The TransAmerica Bicycle Trail was the first bicycle touring route to cross the U.S. It was developed and mapped by Adventure Cycling Association, and travels between Astoria, Oregon, and Yorktown, Virginia, along mostly rural, two-lane highways.
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History
The TransAmerica Bicycle Trail began as the route for Bikecentennial, a mass bicycle tour across the country to celebrate the U.S. Bicentennial in 1976. The route was developed and mapped in the years preceding the event by volunteers and staff members of the organization Bikecentennial, which changed its name to Adventure Cycling Association in 1993. Over 4,100 cyclists rode at least part of the route during Bikecentennial, with 2,000 riding the entirety of the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail.
Route
The route can generally be ridden between May and September and requires about three months, depending on the rider’s average daily mileage. The current route length is 4,228 miles (6804.3 km). The TransAmerica Bicycle Trail was originally mapped with the intention of riding eastbound, but many riders choose to ride westbound. The route goes through several national parks, such as Yellowstone and Grand Teton; small cities like Missoula, MT, and Carbondale, IL; and historical sites, especially at the route’s end in Yorktown, VA, in the Historic Triangle.
Terrain
The terrain of the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail varies from flat, straight roads in Kansas, to steep, windy pitches in Kentucky. The route takes riders on mostly rural, two-lane highways to avoid traffic and big cities.
States
The TransAmerica Bicycle Trail takes riders though the following states: