Coast to Coast – Domagala.Bike

Made it across North America by bicycle. 3913 miles. 54 days, spread over 6 years. What a ride!

An absolutely beautiful New England day. 55 degrees to start, 70 at the finish. Morning fog burned off by 9am.

I was feeling a bit emotional at today’s start in Alton Bay, New Hampshire. Thinking back on so many awesome rides across this wonderful country. Today would be the final ride of this astounding two-wheel adventure. Jax, my beautiful trail angel, by my side. Others alongside in spirit, including my dad.

Rolling hills, country roads, trees galore. Great to see so many other cyclists enjoying a gorgeous day for a ride. Soon, I would cross into Maine, the 12th and final state of the journey.

Most of my Maine riding was along the Eastern Trail, also known as U.S. Bicycle Route 1. A hand-picked collection of off-road trails and bicycle-friendly back roads. Absolutely wonderful. I’m not sure I could have a better finishing ride. 70 miles of constant smiles.

Mile 65, and I started to feel the ocean breeze. A few blocks from the ocean, I met up with my three sons, who all made the trip to Maine to watch their ‘pops’ complete this coast-to-coast adventure. They presented me with a custom C2C jersey (limited edition, #1 of 1!) to commemorate the occasion. And then, a front wheel dip into the Atlantic, and a hoist of the trusty carbon-fiber steed that got me here.

As a fun memento, I brought some sand all the way from the Oregon coast, and sprinkled some into the Atlantic. Then the boys helped me collect some Maine sand. The Oregon sand is much darker, probably more volcanic than the sandy Maine beach. A cool keepsake of the two coastal points of this adventure.

3913 total miles. EFI. That’s insider long distance cycling jargon for ‘Every F#*^&% Inch’. In this case, Every Fantastic Inch!

So, people ask, what’s next? I really don’t know. I’m guessing other adventures will beckon soon. For now, it’s celebration time. And a lobster feast.

Thanks to everyone who provided support, encouragement, and inspiration all along the way. I feel blessed and so incredibly fortunate to conquer such an awesome coast-to-coast adventure.

Another cool morning to start (55 degrees), but sunny! And it would be mostly sunny all day, with a high of 75, our warmest day since Buffalo. Air quality also good. All in all, a fabulous day for a 91 mile bike ride (longest of this 2023 segment).

Six miles in, we crossed the Connecticut River into New Hampshire, the 11th state (plus 1 Canadian province) on this coast to coast adventure. One more to go.

From the town of Lebanon, the 58 mile Northern Rail Trail winds into the heart of New Hampshire (Named after the Northern Railroad which formerly owned and operated the tracks). Like most rail trails, the Northern has a max grade of 3% and cuts through otherwise daunting hills. Wildlife is also abundant, I saw a few wild turkeys on the trail today (first turkey sighting since Michigan). Also a bevy of birds, chipmunks, bunnies, and deer. No porcupines today, thankfully.

And the seclusion from automobile traffic means a peaceful ride, often along rivers and lakes. These lakeside stops are a favorite of Jax and I. Today we met up at beautiful Mascoma Lake and I snapped this pic of Jackie from a bridge:

The Northern rail trail is gravel, and a bit rough in some spots (with an occasional railroad tie surfacing from below ground). By my personal experience and estimation, gravel travel requires about 20% more energy than paved roads (to maintain equivalent speed). After 40 miles my legs were feeling zapped. An excellent breakfast sandwich from the Danbury General Store helped helped refuel the body and restore the legs for 50 more miles.

When you are tired and hungry, I suppose any food is excellent. But this Danbury sandwich seemed to work wonders as I felt great for the rest of the ride.

We passed through the charming town of Franklin, whom a long-time acquaintance of mine is from. Franklin is reinventing itself from an old mill town to a hip watersport destination, with kayak flower planters lining the sidewalks and streets. There is also the fun Winnipesaukee River trail. Here, I felt bold enough to take a selfie while riding (careful trying this at home!)

Another lake stop in the town of Laconia (Lake Winnisquam), and then on to our next-to-last overnight stop on this coast-to-coast adventure; Alton Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee (the largest lake in New Hampshire, covering 72 square miles). Man, there is a lot of water around here!

Oh, and on the way, I took a brief detour on a special road… one that celebrates this special day for Jackie and I…