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Messages - bbarrettx

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46
Routes / Re: Route advice - Oregon to Maine
« on: February 25, 2017, 06:52:26 pm »
Our starting point is being driven by rental car return locations so we decided on Newport but we'll drive down the coast from Astoria to Newport the day before we start. I hadn't realized that Santiem Pass was pretty far north so we're going to pass on Eugene and just go through Corvallis and east from there.

We're going to stop for a few days of R&R in Sun Valley. I mapped our route from there to Minneapolis. Here it is if you want to have a look. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/19215437

47
Routes / Re: Route advice - Oregon to Maine
« on: February 24, 2017, 03:51:50 pm »
I concur with John on the OR coast and the Sawtooths. If you start in Astoria you can drop in on Canon Beach for a lunch and then maybe finish up in Tilamook or just do an easy day and overnight in Canon Beach and start for real the following day. If the weather is nice you'll have great northerly winds pushing you down the coast. Having also done the TransAm in 87 I can tell you that it's right up there with my most scenic days on that tour, maybe the top day. I liked it so much that I rode Seattle to San Diego the following summer. The coastal section of the TA ends shortly after Tilamook where you cross east into the Willamette Valley and continue south to Eugene, which is where you'll end up if you start in Florence. If you still decide to start in Florence I'd suggest a drive down the coast from Astoria the day before you start. You won't be disappointed unless it's raining.

The Sawtooths of ID are the hidden Tetons. Just google some pics of Stanley, ID to get a feel. Highly recommended if you decide to cut off the TA and pass on Missoula. Will probably save you some miles as the TA seems to meander up to Missoula because AC is based there. It's beautiful country but it's a roundabout way to Yellowstone. I've spent a lot of time mountain biking in the Sawtooths but not touring so I can't vouch for the roads from a touring standpoint except to say that the shoulders seem fine and traffic should be light even on weekends in June. Sounds like John says the roads are good. It will follow one of the forks of the Salmon (middle?) downstream out of Stanley for several miles. Great camping and restaurant at Redfish Lake. Nice country that's not well traveled until July and August.

48
Routes / Re: Route advice - Oregon to Maine
« on: February 23, 2017, 05:36:13 pm »
You and I are looking to do about the same route except I'll finish in NJ so will make my way SE from Niagara Falls area. Jamawani has given me some solid advice in terms of SD routing and I believe it's his route from Yellowstone through to Devil's Tower I'll be following. Headed out of Badlands he's suggesting a series of roads on the north side of 90. Basically 14 and 34 and some smaller county roads W and E of Huron. This has me exiting into MN NE of Brookings on Rt 30 which becomes 19 in MN. 23 looks like a nice diagonal road to take NE and then Rt 11 (unmarked on my road atlas) just north of 212 seems like a quiet road. In Hutchinson there's a rail trail called the Luce Line Trail which takes you either to Minneapolis or the western suburbs. Let me know if you come up with anything better. Cheers - Brian

49
Routes / Re: Getting Across South Dakota
« on: February 23, 2017, 05:05:30 pm »
We'll be running 32's. We'll give Sage Creek and 26 in OR a go. Thanks for your input. Great info.

50
Routes / Re: Hi Everyone! First Timer Cross Country Rider - ROUTES NEEDED
« on: February 23, 2017, 04:11:07 pm »
As for routes, I've toured much of S Utah from St George to Moab. I've also driven those roads around Lake Powell and it's pretty desolate. I'd avoid the Wasatch to make things easy early on. Looks like 28 to 89. Great time of year to visit Bryce and Zion and then head over to Page as the N Rim of the Grand Canyon will still be closed. As a semi loop option 24 to 12 will give you some awesome scenery if you have some time to spare but that climb out of Boulder will be a real grind. You probably want to check out the S Rim and Sedona on your way to Phoenix as well. Not a lot of different options in terms of roads. Good luck and enjoy!

51
Routes / Re: Getting Across South Dakota
« on: February 23, 2017, 03:27:47 pm »
Thanks again for all the detailed info. Sold on the SD suggestions re Spearfish to Cheyenne Junction to Nemo to Badlands. Let me know about that dirt road that crosses the park to 240. I abandoned my road bike for 25 years to ride dirt but I'll be back on a road bike. If it's reasonable hard pack that I can cover with skinny tires then game on.

Jamawani, I hadn't really considered 26 in OR as a route to Stanley but it looks like a reasonable option. Was just going to follow Transam through Hells Canyon and then 95n/55s. If you're familiar with both routes from a touring perspective and are suggesting 26 over the other then that's the way we'll go. Sounds like 55 has a ton off traffic and bad shoulders. Any other insights regarding those two options?


52
Routes / Re: Getting Across South Dakota
« on: February 22, 2017, 02:49:44 pm »
Thanks for all your insights. Jamawani, I think it's your suggested route across WY that we plan to take which will get us to Devil's Tower area. I live in CO so I'm dialed in to the snow situation. We'll be doing the Transam across OR and will miss out on McKenzie pass but otherwise should be fine. We will cut off the Transam to cross the Sawtooths and down into Sun Valley. This will be very early June and I can't imagine that those passes will be closed as they aren't that high. From Sun Valley we will head to Jackson and then up through Yellowstone. Again, I'm anticipating the roads will be clear of snow at that point.

I hadn't considered the Indian Reservation issue. I've ridden across the Wind River Res a few times. Is this one potentially more of a concern?

53
Routes / Getting Across South Dakota
« on: February 19, 2017, 08:04:30 pm »
I'm mapping out a XC tour for this summer staying to the north. Using AC routes most of the way but I'm going to avoid ND because of the traffic situation. Based on preliminary research on traffic counts it looks like I'll be riding route 212 most of the way across the state. My other options appear to be 34 or a combination of 34 and 14. I'll be riding east and coming out of WY into the Belle Fourche area, likely around mid June. If anyone has insights on these roads that would be awesome. Thanks!

54
Let me know what you end up doing with this. We'll be finishing a XC tour in July in Sea Bright but will be coming in from the Binghampton area and crossing into NJ around Port Jervis so we'll be able to avoid a lot of the dense areas you need to go through. I did the TA in 87 and cut up to PA from the Shenandoah Valley and ended up taking 537 from Camden to Rumson and then just over to Sea Bright from there but that's no help to you if you're headed up to the Hudson Valley.

I haven't lived in NJ for 25 years but I'm guessing that just jumping on 36 probably wouldn't be a lot of fun. I'd get over to Navesink River Rd in Locust and find my way over to Holmdel from there and find some back roads headed north. Good luck and have a great trip.

55
Routes / Re: Where to start
« on: June 24, 2016, 11:54:39 am »
If I recall correctly you can catch the Astoria bus from the airport. The OR coast is perhaps the most scenic part of the TA so if you have time I'd start in Astoria and you might consider riding down to Florence instead of cutting across to the Corvallis area. When the weather is nice you generally get great tail winds out of the north along the coast so maybe another reason to continue down to Florence.

56
Routes / Re: Northern Tier Alternate
« on: June 24, 2016, 11:46:45 am »
Thanks for all of your suggestions. I'm guessing that the fracking ban in NY State could mean less heavy vehicles than PA. Looks like we'll find our way to Ithaca and continue southeast to the headwaters of the Delaware River.

57
Routes / Re: Northern Tier Alternate
« on: June 19, 2016, 12:49:25 pm »
Looks like the PA option is highway 6. Any thoughts on that vs the NY route.

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Routes / Northern Tier Alternate
« on: June 18, 2016, 02:42:06 pm »
I rode the TransAm in 1987 when I was 21 and my daughter and I are exploring a XC tour for next summer as a 30th anniversary trip. We have a friend who lives close to Stanley, ID who we plan to visit along the way and plan to finish on the NJ Shore. Because of the ID visit we'll start on the TransAm and veer off once in ID to get to Stanley in the Sawtooths. From Stanley we'll find our way to the Lewis and Clark and then Northern Tier to Great Lakes and Lake Erie Connector and from Niagara work our way down to the Finger Lakes and across southern NY on one of the state bike routes and then eventually into northern NJ. This route is very preliminary and I've done no research. If anyone has any insights into any of these sections it would be helpful. Thanks in advance. Cheers.


59
I rode the TransAm way back in 87 as my first tour. Started in Astoria and finished in Sea Bright, NJ, next to my home town Rumson. If you haven't settled on a route from Central NJ to connect with the TransAm through PA let me know. The route I chose worked quite well. Sounds like you're set on on going East to West but I will say that finishing up at home was a pretty cool experience. Happy to give suggestions on the route if you're still kicking it around.

60
Routes / Re: San Francisco to Vegas and onwards to WE/TA
« 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

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