I've spent hours putting together very specific routes for the trip. So far I've figured out how my route from Winnipeg to Vancouver and am in the middle of the Vancouver to Southern Cal route. The former was fairly straightforward: take the Trans-Canada to Medicine Hat and jump on less busy but still quality route, the Crowsnest Highway, all the way into southeast BC.
The latter, however, is much tougher to decide. It would be lovely to explore Vancouver Island or the adjacent San Juan Islands in Washington. Seeing all of Puget Sound would be terrific, too. But ferry schedules and sheer distance are big barriers. As I go through this more closely, I am beginning to realize how close I am to different landmarks. Mount St. Helens, for example, is only 75 km away from my current route. That seems very close. But life on a bike makes that jaunt much more daunting. Going there, enjoying the site, and coming back would likely take at least two days extra.
Canada and the USA are full of landmarks that every person should see, but it is becoming clearer to me that there is no way I can ever see everything. When I tell people I might make it as far south as Los Angeles in California, they tell me I'm so close to San Diego and Tijuana that I might as well check those places out, too. Except those places are almost 200 km away from LA. True, on a trip that will likely last longer than 20,000 km, a 200 km jaunt doesn't seem like much extra, but those trips would add up. Quickly.
It's a true shame. There is so much to see, but you'll never be able to see it all. Once you have accepted that your trip gets a lot more exciting, as you start to look at all the places you will get to see instead of what you might miss.
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