Seattle, WA to Boston, MA. 3,791 miles and 117,653 feet of elevation per Strava. Our route was not direct, we wanted to see certain landmarks and visit some friends along the way.
Overview
We left Seattle, WA, on June 2, 2024, and arrived back in Boston, MA, on August 12, 2024. We spent 59 days on the bike and had 12 rest days spread throughout the trip.
We experienced almost every type of weather possible: torrential rains leaving Seattle, snow and hail in Montana, blistering heat in the middle of the country, and ended with rain on the East Coast.
The best part of riding west to east was that the sun always set behind us, so we were never blinded by it. The winds were random; there was no pattern from the prevailing winds.
Gear
- OBED Boundary with SRAM Rival AXS eTap.
- Panaracer Gravel Kings (700x43) then swapped to Specialized Pathfinder Pro (700x42) due to tire failure. Tubeless.
- Ortlieb Gravel Pannier Bags.
- Assortment of Rockbros bags (i was worried if these were waterproof... they were fine in heavy rain).
- Post Carry Handlebar Bag (held streaming gear).
- 4x water bottles.
- Leatherman, multitool, plugs, 2x TPU tubes, lube, 2x CO2, and probably some more.
- Tent and all the stuff you need for camping.
- Laptop (i wish i didn't have to bring this one)
The bike and gear weighed roughly 60lbs, not including water and food.
Impressions
We averaged about 65 miles per day and didn't really try to push the pace. This felt like a good balance between making progress and seeing the world around us.
The west coast was mountainous, expect long climbs and long descents.
Montana has quite a few frontage roads which were great but we did our fair share of riding on Interstate 90.
Crow Reservation has a lot of dangerous dogs that will chase and try to bite you. Save some energy in case you need to book it.
Wyoming was desolate. The only way we could get across was Interstate 90.
Nebraska is very flat... unbelievably flat. We rode 115 miles and only had 768 feet of elevation. Strava
Iowa has a lot of corn and is extremely humid. Tornadoes are a real threat. Iowa is not flat.
Illinois and Indiana also has a lot of corn. The back roads are really nice to ride on. Very flat.
Ohio gets hilly on the eastern side otherwise still flat.
Pennsylvania, New York, and Western Massachusetts are hilly. Punchy climbs instead of long climbs on the west coast.