About Tjoan

Adventure

The purpose of my visit to The United States of America this time is to complete a Bicycle Tour taking me through 14 States in all. A total distance of some 11.000 Km ( = 6836 Miles) of road surface is expected to pass beneath my seat.

During the first parts of the Adventure I will enjoy the company of my long time High School friend Menno Dekhuyzen, a keen and experienced cyclist himself. We have only once traveled together though, some years ago, on a bicycle trip through Switzerland and Italy while riding a bike route from Bazel to Rome. Menno is a Recumbent cyclist for quite near a decade now whereas I have only joined their ranks as of April 2007. So Menno was riding his recumbent while I rode a conventional Touring Bike on that trip.

This is Tjoan's route. Click to enlarge (opens a new window)

From the start in Atlanta, Georgia we will do a warm up stretch to Yorktown, Virginia finding our way as we go traversing Georgia, South and North Carolina and then into Virginia. Having reached Yorktown (just North of Norfolk,Va) we will start on the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail. Cycling East to West passing through 10 States until reaching Astoria on the Pacific coast in Oregon. We will cycle across Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Oregon in that order.

At Astoria our ways will part and while Menno will continue his Adventure to and through Canada I will go Southbound and ride the Pacific Coast Trail into California and continue the entire length of the Golden State until I get to San Diego at the Mexican Border. Once there I will head back up to Los Angeles and from there fly East back to Atlanta to connect with the return flight home to The Netherlands on the sixth of September. However, should I be ahead of schedule I might well extend my journey to ride eastbound to get to Phoenix and Tucson plus adding another State, Arizona, to the list and then from there fly back to Atlanta.

Besides enjoying the ride I have the intention to visit with long time friends who happen to live more or less along the TransAmerica Trail. Sometimes minor detouring is required to get to them but seldom more than 30 miles! Some I met during my 1st bicycle journey through the United States between 1981 and '83 others I have met in a more recent past. It will be fantastic to see them again.

Also on the list of must see (again) are National Parks like Mammoth Cave in Kentucky Rocky Mountain in Colorado, Yellowstone and Grand Teton in Wyoming, Red Woods in California and that is just mentioning the big ones along the Trail. I will be passing many a State Park and some National Forests and SeaShores, also pass National Historical sites All of them fine places to visit. Oh Yes, there will be lots to see and enjoy along the way! Never a dull moment!

I Hereby invite you to Visit this site regularly and travel with me to also share in the experience. If you have questions, be sure to put them to me using the mail link and I will try and answer them either in a personal mail or in the general weekly update story if and when I can.