time, Crested Butte is 20 miles north of there and another great CO town. From Gunnison continue over Monarch Pass and down to the TA in Canon City. The above might actually be the Western Express, I've never seen the maps or route as I did these routes well before AC put that route together.
When I rode the TA I finished in my then home town on the Jersey Shore not far from NYC. You can ride into that area without dealing with crazy traffic and then ferry to Lower Manhattan. The route I took involved cutting off the TA when it headed east of the Shenandoah Valley in VA. Instead you continue north on highway 11 through Harrisonburg and up through a small slice of WV and MD and across the Potomac into PA. In PA you'll want to get a good map and follow smaller roads south of Highway 30 making your way into Philadelphia. From Philly you'll cross the bridge into Camden NJ and hook up with NJ537 just east of there. It's a mainly rural road travelling through horse country which will take you to Little Silver, NJ where you'll take a right on Rumson Rd and to the Atlantic Ocean in Sea Bright. From Sea Bright you'll head a few miles north on Ocean Ave and over to Highlands where you can catch the SeaStreak ferry to Lower Manhattan. This will help you avoid the congestion of North Jersey.
Sounds like a great trip. Just watch out for headwinds on your way up the CA coast as the prevailing wind is most always from the north. Enjoy and let me know if you want more detail.
Brian B. Boulder, CO