Total Trip Miles: 3766.5, plus approx. 150 miles in motor vehicles

Total Elevation Gained (Hills Climbed): 120,799 feet (Four Mt. Everests!  The US is a little bumpy)

Average Miles per Day: June 49, July 55.38, August 60.35

Average Miles per Week: June 347, July 290, August 330

Total Days of Trip: 85 (Plus 2 for travel to start.) 

Number of Dtstes visited: 15

Number of rest days: 16

Total Weight Bike and Gear: 120 lb.

Longest Day: Without full gear 86 (RAGBRAI), With full gear 79.31

Shortest Day: 14.22

Average Number of Rest Days per Week: 1.3

Number of Rainy Days: Too many!

Average Temperatures: Washington State - 70s, Idaho to Nebraska - Upper 60s, Nebraska to Home - Upper 80's

Number of Flats: 1 (Not counting the tire that removed itself from the tubeless set up rim!)

Number of Bike Parts Used/Replaced: Chain 2, Cassette 2, Tires 4, Tubes 3, Pedal sets 2 (Original Pedals had about 4000 miles on them so bearings were worn by Iowa.  Chain/Cassette/Tires were all replaced at start of RAGBRAI to avoid further mechanical issues after RAGBRAI, though the original tires had only moderate wear and shifting had just begun to get wanky.  Disc Brake pads will need to be replaced ASAP and I should have done that around Cumberland, but I am lazy.) 

Items Lost: 2 Bandanas, 1 Cycling cap, 1 Phone holder for selfies, and my mind (?). 

Number of Small Gas Canisters Used for Cooking: 2

Number of Cat Holes: 2

Number of Motel Stays: Too many (see Number of Rainy Days) 

Number of WarmShowers Stays: 7

Most Common Roadside Debris: Hardware (nuts, bolts, nails, screws etc.), Hitch parts, Tools, Truckers Pee Bottles, Bungees and Black hold-down straps, Clothing especially shirts/hats/shoes.

Most Common Road-kill: Small birds (probably 1 every few miles!), Deer, Skunk, Squirrel, Mystery Meat.  

Most Unusual Roadside Item: Mens Briefs/Ladies Panties?!?! (Not in the same place though that would  explain a lot.)

Best Found Roadside Item: 5 dollar bill on one of the hike-a-bike hills on my screwed up detour around the closed Greer Tunnel. 

Best Downhills: Custer State Park, SD.  Route 16A (Though the rides down many of the passes in the Rockies were faster, Rt 16A is a two lane winding road through tree lined forests and rocky cliffs with sparse traffic and great scenery.)  GAP from Eastern Divide to Cumberland (All downhill into town.)

Worst Downhill: Route 16 East of Powder River Pass, Big Horn Mountains. After an 8 hour climb to reach 9600 feet the down hill lasts only about ten miles before the hills start again and gradually bring you down into Buffalo.  (And where I was caught in a storm with lightning and hail.).  Route 14 into Cody, WY (Cold, raining like crazy, nearly flooded downhill tunnel, crazy winds, flooded main drag into town…….type 2 fun at its very best!). 

Best Uphill: GAP from McKeesport to Eastern Divide (Though all uphill, it is so gradual you hardly notice.)  

Worst Uphill: i90 Mullan, ID to Lookout Pass (Thought this would be flattish since it was interstate…….WRONG!).  Hike-a-bike trail up to Snoqualmie (A break in the Palouse to Cascade Trail with no easy work around.)  Detours around the Greer and PawPaw tunnels (Turned out to be another hike-a-bike experience for both.) 

Steepest Climb: 17% (Yes, Hike-a Bike.)

Trail Ratings: Best Scenery - Palouse to Cascade/Cor De Laine/GAP/C&O/Kankakee; Best Maintained - Sweetster Switch & Cardinal Greenway/ GAP/OTET (various trails)/Cor De Laine/Kankakee; Worse Trail Conditions - Hennepin Canal Towpath/Illinois to Michigan Canal Towpath/Eastern Half of Palouse to Cascade/Wolf Creek Entering Dayton/Cowboy Trail/C&O;  Best for History Buffs - C&O/GAP/Palouse to Cascade.

Most Unexpected Overnight Stays: Seattle, WA (Without the WarnShowers invitation to stay with Colin and Flower, and to ship my bike to his place of business, this trip would not have happened. Though I had my route planned for quite some time, before the start I was recouping from a prostate procedure and waiting to see if symptoms improved.  They did improve but just a couple weeks before my go date.  Time was running out, and I still needed a place that would be willing to receive my bike.  When Colin and Flower accepted my WarmShowers request for both those needs, I made up my mind to GO!)   Ten Sleep, WY (No rain, downhill into town, slept in a sheep wagon, spent time with a wise old/talented saddle maker, met Cowboy Kent Rollins, received a free dinner, had a fellow cyclist pay for breakfast, and a beautiful next day to start the climb to the Powder River Pass.)  Ennis, MT (Stayed with fantastic WarmShowers hosts, Kevin and Lisa, who grew up with my college roommate back in Virginia, and met Chase and Mark, fellow tourists.)  Aunt Sally’s Bike Stop, Grantsdale, MT (A unique hideaway in the Bitterroot Valley hosted by a kind and caring woman.). Creighton, NE (Not only is this a great little town in the middle of nowhere with some of the most interesting folks I met, it also has free camping in a beautiful town park and a well kept motel at the Community Center.) 

Worst Overnight Stays:  Yellowstone Canyon Campgrounds (While the campgrounds are great, it was 25 degrees Fahrenheit that night. Good thing I anticipated cold weather and took two lightweight summer sleeping bags!).  West Fork Cabin Camp (They put me way out in a field away from the bath/showers though I was the only tent camper. Rained while setting up the tent and off/on all night. Muddy.) 
 

Best Parks: Since I followed the ACA routes of the TransAm/Lewis and Clark and the Prairies, Peaks, and Parks Trails I got to see a number of National and State Parks as well as Public Lands. So choosing one as the best is impossible. But I really enjoyed  Custer State Park and the Badlands the most.  Maybe it was just my mood at the time, maybe the weather, maybe the wildlife, who knows?   Our country is fortunate to have some very beautiful areas and I was fortunate to be able to visit much of it at 10 mph!

Most Disappointing Places: Having never before visited the towns out west besides Seattle and surrounding islands, I was very disappointed to find out most towns out west are nothing but tourist traps.  Yes they have remarkable histories but since the gold and minerals dried up, they only survive today as junk and souvenir shops.  

Best Bike Shop: Rushmore Bicycles, Spearfish, SD. (They know what they are doing.)

Worst Bike Shop: The Bicycle Shop, Gillette, WY.  (They have no idea what they are doing.). 

Wildlife Spotted: Grizzly bears (8), bison, turkeys, hawks, red wing black birds, turtles, great blue herons, many varieties of duck, osprey, white tail deer, mule deer, prong horn antelope, elk, two stripped grasshoppers, magpies (my favorite!), vultures, a variety of butterflies and moths (including a lunar moth), biting flies and mosquitoes, partridge, bob white, shore birds………

Most Unexpected Event: Riding in a cattle drive, meeting Cowboy Kent Rollins.  

Regrets: Not camping more (but I blame the weather),not taking pics of everyone I met, not getting contact info for everyone I met, not having more time to ride, including RAGBRAI in the tour (too much of a change going from the freedom of a solo journey to the regimented schedule of a team and a ride with 30,000 others), not having family with me to share the experience.  

Most Unexpected New Cycling Experience: Riding the Interstate. (Always thought those who rode the interstate where crazy. Now I love it and wish it was allowed in all states.) 

Riskiest Gamble: Ignoring the road/trail closed signs and winging it.  (Except for the rail road trestle on the Palouse, all of them were pretty easy on a bike.)

Lessons Learned: 1) Traveling by bike is full of ups and downs.  Not just literally with hills and valleys, but emotionally.  Emotions can change in a heart beat, sometimes with no explanation for why.  When I was down or tired, listening to my music helped.  2) Folks are usually kind and helpful.  And curious.   Getting out of ones shell and speaking with people can be hard but rewarding.  Many of them have interesting and sometimes incredible pasts.  3) Riding with someone can be fun and interesting, but I am a loner.  Sometimes I got lonely but mostly I enjoyed the solitude riding solo provided.  I tend to need to take care of others, its part of my makeup.  But I prefer to be on my own, making decisions based on my own needs/desires and not those of others, stop when/where I want, go when/where I want, eat what/where I want.  After 3-4 days of riding with someone else I get grumpy.  I need to be me.  4) Our country is generally in worse shape than most of us realize.  Closed businesses everywhere.  Help wanted signs with no takers.  Neighborhoods in degradation, especially in the rust belt.  Folks afraid of  others.  Way too many charities having to offer counseling/food/drug rehab.  Prices skyrocketing.  Way too many folks living in poverty.  Yes, I am generally a glass half empty kinda guy, but what I saw was truly disturbing for the richest country in history.  Common folk are having a tough time!  The truly rich are few and the rest are not doing well.  5) Aside from public lands, access to our countries resources are locked up with barbed wire.  If you are not on public land there is no getting to a stream or river for water, or a dip in the water to cool off, a place to set up a tent, or even getting to a wooded area to pee.  Barbed wire and no trespassing signs EVERYWHERE.  6) I am old and have no time for BS. After getting home I am sorry to say I have reverted to old ways and have been paying attention to all the political BS going on.  Traveling by bike leaves little time for BS.  Little time for "screens".  The tasks for the day take over.  You live in the moment.  You gotta get from here to there.  You gotta drink and eat.  You gotta take care of essentials like personal hygiene and keeping clothes clean, keeping water bottles and snack bags full.  You gotta be sure you have food just in case.  You gotta avoid dangerous roads.  You gotta be constantly aware of motor vehicles.  There is no time for BS and it is a freeing way to travel.   7) I guess this was the closest I'll ever come to self-sufficiency and yet it would not be possible without relying on others: my wife for taking care of the homestead and paying the bills, friends and family who provided encouragement along the way, grocery stores/restaurants which provided food/goods, fellow cyclist who shared my days and their stories, WarmShowers folks for taking me in and feeding me, my urologist for helping me pee better, my orthopedist for giving me Clunk the titanium knee,........  8) Type 2 fun on a trip like this is common.  After all you are at the mercy of Mother Nature who can sometimes be a cruel old woman.  Sticking to it is usually the only choice.  Sucking it up is how you get through it.  You can put up with more than you realize.  And it'll make for a good story later.    

To be continued