Join me for some or all of the journey..... I've been dreaming about undertaking an epic bike ride for a couple of years now, keen not to procrastinate any longer - I have my flights booked to fly to Anchorage on 22/06/2013. The trip will take me from Prudhoe Bay in Alaska to Ushuaia in Argentina, taking quieter backroads and as many off road excursions as Ican realistically fit in. Some of the highlights will include: Dalton Highway Icefields Parkway Great Divide (Longest mountain bike route in the world) Sierra Madre Mountains Bolivian Highlands Carretera Austral (Ruta 40) Route choice is still open for discussion should anyone wish to join me on the trip. Distance The trip will be anywhere between 15,000-18,000 miles dependent upon the final route choice, side trips etc. Much of it will be off road, so be prepared to lose the odd filing or two as your teeth chatter about ;-) Time Ideally I'm looking to take a year to complete the journey, its fairly ambitious as most people generally look to take around 18 months to complete the journey and hit the optimum weather windows. Unfortunately this timescale precludes that and therefore it will mean hitting Patagonia in early/late May as the wind increases and conditions become slightly less favourable. I'm up for an adventure; hopefully you are! Budgeting on a rest day a week that gives us around 313 cycling days in the year. Doing some simple maths 18,000 miles/313 cycling days = 57.5 miles per day (daily cycling average) Style Rather than being a beast of burden I'll be undertaking the trip in a lightweight style using a bikepacking set up. Its a compromise I won't be able to take everything and the kitchen sink but I'd prefer to ride more interesting roads and keep the daily mileage up and the tarmac miles down. I intend to wild camp, couchsurf and use low budget accomodation along the way that's not to say the odd hotel is out of the question. Budget In terms of overall cost I'd suggest a budget between 10-12k for the trip. This breaks down as: Flights (UKto Anchorage, Anchorage to Deadhorse) - 1K Kit (dependent upon the individual)- 5k to kit yourself up from scratch bike, luggage, clothing Daily Living - 5K based upon a daily budget of $20/day. Flights to return home - ? Me First up I'm a relaxed, easy going guy. I've had an idea of an epic bike trip on my mind for a few years now and I'm keen to get out there and do it. I'm working to a 12 month time window as Ihave commitments at home which i need to return for. I'm open, honest and above all flexible therefore Idon't expect us to rigidly stick to the daily miles at the expense of fun, relaxation and the odd beer along the way. I come from an outdoor background and race bikes, run and adventure race on a regular basis and just generally enjoy being outside. If you want to know more www.mikehowarth.co.uk or look me up on Twitter or Facebook you'll get the idea.