Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) provides detailed maps for cycling routes all over the country. The Northern Tier Route is about 4,200 miles long and we’re cycling west to east. #acaNoTier #tailwinds
Why Northern Tier?
Well why not? I think of the route as an Oreo cookie (flat grasslands sandwiched between mountain ranges on either side). But beyond cookies, and notable landmarks like the Cascades, Glacier National Park, Logan Pass, visiting Canada, eventually the Adirondacks, the Green Mountains, the Whites and Niagara Falls the seed was planted back in 2014.
We were on our way back to the Spokane airport after running a couple marathons in Idaho and Washington in early summer. Driving through the Cascade mountains on Highway 2 we passed a mother/daughter duo cycling west to east across the country on the Northern Tier route. We stopped to chat with them a bit and decided it would be this trip, this route, this direction. #bucketlist. We followed the pair’s blog the rest of the summer until they finished months later in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
Norther Tier Route and Highlights
Highlights of the route, terrain and logistics can be found here on the ACA site. Not gonna lie. ACA did cyclists a solid when it came to providing routes and maps and we’ll have both paper and GPS versions. But actually. All I’m going to do is follow Tom so I don’t get lost. If only I could talk him into riding a tandem.
What was the first day like? And then what did it look like day-to-day? Check it out here.
See our cross country ride recap here.
Keep Calm and Pedal On 