World Heritage Biker

NYC has been great and I couldn’t be happier with the final days of my journey. I’ve ridden up and down Manhattan more times than I can remember and also been through Brooklyn a couple of times. The tour down to Coney Island with its pier, boardwalk, beach and the Atlantic Ocean was a great break from the traffic on Broadway and hustling New Yorkers. This city, like most of the other places I’ve visited during these past 10 weeks, will probably stay in my memory for a very long time – and I also got me a little reminder in case I should forget!

Soon I’m about to leave for the airport to catch the flight that’s going to bring me back to Sweden. It’s a strange feeling, I’ve really gotten used to this way of living and all the everyday things this country has to offer. Everything has been so different from life back in Sweden, still I can’t avoid feeling a little bit home here. This is most certainly not my last visit to the U.S.

I’d like to thank everyone who’s made this journey to what is. All the friendly people I’ve met on the way who have shown such great hospitality and been so helpful and of course everyone who’s followed my adventures on the blog; you’re all witnesses to what I’ve achieved in case anyone should ever doubt!

This is probably one of my last posts for now, I hope you’ve all enjoyed the small insights in all the wonderful things this journey has meant to me. I’m sure I’ll be back with new adventures, anything else would really surprise me and probably some of you too!

I’m in New York! I’ve reached  my final destination and the feeling is indescribable. Yesterday I rode over 120 miles and made it all the way from West Philadelphia to Brooklyn. Most of the way I had company with Jim, a guy I met in Philadelphia who surprisingly wanted to join me for the last part of my journey. After we had said goodbye in Newark, NJ, I went north towards George Washington Bridge; a necessary detour for me to get to Manhattan if I didn’t want to cheat by taking the train or a ferry. I traveled slowly towards downtown Manhattan and made it to Battery Park just in time to see the sunset and enjoy my victory cigar. Not the tastiest cigar I’ve ever had but certainly the best!

I spent the night in Brooklyn before it was time to visit the 12th and last World Heritage Site of my journey: the Statue of Liberty. I viewed the famous Manhattan skyline from Manhattan Bridge in a beautiful sunrise before I rode back to Battery Park and the ferries to Liberty Island. And Lady Liberty did not disappoint me; talking about a powerful symbol! I can only imagine how it must have felt for all of those immigrants that have been welcomed by this giant masterpiece through the years and what it must have meant for them and still mean for their ancestors. A truly worthy ending of my adventure!

Tomorrow I’ll probably try to ride to Long Beach or something to experience the Atlantic Ocean for real. Or maybe I’ll just stay here and keep on exploring Manhattan, I don’t really care. Cause I’m finally done!

As much as Lincoln Memorial and Gettysburg are symbols of the ending of slavery and the reunion of the nation, Independence Hall (11th World Heritage Site of my journey) and the Liberty Bell are symbols of the revolution and the creating of this nation. I’ve spent all day riding the historic streets of Philadelphia and I started with the famous stairs of the Museum of Art, just like the true Rocky-fan that I am. I then went to Eastern State Penitentiary; the worlds first prison of its kind. It was abandoned in the 1970s after holding prisoners for almost 150 years and now offers some of the most horrifying and haunted views that you can find.

I finally ended up in the Independence Park area; the most historic area in the country and home to some of the worlds strongest symbols of liberty and freedom. It certainly gives you a perspective of how different times where only two and a half centuries ago and the impacts of these events on history.

Tomorrow I’ll leave for New York City, hopefully I’ll make it to the Statue of Liberty – the 12th and last World Heritage Site – and Jersey City before sunset. You’ll certainly hear more from me then!

There’s something almost religious about Washington, DC – if liberty and democracy counts as religion! The city is so much more than just a capital; it’s so full of symbols of the American nation and its history that itself has become a part of history. Nobody can deny another human being its birthrights in front of the Lincoln Memorial and this have been taken advantage of by many freedom-fighters in this last century.

Washington sure felt magic, but in order to do my best to extend my journey as much as possible I decided to take one last detour: Gettysburg. Inspired by Lincoln’s famous words of the Gettysburg Address I rode through Maryland and all the way up to Pennsylvania in less than one day. And Gettysburg is certainly a reminder of the struggles this nation has been through: both the people and its leaders.

Now I’m going to head towards Philadelphia, I promise! With about 200 miles left on my journey I’m already starting to miss all of this. Better try to enjoy this last part as much as possible.

How cool wouldn’t it be to have a World Heritage Site dedicated to your honor? Cause that’s pretty much what Monticello is; a place where two of Thomas Jefferson’s greatest accomplishments are in focus: the declaration of independence and his beloved estate. I don’t know which one he’s most proud of, no matter what they’re both amazing creations. It’s hard to not be impressed by this man: he was self-taught in most of his skills, he was very open to influences from other countries and cultures and despite a marvelous career he still managed put his passion for life at first.

Myself, I’m in Fredericksburg, VA and pretty close to the point where the Potomac meets the Atlantic Ocean; the coast to coast ride is almost completed in other words! But I still have two World Heritage Sites left to see, Independence Hall in Philadelphia and the Statue of Liberty in NYC is awaiting me.

Wow, the Appalachians sure are hilly! And not only the Blue Ridge Parkway which I abandoned after about a 100 miles. It was certainly beautiful but even mile after mile of the most scenic roads you can imaging will eventually bore you. So I decided to head down to the valleys instead which I don’t regret for one second; swishing by on the downhills  in the sunset while listening to live banjo picking from porches along the road will probably stick in my memory forever!

Yesterday was Memorial Day which I honored by visiting the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, a small town between Roanoke and Lynchburg here in Virginia that suffered more casualties per capita than any other American town during World War 2. The memorial was beautiful and Memorial Day made it even more special.

I just arrived to Charlottesville, VA and soon I’m about to visit Monticello; Thomas Jefferson’s estate and the 10th World Heritage Site of my journey. It feels like I’m getting closer to my final destination!

I never thought I would say it but it feels great to be back in the mountains! Tennessee has certainly lived up to my high expectations; the roads haven’t been as scenic since I left the Southwest. The high-point (literally) was of course Great Smoky Mountains, the 9th World Heritage Site of my journey, but before I got there I experienced some strange things.

It started when I approached Pigeon Forge and I was met by a miniature-Vegas without all the casinos. I thought that I should visit what had caused this commotion so close to a national park and after a short detour I arrived to Dollywood. Since I wasn’t in the mood to spend $50 to spend the day at a theme-park I continued toward Gatlinburg. And a theme-park was just what I found, the entire town was full of museums, restaurants and commerce – not what I’d expected from the entrance of a World Heritage Site! I paid a quick visit at the Dukes of Hazzard-museum before I entered the national park and it was like night and day; untouched nature and amazing views. After a good climb I reached the New Found Gap at 5 046 ft and now I’m in North Carolina. I’ve just started my travel along the Blue Ridge Parkway and I’m sure that I’ve more amazing views ahead of me – and good climbs!

Kentucky has been really wonderful! I started out in Owensboro with a visit at the International Bluegrass Music Museum, it was here in Kentucky the genre was born and so was its creator, Bill Monroe. I definitely learned some new stuff and I guess it’s time that I finally get that banjo.

I continued further southeast to Mammoth Cave National Park and it was just as impressive as you might expect from the worlds largest cave system. Even though I spent about 4 hours down in the chilliness  (a welcome change from the sun and the heat on the surface) I didn’t discover a fraction of the total 367 miles of tunnels that the cave consist of. Truly amazing!

Soon I’m about to enter Tennessee but I’m still not sure if I’m going to try KFC before I leave Kentucky, it has been almost 4 years since I had chicken the last time!

It turned out that a day off in St. Louis was exactly what I needed. I stayed with a guy named Stuart and his girlfriend who showed great hospitality and I still can’t decide which where best; the pizza or the pancakes.

Stuart accompanied me out the Cahokia Mounds, the 7th World Heritage Site of my journey. It was a little different from the other ancient native american remains that I’ve seen before but still just as beautiful.

Beside that I stopped to photographed the Arch, had a quick visit at the Budweiser Brewery, tasted frozen custard and rode trice through East St Louis – you know, all the typically touristy stuff!

It finally stopped raining and I finally made it to St. Louis! The last few days haven’t provided me with the best weather but despite that I’ve experienced some highlights along Route 66. From Oklahoma City I rode pretty quickly towards Kansas and Missouri, the visit at J.M. Davis Arms & Historical Museum in Claremore wasn’t a welcomed break from the rain but also offered a really interesting exhibition of the worlds largest private gun collection. Talking about a gun-nut!

The highlight in Missouri (so far) was definitely the Mark Twain National Forest which, despite the rain, felt almost magic! The empty, deserted old highways through this otherwise untouched forest gave a slight impression of nature striking back on human civilization.

Today I’m going to take a day of to see what St. Louis has to offer before I enter “the gateway to the west” (or east in my case) and head south towards Kentucky and Tennessee. And less rain on the rest of the journey would be greatly appreciated!