Northern Transcontinental

The Northern Tour is one of our longest running tours. It was started in 1992 following mostly the northern region across the United States. The route has changed from year to year, visiting various landmarks along the way.

Our route spends the first day exploring the coastal region of Puget Sound on Whidbey Island, finishing in Sedro Wooley.

The first days always included the major climbs over the Cascade Mountains in western Washington. The following days cross the wheat fields of eastern Washington with a visit to the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River.

The route returns to the mountains in Idaho and cross thing Continental Divide near Butte, Montana. The biggest climb of the tour is over the Big Horn Mountains in Wyoming. The 10 - 14% grades for over eight miles are a challenge for even the strongest riders.

South Dakota has some major highlights with a visit to Mount Rushmore and the Badlands National Parks. Leaving the mountains, the route enters the prairies of the Midwest, with over 500 miles of rolling grasslands and corn fields. The hills return again in eastern Minnesota as we cross the Mississippi River. Entering Wisconsin, the route has 200 miles of the most rural roads of the tour. The hilly terrain offers challenging riding with dozens of steep granny gear climbs.

The flat prairies begin again in Illinois and Indiana, without a major hill for almost 300 miles. If the wind is right, the next three days are good recovery days. Heading across Ohio, the terrain begins to change again, with more rolling hills. We will be riding many sections of the "Old Lincoln Highway" which was America’s first coast-to-coast highway designated and built from 1914 to 1916.

By the time we reach Pennsylvania, we are back in the mountains again. The grades can be steep as we ride the back roads across the state. Entering New York State, we will travel north of the Finger Lakes Region, with dozens of two mile climbs over continuous ridges.

The final days are through the forest of New Hampshire. We will arrive at the Atlantic Ocean on Rye Beach, New Hampshire. The whole experience of cross the country in 35 days and traveling over 3,800 miles is an amazing accomplishment.