This is probably the most helpful video I've seen on the subject. I'm considering biking from Saskatchewan to Kentucky, and it was nice to get so many great tips all in one place. Thank you, sir.

Roland, your voice as a narrator is very much like Peter Coyote, the legendary voice of Ken Burns documentaries. It’s a warm, informative voice with the right touch of drama and gravitas. Thanks for being so detailed in your description of road surfaces, weather, towns, and amenities. I appreciate your inclusion of the challenges as well as the joys of travel; it helps to know that we too can fight through the hard times. Salute to Julianna the Brave!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the kind words Don. I will definitely extend that salute! She is a champ all the way.

@rollandjoeseph

6 ай бұрын

I was thinking he sounds more like the " pretty little cloudy painting guy😂..either way, pleasant sounding and that's a good thing, good video👍

Magnificent adventure and uplifting to see all the nice folks you met along the way. That’s what life is about 🇮🇪😃

@TheBicycleTourists

3 ай бұрын

Yes indeed!

This was so helpful thank you so much, I just found your channel yesterday and am so glad I did! my husband and I are getting closer to having an empty nest and have been dreaming of bike touring for years and I have just started getting back to planning again recently because as you said there is a lot to think about and it is so fortunate that we have this platform for people like you with experience to be able to share it with others it is so valuable. Blessings to you and yours 😊

@TheBicycleTourists

28 күн бұрын

What a great place to be in! Having time to adventure is a beautiful thing. Best wishes to both of you and your future endeavors!

Very informative. The Lamoille Valley Rail Trial will be completed here next summer. 90 miles long. Can't wait. Thanks for taking the time to do this video. Take care, Al

@lindahowes5949

Жыл бұрын

Yes! I’m planning on the Lamoille Valley trail next summer also Al 😊

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I've been looking at that. Would love to do a big tour of New England. Better pull out those maps...

I would like to add my thanks to you for all your videos. My wife and I are considering our own coast to coast tour. I am 61 years old and have been cycling since my teenage years. My wife is much newer to the game. We have found recumbent trikes as our favorite mode of travel. While a much more comfortable ride, it does add some elements to the trip to consider when choosing the route. We’re actually looking at a route pretty similar to the one you took. I would be most interested in having more detailed conversations with you about this, both Roland and Julianne. If you ever get the time, I would greatly appreciate connecting in this way! I am currently a pediatrician living in Northwest Arkansas, and my wife is an artist with a gallery in Bentonville. By the way, we have a system of absolutely lovely trails all over Northwest Arkansas that might be worth your time!

@TheBicycleTourists

5 ай бұрын

Good morning Craig. I love the Ozarks, and hope to get out there one of these days to explore that trail system. Yes, I'm sure that riding on trikes creates certain restrictions and complications, although I believe that they are used for cross-country travel a lot. My concern would always be the visibility issue while riding on roads. have you watched our cross country series? There is a pretty wide swath of America that creates difficulties for any cyclist in terms of safety. Some are unfazed. But in Julianna's and my case, we opted to skip that stretch out of safety fears. So, I think serious research and planning through that stretch (the Great Plains, particularly) is essential. In any case, we're happy to discuss any questions you have. Fire away!

@craigkeever7718

5 ай бұрын

Good morning! Very kind of you to consent! And maybe someday we can actually connect more personally with a phone call or even meeting face to face! But for now, the first steps. Having watched your entire series on US trip…the Olympic Discovery Trail…I realize it’s not “completely” finished…regarding the parts that aren’t, do you recall if the required roads might be quiet enough for trike travel? Regardless of whether or not we actually succeed with a cross country trip, this trail is definitely on my bucket list!

@TheBicycleTourists

5 ай бұрын

There are sections that you might be concerned about. Hwy 112 from Joyce to Elwha River might be of concern. I recommend to Google-Man the road sections to check shoulder width. We certainly never had an issue, but again, it's a different issue with trikes. Hope that helps!

Hi. Thank you for the links, images, recommendations and mainly your passion.

@TheBicycleTourists

3 ай бұрын

Thanks and you're welcome!

Thanks for doing this - and for the next one!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Sure thing!

Great videos as always. This was a great intro and exactly the info I need!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Matthew! I would love to do more of these, they seem to do very well with viewership. But my love is adventuring and vlogging, leaving little time for creating these kind of videos.

Great Info.. Lot to Comprehend.. But Knowledge is power..

@TheBicycleTourists

9 ай бұрын

Glad you got something out of it!

Yet another WOW from me. Can't wait for the next one. Thank you for all of the info.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thank you Don! As always, my pleasure!

Thanks for all the great resources.👍🚴‍♀️

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

You're very welcome! Thanks for watching!

Fantastic information Roland! I learned some tips and will watch again. I really appreciate the time and effort you’ve put into all your videos. Thank you! ❤

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed Linda!

Thanks very much! This is a great video! Lots of super information. Really appreciate it! Look forward to seeing your most recent bike trip in Europe!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching! Glad you enjoyed it!

Thank You for this video... I loved it. So good to see you guys again. I am planning a cross-country in 2025. Doing everything you mentioned but I just loved how you presented it mixing with little clips from your cross-country. Fabulous!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Cool! I love hearing about people with big plans. As soon as I posted this I started planning a new route. I just love the planning stage! Thanks for the comments!

Wow. Thanks for the incredible video and sources of information. I am looking forward to your next video release touching more details of your trip and your thought process in determining your adventure. I am a member and donor to Rails to Trails and subscriber to Adventure Cycling and I will carefully study those sites to gather info and do precise research and planning. Your sharing your experience has been a kind gesture to all of us. It looks like I have a lot of homework and planning to do this winter to set up my great adventure for next summer/fall. Being an east coast person I am leaning towards the Greenway from Maine to Florida as I am very familiar with the areas. Thanks again. Have a wonderful holiday season.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I would love to do the East Coast Greenway some day. We loved riding through the heart of these big eastern cities, such a great way to see them. No doubt the ECG would provide plenty of similar opportunities.

Videos that are incredibly fun to watch!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thanks Gary!

You are fueling my bikepacking passion! Thank you.

@TheBicycleTourists

5 ай бұрын

That's the best I can hope for! And you're welcome!

Wow! What a good and instructive video! I was completely unaware that a "smoke and fire" map even existed. I'll have to look into that. It may be useful as I'm planning on doing the Southern Tier this spring. And thanks for all of your videos. I want to document my adventure as well, so I've been taking notes on how you put together your videos. Thanks for the inspiration.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Awesome! I would love to see how that Southern Tier comes together. Spring is the time. How long do you plan to take?

Thank you for this video. I hope to do some cycling in the USA in the future so this will help in my planning. I have enjoyed waking on Saturday morning over the last few months to your weekly video of you trip across America, and thought what am going to watch over my early morning cuppa so went looking to see what other videos you have done. I am going to be doing the EuroVelo 6 next year so am now following your videos of your European trip. Look forward to future adventures. Cheers from New Zealand 🇳🇿.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Hi Gaileen! I'm so glad to help provide you with some Saturday Morning entertainment! You're going to love the EV6. We were on it again for a while in France this past few months and loved it. Those videos will be coming out as soon as I can manage. Cheers!

This is so outstanding. It took me a couple of weeks, but I watched the whole playlist. This is a "go to" resource for bike touring. Thanks you!

@TheBicycleTourists

6 ай бұрын

Thank you so much Fred. That really means a lot. So glad you enjoyed!

Very well done … to think somehow we got across the country in 1999 using just paper maps from gas stations … do wonder how many epic climbs we could have found another way around.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I think about that a lot. I used to know exactly where I was without any help from GPS, now I've become technology-dependent.

I decided to bike from Muskegon to Cincinnati one time, going mainly through Indiana. I was very shocked to find how many hills there were to climb in Indiana. It's a lot less flat than I imagined.

@TheBicycleTourists

7 ай бұрын

In a car on the highway you have little idea what the terrain is like. But on a bike, you learn every bump.

I watched the last one first so a double Friday hit. This was REALLY useful. Your insight will help a lot. I had noticed that a lot of Adv. Cycling tours and routes had a lot of elevation but did not realize it was intentional. Hard to ride here in Canada in winter so maybe a winter route through some of the south would make sense - and we could miss the climbs of Colorada. I find much over 8000 ft I run out of air. Leadville gave me headaches. but again - we admire you guys and hope we meet on a rail trail some time. Richard

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Hi Richard! You must've ridden the Mineral Belt Trail. At Leadville you're over 10,000 feet, really high even for those of us who live at high elevations. You need to spend some days at altitude to get acclimated. But, yeah, there are some nice southern routes that would be a nice break from the winter. And it looks like we might be in for a big winter this year.

Very interesting, yes, planning is a must, the rail trails, seem the better way to go. Years ago, I would think it would be crazy, but now it seems like it would be fun. I'm retired now, yes taking my time would be the best way. I would probably do the motel and hotel thing though. Thanks alot for the info!

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I agree that I lean toward hotels, but many of the times we camped were some of the most wonderful experiences. Like we say in the video, the west is much more camping friendly.

In 1983, returning from 2 years in the Peace Corps, another volunteer and I biked from LA to Sea Isle City, NJ. We used some of the BikeCentennial booklet maps for the Central and Eastern parts but in general we used each state's paper maps, looked for smaller roads, and pedaled east. A different way of life without digital back then. Currently looking to redo some type of distance trip next year and came upon your video. Thanks for the info.

@TheBicycleTourists

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching. I miss the days of paper maps. Current technology is awesome, but there’s nothing like opening up a map and getting lost in all the possibilities…

Thank you so much! I am planning to visit your rail trails next summer. ;-)

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I hope you find them as enjoyable as we did. Not sure where you're from, I assume France? We were just there, really enjoyed cycling around the country. Lots of good bike paths, bike lanes, etc.

@JaqueParisien

Жыл бұрын

@@TheBicycleTourists I am sure I will enjoy them since we do have some similar trails over here, in Quebec, Canada. But the thing is, I've been waiting for the right time to visit my American neighbours by bike. So your video series convinced me to do it the sooner the better. Take care.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Ah of course. Would love to ride in Quebec as well. Maybe the Gaspe Peninsula.

@JaqueParisien

Жыл бұрын

@@TheBicycleTourists Good choice! If you do go there, you will love it. It is a magnificent region and its people are second to none when it comes to hospitality.

Hi Roland, you've answered many of the questions floating around my head. One was how did you get started, have you a long term cycling history, has Julianna always cycled? Just plain nosy I guess 🤔. I'm following your wonderful journey in France and have enjoyed every episode.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Hey Colin, always great to have you along! We got started bike touring when I floated the idea to Julianna and she responded "that sounds like absolute HELL!" As a road rider, the idea of lugging so many pounds up hills did not appeal to her at all! I convinced her to do a ride when I retired, along a portion of the Danube. And its been love ever since. We've both been cycling since we were kids, but J was seriously into road cycling since about the age of 17. I got more into cycling in my 30s, always with the dream of doing touring, although I do a lot of road riding here at home in Colorado. Thanks as always for watching!

I use an app called AirVisual to see a map of AQI levels during smoke season, but a number of other apps will show air quality where you are as well. I use Traillink mostly, but also Alltrails and Google maps. I really liked learning about Komoot. I plan on riding mostly on rail trails and staying in my travel trailer in 2023, but when I get to Europe, I will just be riding the bike everywhere.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

I'll check AirVisual out, could come in handy. Here in the west we get many days where it's really not safe to ride. I have Alltrails loaded but have never given it a real shot. Yes, Europe opens things up, we just got back from France and there were tons of trails, bike lanes, and quiet roads for miles. Same in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands, etc.

This was great. I just rode across the US this summer, from the Oregon Coastal, through Portland (my hometown) via Omaha (the town I grew up in) to DC and ended at the Chesapeake Bay. The route we chose was ~1,000 mi of 3,800 on gravel roads and Rail Trails. This video is very informative for those planning a trip. Great job! I look forward to seeing your journey.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Sounds like a great trip! Is it possible to share the route? I'm always curious! Plus I would especially like to know how you got from Portland to Omaha...

@sltsxplor

Жыл бұрын

@@TheBicycleTourists I responded on Saturday 11/12/22, but I don't see the response. I will send this email separately from the Ride with GPS link. It was great seeing your trip and how you created your route. I watched that episode Saturday. From the Katy Trial East, we rode many of the same trails and roads as you. Love your photography and documentation of your trip. See links in the replies below.

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Hi Tom! Thanks again for the comments. Where should I look for the response? Here on KZread? In my email? I can't seem to find anything from you.

@sltsxplor

Жыл бұрын

This is my 3rd attempt. My comments are being removed. My email is hucmot please try that. Mail me with a G at the front of mail. (Hoping this is not a 4th removal)

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Weird. Okay, I think I gotcha. I'll give it a try.

Great adventure!!! Thanks for sharing it. I'm Thinking to start bikepacking. Can you share what bikes you are using? I'm new in your channel and have not found a video about it.

@TheBicycleTourists

3 ай бұрын

That sounds like a great plan. When we did our cross-country bike tour, I was riding a Safari Novarro (a now-discontinued REI brand) and Julianna was riding a Salsa Journeyman, which she eventually got rid of as it struggled a bit with the weight of touring. These are touring bikes, set up for a pannier system. If you want to try bikepacking, it's a different setup (as you've probably already seen) with frame bags and the like. either way, we wish you an amazing journey!

Thanks as always for your great content! I was wondering if you ever use warmshowers? I'm a host but have never use it as a guest. Some of the best experiences I've had have been with people who have invited me into their homes. BTW I think your narration sounds a little like Warren Miller

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Unfortunately I never used WarmShowers, although I tried. I downloaded the app early on, but it never would cooperate with me for some reason. Tried to get WarmShowers to fix it but they were stumped. Eventually I gave up.

I'm wearing a R2Tz t-Shirt. He's wearing a R2Tz T-Shirt. This must be the place.

@TheBicycleTourists

9 ай бұрын

Definitely the place.

Great info, TY. Would have liked to hear how much $$$ you spent crossing the country.

@TheBicycleTourists

8 ай бұрын

Ha, that's hard to quantify, but easy to estimate. Camping vs. hotels, restaurants vs. cooking your own food. 40 mile days vs. 70 mile days. Simple calculation, but different for everyone!

Epic? Lol...ooooK.

@TheBicycleTourists

6 ай бұрын

.

Congratulations 🎉🎉🎉🎉

@TheBicycleTourists

Жыл бұрын

Thanks!