View Single Post
Old 09-02-20, 01:52 PM
  #3  
raybo
Bike touring webrarian
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: San Francisco, CA
Posts: 2,069

Bikes: I tour on a Waterford Adventurecycle. It is a fabulous touring bike.

Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 120 Post(s)
Liked 91 Times in 50 Posts
I am likely much older than you at 68. I am also retired, so time constraints are not tight. I have been touring (and retired) since I was 50. I have developed an approach that works for me.

First, I don't camp and don't carry camping nor cooking gear. Everything I carry fits into 2 rear panniers and a front bag, maybe 25 pounds.

I find my sweet spot to be 50 miles and no more than 4000 feet of elevation of gain. I also plan to rest every 5th day--I ride 4 days and then take a full day off the bike.

In order to do this, I do extensive planning and try to route through a place I'd want to spend the day on my 5th day. When I have to decide between doing more or less than 50, I usually choose to do less, though riding as much as 70 miles is not uncommon.

The first time I rode from SF to LA, I did back-to-back 70 miles days over hilly terrain. I was physically exhausted at the end of every day after day 3. It wasn't worth it to me. I prefer to take more time, ride slower, and experience the trip instead of simply riding my bike through an area.
raybo is offline  
Likes For raybo: