ST: A New Adventure on the Southern Tier

Preparations have already begun for winter adventures. Starting early January, I will pack up my bicycle and head to Florida to start a cross country traverse of the United States on Adventure Cycling Network’s Southern Tier cycling route. The route is roughly 3000 miles long and traverses the states of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. I will be traveling westward from St. Augustine Florida which is one of the end points of the route, right at the Atlantic Ocean. The other terminus is in San Diego at the Pacific Ocean. Biking across the country is something that has been on my radar for awhile now, and this coming winter seems like a good opportunity to make it happen.

Although the trip will be much shorter than a thru-hike (it takes most people about 2 months to finish the route), it will be quite challenging due primarily to the fact this will be pretty new for me. I already know how to ride a bike (few!), so I don’t need to worry about that, but there are other aspects with the bike that will take some time to gain experience on. I’ll be spending the next few months learning all about bike maintenance. Carolyn and I took a class recently on how to clean and lube chains and change tubes for flat tires (things we already knew but valuable to get some refresher on it – it’s been awhile). I am going into this trip with the mindset that it is basically long distance hiking with a bike. But I’m certain it will be much harder than that and my thought process on this is terrifically near sighted. The bike is just an added mechanical thing that will take some getting used to on a long distance adventure.

There is a lot to get in order in the next few months as I prepare for this journey. The homepage for the trip can be found here and also under “Bike Touring” on the main menu.