Cycling Across The USA With My Dad - A Bikepacking Adventure Film

[Music] we knew it was going to be a challenge neither of us had any cycling experience before the trip and that was undoubtedly going to be many low points and obstacles to overcome [Music] we're arguing a lot more bad piss off oh and this is only the beginning but she was going to be an adventure three months across one of the most incredible and diverse countries on Earth a journey ascending the equivalent of five Everest through wind rain hail snow and extreme heat bloody freezing it's been nearly 40 degrees again today crossing a continent over 4 000 miles from the Atlantic to the Pacific loving that headwind 350 miles to go and then we're done [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] not much so I can start with but we'll do a bit more this afternoon [Music] uh made it to New Jersey off the ferry now try to start cycling but it's raining day one's just being spent cycling alongside yet our station we see [Music] all of us we are 10 miles in only four thousand to go [Applause] rain's gone sun's coming out yeah so uh it bodes well for the future next few months are going to be fun looking forward to it [Music] [Music] heading into Philly at the end of day two the roads are utterly dog awful there I'm getting fed up with lights however Josh you're still smiling just a moment [Music] someone's not happy with his nav the first few days were a shock to the system especially for me because instead of training back home with Dad I'd spent the last three months partying in Thailand this already began to take a toll on our relationship as my constant tiredness proved frustrating for Dad and the incessant headwinds were not making things any easier but we knew things would improve just needed some time to get into the routine at least that's what we hoped [Applause] here we are day six first ride of the day taking the shortcut it's not a bloody shortcut it's a long cut thumbs up no why not that should be nice [Music] I'm just cycling into a hail storm it's absolutely hammering it down with these things it really hurt as well [Music] because the bridge has been blown we haven't defined an alternative route so Josh is doing a recce in flip-flops trailblazing the route through and how you're gonna get the bikes through push I'm not going over with the camera to set it up and then we will come over with the bikes but yeah it's an adventure it's quite deep and it's very cold nearly fell out I've lost the flip Bob oh not just lost a flip-flop I've broken the flip-flop [Music] pushing up from that now we're up there at least it's sunny today [Music] just arrived at our campsite just over there first night and ten quite successful day are they about 55 miles but lots of Hills Ohio is purely just Hills [Music] this is not the sound that you want to be woken up by when you've got a day of cycling and you're in a tent yay [Music] bicycle is covered snow 's coming down a bit heavier now bikes are packed it's time to get moving into the snowstorm refreshing everything's freezing all I can see is my handlebars and about two meters of road in front of me because as soon as I lift my head on a slightest of mine I just get a face full of snow which isn't enjoyable Asian bloody freezing foreign [Music] comes [Music] [Applause] [Music] I guess a little bit soggy [Music] when it comes to accommodation if we're not camping we use this website called warm showers warm showers is a free service where people around the world can host bike Packers and Walkers who are doing long distance Adventures last night we're in this garage as we made our way slowly West the signs of spring started to repair and before long the bare trees became Lush with Greenery and flowers things were actually starting to get easier we had gotten into a flow learned to tolerate each other more and instead of being surrounded by cars on the busy roads we found ourselves surrounded by Nature as we cycle the next 300 miles along the Katy Trail Falling Rocks inside [Music] thank you [Music] [Music] slightly worryingly uh the skies have got significantly darker and given we are in the middle of Tornado Alley in tornado season and there was one here a couple of days ago that killed six people I'm kind of looking for shelter now [Music] goggles [Music] we get wet this is pretty brutal actually so the storm came in pretty hard when the lightning hitting the ground uh only a few hundred meters ahead of us we managed to find this Pew cushion Factory and they have kind left us in to take shelter while the storm passes foreign [Music] [Music] nice and flat nice Tailwind Happy Days we've made it geographical center of the U.S [Music] after a month of cycling in the wet we finally hit Kansas the boring State as we had been told the sun started to make more of an appearance and the vegetation began to disappear Kansas came with his own set of challenges and these were not physical ones but mental motivation was already starting to slack at this point but when there is nothing around except for the long straight road in front of you and the odd grain silo boredom really starts to kick in them together it's like cycling in the desert here hot and Dusty and this is only the beginning [Music] in our tent he managed to take out a bag of pasta I think that's all he got to he'd come back in for more but I've woken up and get a shot of torch in his face and could just see him oh dear ever since we left New York five weeks ago this has been the one moment I've been thinking about quite a bit we just come over a rise here in Colorado in front of us are the Rockies and they're huge [Music] we're getting ready to head up and up the hills up to across the Continental Divide so a bit of a climb today it's already very hot we're at seven thousand feet so it's going to be a bit of a leg burner and a bit of a lung burner as well so yeah looking forward to it and we'll keep keep pushing and enjoy the view it was refreshing to hit Colorado although it was the start of the climbs and we still face the ceaseless headwinds the vast forests and snow-capped mountains framed in Clear Blue Skies made the challenge much more accelerating time for a little energy boost it goes to the top [Music] oh I'm pumping a bit now this is getting pretty tough [Applause] [Music] we've made it the Continental Divide I wish [Music] the Continental Divide was the major climb for us not only physically but as the key psychological Summit of this journey the symbolic starts what we expected to be the downhill rides the Pacific Ocean and the Finish just over six weeks away [Music] we're now leaving Grand Junction about to head out into the Utah desert I've got two days to Moab I think we'll be wild camping tonight as there's not much around so we've packed up the bikes got loads of food loads of water so yeah let's go [Music] edit about 35 miles and then the winds have just picked up so much 50 mile an hour of gas probably higher we came over a rise and it's just impossible to to cycle so we were looking at Google Maps on satellite mode and we found these few in the last few settlements for about another 40 miles man Cameron knocks on the door and after we could part 10 somewhere luckily she said that we could but it was so windy and she has this massive garage and she said we can put along that some sleeping bags here so we'll be spending the night here it's also a quail form that's what they do he raised quails so all the little chicks that have just hatched it's kind of cool thank you but it should be should be an okay night at least we've got some shelter around the wind but a long day tomorrow [Music] we have made it to Utah this is the State sign [Music] this place is insane I knew Utah was going to be incredible but this is completely exceeding expectations it is so cool [Music] off the highway now into a bit of a desert [Music] [Music] [Music] this is the worst road we have cycled on for the whole 3000 Miles so far across America the shoulder is about just over a bike not even a bike widths wide it's just it's tiny and you're wobbling all over when you've got the rumble strips then you've got big lorries and everything going past um not too much further than I hope for you though only a few more miles [Music] [Music] thank you foreign has a sixth toe which is sticking into the side of my cycling shoe I'm making it really painful to cycle it's getting worse and worse but I'm squeezing it because we've only got forwards to go [Music] foreign I've absolutely loved this journey with my dad it's been absolutely incredible I'm sharing this time with him but it is getting to a stage now where we're arguing a lot more um I think Fitness level wise I've definitely progressed a lot more I don't know if Dad's tiring up he's got the problem with his foot so he's slowing down a lot and I'm speeding up so I'm now having to wait every sort of five miles at least five ten minutes for him to catch up which over time can be quite annoying because I know that I could just be if I was on my own you know I'd be miles down the road they're both absolutely exhausted and shattered in the evenings uh like I really really appreciate him coming I absolutely love spending this time with him and I I know I'm going to look back at this time the rest of my life there's an amazing thing to do with my dad so I've just got a focus on the positives push on try not to argue with him um and yeah having a good last last few weeks on the bikes [Music] foreign [Music] biggest climb of the trip we believe it's about six thousand feet going straight up we're already about 2000 feet up from where we started so a little way more to go but it's exhausting and it's hot and it's windy got to get it done [Music] it was hard but tumbling being specs in this vast landscape really made us realize what matters in life and to appreciate the simple things other than cycling are days consisted of just finding a place to get food and water and a good place to come and in this Simplicity our previous stress is diminished as we find joy in this total freedom and the generous Hospitality of the people he met along the way they've just arrived at the uh the tunnels at Zion I'm keeping an eye out for a truck because you can't take bikes through the tunnel which is a bit of a bind because our campsites on the other side so just waiting for a truck's turn up to flag down uh and fingers crossed we'll get through before we get started Happy Days bikes are in Obi van Kenobi just in front of us I'm getting a lift with mum who just flew out to meet us and spend the last couple of weeks with us as we head to San Francisco so hopefully the bikes will be safe in the round with Dad thank you [Music] in stark contrast to the Snows of Ohio the deserts of Nevada are penultimate state would present an altogether different challenge high altitude extreme heat and seemingly endless roads Rising into distant mountains reaching each Summit became a Gateway into yet another immense Valley and endless Road it was a hot hilly Kansas just with hardly any people I wonder what the drivers are angry for [Music] foreign [Music] got to 38 degrees so 100 degrees Fahrenheit I'm cycling on the ET Highway with Area 51 just next to us a lot of alien stuff around tomorrow we've got a whole day with nothing to be fair this is the last settlement for the next 100 miles so we were camping tomorrow and you stop everyone off the water for two days but yeah should be fun hopefully not too hot but it probably will be [Music] thank you well two hours of uphill on another day in the desert toughest part of the trip so far it's very hot high 30s very high we're about five five to six thousand feet and it's uh it's up and down foreign [Music] loving that headwind it doesn't fit as that pillows that that looked no not at all no it's not my feet didn't hurt my ass didn't hurt my hands didn't hurt you faced it and my face didn't hurt my lunch went bursting my eyes weren't streaming the nose wasn't running it's right we're nearly there peak of physical fitness [Music] bath water I think I stick a tea bag in there making cup of tea it tastes nicer than this would so the place that we were hoping to camp tonight had fences all around it and it said do not enter so we've had to keep going uphill obviously luckily it's got a bit cooler but still nowhere we can find a picture tent I hope you find something before it gets too dark Sun's now about to set and all the mountains are going Orange and we're both exhausted [Music] I've just found a place to camp but most importantly we're still smiling [Music] [Applause] [Music] how picturesque is lovely what a delightful camping spot I couldn't have picked better myself I can eat on a daily basis There She Goes cool nicely crushed I have your footing advice oh [Music] [Music] final state California 350 miles to go and then we're done [Music] thank you [Music] final big big climb of the trip today probably the biggest time as well on the whole trip six thousand feet up to the top of 270 National Park and then all downhill pretty much the Pacific Ocean in first under five days time [Music] bloody Hedwig sure someone has been put in a box and getting it out every time we want to do something a bit tough to make it even tougher I got my banana so happy [Music] foreign [Music] we're on the last few lumps before San Francisco 8 000 feet a little bit downhill which I'm happy [Music] thank you [Music] thank you this is the worst I've felt in Journey was not really with a wind chill so I'm actually [Applause] but he's got his alien and he's got his duck and he's got his dad so he's really happy [Music] um lovely bit of ah mountain biking for the final two miles of probably our hardest day of the trip oh it's better and better resorted to walking the bikes up because 50 kg bikes Upper Mountain slope don't do very well it's horrible I'm not cycling up oh this hard [Music] by fall we're here now hey 67. and also final day of the trip just a short one for a final one 15 miles across the Golden Gate Bridge and into San Francisco to complete it's absolutely Epic three-month Adventure across the US we've just come over a rising in front of us is the Pacific Ocean [Music] a bit mixed at the moment [Music] what are those who achieve yeah it's all a bit weird [Music] [Music] just cycling over the Golden Gate Bridge four thousand miles done five to go [Music] into the final 2.5 miles and my chains come off coming up the hill [Music] Joshua and his Jinx bike again we've got two miles to do and he insists on getting the chain off one day we'll end this too [Music] thank you we've made it to the Pacific Ocean probably what a trip it's been 15 states over 4 000 miles and 67 days of cycling and we're finally here not quite the sunny California that we'd hoped for but you know you can't after everything we started in the rain and the drizzle all the way back in April in New York here we are in the fog in San Francisco definitely a lot fitter than I was three months ago and I think both dad and I have lost a bit of weight learned a lot about ourselves each other our relationship and also about this incredible country so many things we've seen on the road amazing American people that we've met and now this time of this adventure to come to an end and for a new one to definitely start definitely more coming well that's it we've um forged a line across the continent seen some amazing scenery met some incredible people and it's been an unforgettable experience more so for doing with my son yeah what an amazing amazing adventure and it'll be Unforgettable for the rest of our lives fall downhill from here Colorado the road West Rush Hour [Music] I'll find a new hat we're nearly there [Music] [Music] sweetie Garfield the thought of a grinning cap at this stage did make me smile [Music] foreign [Music] thank you

Channel: Josh Kohler

Views: 254,162

Keywords: cycle tour, bike packing, bike tour, veterans, adventure cycling, warmshowers, royalbritishlegion, trek bikes, transamerica, usa trip, usa 2023, bike trip, across USA, california, utah, new york city, san francisco, colorado, kansas

Id: 9wI1OojrSqk

Length: 36min 33sec (2193 seconds)

Published: Sun Sep 17 2023