by Philip

This trip has been a dream for Liz since she cycled a section of the Pacific Coast Highway for a week in 1987. Having persuaded me to join her on this epic adventure, we set about planning the trip and preparing ourselves physically.

We planned our route using the Komoot app, which enabled us to put start and end points in and state how many days we wanted to take – the app then gave us a route. Komoot specialises in building cycle-friendly routes, avoiding busy roads wherever possible. Armed with an outline route, we set about booking accommodation along the route – sometimes straightforward and sometimes tricky, especially when in an area of wilderness with few options! With accommodation booked, we revised the route to cover all the bookings.

We have chosen to do the trip on e-bikes – which presented our first challenge … it is not possible to fly with e-bikes (due to risks of battery fires) – and we were unable to find anywhere to rent bikes for a trip like this. We decided to buy bikes in Bellingham WA (near Blaine) and we plan then to sell them when we get to the other end. We have chosen the Gazelle Eclipse 11+ e-bikes – a Dutch bike with great range and luggage carrying capacity. For Cathy’s visit we found Sam at Humboldt Kayak and Bike Rental, who has been amazing in renting a bike to us and helping with the logistics of posting it back to him two weeks later.

To prepare ourselves we have both done a lot of rides alone and together – often around Boxhill in Surrey. Cathy, who will join us for two weeks around her half-term holiday in May, has been cycling to and from work on Lime e-bikes. The highlight of our preparation was a weekend away for the three of us, cycling from home in Epsom to Worthing, staying overnight in an AirBnB and cycling back the next day – 50 miles per day, and coping with very strong winds.

We are now three weeks away from the start of the trip and finalising logistics, packing lists, clothing, taxi journeys, and all the minutiae of a major expedition!

Blog comments from Piers and Kathy Fraser. Piers: ‘This is WONDERFUL! I’ll relish following your journey (along with all of your friends, family and supporters). Philip: you need to eat a few more pies, mate, or Liz will be drip-feeding you glucose drinks before you get to Seattle 😳. I’m so excited for you both’. Kathy (posted on 19^th May): ‘Lovely to meet you all today (this is the other teacher-Kathy-who-commutes-on-an-e-bike)! I’m looking forward to following your adventures, here; reading about your preparations is reigniting my dream of bike-touring the UK & Europe one day!’

Social media comments from Doug Clark, Raquel Didier, Des Georgina, Lorna Hunter, Cathie Shearn, Sandie Archer, Carole Stemp, Alma Burcombe, Sarah Robson, Lynn Hedges, Olivia King, Tracy Green, Ian Clark-Jones, Liz May, Kay Ayre and Gilly Ralph. Doug: ‘Ride safe’. Raquel: ‘So exciting! Have the best time xx’. Des: ‘Excited for you! Gonna be incredible Philip!! Xx’. Lorna: ‘Have a fabulous time. Such beautiful scenery to behold!’ Cathie: ‘Have a wonderful time!!’ Sandie: ‘Have a wonderful trip and an enjoyable ride!’ Carole: ‘Have a great time stay safe xx’. Alma: ‘All the very best for the epic ride’. Sarah: ‘Have a fantastic time xx’. Lynn: ‘All the very best. Have a magnificent journey, be safe and enjoy! Looking forward to keeping up to date with your news. Take great care please xx’. Olivia: ‘I hope you both have the best time!!!’ Tracy: ‘Have an amazing time! Take loads of photos x’. Ian: ‘Praying you both have a safe and enjoyable journey’. Liz: ‘Can’t wait to read all about it! And see photos of course!’ Kay: ‘Have the best time Taylors on tour! Go smash it’. Gilly: ‘Hope it goes well, have a fabulous time!’