It is the beginning of Spring 2013 and I am on break from work enjoying a few days in Las Vegas. Not the usual Vegas vacation. I lived here 30 years, before moving to Oregon. I am visiting friends and watching collegiate tennis. My Goddaughter plays for Eastern Washington University. I am a teacher and had my first cycle journey summer 2011, along the Oregon Coast with my friend and riding buddy Marc. I was unable to get on the road last summer, completing graduate school in educational technology. Hence, the interest in blogging. I will attempt to journal my cycle tour experience. I hope some find it interesting, enjoyable, and helpful. I am planning on taking a 1500 mile 30+ day self sustained solo bicycle tour this summer. I am in the planning stages at the moment and will post some comments, plans, reviews, and anything else that might be helpful to fellow cyclists. Starting with the basics. I ride a 2011 Surly Long Haul Trucker 56cm 700cc. It is equipped with Tubus Tara front rack, Old Man Mountain rear rack, Ortlieb panniers and a Topeak handlebar bag. I will be using a Garmin Oregon 450 GPS with 24K map (CA, WA, OR, & NV)downloaded. I have also downloaded the ACA map to compliment the hard copy maps of my route sections. Boring you with details, specifications and reviews of my gear is not my intention. So, if your are interested in any specific information, suggestion, or advice please post a question or comment and I will try and answer in a timely manner. This is primarily written for cycling adventurers, family, and loved ones to track my Summer 2013 adventure. I will be starting from my home in Butte Falls, Oregon. It is a small town in the Cascade Mountain Range of Southern Oregon. It is a logging community of about 400 people. Clean air, pure water, and sunshine. I am the Special Education Teacher in the town. I will travel along the ACA Sierra Cascade route north with some variations, due to personal preference. I will depart last week of June and head north to Hood River. Spending the day there off the bicycle to rest and then cross into Washington and continue north to US 12. Changing course there to head west to skirt Tacoma and head up east of Olympia National Park to Port Townsend. Spending some time on the San Juan Islands before heading south on 101 for return trip. I will be heading south on the Washington and Oregon Coasts to Hwy 42 and head inland to Canyonville, Tiller Highway and home. I will continue to update and upload pictures of the trip. I welcome all comments and questions. Thanks for reading my blog.