The first few days cycling in Washington State have been very hot, topping out at 42 degrees C (108F) yesterday in the Okanagan Valley. I am now heading south east to get back onto the line of Rocky Mountains through states like Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and then Utah and then south onto the Mexican border.
There are more and more of you coming on-board for the ride every day, which is great. There have been a lot of questions and comments on Flickr, Twitter and Facebook, so here is a round up of some from the last few weeks.
Q - Corbettbagger asked why I had taken the relatively flatlands of Prince George and Williams Lake instead of the main Rockies route in Canada? (On Twitter corbettbagger also asked what the Fraser river was like).
A -I agree, my route through southern British Columbia was a shorter route compared to route 93 through the spectacular Banff/Jasper area. It was a tough choice but in terms of seeing contrast in my journey and for the documentary series I am filming, I decided to head slightly west into the foothills of the Cariboo and Fraser Valley where it is a completely different climate to the Yukon and Rockies of Northern BC which I had already crossed twice. I have plenty of high mountain miles left in the Rockies and Andes over the next six months, so I was glad for the change in scenery! The Fraser river was pretty spectacular - no Ganges or Mississippi but very pretty!
Q - Neonsign89 asked when I will cross the path I took on the world cycle.
A - During my time in the states I will cycle about 100 miles of the same route and I will be sure to post a blog when I get there about that.
Q - Metalmikeonhisbike, corbettbagger, cupardee and a few others were asking about the climbs I am doing.
A - My plan for the whole expedition is to cycle the length of the Americas, roughly following the mountains and to climb the highest peak in both the North and South - I climbed Mount McKinley (Denali) in June and will be climbing Aconcagua in Argentina in January assuming all goes well.
Thanks to kayakgal for the offer of a cold drink near Seattle and johnjensen for his shout out from Vancouver but I will be staying well away from the coast for most of the way south. That also answers your question k7ngc about what the coastal hills are like - I have no idea but would love to find out one day. I have ridden the southern part of the coastline from San Francisco to San Diego and it is stunning (but hilly), especially until LA over Big Sur.
Q - happyscouser asked what got me into 'these ridiculously long bike rides', matt996 asked what goes on in my head when I am riding and mflan asked if it was harder riding alone.
A - My first cycle was across Scotland when I was 12 and I loved it. When I was 15 I did my first solo from John O'Groats to Lands End and the rides have just got bigger since then. Seeing the world at the speed of a bike is unique and incredible - it's hard to explain but give it a try! When I am riding I think about lots of different things - sometimes I really need to focus on just keeping going, setting myself targets and just thinking about getting through a ride if it hurts, is bad weather or has big climbs. Other times I spend a lot of time letting my mind wander and then I think about friends, family, memories and about future ambitions I have and how I am going to make them happen. I have done tours alone and with people and both have their pros and cons. You are definitely faster in a group but I think it is easier to pace yourself and be welcomed in by strangers when you are alone. I like both.
Thanks Fanwaar for letting me know you enjoyed the talk at Kendal and good luck with your ride up the Americas next year. Best wishes also to mflan for your trans Canada ride and tlausser for your expedition - please all let me know how you get on. I am glad NormanBango you enjoyed the book and I hope the IronMan went well. Very kind feedback also from SASutherland, cyclingtone and alasdairmcgill about my book - thanks. Boy_mediocre was asking if there will also be a DVD coming out about the world cycle - I hope so and there is talk about one being available spring 2010 but nothing is confirmed yet.
Lastly Ange77H challenged me to a photo competition (TOTW) - I will have to decline but thanks for your opening bid - was that a tree or a weed? Only joking, you win! I am running out of hours in the day to ride, eat, sleep, film, blog, other media etc hence this mass catch up every few weeks, so a weekly photo comp will have to wait!
Thanks for all the great feedback - if I missed you don't worry, post again and I will try and get back to you next time. I never did find out what a baby moose was called?!
Cheers, Mark.
~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~30~RS~)