How daring are you? How flexible?
I finished yet another (bad habit) coast-to-coast this past summer.
And, yes, I wanted to go from the waves of the Pacific to the waves of the Atlantic.
Westport, Washington to Sandy Hook, NJ.
You know you can bike camp at Sandy Hook and watch the sun rise over the Atlantic?
Back to daring -
You could continue from Anacortes to Port Townsend, Port Angeles, all the way to Neah Bay.
I have done that before - spectacular out at Cape Flattery.
Tough, but stunning riding west of Port Angeles. And the Makah Museum is worth it.
But I might suggest an earlier veer off the NT route -
Are you aware of the great Missoula Floods of the last ice age?
They created Grand Coulee and other massive gashes in the earth in central Wash.
From Republic, you would head due south to Grand Coulee Dam on Hwy 21 and Manila Creek Road
Then follow Grand Coulee SW via Coulee City and Ephrata to George, Washington.
Tricky crossing the Columbia River - two ways, both a bit challenging from Exit 143 -
a. Get on I-90 and zoom downhill to the bridge - shoulders until the bridge, then none.
(But you are going downhill on the bridge westbound)
b. Take Old Vantage Highway down to the river thru Frenchman Coulee
Truly, truly spectacular - but you have to hitch across the river at the boat ramp.
The boat ramp has moderate+ usage and I have hitched across lots of rivers.
From Vantage, head west on the Old Highway to Ellensburg - early, to avoid the wind.
Then turn south thru Yakima Canyon - great riverside camping - to Selah.
Two ways to cross the Cascades - US 12, very nice - or Hwy 410, even nicer.
Because Tipsoo Lake with views of Mount Rainier is at the top at Chinook Pass.
Then it's serious, mind-blowing switchbacks down.
US 12 to Chehalis has good shoulders, moderate traffic, and lots of empty backroad sections.
West of Chehalis the Willapa Hills Trail is nice all the way to Doty then Hwy 6 to the coast.
You hit Willapa Bay at Raymond and then Hwy 105 to Westport -
with a paved dunes trail and ocean views for the last 2 miles.
(Bear in mind, as you get further west, you will likely encounter stronger headwinds.)
Mileages:
Republic to Anacortes - 270 mi., +14882 ft.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18439769Anacortes to Neah Bay - 170 mi., +7955 ft.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18439891Total - Republic to Neah Bay - 440 mi., +22837 ft.
Republic to Westport via Hwy 410 - 483 mi., +18659 ft.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18440007Republic to Westport via US 12 - save 17 miles and 1000 ft.
(But you miss Tipsoo lake in August - which is unthinkable.)
Don't get me wrong - The North Cascades are lovely and I have biked it multiple times.
And the San Juans are lovely and Neah Bay is lovely, too.
But it does get a little tricky and trafficky heading all the way out to the Pacific from Anacortes.
And the route to Westport is really sweet, as well.
- - Just some ideas - -
Pic -
Frenchman Coulee and Old Vantage Highway