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Re: [pct-l] re: mountain bike/PCT

>Apparently, 
>this trip is part of an article intitled something like "85 best trips", 
>that came-out in Outside about a month ago. It could very well be a 
>bicycle-legal thoroughfare equivalent of the PCT.

I just scrouged up my copy of the Jan '98 issue of Outside magazine. In an
"article" (more like a listing with comments) on 83 best adventures (and,
note, a similar article has appeared in at least the last four January
issues), two items relevant to this discussion appear:

1) California: Backpacking the John Muir Trail; The Route: Hiking through
the heart of the Sierra, you'll negotiate passes above 10,000 feet and
finish the 23-day, 212-mile hike with a climb of 14.495-foot Mount Whitney,
the highest peak in the Lower 48; Best time: July - August; Difficulty:
Strenuous; Travel Advisory: Count on carrying one-third to one-fourth your
body weight. A fit 180-pounder will tote about 50 pounds to start, with
loads dwindling to 25-30 pounds as food and fuel are consumed between supply
drops; High/Low Points: * Savoring homemade apple pie at Vermilion Valley
Resort, the one oasis of comfort on the route, * Bears, Some trip campsites
have become their picnic grounds; Outfitters: Southern Yosemite Mountain
Guides; Departures: 2; Price: $3,245; Accomodations: camping, rustic lodging.

[heh, heh, since I know y'all want to spend $3,245 to hike the JMT, here's
the number for Southern Yosemite Mountain Guides: 800-231-4575; actually, it
sounds like a great job, eh? just have to somehow get permission to operate
in the two national parts involved (right? Yosemite and Sequoia - isn't it
kind of difficult to do that?)]

2) United States: Mountain-biking the Continental Divide; The Route: An epic
75-day, 2,500-mile self-supported border-to-border dirt ride from Canada to
New Mexico, with 27 crossings of the Continental Divide and thousands of
vertical feet of quad-killing climbs; When to go: June; Difficulty:
Strenuous; Travel Advisory: The outfitter requires previous mountain-bike
touring experience. Riding a loaded bike 40 miles per day on dirt demands
far more strength and technique than either road-touring or unladen
mountain-biking; High/Low Points: *Sharing a dinner of franks, beans and
marshmallow Jell-O with cowboys you meet along the way * Awaking one morning
to discover that a deer has chewed up the leather on your $150
titanium-railed saddle; Outfitters: Adventure Cycling; departures: 1; Price:
$2,800; Accommodations: camping, rustic lodging.

Notice the price differential! 23 days, $3,245 vs. 75 days, $2,800! Yowza!
[Adventure Cycling: 800-755-2453]

Karen


Karen Elder
bluesky@Rt66.com
P.O. Box 20093
Albuquerque, New Mexico
87154 USA

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