This is the story of how I quit a good-paying engineering job to ride a bicycle across the country. Highlights somehow include wedding crashing, breaking and entering, partying in a 5th Ave penthouse, and possibly attempting to unlawfully enter some kind of black site at 2 AM.
I can't guarantee that this trip wasn't a dumb decision, but I can say it was a lot of things beyond just dumb, and it certainly helped point my life in a more interesting direction. Along the way, I saw a lot of pretty things, met a lot of interesting people, and experienced more than my fair share of adventure magic, or the unplanned and unlikely events that make for memorable experiences and good stories. Hopefully this will only be the prequel to greater experiences.
My "adventure style" involves sleeping in graveyards, spending too much time in bars, and pursuing whims farther than might be prudent. I honestly believe that trail magic is a skill that can be developed, and I'm proud of the efforts I've made to be curious, open, and available for the coincidences that make life worth living. This experience wouldn't have been half as rich without it.
That said, this was written primarily for myself, so it's not the polished story of a plucky roustabout traipsing through episodic adventures. I got a little depressed toward the end, and my experiences and writing reflect that.
Posts are presented in chronological order, meaning the most recent ones are at the top. To start from the beginning, click here. The writing is a little rough at the start but I settled into a rhythm with time.
As a preview, all 5,000 miles of the final route are presented below. Click through to the actual site to see more detail, including elevation profiles and campsites.
