USA Corner to Corner

[dab]

greetings:
i did a corner-to-corner in 2010, from naples, FL to astoria OR. rode the southern tier to the underground RR, then connected to the TA, and finally the lewis and clark from missoula to astoria.  from april 1 to jun 24.  winds from all directions, but very nasty in the face in wyoming and along the columbia river gorge in WA.  encounterd NO bugs along this route during this time period.  4600 miles in 78 riding days. about 60 /day avg.

[haakon]

What are the big issues with Highway 2 between Spokane and the coast?  Can some of those be avoided by taking some of the minor highways nearby?
[/quote]

Hwy 2 can get busy in some places, but overall is a fine and doable route, IMO. Hwy 20 is more dramatic and the Methow Valley of Winthrop/Mazamma beautiful, but Hwy 2 along the Columbia River from Coulee City to Wenatchee, then west to Leavenworth is beautiful as well. And Stevens Pass on Hwy 2 is only 4,000 feet, as opposed to 5,000 feet on Hwy 20 through North Cascades National Park. The west side of the pass on Hwy 2 is much more busy, so ride carefully. You're also socked into the tall pines on the west side, so it's less scenic. But you can veer off of Hwy 2 in Sultan and veer southwest towards Seattle or northwest towards Everett and Mukilteo to catch the ferry to Whidbey Island and then Port Townsend and the Olympic Peninsula.

[Norsman]

It is likely that I will not do this trip this year.  But I think I will be ready for an early May start in 2014. If that is the case it will be a east to west ride. With that timing I hope that the first half of the trip will be not too hot.  I would likely be riding through the Rockies in late June, early July.

After some research I still intend to use Hwy 2 for parts of Washington state. I know that Hwy 20 is favored by many but I have already ridden it so I am looking for something new.

The proposed route would be Hwy 200 from Missoula to Sandpoint, south on Hwy 95 to Coeur d'Alene, and then a trail to Spokane.  Next I would use Hwy 2 until I can go north on Hwy 174 to Grand Coulee Dam, continue on to Brewster and then south to Chelan. Continue south on Hwy 97 to Wenatchee and then use Hwy 2 to get me through the Cascades. Then I would use a variety to back roads to get me to Mukilteo.  The finish would be at Cape Flattery.

I figure this should take me 80 to 90 days.