I like the ACA maps. They have a ton of information and they're durable. I find them a bit difficult to interpret at first because there's so much information crammed into small places. However, in the campground or in restaurants I pore over them at length and find them very useful. I like the routes they choose because they often take you off the main drag to some pretty back roads with less traffic. Down the west coast I'd go with the Kirkendall/Spring book. It's "The Bible".

I almost always cook dinner and first breakfast. I camp in campgrounds, and there aren't usually restaurants nearby. After I've completed a day's ride I don't want to get back on my bike and ride off to a restaurant; I want to be done for the day. I try and find a store as close to the night's stop as possible and carry the food as short a distance as possilbe. I usually cook oatmeal for first breakfast. It's easy and light and pretty filling - though not filling enough, because once I get on the road I usually stop at a restaurant for second breakfast. I always carry a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of of jam. That way I've always got snack food (I'm diabetic so I can't just eat any old thing) and in a pinch I can have a couple of P. B. & J. sandwiches for dinner.

One thing that seems fairly constant among bike tourers is the fact that you eat far more than you do at home. Be prepared for a voracious appetite. It makes it hard for me to travel cheaply, though it's still a lot cheaper than car camping or motel traveling. I'm a big guy, though, with a big appetite. Maybe there are some people who don't get so hungry on tour.