Cost - WE to TA

[Tim]

I've been trying to complete my budget for the upcoming ride.  I'll be taking the western express with a variation.  I'll be leaving from Bridgeport CA and heading south to the 120 east.  Then on to hwy 6 and all the way out to Cedar City to connect with the WE.  From that point I will continue on to the TA.  Now I do realize no services exisit beyond Lee Vining until I get to Benton Crossing then Tonopah NV.  My route - http://www.opawakening.com/Pages/RouteMaps.aspx

The entire trip will be a tribute to our Marines and Sailors who are fighting and living in the dirt everyday.  With that said, I plan to dirt camp and boil food every night. 

I will be carrying a heavy load with full battle rattle (Storm gear and winter camping equipment).  Because of my experiences living in Yosemite National Park (out of bounds camping) I'd like to "commando camp" most of the way.  So the real cost I can see is gonna be food. 

How much would one budget on a tour like this?

[Jambi]

Cost me about 3500 dollars when i did it this summer but i spent quite a lot in the first 1000 miles on things stupid stuff like private campgrounds just because i was to paranoid to wild camp. i also took a while to do it (75 days) and splurged on food quite a lot.

[John Nelson]

Cost will be proportional to the number of days, which will depend on miles per day. If cutting costs is your number one goal, I'd guess you could do this on five dollars a day, maybe even less.

[Tim]

Thanks guys for the feedback.  I'm trying to do it as cheap as possible and days on the road are around 70 to 80 days.   The reason is I want to build in weather and ride along dates.  I know I'm dealing with pandora's box in Cedar City and beyond in April.  If I can get through Breaks (with the new detour) NP and to lower elevations in Utah I'll feel better (better be ready for the next crux in CO).  With that said your advice John is about where I wanna be for daily per diem (5 to 10 bones a day).  I spend a great deal of time in the Sierra living on D-hydrates and will be ok with the low caloric intake and the bike is pretty dialed out for hard touring.  Needless to say I'm planning to live (as we say in Yosemite) like a dirtbag till I can get closer to KS.  In KS I have many groups who want to put me up and feed me 

Thanks again and S/F
Tim

[John Nelson]

Although it can be done on $5 a day, I'm not saying you would necessarily want to. The key thing in keeping costs down is to never spend a dime to sleep--it can be done. Also, any unexpected setbacks could cause unexpected expenses (e.g., mechanical failures, body failures, emergency evacuations, bail bonds), so it's good to have a cushion.

[Tim]

bail bonds

Good call  thats the one that COULD an issue.. 

Sleeping in remote "rough" areas is my specialty.  Thanks John.

[valygrl]

We see this question so many times - I'd be really interested to hear how much you end up actually spending after the fact.

My touring style is nothing like yours so I can't add anything useful to you.  Other than, maybe, don't expect low calorie intake (and low quality food) to work very well on a bike tour. 

[Tim]

maybe, don't expect low calorie intake (and low quality food) to work very well on a bike tour

Agreed.  I'm all about THE BUFFET!!!!!

I'm gonna post up a final TR on the ride when done.  I'll also be posting a ride log at various WiFi spots. 

Thanks again Valygrl

[gypsysue]

I don't know what you like to eat, but consider hitting grocery stores for cheap eats.  A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter would set you back about $3 and make a lot of sandwiches.  Lots of fat and protein in the peanut butter.  You could get a couple days out of that.  A jug of milk or juice, a couple more dollars and you could get a lot of energy out of it.  Something like that would be good when you make camp, slug it down all evening. 

Dollar menus at McD, a $5 hot 'n ready pizza at little Caesars, Taco Bell's great cheap menu, lots of choices for cheap hot food.  Keep your eye out for festivals and potlucks and crash them!   

Good luck!

[Tim]

consider hitting grocery stores for cheap eats.  A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter would set you back about $3 and make a lot of sandwiches.  Lots of fat and protein in the peanut butter.  You could get a couple days out of that.  A jug of milk or juice, a couple more dollars and you could get a lot of energy out of it.  Something like that would be good when you make camp, slug it down all evening. 

Dollar menus at McD, a $5 hot 'n ready pizza at little Caesars, Taco Bell's great cheap menu, lots of choices for cheap hot food.  Keep your eye out for festivals and potlucks and crash them

THATS GOOD!  Now your thinking. I can even save weiight by getting the peanut butter & jelly that comes in the same jar.  We use to call it - sniper bites.

[indyfabz]

bail bonds

Good call  thats the one that COULD an issue.. 

Sleeping in remote "rough" areas is my specialty.  Thanks John.

They don't necessarily have to be rough or remote areas to be free. You can often find city/town parks to camp in for free. Some even have hot showers or access thereto (i.e., at the city pool). One advantagre of being in town is that it usually puts you close to food sources and other services such as the library for internet access.

[mucknort]

Dollar menus at McD, a $5 hot 'n ready pizza at little Caesars, Taco Bell's great cheap menu, lots of choices for cheap hot food.  Keep your eye out for festivals and potlucks and crash them!   

Subway Sandwich shops are everywhere now and their $5 footlongs are a good deal because you are only limited on how much bread, meat, and cheese you are allowed. Otherwise, they will load on an incredible amount of veggies to make it a very filling meal. (This is what saved us financially riding cross country with a teen boy. He would have them load at least a jar's worth of pickles/olives/banana peppers on his BLTs)

[Pat Lamb]

As I recall, Subways were pretty rare across Kentucky, parts of Missouri, and Kansas on the TA in 2009.  There were quite a few towns that were just too small, I guess.

Or was it just that there was never one when we needed lunch?

[onebikeoneworld]

I don't know what you like to eat, but consider hitting grocery stores for cheap eats.  A loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter would set you back about $3 and make a lot of sandwiches.  Lots of fat and protein in the peanut butter.  You could get a couple days out of that.  A jug of milk or juice, a couple more dollars and you could get a lot of energy out of it.  Something like that would be good when you make camp, slug it down all evening.

16oz jar of peanut butter is more like $2.50 and tortillas are much better than bread for cheap sandwich source. Bread gets crushed and takes up lots of space before it does, tortillas are already flat. It's one of the things I do to ensure I keep on a low budget.