Would this be considered a thru-hike?

[SassyWindsor]

Forget the bike. You need to get a partner, one hike nobo, the other take vehicle then hike sobo, give keys to the nobo partner midway. Then Hope they find their way back to starting point for your pickup.

[waywardfool]

There' a National Geographic -- I have it tucked away somewhere -- maybe from early 70's about a guy that did a long roadwalk... Maybe across the South. Kind of the same idea, to meet and experience the local cultures. You may find it interesting.

[waywardfool]

April 1977 NG

Walk was 1973

Here is the book

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/006095955X

[Odd Man Out]

...The reason I want the van is a lot of areas are getting rougher on the homeless and I figure stealth camping is getting more risky...

One observation on this premise. I know this isn't an AT hike (despite the confusing thread title), but on the AT, the conventional wisdom is that camping is safer as you get further away from road crossings and shelters. So avoiding dispersed camping in favor of sleeping in a van at a trail parking area would be possibly the least safe option for an AT excursion. What evidence is there that "stealth camping is getting more risky"? I wonder if this premise would also be flawed for a cross-country the excursion you envision. There is one big difference in that stealth (i.e. dispersed) camping is not illegal along much of the AT.

[gram cracker]

One observation on this premise. I know this isn't an AT hike (despite the confusing thread title), but on the AT, the conventional wisdom is that camping is safer as you get further away from road crossings and shelters. So avoiding dispersed camping in favor of sleeping in a van at a trail parking area would be possibly the least safe option for an AT excursion. What evidence is there that "stealth camping is getting more risky"? I wonder if this premise would also be flawed for a cross-country the excursion you envision. There is one big difference in that stealth (i.e. dispersed) camping is not illegal along much of the AT.

I eat a lot with homeless people. I find them very interesting. The universal story I hear from them is they are hassled by law enforcement on the roads. The first thing they are asked for is their gun. Yet few carry one. The homeless are mostly just nice people who for some reason are not able to work. Often it is some mental disorder they can't get treatment for.

Since Occupy, a lot of the city camping laws are being enforced. New ones are being passed. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find a quiet spot and sleep in it. There is a law in Colorado which says it is illegal to sleep outside. It doesn't make an exception for the wilderness or your backyard. It's not enforced...yet.

On a cross country road walk, water becomes a big issue. Filtering water isn't an option as there is a lot of chemical runoff from farms. And you don't know what kind of factory is upstream. It can be a long way between water sources. At times around 100 miles. It just seemed to be the best option to have a vehicle.

If I have a sponsor for this trip, it will be the people who give to their local homeless shelter or food bank.

[Odd Man Out]

I eat a lot with homeless people. I find them very interesting. The universal story I hear from them is they are hassled by law enforcement on the roads. The first thing they are asked for is their gun. Yet few carry one. The homeless are mostly just nice people who for some reason are not able to work. Often it is some mental disorder they can't get treatment for. ....If I have a sponsor for this trip, it will be the people who give to their local homeless shelter or food bank.

I am with you on the homeless issue. I went to a lecture by Mike Yankoski last week. He wrote "Under the Overpass", the book about his time he intentionally lived as a homeless person. I have not read the book, but the lecture was excellent.

http://www.undertheoverpass.com/uop/home.php

[off-pher]

I must say this is crazy. hike bike drive just the very idea
is nuts!!! Don't you know it will HOT WET DRY......hungery
there will be sleepless nights and seemingly never ending days
flat tires chains will break ....................... do you want any HELP?????I would love to do something like this

[gram cracker]

I must say this is crazy. hike bike drive just the very idea
is nuts!!! Don't you know it will HOT WET DRY......hungery
there will be sleepless nights and seemingly never ending days
flat tires chains will break ....................... do you want any HELP?????I would love to do something like this

So do something like this. Ride your bicycle 20 miles away. Drive to pick it up. Then ride home and sleep in your car in the driveway. Next day drive out to where you left the bicycle and repeat, but sleep 20 miles from home. See if you can go 3 days in a row. Reduce the distances if 20 miles is too much.

[Slo-go'en]

I know a woman who hiked part of the "East Coast Greenway" from the coast of Maine to nearly NYC. The Greenway is laid out primarly as a bike path and uses as much "rail to trail" type paths as possible, but there is a LOT of road walking. She did this in the early fall, so the weather wasn't too bad. The ECG does not avoid cities, but often goes right through or skirts around them.

In rural areas, she was able to camp on the side of the road with out trouble. In suburban areas, in the afternoon, she would start asking people if they knew a good place to camp. Often they would let her set up in thier yard (being an old lady probably helped in that regard). Cemeterys are also good spots to rest (short to very long term). In the more developed areas, she would often check the churchs for a place to stay or use motel rooms.

The walk did start to get really iffy as she approched NYC and starting passing though some rough nieghborhoods in SW Connecticut. Local cops would start to escort her through some areas after asking what the heck she thought she was doing there. Eventually, she had to get on a commuter train to finish the trip safely.

[Cookerhiker]

...The big attraction is seeing the small towns and rural life before they completely disappear. In 10 years, there will hardly be a "Cafe" or "Eat" place left....

This resonates. I make it a point to leave interstates and seek out old downtowns to find small, local, usually old restaurants & cafes. Even if the food isn't good, I enjoy the experience.

I've also wondered how long they'll last and sometimes think as you that they won't be around in 10 years. But I've concluded that's too pessimistic. Heck, I'm sure I felt that way 10 years ago.

The other thing is I often find small independent establishments which are new, likely established by an enterprising sort who feels there is a market for such eateries. Often they're coffeehouses, sometimes full-menu restaurants and you find them in unexpected places. 2 examples in the mountain areas of West Virginia: (1) in the impoverished-looking town of Thomas (near the ADT), a place called The Purple Fiddle features healthy sandwiches & salads, homemade soups, beer & wine, ice cream, and live music on weekends. (2) the small town of Marlinton near the Greenbrier Trail has a coffee house cum bike repair shop (true!) with a great menu.

Don't know if you're considering a book but your trip would make for a good one. Heck, even a book just on those independent eateries would be most welcome (to some of us).

Good luck!

[gram cracker]

Yes, I would write a book. I've started writing one for practice which I'll publish for myself on Kindle.

I just got back from a little walk. I think better when I walk. The title is decided:
"People are Trail Magic" It would be along the lines of "Blue Highways."

As I think, I have so many stories where people just start talking to me. I tend to be a loner and for some reason, people can't stand to see other people alone. So they talk and I listen.

As for gear. I'm the worst. I don't believe cotton kills or I'd be dead now. I still use an external frame pack. I have my SVEA123R stove I bought new in 1977. And I like heavy boots. I don't carry a knife or a compass. I prefer a paper map to a GPS. I just use the GPS to log miles. It doesn't even have a cord to load waypoints.

[DaSchwartz]

Couple of thoughts. People have bicycled the 48 states in one year, in fact, someone has done it in 48 days bicycling the 48 states. It can be done in little as 8,000 miles on a bicycle.... Leaving in March from Oklahoma? Nasty weather you will receive.... Security of leaving a bicycle alone all day locked up?? 20,000 miles over 10 months, it's impossible to walk that much in 10 months... then throw in the bicycling and van. You will probably need to put down some water drops for yourself, the only way to do the ADT is to have pre-placed water drops in the desert.

I'm sorry, but this plan isn't realistic...

[Winds]

Couple of thoughts. People have bicycled the 48 states in one year, in fact, someone has done it in 48 days bicycling the 48 states. It can be done in little as 8,000 miles on a bicycle.... Leaving in March from Oklahoma? Nasty weather you will receive.... Security of leaving a bicycle alone all day locked up?? 20,000 miles over 10 months, it's impossible to walk that much in 10 months... then throw in the bicycling and van. You will probably need to put down some water drops for yourself, the only way to do the ADT is to have pre-placed water drops in the desert.

I'm sorry, but this plan isn't realistic...

Not sure what you are on about – maybe you misunderstood Gram’s first post?

Gram said he had a route roughed out at 7,000 miles. To cover that distance in say 10 months, that's less than 24 miles a day.

His plans are such (as he stated):

Point A - Leave bike
Drive to Point B – Leave vehicle
Walk back to point A – pick up bike
Ride bike to Point B

Then repeat this process covering the 7,000 miles and 48 states.

Therefore Gram intends on driving, riding his bike, and walking 7,000 miles.
His BODY will cover 21,000 miles in the trip.
That’s entirely doable.

Wait, I see where you might have gotten confused: Gram is using a vehicle - and can LIVE from that vehicle (eat, sleep, plan, rest, write us all updates, send ME gifts, etc.).

[gram cracker]

Couple of thoughts. People have bicycled the 48 states in one year, in fact, someone has done it in 48 days bicycling the 48 states. It can be done in little as 8,000 miles on a bicycle.... Leaving in March from Oklahoma? Nasty weather you will receive.... Security of leaving a bicycle alone all day locked up?? 20,000 miles over 10 months, it's impossible to walk that much in 10 months... then throw in the bicycling and van. You will probably need to put down some water drops for yourself, the only way to do the ADT is to have pre-placed water drops in the desert.

I'm sorry, but this plan isn't realistic...

It's 7,000 miles walking, 7,000 miles bicycling and 7,000 miles in the van. That is all doable. The big question will be if my body can do it. I am working on that now. The big unknown is the mental, not the physical.

Think of it this way. Could you ride a bicycle 20 miles away from home, walk home and drive out to pick up the bicycle? If you can do that 350 times, the whole trip can be done. Keep in mind, road miles are much easier than trail miles.

The route only has to touch the 48 states. Not cross them. There will only be one step in Oklahoma. Then I'll be in Arkansas. The next big weather problem is the week long rains in Louisiana. Those usually come in mid-April. I'd be through Louisiana before they came. Then there is tornado season in the SE. But generally they don't come until late afternoon or evening. I'd be done for the day. If it looked like it would be real bad, I can get a motel.

Leaving the bicycle locked up will be no problem. The route only goes through 2 bigger cities now. I'll figure out a way to avoid those. It will be locked and hidden in some out of the way place. The chances of someone even seeing it are small. If it gets stolen, I'll have a spare. That's not one of my big concerns.

Why would I need water drops? I'd have water in the van. In the desert, I can just make the legs shorter.

It's a different kind of trip. I've decided it's NOT a thru-hike. On those planning becomes a major factor because of a lack of support and transportation to get resupplied. It's just a trip to see the country. Comparing it to a thru-hike would not recognize the greater difficulty of doing the AT.

The plan is still coming together. I did say earlier it may not happen. But it is possible and I'm working to make it happen.

Winds, gifts are a good idea.

[quilteresq]

The route I have planned will be up north in the summer. And I only take one step in Kansas. (All I have to do is touch the 48 states.)

.

That won't necessarily save you from heat. In 2003, my family hit more than two weeks of temps hovering around 100 degrees biking in eastern Oregon, Idaho and Montana on our cross country bike ride. Riding through the deep canyons of eastern Oregon and Idaho was murder at around 100 degrees. Once we got to Missoula, smoky air from many wildfires was added to the challenges for about a week. One person asked us if anyone had asked us to pick up a shovel (for fighting the wildfires) yet. You guessed it - I had planned the northern route to beat the heat of a more southerly route.

[gram cracker]

That won't necessarily save you from heat. In 2003, my family hit more than two weeks of temps hovering around 100 degrees biking in eastern Oregon, Idaho and Montana on our cross country bike ride. Riding through the deep canyons of eastern Oregon and Idaho was murder at around 100 degrees. Once we got to Missoula, smoky air from many wildfires was added to the challenges for about a week. One person asked us if anyone had asked us to pick up a shovel (for fighting the wildfires) yet. You guessed it - I had planned the northern route to beat the heat of a more southerly route.

This is true. One year I rode across Oklahoma in a week. It was over 100 degrees every day. The pavement was melting and caking on my tires. I was getting a sun burn so I had to wear a long shirt and pants. I found I really enjoy the feel of sweat running down my face on a hot day. I love how there is relief in the mornings and evenings. I love the anticipation in the morning of the heat coming once again.

It's a fact that the weather will present different things to enjoy along the way. It is the unusual weather that brings the best memories and makes for the best trips.

The alternative to doing the north in the summer is doing it in the winter and doing the hot areas in the summer. That does not seem like such a great plan. Especially in Nevada. I think by getting to northern Nevada in early October, I'll be just a little late for the wildfires. If they come, I'm stuck for a bit.

[max patch]

Have you figured out a route to take advantage of the 4 corners?

[gram cracker]

Have you figured out a route to take advantage of the 4 corners?

Yes, the hike ends at the 4 corners.

[DaSchwartz]

Think of it this way. Could you ride a bicycle 20 miles away from home, walk home and drive out to pick up the bicycle? If you can do that 350 times, the whole trip can be done. Keep in mind, road miles are much easier than trail miles.

Water supply is going to be a problem, finding a place to park your van and your bicycle is going to be a problem. There are a lot of places where you just can't hide a bicycle. Then you have to worry where to park the van without it getting towed (again not as easy as it sounds) You are going to walking 3.5 times the length of the Appalachian Trail in just 300 days, that's like hiking the triple crown of hiking, I don't know how many people if anyone has ever done that in one year. Seriously, why not just forgo the van stuff and just do a thru-hike on the Appalachian Trail or PCT? You'll actually be able to enjoy yourself, not be dependent on burning fossil fuels, not set to x amount of miles per day.. Or why not do it on the bicycle alone, which I have done myself, bike packing can be a great experience also. Anyhow, if you decide to do this, I wish you the best.

[JAK]

I like it.