I just got back from my latest adventure this weekend. This one was something totally different from anything I had ever done before. A co-worker of mine had decided a while back that he was going to quit work and move back east. But he was going to ride his bike back. Immediately I liked the idea, but I wasn't ready to ride across the whole country, nor was I in a position to quit my job. So I decided that I would take one week off and ride with him.

As it turned out, we spent a few weeks training before his trip was to begin, though didn't get into the shape that we wanted. The most we had ridden was 32 miles in training, and he was hoping to average 50 a day over the course of his 3 month trip. This was perfectly manageable, considering that he would no doubt get into good enough shape pretty quickly to be able to knock out 100 miles a day. But could we do that the first week, and could I make it to Phoenix in order to get picked up?

Turns out that, yes, we could, and yes, I could.

We left San Diego at 9AM on a Saturday, and I made it into Phoenix by mid afternoon on the following Friday. It ended up being just a little of 400 miles in 7 days, for an average of 57 per day. Not bad considering ascended from sea level up to 4500 feet and back down to below sea level then back up to over 3000 feet over the course of that first week.

Obviously, as I write this I am back home, but he is still out on the road and will remain so for another couple months. All in all it was a great adventure, and one I would certainly welcome again. Which is actually ironic because after a few days I was thinking how I never wanted to get on a bike again, only to be sad to be done when I arrived in Phoenix.

I think the best parts about the trip for me were (obviously to finish, and) the ability to be so self sufficient and also to see people's reactions when they heard what I (and especially my friend) were doing. The fact that you can ride your bike for 400 (me) or 44000 miles (him) with only a few packs of gear and supplies totally breaks some people's view of the way the world works. Some were surprised, some didn't believe it, and others were blown away that such a thing was even possible. Of course there were some who were shocked, but in the same breath thought that it was the coolest thing to be able to do that. I don't live a very non-traditional life, but to be able to open other people's minds once in a while and show them the possibilities that are out there if are for their own life is a good feeling.

If you want the details, following is the breakdown day by day of what we did, and here are the maps, each destination is where we stayed for the night. The sixth day is when my friend and I split ways, he headed north, I to Phoenix.

MAP - First two days

Day 1. San Diego, CA to Alpine, CA
Day 2. Alpine, CA to Jacumba, CA

MAP - Last five days

Day 3. Jacumba, CA to Glamis, CA
Day 4. Glamis, CA to Blythe, CA
Day 5. Blythe, CA to Wickenburg, AZ
Day 6. Vicksburg, AZ to Wickenburg, AZ
Day 7. Wickenburg, AZ to Phoenix, AZ

Questions? Feel free to ask!


Related Links:
Mt Whitney in One Day

Labels: adventure, biking, green travel, travel

Santa Fe Depot, Amtrak, San Diego

Santa Fe Depot, Amtrak, San Diego
I meant to write this article a few weeks ago, around the year anniversary of my cross country Amtrak train trip, but it sort of slipped my mind and the holidays kept me busy. I had almost forgotten about this trip, but then was remembering as the holidays were approaching, and figured it would be a nice trip to document here. Most people I knew at work thought I was crazy to take a trip like this, but I had a good time and would still do it again, though making a few changes.

The trip was by Amtrak, and originated in San Diego (Santa Fe Depot) with the final destination being New York City. I took the Pacific Surfliner from San Diego to Los Angeles, then the from LA to Chicago, and finally the Lake Shore Limited from Chicago to Penn Station in New York City. To make it even more interesting, I declined a ride to the train station from my beach apartment and instead opted to take the city bus instead. I also opted for the Metro North from Grand Central to Stratford, where I was picked up by my mom and grandparents.

It was quite a trip, approximately 42 hours to Chicago, then another 20 or so to New York, and when you add in a 4 hour layover in Chicago and the 2 hour journey up to Los Angeles, plus the transportation on each end, it took about three and a half days. Not to mention the train was about 4 hours late arriving into New York putting me there close to midnight, which foiled my plan to visit Rockefeller Center and see the holiday festivities and made it more urgent to catch a late train to Connecticut where I was getting picked up.

The one way Amtrak ticket itself was pretty cheap, about $180 dollars, which combined with a one way plane ticket back to San Diego put me probably a bit cheaper than standard holiday round trip airfare. Keep in mind that this was a coach seat, so I had no bed or shower. Beds and rooms can be obtained, but then the price increases dramatically. I can say for sure that the train is FAR more comfortable than an airplane, even in coach there is plenty of room, and you can bring pretty much as much luggage as you want. The obvious down sides to a trip like this are the lack of suitable food, the lack of a bed, the lack of cleaning amenities, and the obvious fact that you have to sit for so long. Though wandering the train and spending hours away from your seat was possible and actually appeared to be fairly normal.

The only things that I would do differently were I to do it again would be to pack my own food and bring more in the way of entertainment. There is so much space for personal storage that this would not be a problem, and had I known how bad the food would be in the cafe car, I would have done this.

A couple things to note. If you are in coach you have no access to anything more than a bathroom barely large enough to stand in. I started the trip taking bird baths every few hours or so and changing my cloths, but after a day this became futile and I accepted that in the recycled train air I would end up grimy and stinky regardless of how often I cleaned, so I just accepted my dirtiness and began taking pride in the fact that I didn't shower for over four days. Also, on the older trains there is a serious lack of plugs to plug appliances into. The newer train from San Diego to Los Angeles has one in each seat, but the older long haul trains don't. They are scattered though the coach car so you need to ask your neighbors, or you can fight for the couple that are in the cafe or lounge cars. A train trip might be better suited for reading and journaling than using a laptop or other device that needs electricity.

In Chicago the layover was enough time for me to get to the Sears tower, down to the river and Michigan Ave where I wandered for a while, and I even had time to grab a bite to eat and a beer. If you are a smoker there are some stops where the train stops for 10 minutes and give you time to get off. Just ask the attendants how long the stop will be and they will tell you if you have time or not.

Any other questions about a trip like this, just post a comment and I will do my best to reply. Was this article useful? Leave a comment!

Related Links:

Cross Country Amtrak Trip and Photos

Labels: amtrak, green travel, public transportation, trains, travel, United States

I have been planning to write an article regarding travel and sustainable living, however I haven't gotten around to it yet. I wanted to explore the pros and cons of travel when it comes to trying to live a green and sustainable life. Obviously the two don't quite go hand in hand, however I think there are definitely positive aspects to traveling that can outweigh the negative environmental impact that travel causes. Anyway, that's a subject for a future post.

The topic for this post is, well, you probably can guess ... it's travel. I have a trip coming up in less than two weeks, and I have been driving myself crazy trying to make preparations. I am going to Spain, and hopefully also Morocco, and it will be my first trip abroad by myself, and my first solid 10 day vacation in a while. I am starting in Barcelona and flying back from Málaga. The 10 days in between are up in the air. My goal is Barcelona, Córdoba, a jaunt into Morocco, Granada, and then Málaga before returning. I'm sure some places I'll want more time in, some I may just pass through.

Needless to say, I have been keeping busy making sure I have all the proper travel gear gathered up, and I am also going to ensure I have just one moderately sized pack. No need for too much stuff to tote around. Also making sure my finances are in order and my credit and debit cards will work, buying a suitable backpack, picking up guidebooks and hotel tips (so I am not lost upon entering each new city), gathering the appropriate electrical converters, and then rounding up the little things I would never remember to bring if I was rush packing the day prior to leaving, like a compass (for wandering around old maze like cities) and a travel alarm clock so I don't miss my morning trains.

In doing all this work, I have come upon a few things that I wanted to share. If you have ever traveled out of the country, then you know that using your credit and debit cards isn't always as straight forward as it seems. Some countries (such as Spain) don't accept Mastercard as widely as you would expect, some ATMs don't accept cards from your home bank. And on top of that, each bank has different foreign transaction fees associated with your transactions.

Well, to help out, I found a few links. The first is a wiki page that lays out all the fees for each bank in detail, and the others supposedly show locations for ATMs that accept cards with the Mastercard and Visa logos respectively.

http://www.flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Foreign_Exchange
http://www.mastercard.com/us/personal/en/cardholderservices/atmlocations/index.html
http://visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/

Also, here is a site for the Spain and Morocco train systems that has been immensely helpful in my transportation planning, even though I am not booking anything ahead, at least I can see approximate times that I can expect to find trains running between cities.

Map of Spain rail system
RENFE - Spanish rail schedules
Morocco rail schedules

When I return I will post reviews about my trips. Wish me luck!

Related links:

Rick Steves - The New Tangier, Tijuana no longer
Rick Steves - Plunge Deep into Morocco
Green Travel
Go Green Travel Center
Lonely Planet Spain

Labels: green travel, money, morocco, spain, vacation