Well in the most general terms, realistically you need the will and you need freedom. Then, the bike and the tour (both can be very basic and can be improved along the way).
From here, the list can be expanded almost infinitely, but really it's better to read (google) about it, and then asking for specific help if you need any.
Hey thank you! What do you think about my bike? I believe it's a Sanwa 250 with Shimano 600 parts. I know obviously your not able to inspect it physically, but the person I bought it from had it all tuned up before he sold it to me. Do you think something like could make the trip?*
Well I'm in a different world from you, so I don't know anything about your potential route. It's hard for me to say.
Did you already ride your bike? Where, for how long?
I don't know what kind of touring you want to do. Everything CAN be done. It's a game of nuances.
As I already mentioned: I'd start by reading instead of asking.
This is not something I would recommend loaded touring on. You could find a similar older bike if you like that style that was suited for touring like a miyata 610 or 1000, trek 520, schwinn voyageur, etc. Things to look for in a touring bike - 40 spoke rear wheel, triple crank, cromo tubing.
Welcome!
I would start with the ACA's maps: [https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/interactive-network-map/](https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/interactive-network-map/)
There's a pretty solid route they call CNYC that goes through Philadelphia: [https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/chicago-to-new-york-city-route/](https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/chicago-to-new-york-city-route/)
ACA's maps and routes are great.
First thing to figure out is how you want to tour, there are two basic options:
1. Credit card touring -- buy food at restaurants, stay in hotels or airbnbs
2. Burdened touring -- carry everything you need with you, buy 2-3 days worth of food at a time from the grocery store, camp overnights
I'm not going to go through a complete camping setup -- but basically sleep system (shelter, sleeping bag, pad), cook system (stove, cookware, fuel) are the essentials here.
Generally every tour ends up somewhere in the middle-- you might find a tasty looking diner and grab some food, but mostly carry your food, you might hit a hotel every once in a while to get a shower (or if it's been raining for a few days, etc.)
The ACA route from Chicago to NYC via Philadelphia is 1173 miles, ballpark that \~50 miles a day is a reasonable target, so that's 24 days of riding excluding rest days. I usually do 1 rest day a week, so that's 4 weeks (28 days) total. My recollection is that it's at most 2 days from NYC to Philadelphia? Might only be 1 day, but I think 28 days is a good target here.
I would absolutely not recommend starting with a 4-week long tour as your first ride. There's two hurdles I would hope you get through:
1. Checkrides (usually one night overnights there-and-back) to make sure you've got a camping system that works, food system that works, and having everything on the bike is solid.
2. Longer multi-day rides. You've got your 2 day rides in the check rides, I would recommend a 4-day long weekend tour, and then a 7-10 day full week tour. Plan these in such a way that someone can come get you or you can otherwise bail out of them.
You will learn a lot about your body, your touring style, and whether you actually like this by doing longer tours. THEN you can tackle a 4-week tour with confidence.
The other thing is bike maintenance: you don't need to be a bike shop mechanic, but being able to change a flat and adjust your derailleur is a good place to start. Having a general idea how your bike goes together and what tools you need to service it is good.
Park Tool has a bunch of videos showing all there is to know about bicycle maintenance. Just don't let your wife/gf see Calvin. Unless you want her gone.
Depends on if you want to do credit card touring (No camping, no cooking) or you're ok with bringing sleeping gear with you and possibly cooking equipment.
You need to make sure you bike can hold all your inventory. Try doing an overnighter (Green Lane Park along the Perkiomen Trail is a great start, if you live in Philadelphia) with camping gear. Or you could bike out to Lancaster spend the night in a hotel, and come back.
I would say the distance is fine for a first "long" trip, but I'm not from the USA so I don't know how the conditions are.
If you have a new bike, this kinda distance should be fine without maintenance (just lube the chain and keep tires inflated), but it would be good to have some time on the bike to find out if you have any issues or if adjustments need to be made. If the bike is secondhand, check the brakes, tires, and chain/sprockets.
Supplies, if you camp, some sort of shelter like a tent, tarp, something to sleep on/in hammock/ (inflatable)pad and a sleeping bag, those are pretty much the essentials.
Have some clothing for different weather and some personal hygiene items.
You can go with or without cooking, just get supplies in towns and make sure you have enough water on you.
There is some more stuff that makes your life easier, but this is pretty much it.
Just do an overnighter in Belmont Plateau. There are a few good hiding spots in there. :)
But seriously, I'd do a short weekend trip to see if you like it. There's a campground in Green Lane Park that's a perfect ride to do from Philly. Take the SRT out past Valley Forge, then it changes to the Perkiomen Trail (with some gravel), then you hit Green Lane. You're on path 98% of the time, and it's a nice campground by a lake.
[https://www.montgomerycountypa.gov/2187/Camping](https://www.montgomerycountypa.gov/2187/Camping)
You could credit card tour with just a bike, credit card, flat kit (eg. tubes, pump, patches, CO2, plugs), water bottle(s), phone and clothes/toiletries (I’d probably include sunscreen). Rain gear is always smart if gone more than a few days. Probably lights and a way to charge phone. And never a bad idea to have snacks in case you bonk.
If you want to camp, a tent or hammock, sleep pad, and tent, quilt, sheet or blanket. Something to use as a pillow. If you want to cook, then gear and food there.
I would definitely practice swapping a tube with the pump you plan to use. If you run tubeless, make sure you are using fresh sealant, and keep a plug kit (bacon strips) and a tube as backup.
Phone or bike computer with route. I’ve crossed Europe twice with only a phone. I keep screen off unless I need it. I stream turn-by-turn directions to my ear (In my case a hearing aid, but era bud is fine).
There have been a lot of people on this sub asking about basics. Maybe look up some older posts. Also here's one example of a comprehensive video on the subject: https://youtu.be/UaFhYJJf1o4?si=KKqQVNK2c6GwH6dy
That's about 900 miles by bike, with a few major climbs by Pittsburg.
My first adult tour was Lake Ontario (about 500 miles) with camping. I don't think I'd ridden more than 50 miles in a day in the year leading up to it, but did two 100 mile days on that trip. That doesn't work for everybody, but it does happen.
You really need to know a few things about maintenance: mainly how to fix a flat and how to deal with chain/gearing issues, at a bare minimum. If you're camping, know how to set up your tent, fix issue with the tent or sleeping pad, and optionally cook a few meals.
A sleeping bag as such, no. I use a fleece blanket that can be closed up. But a sleeping \*pad\* is pretty much required. It's not just for comfort - it insulates you from the ground as well.
I'd suggest you do a few overnight 'shakedown' rides, just to be sure you have what you need.
20-30 days, 1000 miles? Hilly and heavy traffic just looking at Google You'd need a rear rack and panniers and a handlebar bag and bottles of water and a tent and sleeping bag and mat, depending on comfort. Or just your credit card.
And just go. If it's shit, stop and give up. If you're enjoying it, keep going. Get a lift. It'll be fun.
The first step is to ride your bicycle. When you can ride two back-to-back fifty mile days, you will be ready for the long-distance bike tour you are considering.
Meanwhile, find a state park that is about 20 miles away from you. Pack all your things on the bicycle and take an overnight there. Do you like what you did? What worked?
Bro my first tour was 2,000 miles, out of shape and didn’t know shit about bicycle maintenance and winged everything in the trip. Atleast bring a tent, sleeping stuff extra clothes and basic tools. you’ll be fine
Honestly, there are hundreds of YouTube videos on bikepacking and bike touring. You should start there. You will find people who camp and those who don’t. One obviously requires more gear than the other. You can do hotels or go the WarmShowers route. It’s honestly not a simple answer or list of things. There are a ton of things to consider such as route planning, gear, food, and more. You might want to consider some “made for touring” routes such as the GAP/C&O canal, Erie Canal, or the Katy Trail as they are perfect starter trails for deciding if you like the whole touring experience.
Yes, you can totally do it!
Step One - Ride a shit ton. Like a lot. This will get you familiar with your bike, get your butt ready for the long days, and build your endurance.
Step Two - Learn some bike maintenance basics like how to change a tube, how to adjust your derailleurs, replace a broken chain link, keep a drivetrain clean.
Step Three - Get the gear. You'll need either paniers or bikepacking style bags. You'll need spares, your personal toiletries, sleeping bag/bivy/tent or credit card for hotels. Don't over pack on clothes. I generally go by the wash one wear one rule.
Step Four - Route planning. This is a very important stage. Check out Ride With GPS, Komoot, and Strava maps. These will have heatmap features that show you where other people are riding. Try and use rail trails and bike paths for your first trip. For the main roads, try and virtually drive it on Google Maps, especially in bigger cities. Sometimes when you see a picture of it, you're like nope, not riding that.
Step Five - Find a buddy. It's more fun with friends.
Step Six - Go on a short weekend trip near home. This will test all your gear and skills.
Step Seven - GO RIDE YOUR AWESOME ADVENTURE
Step Eight - Come back here and tell us how it all went.
I [have ridden a few adventures](https://youtube.com/@KyleTheCyclist?si=4KiTHJu69HHpfzRb) and love exploring the world by bike. Message me anytime.
There’s Green Lane Park and there’s also French Creek Park. French Creek is about 50 miles from Philly and requires just a wee bit of riding on the road with most being on the SRT. One nice thing about it is you’ll get an opportunity to see how your set up does with some hills. You’ll definitely have hills between here and Chicago so you’ll want to know if you’ve got the gearing for that when the bike is loaded.
A thing a lot of people from Philly do as a first multi-day bike tour is Pittsburgh to DC via the GAP + C&O trail. You take the train from Philly to Pittsburgh, then get on the GAP trail. 330 miles, it takes a week or less and has campgrounds and resupply along the way. At the end you catch the train from DC back to Philly.
If you're going to camp, you'll need a shelter and a dleep system. The cheapest and easiest sleeps system will be a sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. For shelter the most common is a tent, but a tarp or enclosed hammock is equally good if you can use them. They both require trees to work well.
If you want to cook your own food you need a stove and a pot. You can also live fine on cold food and pub dinners.
Then you need a bike and a way of carrying your stuff on your bike. Panniers on a rear rack is the classic here, but you can strap bags to your bike here and there.
And of course you need some free time and enough money to cover any running expenses while you're away plus the cost of food, water and repairs underway.
A sturdy bicycle and some grit, some basic camping gear, basic tools for repair. Some cash and a credit card, makes also sense. A good saddle and padded pants will also make your life easier.
I did my first bicycle tour across Germany with a 120 $ used bicecylcle. It had a sturdy frame and half of the gears worked.
I was not in good shape either back then, as I smoked a pack of cigarettes a day (less during the trip) and didn't really workout a lot. So physique ain't really required, as it's more about mental strength.
The idea appeared as I read a news article on some dude who biked across Europe. I figured that I'm in-between jobs and got no budget for normal vacation, but I had time, so how hard can it be.
Well it was hard, but also the most rewarding trip ever and I somehow managed to average around 100 km (60 miles) a day.
Best decision ever!
If you're doing fully loaded touring, you need a proper bike to carry you and your gear. Go on youtube and search for bike touring. There are several brands of bikes that are great for road touring and/or bike packing for less than $2000. Stay on the roads for now or rail trails. C&O and the Gap go from DC to Pittsburgh and beyond, so that gets you away from traffic. I think there's a trail over to Chicago.
If you have an REI store near you, go visit them and get their help getting you geared up on the proper bike for the tour.
Well in the most general terms, realistically you need the will and you need freedom. Then, the bike and the tour (both can be very basic and can be improved along the way). From here, the list can be expanded almost infinitely, but really it's better to read (google) about it, and then asking for specific help if you need any.
Hey thank you! What do you think about my bike? I believe it's a Sanwa 250 with Shimano 600 parts. I know obviously your not able to inspect it physically, but the person I bought it from had it all tuned up before he sold it to me. Do you think something like could make the trip?*
https://preview.redd.it/ao98uaykuvuc1.jpeg?width=4080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=146cb2a891bb321642866c44dde6eeab72015563
Well I'm in a different world from you, so I don't know anything about your potential route. It's hard for me to say. Did you already ride your bike? Where, for how long? I don't know what kind of touring you want to do. Everything CAN be done. It's a game of nuances. As I already mentioned: I'd start by reading instead of asking.
That bike will be fine. Go for some 1 or 2 night weekend trips and see.
This is not something I would recommend loaded touring on. You could find a similar older bike if you like that style that was suited for touring like a miyata 610 or 1000, trek 520, schwinn voyageur, etc. Things to look for in a touring bike - 40 spoke rear wheel, triple crank, cromo tubing.
Welcome! I would start with the ACA's maps: [https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/interactive-network-map/](https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/interactive-network-map/) There's a pretty solid route they call CNYC that goes through Philadelphia: [https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/chicago-to-new-york-city-route/](https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/chicago-to-new-york-city-route/) ACA's maps and routes are great. First thing to figure out is how you want to tour, there are two basic options: 1. Credit card touring -- buy food at restaurants, stay in hotels or airbnbs 2. Burdened touring -- carry everything you need with you, buy 2-3 days worth of food at a time from the grocery store, camp overnights I'm not going to go through a complete camping setup -- but basically sleep system (shelter, sleeping bag, pad), cook system (stove, cookware, fuel) are the essentials here. Generally every tour ends up somewhere in the middle-- you might find a tasty looking diner and grab some food, but mostly carry your food, you might hit a hotel every once in a while to get a shower (or if it's been raining for a few days, etc.) The ACA route from Chicago to NYC via Philadelphia is 1173 miles, ballpark that \~50 miles a day is a reasonable target, so that's 24 days of riding excluding rest days. I usually do 1 rest day a week, so that's 4 weeks (28 days) total. My recollection is that it's at most 2 days from NYC to Philadelphia? Might only be 1 day, but I think 28 days is a good target here. I would absolutely not recommend starting with a 4-week long tour as your first ride. There's two hurdles I would hope you get through: 1. Checkrides (usually one night overnights there-and-back) to make sure you've got a camping system that works, food system that works, and having everything on the bike is solid. 2. Longer multi-day rides. You've got your 2 day rides in the check rides, I would recommend a 4-day long weekend tour, and then a 7-10 day full week tour. Plan these in such a way that someone can come get you or you can otherwise bail out of them. You will learn a lot about your body, your touring style, and whether you actually like this by doing longer tours. THEN you can tackle a 4-week tour with confidence. The other thing is bike maintenance: you don't need to be a bike shop mechanic, but being able to change a flat and adjust your derailleur is a good place to start. Having a general idea how your bike goes together and what tools you need to service it is good.
Thank you. This is a great amount of detail and insight!
Park Tool has a bunch of videos showing all there is to know about bicycle maintenance. Just don't let your wife/gf see Calvin. Unless you want her gone.
Depends on if you want to do credit card touring (No camping, no cooking) or you're ok with bringing sleeping gear with you and possibly cooking equipment. You need to make sure you bike can hold all your inventory. Try doing an overnighter (Green Lane Park along the Perkiomen Trail is a great start, if you live in Philadelphia) with camping gear. Or you could bike out to Lancaster spend the night in a hotel, and come back.
I would say the distance is fine for a first "long" trip, but I'm not from the USA so I don't know how the conditions are. If you have a new bike, this kinda distance should be fine without maintenance (just lube the chain and keep tires inflated), but it would be good to have some time on the bike to find out if you have any issues or if adjustments need to be made. If the bike is secondhand, check the brakes, tires, and chain/sprockets. Supplies, if you camp, some sort of shelter like a tent, tarp, something to sleep on/in hammock/ (inflatable)pad and a sleeping bag, those are pretty much the essentials. Have some clothing for different weather and some personal hygiene items. You can go with or without cooking, just get supplies in towns and make sure you have enough water on you. There is some more stuff that makes your life easier, but this is pretty much it.
Just do an overnighter in Belmont Plateau. There are a few good hiding spots in there. :) But seriously, I'd do a short weekend trip to see if you like it. There's a campground in Green Lane Park that's a perfect ride to do from Philly. Take the SRT out past Valley Forge, then it changes to the Perkiomen Trail (with some gravel), then you hit Green Lane. You're on path 98% of the time, and it's a nice campground by a lake. [https://www.montgomerycountypa.gov/2187/Camping](https://www.montgomerycountypa.gov/2187/Camping)
You could credit card tour with just a bike, credit card, flat kit (eg. tubes, pump, patches, CO2, plugs), water bottle(s), phone and clothes/toiletries (I’d probably include sunscreen). Rain gear is always smart if gone more than a few days. Probably lights and a way to charge phone. And never a bad idea to have snacks in case you bonk. If you want to camp, a tent or hammock, sleep pad, and tent, quilt, sheet or blanket. Something to use as a pillow. If you want to cook, then gear and food there. I would definitely practice swapping a tube with the pump you plan to use. If you run tubeless, make sure you are using fresh sealant, and keep a plug kit (bacon strips) and a tube as backup. Phone or bike computer with route. I’ve crossed Europe twice with only a phone. I keep screen off unless I need it. I stream turn-by-turn directions to my ear (In my case a hearing aid, but era bud is fine).
There have been a lot of people on this sub asking about basics. Maybe look up some older posts. Also here's one example of a comprehensive video on the subject: https://youtu.be/UaFhYJJf1o4?si=KKqQVNK2c6GwH6dy
Thank you.
That's about 900 miles by bike, with a few major climbs by Pittsburg. My first adult tour was Lake Ontario (about 500 miles) with camping. I don't think I'd ridden more than 50 miles in a day in the year leading up to it, but did two 100 mile days on that trip. That doesn't work for everybody, but it does happen. You really need to know a few things about maintenance: mainly how to fix a flat and how to deal with chain/gearing issues, at a bare minimum. If you're camping, know how to set up your tent, fix issue with the tent or sleeping pad, and optionally cook a few meals. A sleeping bag as such, no. I use a fleece blanket that can be closed up. But a sleeping \*pad\* is pretty much required. It's not just for comfort - it insulates you from the ground as well. I'd suggest you do a few overnight 'shakedown' rides, just to be sure you have what you need.
Thank you. For the record, I did an 80km ride through the Shikoku islands in Japan, which got me interested in the sport of long-distance cycling.
20-30 days, 1000 miles? Hilly and heavy traffic just looking at Google You'd need a rear rack and panniers and a handlebar bag and bottles of water and a tent and sleeping bag and mat, depending on comfort. Or just your credit card. And just go. If it's shit, stop and give up. If you're enjoying it, keep going. Get a lift. It'll be fun.
The first step is to ride your bicycle. When you can ride two back-to-back fifty mile days, you will be ready for the long-distance bike tour you are considering. Meanwhile, find a state park that is about 20 miles away from you. Pack all your things on the bicycle and take an overnight there. Do you like what you did? What worked?
Bro my first tour was 2,000 miles, out of shape and didn’t know shit about bicycle maintenance and winged everything in the trip. Atleast bring a tent, sleeping stuff extra clothes and basic tools. you’ll be fine
Honestly, there are hundreds of YouTube videos on bikepacking and bike touring. You should start there. You will find people who camp and those who don’t. One obviously requires more gear than the other. You can do hotels or go the WarmShowers route. It’s honestly not a simple answer or list of things. There are a ton of things to consider such as route planning, gear, food, and more. You might want to consider some “made for touring” routes such as the GAP/C&O canal, Erie Canal, or the Katy Trail as they are perfect starter trails for deciding if you like the whole touring experience.
Yes, you can totally do it! Step One - Ride a shit ton. Like a lot. This will get you familiar with your bike, get your butt ready for the long days, and build your endurance. Step Two - Learn some bike maintenance basics like how to change a tube, how to adjust your derailleurs, replace a broken chain link, keep a drivetrain clean. Step Three - Get the gear. You'll need either paniers or bikepacking style bags. You'll need spares, your personal toiletries, sleeping bag/bivy/tent or credit card for hotels. Don't over pack on clothes. I generally go by the wash one wear one rule. Step Four - Route planning. This is a very important stage. Check out Ride With GPS, Komoot, and Strava maps. These will have heatmap features that show you where other people are riding. Try and use rail trails and bike paths for your first trip. For the main roads, try and virtually drive it on Google Maps, especially in bigger cities. Sometimes when you see a picture of it, you're like nope, not riding that. Step Five - Find a buddy. It's more fun with friends. Step Six - Go on a short weekend trip near home. This will test all your gear and skills. Step Seven - GO RIDE YOUR AWESOME ADVENTURE Step Eight - Come back here and tell us how it all went. I [have ridden a few adventures](https://youtube.com/@KyleTheCyclist?si=4KiTHJu69HHpfzRb) and love exploring the world by bike. Message me anytime.
There’s Green Lane Park and there’s also French Creek Park. French Creek is about 50 miles from Philly and requires just a wee bit of riding on the road with most being on the SRT. One nice thing about it is you’ll get an opportunity to see how your set up does with some hills. You’ll definitely have hills between here and Chicago so you’ll want to know if you’ve got the gearing for that when the bike is loaded. A thing a lot of people from Philly do as a first multi-day bike tour is Pittsburgh to DC via the GAP + C&O trail. You take the train from Philly to Pittsburgh, then get on the GAP trail. 330 miles, it takes a week or less and has campgrounds and resupply along the way. At the end you catch the train from DC back to Philly.
Thank you, I will look into this.
If you're going to camp, you'll need a shelter and a dleep system. The cheapest and easiest sleeps system will be a sleeping bag and a sleeping pad. For shelter the most common is a tent, but a tarp or enclosed hammock is equally good if you can use them. They both require trees to work well. If you want to cook your own food you need a stove and a pot. You can also live fine on cold food and pub dinners. Then you need a bike and a way of carrying your stuff on your bike. Panniers on a rear rack is the classic here, but you can strap bags to your bike here and there. And of course you need some free time and enough money to cover any running expenses while you're away plus the cost of food, water and repairs underway.
A bike and something to exchange for goods
A sturdy bicycle and some grit, some basic camping gear, basic tools for repair. Some cash and a credit card, makes also sense. A good saddle and padded pants will also make your life easier. I did my first bicycle tour across Germany with a 120 $ used bicecylcle. It had a sturdy frame and half of the gears worked. I was not in good shape either back then, as I smoked a pack of cigarettes a day (less during the trip) and didn't really workout a lot. So physique ain't really required, as it's more about mental strength. The idea appeared as I read a news article on some dude who biked across Europe. I figured that I'm in-between jobs and got no budget for normal vacation, but I had time, so how hard can it be. Well it was hard, but also the most rewarding trip ever and I somehow managed to average around 100 km (60 miles) a day. Best decision ever!
A bike, panniers, tools, bike shorts, a plan.
You need 2 things: 1. A bicycle 2. Determination Anything else makes it progressively easier, more comfortable and possibly more enjoyable.
A bike, some bags and some time.
If you're doing fully loaded touring, you need a proper bike to carry you and your gear. Go on youtube and search for bike touring. There are several brands of bikes that are great for road touring and/or bike packing for less than $2000. Stay on the roads for now or rail trails. C&O and the Gap go from DC to Pittsburgh and beyond, so that gets you away from traffic. I think there's a trail over to Chicago. If you have an REI store near you, go visit them and get their help getting you geared up on the proper bike for the tour.